Stylistics Studies of the Holy Quran

Stylistics Studies of the Holy Quran

The classification of social units in the tribal system in the Holy Quran with an etymological approach

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
fatemeh Alian nejadi 1
Kavoos Rohi Barandaq 2
Hamed Khani 3
Abolfazl Shakori 4
1 Ph.D. student of Sciences and Quran and Hadith, Faculty of Literature and Humanities, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran
2 Associate Professor, Department of Quranic and Hadith Sciences, Faculty of Literature and Humanities, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran
3 Associate Professor of Theology Department, Gorgan Branch, Islamic Azad University, Gorgan, Iran
4 Associate Professor, Department of Political Science, Faculty of Literature and Humanities, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran
10.22034/sshq.2024.188184
Abstract
Social life in Arab societies from pre-Islamic periods relied on a tribal system, and internal relationships among its members were based on kinship and relative relationships. In this system, a specific division of social units is observed, both within tribes and in higher-level units such as "sha'ab" (branches), and it has often been assumed that these designations are primarily indicative of kinship. The Quran employs terms like "sha'ub," "qabila," "faseela," "raht," and "ashira" to describe these social structures, and this study aims to explore the relationship between these tribal divisions and how the multiplicity of words of the tribal system can be understood through etymological analysis. The focus of this study is on the etymological analysis of the words of the tribal system using a descriptive-analytical approach with the aim of defining common meanings and semantic differences in tribal divisions to show the diversity and lexical importance of these infrastructural principles. This investigation can contribute to a better understanding of the fundamental concepts and foundations of these structures in Arab societies and provide insights into the relationship between these divisions and the associated lexical differences. The primary hypothesis of this study is that the core meaning of these words within these structures refers to groups and communities, and the existence of various branches and subcategories within the tribe serves particular group-related functions, depicting activities and objectives of kinship groups, from small to large, in Arab culture.
Keywords
Society in the Quran
cultural anthropology
social classification
kin
kinship relations
historical etymology
tribe

Subjects

Holy Quran
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Stylistics Studies of the Holy Quran
Volume 8, Issue 1 - Serial Number 14
Eighth year the first number. fourteenth in a row. Spring and Summer 2024
April 2024
Pages 98-119

  • Receive Date 08 July 2023
  • Revise Date 15 November 2023
  • Accept Date 22 January 2024
  • Publish Date 20 March 2024