Neglected Nominal Patterns in Arabic A Study of the Causes and Rationale

Abstract

This study addresses the phenomenon of neglected nominal patterns in Arabic. It aims to identify the main reasons that led morphologists to rule some of these nominal patterns as "neglected" and to exclude them from those actually used by the Arabs. 

The research is organized into three sections: 

The first section is dedicated to defining the concept of "neglect" and its terminology among grammarians. 

The second section examines the nominal patterns that were neglected due to phonetic heaviness, such as the heaviness of the pattern itself and the difficulty of pronouncing it, the occurrence of consecutive or differing vowels within the pattern, or its deviation from the regular patterns established for triliteral, quadriliteral, and quinquiliteral structures. 

The third section is devoted to patterns that were ruled as neglected due to the lack of a parallel/analogous form. It also illustrates the impact of this on the analysis of several words, such as ghizwiyt, manjanīq, and uskufah, among others. 

The study concludes that the neglect of these patterns was not based on subjective preference, but rather on well-established scientific principles grounded in attestation (al-sama') and analogy (al-qiyas), and on adherence to the attested structures of Arabic without deviation.