A comparative study of meaning and meaning in the likes of Kurdish ilamite and Arabic

Abstract

. IntroductionLiterature is the manifestation of beliefs, thoughts, practices, and rites of nations, reflected in proverbs as the major ancient part. In this sense, proverbs are regarded as short and pithy sayings that have been refined from time immemorial and passed down to us. These concise statements have been continuously exchanged as cultural and literary commodities between nations and tribes due to their moral-semantic features as well as brevity and easier memorization. Considering its proximity to Iraq and the longest land borders, Ilam Province, in western Iran, has been always the hub of commercial, cultural, and literary exchanges between Ilami Kurds and the Arabs. The interactions of both languages, other than poetry, have been also exhibited in popular culture, including proverbs as the most important part. Therefore, this study aimed to review Ilami Kurdish and Arabic proverbs to clarify their verbal-semantic commonalities and differences through a descriptive-analytical approach using a library method. The study results revealed that some of the proverbs in both languages had equivalent form and content, raising the suspicion of translation in the audience, and some others had only semantic commonalities, resulting from common human experiences or imports attributable to geographic, cultural, and religious proximity.1.1. Statement of the ProblemProverbs are known as concise moral and sometimes melodic expressions that encapsulate the experiences of nations. They are also the oldest part of literature devised by humans and employed in dialogues before the invention of writing and poetry (Parsa, 2015: 22). This large and important part of popular literature sometimes finds its way into another culture, language, and nationality due to migration, translation, or imports owing to socio-cultural or even geographic proximity. Since Ilami Kurds have had and still have long-standing neighborhoods and cultural ties with the Iraqi Arabs, some of the cultural and literary interactions between the two languages ​​can be traced back to their proverbs. Referring to the books, Ilami Kurdish Proverbs (Sohrabnejad, 2013) and al-Amsal v-al-Hekam (A Collection of Arabic Proverbs and Maxims) (Harirchi, 1992), this study compared similar proverbs in two categories, namely, (a) proverbs with equivalent form and content, and (b) proverbs with shared content but distinct form, and then analyzed them as much as possible using some examples.1.2. Significance of the StudyDue to the proximity of Ilami Kurds to Iraqi Arabs, their long-standing neighborhood and cultural ties, as well as the unique features of proverbs such as conciseness, meaningfulness, rhetoric and advisory features, easy memorization, and transferability from one culture to another, etc., the suspicion of cultural interactions remain strong in this part of popular literature. Since no work has so far comparatively examined the mutual effects of Ilami Kurdish and Arabic proverbs in terms of form and content, the need for the present study doubled.1.3. Research reviewAlthough proverbs are derived from popular language and culture and are mainly oral, today, with the help of researchers and the printing industry, the work of collecting and publishing Kurdish and Arabic proverbs has been done to aid scholars refer to such sources for literary, linguistic, and cultural studies, including the following ones:The book entitled A Comparative Study of Kurdish and Persian Proverbs (Parsa, 2015), in which the author quotes 3,000 proverbs from Twelve Thousand Persian Proverbs and Thirty Thousand Equivalents (Shakoorzadeh Boloori, 2000) and Kurdish Proverbs and Sayings (Fatahi Ghazi, 1996) based on sampling and a comparative study.The article entitled “A comparative study of proverbs in Persian and Arabic in terms of content, form, and style” (Zarkoob & Amini, 2013), published in the Journal of Studies on Arabic Language and Literature Translations.The article entitled “Woman in the mirror of Kurdish and Arabic proverbs” (Khezeli & Salimi, 2016), published in the Journal of Comparative Literature of Shahid Bahonar University of KermanA master’s thesis entitled “A Comparative Study of Arabic and Sorani Kurdish Proverbs” fulfilled by Mostafaei-Rad (2012) at Kurdistan University, Iran.The book entitled al-Majani al-Hadith (Nowresideh & Zeighami, 2013), reflecting on the Persian equivalents of some Arabic proverbs in some parts.The book entitled Common Themes in Persian and Arabic Literature (Damadi, 2000).The book entitled Kalhor-Nameh (Mohammadi, 2012), examining some common proverbs in the city of Ivan-e-Gharb in Ilam province, Iran.2.MethodologyThis library study using an analytical-descriptive method was thus performed based on referring to the books entitled al-Hekam v-al-Amsal al-Arabi (Homosi, 1993), al-Amsal v-al-Hekam (A Collection of Arabic Proverbs and Maxims) (Harirchi, 1992), Common Themes in Persian and Arabic Literature (Damadi, 2000), and al-Majani al-Hadith (Nowresideh & Zeighami, 2013), as well as the books of Ilami Kurdish Proverbs (Sohrabnejad, 2013) and Kalhor-Nameh (Mohammadi, 2012). The study was to compare the Arabic and Ilami Kurdish proverbs in the mentioned works in order to extract the common ones. On this basis, about 200 proverbs (namely, 87 Arabic and 110 Ilami Kurdish ones) were indexed. Following reviews and analyses, the research files were grouped into two categories, i.e., (a) proverbs with equivalent form and content, and (b) proverbs with shared content but distinct form. At the final stage, 35 Arabic proverbs and 35 Ilami Kurdish ones were selected and compared.  DiscussionIn this study, after reviews and analyses, the data were classified into two categories, viz. (a) proverbs with equivalent form and content and (b) proverbs with shared content but distinct form, and then compared.3.1. Proverbs with Equivalent Form and ContentSome proverbs in Ilami Kurdish and Arabic with similar content and usages were also endowed with verbal commonalities. These proverbs were probably the product of translations from one language into another. Moreover, geographic proximity and the presence of the Arabs and Ilami Kurds on both sides of the land borders as well as their mastery of both languages could strengthen the probability that these individuals had managed to associate the verbal equivalents of the proverbs in their minds to express them and consequently to provide parallel translations for them. What put more emphasis on this idea was the existence of proverbs whose form had numerous structures, indicating that different people had made use of a special circle of their own words to translate such proverbs and had even interpreted them based on their tastes and syntax. Example 1Arabicبلغَ السّکینُ العظمَ (Nowresideh & Zeighami, 2013; 374)Ilami Kurdishkârd wa seqân ŕasiPersianکارد به استخوان رسید (Sohrabnejad, 2013; 76) EnglishIt means at the end of one’s tether. Semantic matching: Both proverbs represent reaching thresholds in the face of difficult and unhappy events.              Verbal matching: The words in the Arabic proverbs are quite similar to those in Ilami Kurdish cases. For instance:ArabicالسکینالعظمبلغIlami KurdishKârdseqân ŔasiPersianکارداستخوانرسیدنEnglishKnifeBoneReach Example 2Arabicالکلامُ یجرُّ الکلامَ  (Nowresideh & Zeighami, 2013; 376)Ilami Kurdishqesya, qesya dyârêPersianحرف حرف می­آورد (Sohrabnejad, 2013; 137) EnglishIt means one word leads to another. Semantic matching: They mean one word leads to another.Verbal matching: Both proverbs are literally equivalent. For example:ArabicالکلامیجرIlami KurdishQesyaDyârêPersianحرفمی آوردEnglishWordleads to Example 3Arabicیَسرقُ الکُحلَ  مِن العَین (Homosi, 1993; 283)Ilami Kurdishsÿvarmeg la ĉaw dezêPersianسرمه را از چشم می­دزدد (Mohammadi, 2000; 89) EnglishIt means being skillful. Semantic matching: Both proverbs have the same semantic implications for ingenuity and arrogance in action. Verbal matching: The words of the two proverbs are literal translations. For instance:Arabicیَسرقُالکُحلَمِن العَینIlami KurdishDezêsÿvarmegla ĉawPersianمی دزددسرمهاز چشمEnglishStealKohlfrom eye 3.2. Proverbs with Shared Content but Distinct FormConcerning the comparative study of the Arabic and Ilami Kurdish proverbs, there were cases with shared content and usages, but no verbal commonalities. This group of proverbs could be the result of common human experiences or exchanges attributable to geographic, cultural, and religious proximity. As proverbs had no verbal similarities in this section, verbal matching was omitted. For instance: Example 4Arabicمَقتل ُالرَّجُلِ بینَ فَکَّیهِ (Homosi, 1993; 184)Ilami Kurdishzewân pâsewâne saraPersianزبان، نگهبان سر انسان است  (Sohrabnejad, 2013; 118)EnglishIt means not letting your tongue cut your throat. This proverb is reminiscent of the words by Imam Ali (AS) saying “المرء مخبوء تحت لسانه”, which means a man is hidden under his tongue. Semantic matching: There is a need to avoid prattling. Example 5Arabicإیَّاکَ أعنِی وَ اسمَعِی یا جَارةُ (Nowresideh & Zeighami, 2013; 380)Ilami Kurdishwaÿwla wa tenem xasüra guš betakenPersianعروس! باتوهستم، مادرزن تو گوش بده (Sohrabnejad, 2013; 172)EnglishIt means to beat someone to frighten another. Semantic matching: It refers to addressing someone indirectly. Example 6Arabicضَرَبَ العصفورَین بحجر (Nowresideh & Zeighami, 2013; 380)Ilami Kurdishde pał wa yaÿ tirPersianدو گنجشک را با یک سنگ زد(یک تیر و دو نشان) (Sohrabnejad, 2013; 109)EnglishIt means to kill two birds with one stone.Semantic matching: It means benefiting from a single action and achieving multiple goals.  ConclusionProverbs contain a major ancient part of cultures and civilizations of nations, which are the products of their artistic tastes or sociocultural exchanges. Geographic proximity and socio-economic interactions by Ilami Kurds with their Iraqi counterparts have further led to a cultural mix manifested in Ilami Kurdish and Arabic proverbs. Accordingly, there are shared proverbs in both languages, discussed into two categories in terms of semantic and verbal matching as follows:Proverbs with equivalent form and content: This category was probably the product of the literal translation of words from one language into another.Proverbs with shared content but distinct form: This group of proverbs could be the result of common human experiences or exchanges due to geographic, cultural, and religious proximity, in which content and usages were close together. proximit