Al-Ardabili’s Grammatical Critiques of al-Zamakhshari in His Commentary on *al-Unmudhaj*

Abstract

   This research examines the grammatical comments and corrections (al-ta‘qībāt wa-al-istidrākāt) made by Imam Jamal al-Din al-Ardabili (d. 647 AH) in his commentary on the text Al-Anmudhaj by Imam Jar Allah al-Zamakhshari (d. 538 AH). It aims to uncover their nature, classify them, analyze their grammatical and educational dimensions, and demonstrate their alignment with the fundamentals of Arabic grammar and the opinions of grammarians. The research adopted a descriptive-analytical methodology, supported by induction and comparison, by tracing grammatical issues within the core text and its commentary, analyzing them, and comparing the comments with those found in various grammatical sources, foremost among them Al-Mufassal by al-Zamakhshari and Sharh Qatr al-Nada wa-Ball al-Sada by Ibn Hisham. For the induction of the issues, the study relied on the edition of Sharh al-Anmudhaj edited by Hasan Shadhili Farhoud, restricting itself strictly to grammatical issues rather than morphological ones.

   The research comprises an introduction, a preface introducing Al-Anmudhaj and its commentator, three main sections addressing al-Ardabili’s comments on nouns, verbs, and particles, and a conclusion summarizing key findings and recommendations. The research seeks to highlight al-Ardabili’s grammatical persona as a thorough commentator and astute critic, reveal his methodology in engaging with the core text and completing its rulings, and clarify the scientific relationship between the author's conciseness and the commentator's treatment, thereby contributing to the study of scholars' efforts in serving the Arabic grammatical heritage.

   The study concluded that al-Ardabili’s comments were not merely sectarian objections, but varied between completing what was omitted, restricting absolute rulings, supplying missing conditions and categories, as well as contextualizing al-Zamakhshari’s methodology and excusing his conciseness by explaining the necessity of easing the learning process for beginners.