Linguistic Research according to Ahmed Al-Mutawakel

Abstract

Many modern Arab linguists have sought, through the methodology of re-reading the ancient Arab linguistic heritage, according to the perspective of modern Western linguistic research, to re-explore that heritage, to have a new understanding of it, and to work on developing it, with the aim of investing it in building new perceptions and new linguistic research projects that are suitable for the language user at the level of his/her various sociolinguistic dealings. This is what can be found in the works of Ahmed Al-Mutawakel, who focused on holding the dialogue between linguistic heritage and western linguistic modernity, from which he chose what was brought about by the theory of functional grammar, establishing, through this, the functional Arabic language. The latter summarizes his research method, and reveals his linguistic thinking that conceals a set of principles. This study aimed to find out those principles and to clarify the most prominent characteristics that distinguished Al-Mutawakel’s linguistic research.