This book is a comprehensive reference on the history of Arabic Language and script, which goes beyond the sole discussion of technical matters. It studies objectively the evidence presented by modern-day western archeological discoveries together with the evidence presented by the indispensable scholarly work and research of the past Islamic Arab civilization era. The book scrutinizes modern western theories about the history of the Arabs and Arabic language and script in connection with the roles played by Western Near East scholarship, religion and colonial history in the formation of current belief system vs. Arab history and language, which is an essential step to study this correlated and complex topic objectively. In his book, the author explores the relevant facts of history and geography as crucial defining factors in the study of history of Arabic language and script. He offers a brief balanced account on the important topic of Muhammad leadership and Islam in the formation of Arabia, and investigates the Quran as a key evidence and reference of the Arabic language and script. As a research tool, this book presents in-depth tracings and readings of the most relevant inscriptions and the findings accumulated by the author over one and a half year of research. Particularly, it presents new comprehensive readings of the important Umm al-Jimal and al-Namarah Nabataean Arabic inscriptions. The al-Namarah stone which was discovered by French archeologist Dussaud in 1901 (displayed today on a wall in the Louvre Museum of Paris) was assumed for more than a century to be the tombstone of the prominent pre-Islamic Arab king, Umru' al-Qays bin 'Amru. After re-tracing and re-reading its complex inscription, the author concluded it was actually about a previously unknown personality named 'Akdi, possibly a high ranking Arab soldier in the Roman army or an Arab tribal leader, not the burial stone of King Umru' al-Qays or even about him. Similarly, the author proves beyond doubt that the important Umm al-Jimal Nabataean Arabic inscription was not the burial stone of Faihru bin Sali, but Faru' bin Sali. The two inscriptions are among only four Nabataean inscriptions believed by Western scholars to be written in the old Arabic language. These are referenced heavily today as evidence linking the Arabic script to the Nabataean Aramaic script. Utilizing classic Arabic and grammar tools and challenging their accuracy at times, the author findings in this book could potentially amend several historical and linguistic facts as told today by history textbooks. In his book, the author, a known Arabic type designer, studies with an investigative expert eye the early shapes of the pre-Islamic Arabic script and compares them to those of Musnad Arabic and late Nabataean Aramaic inscriptions, in addition to those of the early Islamic Arabic manuscripts and papyri. He concludes that the early Arabic script was not an evolved Nabataean script, but likely an independently derived script of the old Musnad Arabic script, with clear Nabataean influence. Although this book is conceived as a reference tool for scholars and researchers, other readers may find its topics and captivating arguments valid enough to debate and to study further. All chapters can be read independently. There are more than 40 figures and illustrations to aid the reader throughout the book. The first two chapters are intended as introductory essays regarding the history of Arabia (people and language) and the role of Western scholarship. To facilitate the selective and independent reading of the last three chapters, which presents the author research findings and conclusions, the book included (in addition to the chapter-specific references already offered throughout the whole book) chapter-specific introductions and conclusions.

This book is about learning the phrases and sentences and getting to grips with saying the language without going into the grammar first. In that way, you can have fun learning how to say certain things and also you do not come up against stumbling blocks and frustrations. The idea behind this thinking was because when I was a child, my parents used to tell me words before they taught me how to learn the alphabet, so I thought that was a better way round: get used to the language first. I wrote this book to how I thought the student of the language could assimilate and understand it and get a basic grounding of the language. I thought to myself, what was the best thing to learn first, for instance; what the differences between masculine and feminine are; what does the accent mean, so I put this information in the chapter header pages so then I could use more space to actually learn the language. I have also put in a conceptual stage, so then you can think about the language for instance. English has quite a few routes to it, like Latin, so quite a few words are very similar, even though the accent can throw us off. It sounds like proper English for instance: disgraceful, which means scandaloso in Italian, which is nearly the same in English. I believe there is no right or wrong way to learn; it depends on what you want it for. You may want to practise it on holidays, or you may want to read the Italian newspapers, so sometimes you do not necessarily have to learn the alphabet or the grammar. I like to read newspapers on holidays and watch films in Italian; that is why I wanted to learn it. It can also be useful in attaining knowledge for quizzes. The only good criticism is a constructive one, not a destructive one. -Matthew Lawry. I hope you enjoy this book as much as I have in writing it.

Stimmt! for National 4 has been expertly developed to help students achieve their potential in National 4 German. Stimmt! for National 4 German helps to develop listening, speaking, reading and writing skills and includes translation, understanding authentic and literary texts and spontaneous speaking. Cultural content and a focus on 'learning something new' help to give students a sense of purpose and bring language learning to life. A 'building-blocks' approach to language and grammar helps students to use language independently across different contexts. Audio files to accompany our Student Books are sold separately.

CD-ROM to accompany START: An Introduction to the Sounds and Writing Systems of Russian.

Viva! for National 4 has been expertly developed to help students achieve their potential in National 4 Spanish. Viva! for National 4 Spanish helps to develop listening, speaking, reading and writing skills and includes translation, understanding authentic and literary texts and spontaneous speaking. Cultural content and a focus on 'learning something new' help to give students a sense of purpose and bring language learning to life. A 'building-blocks' approach to language and grammar helps students to use language independently across different contexts. Audio files to accompany our Student Books are sold separately.

Focusing on the introductions to research articles in a variety of disciplines, the author uses appraisal theory to analyze how writers bring together multiple resources to develop their positions in the flow of discourse. It will be most useful for researchers new to appraisal, and to EAP teachers.

This volume addresses the various and highly topical controversies surrounding religious television by examining its history, structure, content, viewship, and social impact. It represents a compilation of original essays written by the world's leading scholars, regulators, authorities, and watchdogs of religious television. Each controversy is addressed from a wide range of perspectives. The result is a most interesting exchange of ideas and ideologies: the presentation of empirical data, theology and learned opinion, and an assortment of insightful conclusions.

This volume explores how linguistic research can support the teaching and learning of Chinese as a second language. It responds to a rapidly growing interest in the Chinese language all over the world, and answers the need for a strong research background for the discipline. Without that, Chinese language learning remains only a unique experience and/or a useful education challenge. The first section explores crucial issues about the structure and use of Chinese as a Second Language such as word-order, noun-noun compounds, meaning-making in writing, pronunciation and stress and tone. The second section explores the learning of Chinese by seeking answer to questions about difficulties, expectations, beliefs, use of corpus and learning how to express necessity. The authors coming from eight different countries demonstrate how existing knowledge has been generated, bring together different lines of research, point out tendencies in the field, demonstrate and explain what tools and methods researchers can use to address major issues in the field, and give direction to what future research should focus on.

The monograph is devoted to the notion of strategic intervention and its application in the foreign language classroom, in particular with reference to teaching grammar structures. The first four chapters, which are theoretical in nature, address such concepts as form-focused instruction, language learning strategies and strategies-based instruction. The last chapter provides insight into the results of a study investigating the grammar learning strategies employed by advanced learners of English. Additionally, the chapter presents the views of foreign language teachers on the idea of introducing strategy training in the foreign language classroom. The book closes with the discussion concerning the implementation of strategy training and its value in teaching target language grammar.

Language acquisition is a human endeavor par excellence. As children, all human beings learn to understand and speak at least one language: their mother tongue. It is a process that seems to take place without any obvious effort. Second language learning, particularly among adults, causes more difficulty. The purpose of this series is to compile a collection of high-quality monographs on language acquisition. The series serves the needs of everyone who wants to know more about the problem of language acquisition in general and/or about language acquisition in specific contexts.

The Routledge Course in Modern Mandarin Chinese is a two-year undergraduate course for students with no prior background in Chinese study which takes students from complete beginner to post-intermediate level. Designed to build a strong foundation in both the spoken and written language it develops all the basic skills such as pronunciation, character writing, word use and structures, while placing strong emphasis on the development of communicative skills. Each level of the course consists of a textbook and workbook, available separately in simplified or traditional character editions. A companion website will provide expanded listening files and a broad range of resources for students and teachers. The benefits of this course include: focus on the long-term retention of vocabulary, characters and structures by reiterating structures and vocabulary throughout the book series; carefully selected and staged introduction of characters with staged removal of pinyin to ensure recognition and use of characters; clear and jargon-free explanations of use and structures, that are easy for students and teachers to understand; extensive workbook exercises for homework, independent study, and classroom use focusing on all language skills and modalities including a vast inventory of carefully structured exercises focusing on listening comprehension, reading for information, and writing for communication;an extensive inventory of classroom activities that guide students to develop communication-based speaking and listening skills; a list of communication goals and key structures for each lesson allowing the student to assess progress; cultural notes explaining the context of the dialogues; language FAQs explaining aspects of Chinese language as they relate to the content and vocabulary in the lesson; storyline following a group of students studying in China from Europe, North America and East Asia, making the book attractive to a variety of students and facilitating the introduction of Chinese culture; full-color text design for the textbook and carefully matched designs for the traditional and simplified books, allowing for easy cross-reference The course is also fully supported by an interactive companion website. The website contains a wealth of additional resources for both teachers and students. Teachers will find lesson plans in both English and Mandarin, providing a weekly schedule and overall syllabus for fall and spring, as well as activities for each lesson and answer keys. Students will be able to access downloadable character practice worksheets along with interactive pronunciation, vocabulary and character practice exercises. All the audio material necessary for the course is also available onliine and conveniently linked on screen to the relevant exercises for ease-of-use.

This is an innovative book of exercises and language tasks for all learners of Italian, which can be used independently or alongside Modern Italian Grammar. Divided into three sections, this highly useful text includes: exercises based on essential grammatical structures everyday functions practice such as making introductions and expressing needs realistic role plays in short scenes, set in a range of different contexts. Implementing feedback from its predecessor, this updated second edition features exercises graded on a three-point scale according to their level of difficulty and cross-referencing to the Modern Italian Grammar for each. Also containing a comprehensive answer key for checking progress, this is a complete reference work suitable for both class-use and self-study.

Haina ia mai ana ka puana. This familiar refrain, sometimes translated ""Let the echo of our song be heard,"" appears among the closing lines in many nineteenth-century chants and poems. From earliest times, the chanting of poetry served the Hawaiians as a form of ritual celebration of the things they cherished-the beauty of their islands, the abundance of wild creatures that inhabited their sea and air, the majesty of their rulers, and the prowess of their gods. Commoners as well as highborn chiefs and poet-priests shared in the creation of the chants. These haku mele, or ""composers,"" the commoners especially, wove living threads from their own histoic circumstances and everyday experiences into the ongoing oral tradition, as handed down from expert to pupil, or from elder to descendant, generation after generation. This anthology embraces a wide variety of compositions: it ranges from song-poems of the Pele and Hiiaka cycle and the pre-Christian Shark Hula for Ka-lani-opuu to postmissionary chants and gospel hymns. These later selections date from the reign of Ka-mehameha III (1825-1854) to that of Queen Liliu-o-ka-lani (1891-1893) and comprise the major portion of the book. They include, along with heroic chants celebrating nineteenth-century Hawaiian monarchs, a number of works composed by commoners for commoners, such as Bill the Ice Skater, Mr. Thurston's Water-Drinking Brigade, and The Song of the Chanter Kaehu. Kaehu was a distinguished leper-poet who ended his days at the settlement-hospital on Molokai.