Perceptions of Vowels and Consonants in Arabic and English: Implications for Translators and Dictionary Users
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17507/tpls.1306.27Keywords:
consonant clusters, syllable, nunation, prolongation, doubling soundsAbstract
This paper investigates Arabic terms used as equivalents for English consonants and vowels. The Arabic terms, namely harf sakin (consonants) and harakat (vowels), are specifically tailored for the study of Arabic linguistic items. In bilingual dictionaries, Arabic terms do not truly reflect the linguistic realities represented by English vowels and consonants. The aim of the study is therefore to identify the linguistic realities that the Arabic terms represent within the Arabic linguistic environment. A sketch of contrastive analysis of vowels and consonants in English and Arabic helps in clarifying the linguistic meanings, which are absent from bilingual dictionaries. The findings of the study show that Arabic lexical equivalents are simply sense- indicators and thus not sufficient, as the totality of the conceptual meaning of the item is not provided in bilingual dictionaries. The study concludes by briefly discussing some of the study’s implications for translators and other dictionary users.
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