Lexical Synonyms in The Holy Qur'an and Their Translations: A Case Study

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International Journal of Arabic-English Studies (IJAES) Vol.

13, 2012

Lexical Synonyms in the Holy Qur’an and their Translations: A


Case Study

Samia Muhsen Al-Jabri*


Umm Al-Qura University

Abstract: Synonymy is one of the fundamental linguistic phenomena influencing the


structure of lexicon. This paper examines the intricate nature of synonymy in an attempt
to investigate its problematic nature in relation to translation. Types of synonyms are
examined, with special emphasis paid to the translation of synonyms in the Holy Qur’an,
where the translator is expected to achieve a high level of accuracy in rendering the
exact meaning of the lexical items. The main focus of the study is on the translation of
the near synonyms of the Arabic lexical item 'khawf' (‫( )ﺧﻮف‬meaning 'fear') within the
Holy Qur’an. In this comparative descriptive study, componential analysis is used to
evaluate the semantic aspects of the synonymous lexical items. The meaning of each
lexical item is also analyzed according to its context in the verses of the Holy Qur’an.
The study is limited to three translations: those of Pickthall, Yusuf Ali and Shakir. It
highlights the challenges that Qur’an translators encounter in the translation of near
synonyms. It also aims to enhance the field of Qur’an translations with suggestions for
achieving increased accuracy.

1. Introduction
Every language has a set of semantic relations among its words. Synonymy is
one of the fundamental types of sense relations. Though it has been regarded in
the past two decades as one of the most significant phenomena that influence the
structure of lexicon, it has been given less attention in linguistics, semantics, and
lexicography than the equally fundamental and much studied polysemy
(Edmonds and Hirst 2002:106). Whatever the reasons are, synonymy is one of
the main issues in linguistics and translation that need further attention.
Various points of view have been expressed about its definition, typology
and translation particularly in sensitive texts such as religious or legal texts
where accuracy is required. Synonymy has long been a controversial issue
amongst European and Arab linguists. In the case of Arabic, it is important to
note that this language is characterized by the use of synonymous lexical items.
The richness of synonyms in Arabic can be ascribed to a wide range of factors
which are beyond the scope of the present study. The existence of synonyms is
relevant to Arabic rhetoric, eloquence and figures of speech. There are two
opposing points of view concerning synonymy. The first is to accept the idea
and hence create collections of synonyms. Al-’sma‘i (216/831), for instance, has
compiled a list of seventy names for 'stones' in Arabic; others have collated fifty
names for 'sword' whilst others have documented five hundred names for 'lion'
and one hundred names for 'snake' (Al-Munajid 2007:36). The second group of

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Al-Jabri Lexical Synonyms in the Holy Qur'an and …

scholars reject the notion of synonymy outright, claiming that language contains
no synonyms. Ibn Al-’arabi (231/845) and Ibn-Faris (395/1004) maintain that it
is illogical to have two or more words in a language with one reference. They
also assert that the different synonymous names compiled in books are not
synonyms, but rather one name with various different attributes (Abdel-Tawab
1987:311). Accordingly, 'the lexical items "‫( "ﺟﻮاد‬fast horse), and "‫"أدهﻢ‬
(completely black horse) are attributes rather than synonyms of "‫( "ﺣﺼﺎن‬horse)
(Shehab 2009:870). The second group of scholars appears to reject the idea of
having complete or absolute synonyms. This is one of the main concerns of
contemporary scholars (Al-Munajid 2007:75-76).
Like Arabic, English is rich in synonyms. Palmer (1981:88) notes that
English tends to have synonyms because it is derived from different linguistic
sources: Anglo-Saxon, French, Latin and Greek. There are two points of view
regarding synonymy: the strict and the flexible. The former denies the existence
of synonymy entirely. The flexible view, on the other hand, maintains that any
two words sharing some semantic properties in common are synonymous (Cruse
1986:270). Edmonds and Hirst (2002:106) claim that synonymy has often been
thought of as a 'non-problem': i.e. that there are either synonyms that are
completely identical in meaning and hence easy to deal with, or there are no
synonyms, in which case 'each word can be handled like any other'. Some
scholars including Palmer (1981), Larson (1984), and Cruse (1986), adopt a
compromise position. They maintain that the phenomenon of synonymy exists
in language, but they also point out that there are no real, identical, absolute or
total synonyms. Cruse (1986:268), for example, notes that absolute synonyms
do not exist at all, and that even if they exist they are extremely uncommon. He
adds that 'there is no obvious motivation for the existence of absolute synonyms
in a language and one would expect either that one of the items would fall into
obsolescence or that a difference in semantic function would develop' (270). He
refines this idea and suggests peripheral traits. Even if absolute synonymy were
possible, pragmatic and empirical arguments show that it would be very rare.
More formally, Clark (1992:172) indicates that language works to eliminate
absolute synonyms. An absolute synonym would either fall into disuse or would
take on a new nuance of meaning. In general, near-synonyms can differ with
respect to any aspect of their meaning, be it: denotational, stylistic, expressive or
structural variation (Cruse 1986:291). In short, those scholars focus their efforts
on the investigation of differences among synonymous lexical items.
From a linguistic perspective, Nida and Taber (1969: 73) define
synonymy in language as 'words which share several (but not all) essential
components and thus can be used to substitute for one another in some (but not
all) contexts without any appreciable difference of meaning in these contexts'.
Cruse (1982: 285) and Lyons (1995:199) have attempted to define near-
synonymy by focusing on 'propositional' meaning. Cruse, for example, contrasts
cognitive synonyms and plesionyms. According to Cruse, the former are words
that, when inter-substituted in a sentence, preserve its truth conditions but may
change the expressive meaning, style, or register of the sentence or may involve

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International Journal of Arabic-English Studies (IJAES) Vol. 13, 2012

different idiosyncratic collocations (e.g. violin and fiddle). By contrast, inter-


substituting the latter changes the truth conditions but still yields semantically
similar sentences (e.g. misty and foggy) (285). The following explanation is
given by Edmonds and Hirst (2002: 107):
Indeed, near-synonyms are pervasive in language; examples are easy to find. Lie,
falsehood, untruth, fib, and misrepresentation, for instance, are near-synonyms of
one another. All denote a statement that does not conform to the truth, but they
differ from one another in fine aspects of their denotation. A lie is a deliberate
attempt to deceive that is a flat contradiction of the truth, whereas a
misrepresentation may be more indirect, as by misplacement of emphasis, an
untruth might be told merely out of ignorance, and a fib is deliberate but relatively
trivial, possibly told to save one's own or another's face (Gove 1984). The words
also differ stylistically; fib is an informal, childish term, whereas falsehood is
quite formal, and untruth can be used euphemistically to avoid some of the
derogatory implications of some of the other terms.

Shiyab (2007) has indicated that the Arabic words 'hisaan'


(‫)ﺣﺼﺎن‬,'faras' (‫)ﻓﺮس‬, 'jawaad' (‫)ﺟﻮاد‬, and 'agarr' (‫ )أﻏﺮ‬stand for the English
word 'horse'. Although these words can be used interchangeably in most
contexts (since they all refer to the word horse), they are not interchangeable in
all contexts. If we take all these words for horse, we may find the following
meanings that are synonymous and used in a context related to that word:

1. The word 'hisaan' has the components of horse and male.


2. The word 'faras' has the components of horse and male or female.
3. The word 'jawaad' has the components of a particular horse, which is
fast, and male or female.
4. The word 'agarr' has the components of a particular horse, which has
a white patch on its forehead and is male or female.

Newmark (1981:101-102), on the other hand, discusses two aspects of


synonymy: synonymy in grammar and lexical synonymy. In the latter, which is
the main focus of our discussion, different lexical items share certain semantic
properties and refer to the same topic. Lőbner (2002:46) indicates that
synonymy is labelled 'total synonymy' in the strict sense, includes all meaning
variants for two polysemous lexemes and also includes all meaning elements,
i.e. descriptive, social and expressive meaning. While this condition is rarely
fulfilled, there are many examples of partial synonymy. Two lexemes may have
one meaning variant in common. For example, 'spectacles' and 'glasses' may
denote the same sort of object worn by people on their noses to improve their
oversight, but 'glasses' may also be the plural of 'glass' in one of its meanings.
The above discussion indicates that synonymous lexical items will not be
identical and that there are plenty of variable aspects amongst them. Therefore,
adopting the notion of near synonyms might be more appropriate, as it
emphasizes the differences and dissimilarities among synonymous lexical items,
which is the main focus of this paper. For our purposes, it is sufficient simply to

9
Al-Jabri Lexical Synonyms in the Holy Qur'an and …

say that we will be examining sets of words that are very similar in meaning but
which in most contexts cannot be inter-substituted without changing some
semantic or pragmatic aspects of the message. Implementation of this has an
impact on the translation of near synonyms. Assuming that synonymous lexical
items are neither identical nor inter-substituted challenges the translator to be
very accurate in finding out the right choice in translation. Accuracy may be
even more essential when dealing with religious texts, where fidelity is of the
utmost importance. This is the main focus of this paper. We aim to investigate
the translation of near synonyms in the Holy Qur’an. Before proceeding, a brief
outline view will be provided of near synonyms in the Holy Qur’an.

2. Near-synonyms in the Holy Qur’an


The holy book of Islam is held by Muslim scholars to be inimitable not only in
terms of its content but also in its language. The Qur’an, as it has been
maintained, embodies linguistic and literary beauty which exceeds anything of
human origin. The language of the Holy Qur’an combines all the features of
perfection and beauty, whether in the choice of words in a sentence, the
grammatical structures, or the rhetorical expressions. This is achieved in such a
way that it presents the most elevated degree of accuracy in expressing
meanings, achieving the aim of the utmost persuasion and phonetic enjoyment,
affecting feelings, and arousing resolution.
The Holy Qur’an has a number of lexical items that are related in
meaning. Various points of view have been proposed concerning the existence
of synonyms or near synonyms in the Holy Quran. Al-Munajid (2007:109) has
indicated that, like linguists, scholars of Qur’an studies and exegesis have
different points of view concerning synonyms. Some accept the idea of having
synonyms in the Holy Qur’an, whilst others reject the idea completely. Al-
Munajid notes that each lexical item in the Holy Qur’an is selected precisely to
convey a certain meaning different from other related lexical items. He believes
that there are no complete synonyms in the Holy Quran. An analysis of the
words in the Holy Qur’an which are closely related in meaning indicates that
there are no synonyms in the Holy Qur’an, and this is one of its miracles (Bint-
Ash ati’ 1966:14). Ghali (1997:5) has identified differences among near
synonymous lexical items in the Holy Qur’an. He has noted that although some
words are interpreted by some translators as having the same meaning, the
context shows their differences, however slight these might be. Abdul-Wali
(2007) asserts that the versatility of Qur’an lexemes and styles has not been
captured in most English versions of the Qur’an.
This paper, therefore, aims to highlight the challenges that Qur’an
translators encounter at the lexical level. It also aims to suggest ways of
enhancing the field of Qur’an translation with a view to reproducing adequate
translation both in form and content. The question is this: how can the translator
render these words in translation with their shared meanings into other
languages without any change in meaning? This is an area in which more
research needs to be conducted. The present paper seeks to shed light on the

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International Journal of Arabic-English Studies (IJAES) Vol. 13, 2012

translation of near synonyms in the Holy Qur’an by examining a number of


existing translations. To achieve this, the following methodology is
implemented.

3. Research methodology
The Holy Qur’an has several lexical items denoting the emotional feeling of
'fear' as their core meaning. These include: 'khawf' (‫)ﺧﻮف‬, 'khashya' (‫)ﺧﺸﻴﺔ‬,
'rahba '(‫)رهﺒﺔ‬, 'faza’' (‫)ﻓﺰع‬, 'wajal' (‫)وﺟﻞ‬, 'khushu’'(‫ )ﺧﺸﻮع‬etc. The first four near
synonymous lexical items are selected for analysis. The semantic component of
each lexical item is decided upon according to its Qur’an verse. The meaning of
each near synonymous lexical item is analyzed in relation to its context. Their
meanings are picked up from books on exegesis of the Holy Qur’an such as Al-
Qurtubi (617/1273) (2003) and Ibn Kathir (774/1372) (1999). They are also
examined using dictionaries of the meaning of the words of the Holy Qur’an,
dictionaries of Arabic language, and commentary books. In addition, there are a
number of linguists whose models are used in the analysis of the semantic
features of the selected lexical items, such as Cruse (1986), Edmonds and Hirst
(2002).
The translation of the selected near synonymous lexical items is then
traced in three translation versions of the Holy Qur’an: those of Pickthall
(1930), Yusuf Ali (1937), and Shakir (1982). These are among the most popular
translations of the Holy Qur’an. M. M. Pickthall's 'The Meaning of the Glorious
Qur’an' has at least 27 editions. It is one of the most widely used translations,
completed by an English man of letters who accepted Islam and faithfully
represented the sense of the original text. Another extremely popular translation
is 'The Holy Qur’an: Translation and Commentary' by the Indian Muslim
scholar Abdullah Yusuf Ali (1937). There are at least 35 editions of his work,
and this translation stands out from others as being a highly readable rendering
of the Holy Qur’an. His translation is one of the most widely-known and used in
the English-speaking world. Finally, the title of English translation of the Qur’an
attributed to M. H. Shakir is 'Holy Qur’an'. It has been widely available since
the 1980s. Shakir was an Egyptian judge, born in Cairo and a graduate of Al
Azhar University.

4. Analysis and discussion


It has been observed that books providing exegesis of the Holy Qur’an do not
indicate the differences among the selected lexical items because the writers are
mainly interested in explaining the meaning of the verses and causes of their
revelation. However, Muslim scholars, compilers of dictionaries and linguists
have traced the occurrence of the most related lexical items in their contexts in
the Holy Qur’an and have identified a number of findings. Ibn Qaym Al-Jawzia
(751/1349), for instance, indicates that these near synonymous lexical items are
related in meaning but are not total synonyms because each has its own
distinctive meaning in the Holy Qur’an (1970:431). They have common
semantic features as well as their own different peripheral features. In the Holy

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Al-Jabri Lexical Synonyms in the Holy Qur'an and …

Qur’an, 'khawf' (‫ )ﺧﻮف‬is mentioned (in all its parts of speech) 124 times,
'khashya' (‫ )ﺧﺸﻴﺔ‬48 times, 'faza’' (‫ )ﻓﺰع‬6 times, and 'rahba' (‫ )رهﺒﺔ‬12 times. This
study limits itself to the noun form of each selected lexical item. It does not
consider their other parts of speech. According to the Dictionary of the Holy
Qur’an (1996), the noun form of 'khawf' (‫ )ﺧﻮف‬occurs 37 times in the Holy
Qur’an. Al-‘askari (395/1005) has mentioned that the word 'khawf' (‫ )ﺧﻮف‬is
related to the expectation of bad things such as illness, death etc (1997:241). Al-
Fairuzabadi (817/1414) has added that 'khawf'(‫ )ﺧﻮف‬indicates the expectation of
punishment (1970:545). It also implies anxiety. Al-Zain (2001:294) defines it as
being a feeling of disordering agitation which overcomes one in the presence of
danger. Thus, the semantic components of the word 'khawf' (‫)ﺧﻮف‬include the
following features: anxiety, flight, expectation of punishment, expectation of
bad things, and quickening heartbeat. When we examine Merriam-Webster's
Dictionary of Synonyms (1973), we find that the English word with similar
semantic features is 'fear'. It is defined as the most general term to imply anxiety
and apprehension and also frequently suggests a loss of courage.
One of the lexical items related to the word 'khawf' (‫ )ﺧﻮف‬is 'khashya'
(‫)ﺧﺸﻴﺔ‬. The latter occurs eight times (in its noun form) in the Holy Qur’an.
'Khashya'(‫ )ﺧﺸﻴﺔ‬is more specific than 'khawf' (‫)ﺧﻮف‬. It is usually connected to
scholars, so indicates a kind of fear connected with knowledge. Thus, 'khawf'
(‫)ﺧﻮف‬means fear with movement but 'khashya' (‫)ﺧﺸﻴﺔ‬denotes calmness and
motionlessness. 'Khawf' (‫ )ﺧﻮف‬is also related to all people but 'khashya' (‫ )ﺧﺸﻴﺔ‬is
only related to pious scholars who have knowledge. Thus, 'khashya' (‫)ﺧﺸﻴﺔ‬
protects you and forbids you from doing bad things because of your fear of
punishment. Ibn Qaym Al-Jawzia (1970:432) has indicated that when someone
sees an enemy, he will be either in 'khawf' (‫ )ﺧﻮف‬and then escape from the
enemy, or stay in a place where the enemy cannot reach him and this is
'khashya'(‫)ﺧﺸﻴﺔ‬. Enaya (1996:125) points out that the two lexical items are
thought to be synonyms but in fact they are not. They are actually different from
one another, because 'khashya' (‫ )ﺧﺸﻴﺔ‬happens because of the fear of our Lord's
majesty and greatness. However, 'khawf' (‫ )ﺧﻮف‬implies weakness on the part of
a person even if he is afraid of simple things. Al-Duri (2006:181) mentions that
'khashya' (‫ )ﺧﺸﻴﺔ‬is fear with reverence and inner peace which makes one very
cautious while 'khawf' (‫ )ﺧﻮف‬is an expectation of bad things. In addition,
'khashya' (‫ )ﺧﺸﻴﺔ‬occurs because of a strong faith, belief and knowledge; hence, it
usually relates to true believers who have a strong faith. Thus, 'khashya' (‫ )ﺧﺸﻴﺔ‬is
largely mentioned in the Holy Qur’an in relation to Allah the Almighty, whereas
'khawf' (‫ )ﺧﻮف‬describes a state of weakness through looking at one's own deeds
and thus fearing punishment. 'Khashya' (‫ )ﺧﺸﻴﺔ‬occurs because of reverence of
someone even if you are strong, whereas fear happens because of your weakness
even if the other thing is weak. According to the Dictionary of Exegesis of
Lexicon of the Holy Qur’an (2001), its semantic components are as follows:
'khashya' (‫ )ﺧﺸﻴﺔ‬is fear but with reverence and knowledge, usually related to true
believers and those who have knowledge; 'khawf' (‫) ﺧﻮف‬, on the other hand, is a
feeling inside your heart due to expecting bad things. The English word which

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International Journal of Arabic-English Studies (IJAES) Vol. 13, 2012

has similar semantic features is 'awe', defined in the Collins Cobuild English
Dictionary (1995) as being the feeling of respect and amazement when one is
faced with something wonderful and often rather frightening.
The third near synonymous lexical item investigated is the Arabic word
'rahba' (‫)رهﺒﺔ‬. Al-Zain (2001) indicates that it means too much fear and thus
flight from bad things. It is fear combined with nervousness, anxiety and
caution. Al-'askari (395/1005) points out that 'rahba' (‫ )رهﺒﺔ‬is a constant
continuous feeling of fear; it takes a long duration (1997:241). Al-Fairuzabadi
(817/1414) asserts that 'rahba' (‫ )رهﺒﺔ‬implies too great willingness to run away
because of excessive fear (1970:545). This lexical item can be rendered as
'terror' in English, since the latter denotes the meaning of extreme fear.
The fourth lexical item examined is 'faza’' (‫)ﻓﺰع‬. It occurs twice in its
noun form within the Holy Quran. It implies fright awakened by a sudden
awareness of imminent danger. It is a sudden sharp apprehension and fear
resulting from the perception of imminent danger (Al-’askari 1997:242). The
English word which conveys these semantic properties is 'panic', which is used
to describe a state of sudden uncontrollable and rapidly spreading fear.
Generally speaking, the semantic components of the Arabic lexical items
examined can be analyzed as shown in table 1.

Table 1: Componential analysis of the Arabic lexical item examined

Arabic The semantic components


lexical item Quickening Flight Reverence Calmness Sudden Expectation
heartbeat/an feeling of bad
xiety things
khawf ‫ﺧﻮف‬ + + _ _ _ +
khashya + _ + + _ _
‫ﺧﺸﻴﺔ‬
faza’ + + _ _ + _
‫ﻓﺰع‬
rahba ‫رهﺒﺔ‬ + + + _ _ +

Hence, the above lexical items are closely related but not total synonyms.
Each one is used in a certain verse in the Holy Qur’an to indicate a specific
meaning which is different from those of other related words. Each word in the
Holy Qur’an is selected and used accurately and precisely. Thus, the role of
translators of the Holy Qur’an is to look for the accurate equivalent for each
synonymous lexical item and not to use them interchangeably as if they were
identical. Translators also have to avoid selecting a very general word to refer
to all of the lexical items, for example using the word 'fear' to refer to all of its
related synonyms. Thus, translators are supposed to translate these words
accurately. However, after examining the three selected translations of the Holy
Qur’an, we have found that these near synonymous lexical items are translated
as if they were complete synonyms. In most verses of the Holy Qur’an,

13
Al-Jabri Lexical Synonyms in the Holy Qur'an and …

whenever one of the synonymous lexical items is mentioned, it is either


translated into the general lexical item 'fear' (which might not be its accurate
English equivalent) or translated into some other less accurate lexical item.
In our investigation, for all the 37 verses in which 'khawf' (‫ ﺧﻮف‬is
mentioned, no problem with translating this general lexical item is
observed because the general lexical item 'fear' is selected as its
equivalent, which in this instance is the correct choice. The translators are
accurate and precise in their translation of this word. Table 2 gives us an
example.
However, when we examine the translation of the eight verses where the
word 'khashya' (‫ ﺧﺸﻴﺔ‬is mentioned in the Holy Qur’an, we find that in 7 verses,
the three translators have rendered this word as 'fear'. Thus, the lexical item
'khashya' (‫ )ﺧﺸﻴﺔ‬is translated into 'fear' in nearly all the versions examined.
Though the lexical item 'awe' is more appropriate for use in this context, the
more generic word 'fear' is used by the three translators. Translating the lexical
item 'khashya' (‫ )ﺧﺸﻴﺔ‬into 'fear' in English leads to some slight changes in
meaning. The reader of the English translation will not be able to understand the
precise meaning of the verse. The meaning of reverence, respect, and greatness
(which is usually associated with fear of Allah) is not conveyed when the
English word 'fear' is used. An example is presented in table 3.

Table 2: Translation of the Arabic word 'khawf'

Qur’anic Yusuf Ali Pickthall Shakir Transliteration Arabic


sura script
Al- Be sure we And surely We And We Walanabluwan ‫َوَﻟ َﻨ ْﺒُﻠ َﻮ ﱠﻧﻜُﻢ‬
Baqra:155 shall test you shall try you will most nakum bishay- ‫ﻦ‬
َ ‫ﻲ ٍء ﱢﻣ‬ ْ ‫ﺸ‬ َ ‫ِﺑ‬
with with certainly try in mina ‫ف‬
ِ ‫ﺨ ْﻮ‬ َ ‫ا ْﻟ‬
something of something of you with alkhawfi ‫ع‬
ِ ‫وَا ْﻟﺠُﻮ‬
fear and fear and somewhat of
waaljooAAi ‫ﺺ‬
ٍ ‫َو َﻧ ْﻘ‬
hunger, some hunger, and fear and
loss in goods loss of wealth hunger and wanaqsin mina ‫ﻦ‬
َ ‫ﱢﻣ‬
or lives or the and lives and loss of al-amwali ‫ل‬
ِ ‫ا ْﻟَﺄ ْﻣﻮَا‬
fruits (of your crops; but give property and waal-anfusi ‫ﺲ‬
ِ ‫وَا ْﻟﺄَﻧ ُﻔ‬
toil), but give glad tidings to lives and waalththamarat ‫ت‬
ِ ‫وَاﻟ ﱠﺜ َﻤﺮَا‬
glad tidings to the steadfast, fruits; and i wabashshiri ‫ﺸ ِﺮ‬‫ۗ َو َﺑ ﱢ‬
those who give good alssabireena ‫ﻦ‬
َ ‫اﻟﺼﱠﺎ ِﺑﺮِﻳ‬
patiently news to the
persevere, patient,

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International Journal of Arabic-English Studies (IJAES) Vol. 13, 2012

Table 3: Translation of the Arabic word 'khashya' (1)

Qur’anic Yusuf Ali Pickthall Shakir Transliteration Arabic


verse script
AL- Had We If We had Had We Law anzalna ‫َﻟ ْﻮ أَﻧ َﺰ ْﻟﻨَﺎ‬
HASHR sent down caused this sent down hatha alqur-ana ‫ن‬
َ ‫َٰهﺬَا ا ْﻟ ُﻘﺮْﺁ‬
(EXILE, this Qur'an Qur'an to this Quran AAala jabalin ‫ﻞ‬
ٍ ‫ﺟ َﺒ‬
َ ٰ‫ﻋَﻠﻰ‬ َ
BANISH on a descend upon on a laraaytahu ‫ﱠﻟ َﺮَأ ْﻳ َﺘ ُﻪ‬
MENT):2 mountain, a mountain, mountain, khashiAAan ‫ﺷﻌًﺎ‬ ِ ‫ﺧَﺎ‬
1 verily, thou thou (O you would mutasaddiAAan ‫ﺼ ﱢﺪﻋًﺎ‬ َ ‫ﱡﻣ َﺘ‬
wouldst Muhammad) certainly min khashyati ‫ﺸ َﻴ ِﺔ‬
ْ ‫ﺧ‬ َ ‫ﻦ‬ ْ ‫ﱢﻣ‬
have seen it verily hadst have seen Allahi watilka al- ‫ﻚ‬
َ ‫اﻟﱠﻠ ِﻪ ۚ َو ِﺗ ْﻠ‬
humble seen it it falling amthalu ‫ل‬
ُ ‫ا ْﻟَﺄ ْﻣﺜَﺎ‬
itself and humbled, rent down, nadribuha lilnnasi ‫ﻀ ِﺮ ُﺑﻬَﺎ‬ ْ ‫َﻧ‬
cleave asunder by splitting laAAallahum ‫س‬
ِ ‫ﻟِﻠﻨﱠﺎ‬
asunder for the fear of asunder yatafakkaroona ‫َﻟ َﻌﱠﻠ ُﻬ ْﻢ‬
fear of Allah. Such because of ‫ن‬
َ ‫َﻳ َﺘ َﻔ ﱠﻜﺮُو‬
Allah. Such similitudes the fear of
are the coin We for Allah, and
similitude mankind that We set
which We haply they forth these
propound may reflect. parables to
to men, men that
that they they may
may reflect.
reflect.

There is only one verse which can be seen as an exception in


translation where Yusuf Ali and Pickthall have translated 'khashya ' (‫)ﺧﺸﻴﺔ‬
as 'awe', whereas Shakir has translated it as 'fear'. This is the only verse
where the two translators, Yusuf Ali and Pickthall, have used another
equivalent. Table 4 reveals this point.
'Rahba' ‫ رهﺒﺔ‬has been variously translated as terror and another as fear.
The better choice might be the word 'terror' which implies the meaning of great
fear. Translating the lexical item 'rahba' (‫ )رهﺒﺔ‬as 'fear' is not an incorrect
translation equivalent, but it is not a selection that accurately conveys the precise
meaning of the Arabic word. Tables (5&6) provide examples of the translation
of the word 'rahba'.
The fourth near synonymous lexical item 'faza’' (‫ )ﻓﺰع‬occurs twice in the
Holy Qur’an in its noun form. Yusuf Ali has translated it in both verses as
'terror'. Pickthall has rendered it in one verse as 'fear' and in the other verse as

15
Al-Jabri Lexical Synonyms in the Holy Qur'an and …

'horror'. Shakir has translated it in one verse as 'terror' and in the other as 'fear'.
Thus, it can be observed that the examined lexical item is variously translated as
'fear', 'terror' and 'horror'. None of the three translations have used the word
'panic' which conveys the meaning of sudden fear. The word 'horror', which is
used by Pickthall, might be a better translation equivalent for the other Arabic
synonymous lexical item, i.e. 'ru'b' (‫)رﻋﺐ‬. Tables (7&8) clarify this point:

Table 4: Translation of the Arabic word 'khashya' (2)

Qur’anic sura Yusuf Ali Pickthall Shakir Transliteration Arabic


script
AL- He knows He He YaAAlamu ma ‫َﻳ ْﻌَﻠ ُﻢ ﻣَﺎ‬
ANBIYA what is knoweth knows bayna ‫ﻦ‬
َ ‫َﺑ ْﻴ‬
(THE before what is what is aydeehim ‫َأ ْﻳﺪِﻳ ِﻬ ْﻢ‬
PROPHE them, and before before wama ‫َوﻣَﺎ‬
TS): 28 what is them and them and khalfahum ‫ﺧ ْﻠ َﻔ ُﻬ ْﻢ َوﻟَﺎ‬
َ
behind what is what is wala ‫ن‬
َ ‫ﺸ َﻔﻌُﻮ‬ ْ ‫َﻳ‬
them, and behind behind yashfaAAoona ‫ﻦ‬
ِ ‫ِإﻟﱠﺎ ِﻟ َﻤ‬
they offer them, and them, illa limani ‫ا ْر َﺗﻀَﻰ‬
no they and they irtada wahum ‫ﻦ‬
ْ ‫َوهُﻢ ﱢﻣ‬
intercessio cannot do not min ‫ﺸ َﻴ ِﺘ ِﻪ‬
ْ ‫ﺧ‬ َ
n except intercede intercede khashyatihi ‫ن‬
َ ‫ﺸ ِﻔﻘُﻮ‬ ْ ‫ُﻣ‬
for those except for except mushfiqoona
who are him whom for him
acceptable He whom
, and they accepteth, He
stand in and they approves
awe and quake for and for
reverence awe of fear of
of His Him. Him they
(Glory). tremble.

5. Conclusion
The analysis has shown that the Holy Qur’an has many related lexical items
which can be called near but not total or complete synonyms. They have their
differences which must be considered by translators. However, the translations
examined herein have revealed that the translation of these related items is not
accurate, except for the lexical item 'khawf' ‫ﺧﻮف‬, and that they are usually
translated into more general words in the target language.

Translating the meaning of the Holy Qur’an into other languages demands
the precise selection of synonyms. That is to say there is a distinction between
the minute differences of meaning such that if a word were to be replaced with
its synonym, it would lose its deep significance and delicate representation.

16
International Journal of Arabic-English Studies (IJAES) Vol. 13, 2012

Faithful translation therefore requires a sophisticated lexical selection process to


determine which of the synonyms provided for a word in one language is the
closest or most appropriate for a particular situation in another language. This is
why translators need to carefully investigate contextual synonyms in order to
arrive at their precise intended meanings in a particular context. When dealing
with synonymous words, we must look at the different componential features of
the meanings of these synonyms. It is very important that the translator is aware
of the very minute differences in meaning among words and near synonyms so
as to choose the word that has the right denotation, connotation, and stylistic and
other semantic features. Table (9) summarizes the results.

Table 5: Translation of the Arabic word 'rahba'(1)

Qura’nic verse Yusuf Ali Pickthall Shakir Transliteration Arabic


script
AL-HASHR Of a truth ye are Ye are You are 13. Laantum ‫ﺷ ﱡﺪ‬َ ‫َﻟﺄَﻧ ُﺘ ْﻢ َأ‬
(EXILE,BANI stronger (than more certainly ashaddu rahbatan ‫َر ْه َﺒ ًﺔ ﻓِﻲ‬
SHMENT:13) they) because of awful as a greater in fee sudoorihim ‫ﺻﺪُو ِرهِﻢ‬ ُ
the terror in fear in being mina Allahi ۚ ‫ﻦ اﻟﱠﻠ ِﻪ‬َ ‫ﱢﻣ‬
their hearts, their feared in thalika bi- ‫ﻚ ِﺑَﺄ ﱠﻧ ُﻬ ْﻢ‬َ ‫َٰذِﻟ‬
(sent) by Allah. bosoms their hearts annahum ‫َﻗ ْﻮ ٌم ﻟﱠﺎ‬
This is because than Allah. than Allah; qawmun la ‫ن‬
َ ‫َﻳ ْﻔ َﻘﻬُﻮ‬
they are men That is that is yafqahoona
devoid of because because
understanding they are a they are a
folk who people who
understand do not
not. understand

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Al-Jabri Lexical Synonyms in the Holy Qur'an and …

Table 6: Translation of the Arabic word 'rahaba' (2)

Qur’anic Yusuf Ali Pickthall Shakir Transliteration Arabic


verse script
AL- Move thy Thrust Enter your Osluk yadaka ‫ك‬
َ ‫ﻚ َﻳ َﺪ‬ ْ ‫ﺳُﻠ‬ ْ‫ا‬
QASAS hand into thy hand hand into the fee jaybika ‫ﻚ‬
َ ‫ﺟ ْﻴ ِﺒ‬
َ ‫ﻓِﻲ‬
(THE thy bosom, into the opening of takhruj ‫ج‬
ْ ‫ﺨ ُﺮ‬ ْ ‫َﺗ‬
STORY, and it will bosom of your bosom, baydaa min ‫ﻦ‬
ْ ‫َﺑ ْﻴﻀَﺎء ِﻣ‬
STORIES) come forth thy robe it will come ghayri soo-in ‫ﻏ ْﻴ ِﺮ ﺳُﻮ ٍء‬ َ
: 32 white it will forth white waodmum ‫ﻚ‬
َ ‫ﺿ ُﻤ ْﻢ ِإَﻟ ْﻴ‬ْ ‫وَا‬
without come without evil, ilayka ‫ﻦ‬
َ ‫ﻚ ِﻣ‬ َ‫ﺣ‬ َ ‫ﺟﻨَﺎ‬ َ
stain (or forth and draw janahaka mina ‫ﺐ‬
ِ ‫اﻟ ﱠﺮ ْه‬
harm), and white your hand to alrrahbi ‫ﻚ‬
َ ‫َﻓﺬَا ِﻧ‬
draw thy without yourself to fathanika ‫ن ﻣِﻦ‬ ِ ‫ُﺑ ْﺮهَﺎﻧَﺎ‬
hand close hurt. And ward off burhanani ‫ﻚ ِإﻟَﻰ‬ َ ‫ﱠر ﱢﺑ‬
to thy side guard thy fear: so these min rabbika ‫ن‬
َ ‫ﻋ ْﻮ‬ َ ‫ِﻓ ْﺮ‬
(to guard) heart two shall be ila firAAawna ‫َو َﻣَﻠ ِﺌ ِﻪ ِإ ﱠﻧ ُﻬ ْﻢ‬
against from two wamala-ihi ‫آَﺎﻧُﻮا َﻗ ْﻮﻣًﺎ‬
fear. Those fear. arguments innahum ‫ﻦ‬
َ ‫ﺳﻘِﻴ‬ ِ ‫ﻓَﺎ‬
are the two Then from your kanoo
credentials these Lord to Firon qawman
from thy shall be and his fasiqeena
Lord to two chiefs, surely
Pharaoh proofs they are a
and his from transgressing
Chiefs: for your eople.
truly they Lord unto
are a people Pharaoh
rebellious and his
and chiefs.
wicked." Lo! they
are evil-
living
folk.

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International Journal of Arabic-English Studies (IJAES) Vol. 13, 2012

Table 7: Translation of the Arabic word 'faza’'(1)

Quranic Yusuf Ali Pickthall Shakir Transliteration Arabic


verse script
AL- If any do Whoso Whoever Man jaa ‫ﻣَﻦ ﺟَﺎء‬
NAML good, good bringeth a brings bialhasanati ‫ﺴ َﻨ ِﺔ َﻓَﻠ ُﻪ‬َ‫ﺤ‬َ ‫ﺑِﺎ ْﻟ‬
(THE will good deed good, he falahu ‫ﺧ ْﻴ ٌﺮ ﱢﻣ ْﻨﻬَﺎ‬
َ
ANT, (accrue) to will have shall have khayrun ‫َوهُﻢ ﻣﱢﻦ‬
THE them better than better than minha wahum ‫ع َﻳ ْﻮ َﻣ ِﺌ ٍﺬ‬
ٍ ‫َﻓ َﺰ‬
ANTS) therefrom; its worth; it; and min fazaAAin ‫ن‬
َ ‫ﺁ ِﻣﻨُﻮ‬
:89 and they and such they shall yawma-ithin
will be are safe be secure aminoona
secure from from fear from
terror that that Day terror on
Day the day

Table 8: Translation of the Arabic word 'faza’' (2)

Quranic Yusuf Ali Pickthall Shakir Transliteration Arabic


verse script
Surah Al- The Great The The great La ‫ﺤ ُﺰ ُﻧ ُﻬ ُﻢ‬ ْ ‫ﻟَﺎ َﻳ‬
Anbiya (the Terror Supreme fearful yahzunuhumu ‫ع‬
ُ ‫ا ْﻟ َﻔ َﺰ‬
prophets):103 will bring Horror event shall alfazaAAu al- ‫ا ْﻟَﺄ ْآ َﺒ ُﺮ‬
them no will not not grieve akbaru ‫َو َﺗ َﺘَﻠﻘﱠﺎ ُه ُﻢ‬
grief: but grieve them, and watatalaqqahu ‫ا ْﻟ َﻤﻠَﺎ ِﺋ َﻜ ُﺔ‬
the angels them, and the angels mu almala- ‫َهﺬَا َﻳ ْﻮ ُﻣ ُﻜ ُﻢ‬
will meet the angels shall meet ikatu hatha ‫اﱠﻟﺬِي آُﻨ ُﺘ ْﻢ‬
them (with will them: This yawmukumu ‫ن‬
َ ‫ﻋﺪُو‬ َ ‫ﺗُﻮ‬
mutual welcome is your day allathee kuntum
greetings): them, which you tooAAadoona
"This is (saying): were
your Day,- This is promised.
(the Day) your Day
that yewere which ye
promised were
promised;

19
Al-Jabri Lexical Synonyms in the Holy Qur'an and …

Table 9: Translations of the selected synonymous lexical items of the three


translation versions

Translator Khawf ‫ ﺧﻮف‬Khashya ‫ ﺧﺸﻴﺔ‬Rahbah ‫رهﺒﺔ‬ Faza’ ‫ﻓﺰع‬

Yusuf Ali Fear Fear/awe Terror/fear Terror


Pickthall Fear Fear Fear Fear/horror
Shakir Fear Fear/awe Fear Terror/fearful
event
Suggested Fear Awe Terror Panic
Translation

*Samia Musen Al-jabri


Assistant Professor of Linguistics and Translation
Umm Al-Qura University, Makka, Saudi Arabia,
E-mail: samiaaljabri@hotmail.com, smjabri@uqu.edu.sa

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International Journal of Arabic-English Studies (IJAES) Vol. 13, 2012

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