The Semantics of Qur�anic language : al-Ah�ira

Summary: "In The Semantics of Qur�anic Language: al-�A�hira, Ghassan el Masri offers a semantic study of the concept al-�A�hira 'the End' in the Qur��an. The study is prefaced with a detailed account of the late antique concept of etymologia (Semantic Etymology). In his work, he demonstrates the necessity of this concept for appreciating the Qur��an's rhetorical strategies for claiming discursive authority in the Abrahamic theological tradition. The author applies the etymological tool to his investigation of the theological significance of al-�a�hira, and concludes that the concept is polysemous, and tolerates a large variety of interpretations. The work is unique in that it draws extensively on Biblical material and presents a plethora of pre-Islamic poetry verses in the analysis of the concept"--