Sharjah Ruler Adds 31 New Volumes To Landmark Project Of Arabic Language

Sheikh Sultan bin Muhammad Al-Qasimi, the Ruler of Sharjah, has launched 31 new volumes of the Historical Corpus of the Arabic Language. This project aims to chronicle the evolution of the Arabic language over the past 17 centuries.

Sheikh Sultan, who is also Member of the Federal Supreme Council of the United Arab Emirates, launched the corpus in the presence of the Board of Trustees and members of the Arabic Language Academy (ALA).

The launch that took place at ALA headquarters in the university city was also attended by the presidents of the unions and councils of 14 language academies from 12 countries.

The official X handle of the 84-year-old Sharjah Ruler shared a series of photos from the launch:

Previously, there were only 36 volumes, but with the newly launched volumes, the total has reached 67. The 31 newly launched volumes consist of six letters Ra (ر), Zay (ز), Seen (س), Sheen (ش), Sad (ص), and Dad (ض).

During the launch, the Sharjah Ruler said, "We present a newly completed phase of the great Arabic language project the (Historical Corpus of the Arabic Language). Today, we have reached this great milestone and are celebrating the completion of sixty-seven volumes covering fifteen letters of our Arabic language (from 'hamza' to 'dad')," WAM reported Wednesday.

He went on to emphasize the significant cooperation of various institutions, saying, "You are at the forefront of those working on this corpus. Without the guidance of Allah and your knowledge and expertise, this project might have remained on paper and as a dream."

The ruler appreciated the efforts made by the Scientific Linguistic Academies Union, coordinated by the Arabic Language Academy in Sharjah, involving 13 linguistic academies, centers, and institutions, with around five hundred editors, experts, and scholars from 26 countries around the globe for this project.

"We inform all Arabic language enthusiasts, and researchers that, if Allah wills, the remaining parts of the corpus will be released soon, and at that time the nation will rejoice, as Arabic will have its long-awaited Historical Corpus," he added.

The project was first announced in August 2020, and it was launched in 2021 with 17 volumes of the corpus during the 40th Sharjah International Book Fair opening ceremony. The second set of 19 volumes was launched on Nov. 1, last year.