Re: questions about Arabic

In a message dated 3/22/01 4:59:56 AM, christophe.grandsire@FREE.FR writes:

<< Then you weren't taught Modern Standard Arabic. As for what children
think, what

the heck does it have to do with what alif is? Later when they learn to right

with vowels (strangely enough, all the teaching books I saw were fully
voweled.

I don't know where you take what you said but here in Europe and I'm sure in

Maghreb children are taught first the voweled version of Arabic, and after
only

drop the vowels), they realize that alif does with the fatha what waw does
with

the damma and what yaa does with the kasra: lengthening the vowel, nothing
else

(when I was taught Arabic by a Tunisian friend, that's the first thing she

explained to me about those three letters). Also, if what you say is true,
then

children must think that alif stands for /i/ in the word /ibn/, since in

unvoweled Arabic the unstable hamza is not written and only the alif remains.

But when I said that you quickly said that I was confused with the ort
hography.

As I see it, you're confused with your own arguments. >>

As I see it, you're not listening.  It's possible to learn Arabic first
thinking that the three are vowels (with waw and yaa, consonants and vowels),
and then learn later that they're "not", as you claim.  But, if they really
aren't, then I'll say this: "y" is NEVER  a vowel in English, end of story.

-Jenesis