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Arabic classical prosody

Concept
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

The traditional system of poetic meter in Arabic literature, based on patterns of long and short syllables

Detailed Definition
Arabic classical prosody, or 'ilm al-ʿarūḍ, is a sophisticated metrical system developed by al-Khalīl ibn Aḥmad in the 8th century that categorizes poetic meters based on patterns of long and short syllables; it governs traditional Arabic poetry through sixteen primary meters, each with variations, and remains foundational to understanding classical Arabic verse structure.
Example
Example in poetry:
The use of the tawīl meter (long-short-long-long repeated) in Imru’ al-Qays’s pre-Islamic odes; the basīṭ meter in al-Mutanabbī’s panegyrics; adherence to the 16 classical Arabic meters (al-buḥūr); quantitative syllabic patterns in the mu‘allaqāt
Additional Notes
Arabic classical prosody: A sophisticated metrical system (‘arūḍ) developed by al-Khalīl ibn Aḥmad in the 8th century, based on patterns of long and short syllables; essential for analyzing classical Arabic poetry and contrasts with Western stress-based meters.
Also Known As
‘Arūḍ Khalilian meter Classical Arabic meter Quantitative Arabic prosody Makam tradition
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