Classical Arabic (CA), also known as Quranic Arabic, is the form of the Arabic language used in literary texts from Umayyad and Abbasid times (7th to 9th centuries). It is based on the Medieval dialects of Arab tribes. Modern Standard Arabic (MSA) is the direct descendant used today throughout the Arab World in writing and in formal speaking, for example, prepared speeches, some radio broadcasts, and non-entertaining content. While the lexis and stylistics of Modern Standard Arabic are different from Classical Arabic, the morphology and syntax have remained basically unchanged (though MSA uses a subset of the syntactic structures available in CA). The vernacular dialects, however, have changed more dramatically. In the Arab world, little distinction is made between CA and MSA, and both are normally called al-fuṣḥā (الفصحى) in Arabic, meaning 'the clearly spoken one' or the 'language of eloquence'.
Because the Qur'an is written in Classical Arabic, the language is considered by most Muslims to be sacred. It is mostly the language in which Muslims recite their prayers, regardless of what language they use in everyday life.
Read more about Classical Arabic: History, Morphology, Grammar, Phonology, Special Symbols
Famous quotes containing the word classical:
“Culture is a sham if it is only a sort of Gothic front put on an iron building—like Tower Bridge—or a classical front put on a steel frame—like the Daily Telegraph building in Fleet Street. Culture, if it is to be a real thing and a holy thing, must be the product of what we actually do for a living—not something added, like sugar on a pill.”
—Eric Gill (1882–1940)