Pronouns (Al-Damaʾir)
ana adrus-u bi-jidd
— I am studying diligently.
anta mujtahid
— You are diligent.
huwa talib-un nashit
— He is an active student.
Categories of Pronouns
Pronouns are divided, by their visibility or concealment, into two main types: overt pronouns (al-damaʾir al-bariza) and concealed pronouns (al-damaʾir al-mustatira).
First: Overt Pronouns
Overt pronouns are divided into two types: separate pronouns (munfasila) and connected pronouns (muttasila).
1 — Separate Pronouns
Separate pronouns are divided, by their iʿrab position, into two types: separate nominative pronouns (damaʾir rafʿ munfasila) and separate accusative pronouns (damaʾir nasb munfasila).
(a) Separate Nominative Pronouns
| Pronoun | Reference | Example |
|---|---|---|
| ana(I) | 1st-person singular | ana talib(I am a student) |
| nahnu(we) | 1st-person dual or plural | nahnu tullab(we are students) |
| anta(you, masc. sg.) | 2nd-person masc. sg. | anta mujtahid(you are diligent) |
| anti(you, fem. sg.) | 2nd-person fem. sg. | anti mujtahida(you are diligent) |
| antuma(you two) | 2nd-person dual (m./f.) | antuma mujtahidan(you two are diligent) |
| antum(you all, m.) | 2nd-person masc. plural | antum mujtahiduna(you are diligent) |
| antunna(you all, f.) | 2nd-person fem. plural | antunna mujtahidat(you are diligent) |
| huwa(he/it) | 3rd-person masc. sg. | huwa talib(he is a student) |
| hiya(she/it) | 3rd-person fem. sg. | hiya taliba(she is a student) |
| huma(they two) | 3rd-person dual (m./f.) | huma talibani(they two are students) |
| hum(they, m.) | 3rd-person masc. plural | hum tullab(they are students) |
| hunna(they, f.) | 3rd-person fem. plural | hunna talibat(they are students) |
ana muslim
— I am a Muslim. (mubtadaʾ)
al-mujtahid-u anta
— The diligent one is you. (khabar)
ma hadara illa huwa
— None attended except him. (faʿil)
(b) Separate Accusative Pronouns
| Pronoun | Reference |
|---|---|
| iyya-yaإيَّايَ | 1st-person sg. |
| iyya-naإيَّانا | 1st-person dual/plural |
| iyya-kaإيَّاكَ | 2nd-person masc. sg. |
| iyya-kiإيَّاكِ | 2nd-person fem. sg. |
| iyya-kumaإيَّاكما | 2nd-person dual |
| iyya-kumإيَّاكم | 2nd-person masc. plural |
| iyya-kunnaإيَّاكنَّ | 2nd-person fem. plural |
| iyya-huإيَّاهُ | 3rd-person masc. sg. |
| iyya-haإيَّاها | 3rd-person fem. sg. |
| iyya-humaإيَّاهما | 3rd-person dual |
| iyya-humإيَّاهم | 3rd-person masc. plural |
| iyya-hunnaإيَّاهنَّ | 3rd-person fem. plural |
iyya-ka naʿbud-u wa-iyya-ka nastaʿin
— You alone we worship and You alone we ask for help. (Quran 1:5)
iyya-hum akram-tu
— Those, I honored.
iyya-ka wa-l-kadhib
— Beware of lying! (lit. 'Avoid lying')
2 — Connected Pronouns
Connected pronouns are divided, by their iʿrab position, into three types: connected nominative pronouns, shared accusative-and-genitive pronouns, and a pronoun used only in the position of genitive.
(a) Connected Nominative Pronouns
| Pronoun | Reference | Example |
|---|---|---|
| the vowelled taʾالتاء المتحركة | 1st- or 2nd-person | katab-tu, katab-ta, katab-tiكَتَبْتُ، كَتَبْتَ، كَتَبْتِ |
| na al-faʿilinنا الفاعلين | 1st-person dual/plural | katab-naكَتَبْنا |
| alif al-ithnaynألف الاثنين | Dual (3rd or 2nd) | kataba, uktuba, yaktubaniكَتَبَا، اكْتُبَا، يَكْتُبَانِ |
| waw al-jamaʿaواو الجماعة | Masc. plural (3rd or 2nd) | katab-u, uktub-u, yaktubunaكَتَبُوا، اكْتُبُوا، يَكْتُبُونَ |
| yaʾ al-mukhatabaياء المخاطبة | 2nd-person fem. sg. | uktub-i, taktubinaاكْتُبِي، تَكْتُبِينَ |
| nun al-niswaنون النسوة | Fem. plural (3rd or 2nd) | katab-na, uktub-na, yaktub-naكَتَبْنَ، اكْتُبْنَ، يَكْتُبْنَ |
katab-tu al-dars
— I wrote the lesson.
katab-na al-risala
— We wrote the letter.
al-talibani kataba al-wajib
— The two students wrote the assignment.
al-tullab-u katab-u al-dars
— The students wrote the lesson.
ya Fatima uktub-i al-dars
— O Fatima, write the lesson.
al-talibat-u katab-na al-dars
— The female students wrote the lesson.
(b) Shared Connected Pronouns (Accusative and Genitive)
akrama-ni al-muʿallim
— The teacher honored me. (in the position of accusative as a direct object)
kitab-i jadid
— My book is new. (in the position of genitive as a mudaf ilayh)
inna-ni mujtahid
— Indeed I am diligent. (in the position of accusative as the noun of inna)
sallam-a ʿalayya al-muʿallim
— The teacher greeted me. (in the position of genitive after a preposition)
| Pronoun | Attached to a Verb | Attached to a Noun | Attached to a Particle |
|---|---|---|---|
| yaʾ al-mutakallimياء المتكلم | akrama-ni(direct object) | kitab-i(mudaf ilayh) | ʿalayya(genitive) |
| kaf al-khitabكاف الخطاب | akrama-ka(direct object) | kitab-u-ka(mudaf ilayh) | ʿalay-ka(genitive) |
| haʾ al-ghaybaهاء الغيبة | akrama-hu(direct object) | kitab-u-hu(mudaf ilayh) | ʿalayhi(genitive) |
| na al-faʿilinنا الفاعلين | akrama-na(direct object) | kitab-u-na(mudaf ilayh) | ʿalay-na(genitive) |
(c) The Pronoun That Is Only in the Position of Genitive
Among the pronouns that occur only in the position of genitive are those attached directly to prepositions, e.g.: li (to me), la-ka (to you), la-hu (to him), min-hu (from him), ʿan-hum (from them).
hadha kitab-i
— This is my book.
inna li sadiq
— Indeed I have a friend.
sallam-tu ʿalayh
— I greeted him.
Second: Concealed Pronouns
The concealed pronoun is divided into two types: obligatorily concealed (mustatir wujuban) and permissibly concealed (mustatir jawazan).
1 — The Obligatorily Concealed Pronoun
aktub-u al-dars
— I write the lesson. (implied: ana — 'I')
naktub-u al-dars
— We write the lesson. (implied: nahnu — 'we')
taktub-u al-dars
— You write the lesson. (implied: anta — 'you')
uktub al-dars
— Write the lesson! (implied: anta — 'you')
2 — The Permissibly Concealed Pronoun
Muhammad-un kataba al-dars
— Muhammad wrote the lesson. (implied: huwa — 'he'; could also be 'kataba Muhammad-un')
al-talib-u yaktub-u al-dars
— The student writes the lesson. (implied: huwa)
Fatima taktub-u al-dars
— Fatima writes the lesson. (implied: hiya — 'she')
Damir al-Shaʾn (Pronoun of Affair) and Damir al-Fasl (Pronoun of Separation)
1 — Damir al-Shaʾn
huwa Allah-u ahad
— He, Allah, is One.
inna-hu al-haqq-u muntasir
— Indeed, the truth is victorious.
But what is the benefit of using damir al-shaʾn?
Its benefit is to magnify and exalt the matter, alerting the listener that what follows it is of great significance and importance — as if the speaker is saying: 'The mighty matter is such-and-such.'
2 — Damir al-Fasl
Muhammad-un huwa al-mujtahid
— Muhammad — he is the diligent one.
kana Zayd-un huwa al-faʾiz
— Zayd was the very winner.
inna al-kasul-a huwa al-khasir
— Indeed the lazy one is the loser.
Iʿrab of Pronouns
| Pronoun | Vowel of Indeclension | Iʿrab Position |
|---|---|---|
| anaأنا | Sukun | By position |
| nahnuنحنُ | Damma | By position |
| antaأنتَ | Fatha | By position |
| antiأنتِ | Kasra | By position |
| huwaهو | Fatha | By position |
| hiyaهي | Sukun | By position |
| vowelled taʾالتاء المتحركة | By its vowel | Position of nominative |
| na al-faʿilinنا الفاعلين | Sukun | By position |
| alif al-ithnaynألف الاثنين | Sukun | Position of nominative |
| waw al-jamaʿaواو الجماعة | Sukun | Position of nominative |
| yaʾ al-mukhatabaياء المخاطبة | Sukun | Position of nominative |
| nun al-niswaنون النسوة | Fatha | Position of nominative |
Examples with Iʿrab
katab-tu al-wajib
— I wrote the assignment.
kataba: a past-tense verb fixed on sukun because it is attached to a vowelled subject pronoun. The taʾ: a connected pronoun fixed on damma, in the position of nominative as the subject. al-wajiba: the direct object in the accusative, marked by the manifest fatha.
iyya-ka naʿbud
— You alone we worship.
iyya: a separate pronoun fixed on sukun, in the position of accusative as a fronted direct object. The kaf: a particle of address with no place in iʿrab. naʿbudu: a present-tense verb in the nominative, marked by the manifest damma; the subject is an obligatorily concealed pronoun, implied as 'nahnu' ('we').
Allah Most High said: "You alone we worship and You alone we ask for help." — Quran 1:5 (Sahih International)
In this noble verse, 'iyya-ka' is a separate accusative pronoun fixed on fatha, in the position of accusative as a fronted direct object. It was fronted to convey restriction — i.e., 'You alone we worship and none other; You alone we ask for help and none other.'