Types of the Noun in Arabic

such as: al-tatawwur ('development'), al-shajara ('the tree'). The noun is of various types:

Its identifying signs: (a) it accepts the definite article 'al-' (ال), e.g., jidar → al-jidar ('a wall' → 'the wall'); (b) it accepts the vocative particle, e.g., ya Ahmad ('O Ahmad').

The Noun Is Divided as Follows: 1 — By Gender

The noun is divided by gender into two categories:

Masculine (mudhakkar) and feminine (muʾannath). Masculine, e.g.: rajul ('man'), jamal ('camel'), ʿusfur ('sparrow'), kitab ('book'), qalam ('pen'), bab ('door')...

Feminine, e.g.: ʿusfura ('female sparrow'), baqara ('cow'), fataa ('young woman'), ʿAʾisha, Salma, hamraʾ ('red [fem.]')...

2 — By Number:

The noun is divided by number into mufrad (singular), muthanna (dual), and jamʿ (plural).

* Al-mufrad (the singular): refers to one masculine or one feminine entity, e.g.: qalam ('pen'), waraqa ('paper'), fata ('young man'), fataa ('young woman'), Muhammad, Ahmad.

Its iʿrab markers are: fatha (accusative), damma (nominative), and kasra (genitive).

(b) Al-muthanna (the dual): refers to two masculine or two feminine entities, formed by adding alif + nun (-ani) or yaʾ + nun (-ayni).

Its iʿrab markers: nominative with alif; accusative and genitive with yaʾ.

(c) Al-jamʿ (the plural): refers to more than two — masculine or feminine.

The plural noun has several types — the most important of which are:

Jamʿ al-mudhakkar al-salim (the sound masculine plural): a form denoting more than two by adding waw + nun (-una) to the singular in the nominative — e.g., al-Zaydun ('the Zayds') — or yaʾ + nun (-ina) in the accusative and genitive — e.g., al-Zaydin.

Its ruling: nominative with waw (in place of damma), accusative with yaʾ (in place of fatha), and genitive with yaʾ (in place of kasra).

Jamʿ al-muʾannath al-salim (the sound feminine plural): a form denoting more than two by adding alif + taʾ (-at) to the singular — e.g., muslimat, salihat, Fatimat.

Its ruling: nominative with damma; accusative with kasra; genitive with kasra.

Jamʿ al-taksir (the broken plural): a form denoting more than two — masculine or feminine — accompanied by an internal change in the singular's structure, e.g.: masajid ('mosques'), madaris ('schools'), aqlam ('pens'), kutub ('books'), rusul ('messengers'), rijal ('men').

Its ruling: nominative with damma; accusative with fatha; genitive with kasra.

3 — Types of the Noun by Indefiniteness and Definiteness:

The noun is divided into nakira (indefinite) and maʿrifa (definite). The nakira is a noun that refers to something not specifically determined.

The maʿrifa (definite) is a noun that refers to a specifically determined thing, e.g.:

Categories of the definite noun: the pronoun (al-damir), the proper name (al-ʿalam), the demonstrative (ism al-ishara), the relative pronoun (al-ism al-mawsul), nouns prefixed with 'al-' (the definite article), nouns annexed to a definite noun (al-mudaf ila maʿrifa), and the noun made definite by being addressed (al-muʿarraf bi-l-nida').

4 — The Noun by Derivation: Derived (Mushtaqq) vs. Underived (Jamid):

(a) Al-jamid (underived): a noun not taken from another. It is more primary in occurrence than the derived.

It is of two kinds: — ism dhat (a noun for a tangible entity): insan ('human'), ard ('earth/land'). — ism maʿna (a noun for an abstract meaning): fahm ('understanding'), shajaʿa ('courage'), najah ('success').

(b) Al-mushtaqq (derived): a noun derived from another, denoting an entity and bearing a descriptive meaning.

Its categories: ism al-faʿil (active participle) and the intensive forms (siyagh al-mubalagha); ism al-mafʿul (passive participle); al-sifa al-mushabbaha (resembling adjective); ism al-tafdil (elative — comparative/superlative); ism al-zaman (noun of time); ism al-makan (noun of place); ism al-ala (instrumental noun).

5 — Al-Maqsur, Al-Manqus, and Al-Mamdud:

Al-maqsur (shortened): A noun ending in a fixed alif — whether root, e.g., huda ('guidance'); or added for the feminine, e.g., ʿatsha ('thirsty [fem.]'); or added for grammatical extension (ilhaq), e.g., dhifra (a part-of-the-camel name). — When given tanwin, its alif is dropped in pronunciation but not in writing: hudan. — All iʿrab vowel-marks are notionally implied (taqdiri) on it.

Al-manqus (defective): A noun ending in a fixed yaʾ preceded by a kasra, e.g., al-qadi ('the judge'). — When given tanwin, its yaʾ is dropped in both pronunciation and writing in the nominative and genitive but is retained in the accusative — e.g., 'huwa qadin' ('he is a judge'), 'ʿathartu ʿala banin' ('I came across a builder'), 'raʾaytu saʿiyan' ('I saw a striver'). — The damma and kasra are notionally implied on it; the fatha appears overtly.

Al-mamdud (extended): A noun ending in a hamza preceded by an added alif, e.g., warqaʾ ('a bluish bird'). The added alif may be there for various purposes: — Original (root): qurraʾ ('readers'). — For the feminine: maysaʾ. — Converted from waw or yaʾ: samaʾ ('sky'), binaʾ ('building'). — For the plural: ʿuzamaʾ ('great ones').