The exclusion of grammatical opinion on nominative nouns in the book Al-Bahr Al-Muhit by Abu Hayyan Al-Andalusi (745 AH)

Abstract

   This research investigates the phenomenon of "Excluding Grammatical Opinion" in the exegesis of Al-Bahr al-Muhit by Abu Hayyan al-Andalusi, taking Nominative Nouns (Al-Asma’ al-Marfu’a) as an applied model. It seeks to uncover the nature of these exclusions and their scientific motives, while clarifying the methodological foundations Abu Hayyan relied upon in preferring one grammatical interpretation over another, and examining the extent to which these choices align with the principles of grammatical industry and the methods of Quranic interpretation.

    The study is based on tracking instances where Abu Hayyan explicitly rejected certain grammatical facets, weakened them, or offered critical commentary, followed by an analytical study based on the inductive approach. This is achieved by collecting and classifying the issues and linking them to established grammatical rules as well as the syntactical and semantic contexts of the verses. The research also highlights the fundamental impact of meaning and context on Abu Hayyan’s grammatical judgments and reveals his scholarly persona through the extent of his influence by the Basran school and his critical stance on Kufan views and over-complicated grammatical estimations, while clarifying his strict criteria for accepting or rejecting opinions.

The study concludes that Abu Hayyan’s exclusions were not arbitrary or incidental judgments; rather, they represented a disciplined critical methodology that harmonizes grammatical precision with the coherence of Quranic meaning. Thus, the research contributes to illuminating a vital aspect of his weightage (Tarjih) methodology and highlights his unique handling of grammatical disputes within his exegesis. Accordingly, the research is titled: "Exclusion of Grammatical Opinion in Nominative Nouns in the Book of Al-Bahr al-Muhit by Abu Hayyan al-Andalusi (d. 745 AH).