Criteria for Inclusion in the Encyclopedia of Arabic Rhetoric
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| 🔗 DOI | 10.64393/balagha.criteria.inclusion |
| Date | 16 August 2026 |
Introduction
The purpose of the Encyclopedia of Arabic Rhetoric is to provide a stable, operational framework for the identification and analysis of Arabic rhetorical devices. The encyclopedia's scope is not to catalogue every named phenomenon in the Arabic rhetorical tradition. Accordingly, the encyclopedia's inclusion criteria ensure that each device contributes meaningfully to:
- Clear rhetorical identification,
- Structural analysis,
- Consistent annotation, and
- Computational or corpus-based operationalisation.
A rhetorical device is included only if it satisfies methodological standards that ensure analytical clarity, structural distinctiveness, and reliable identification. The full inventory of the encyclopedia's rhetorical devices can be accessed from the home page, and in derived resources such as the Arabic Rhetorical Device Taxonomy, the Arabic Rhetorical Device Identifier, and the Balagha-ID app.
Devices that lack the necessary definitional precision, overlap extensively with broader interpretive phenomena, or cannot be annotated with reasonable reliability are not included. Exclusion does not deny a rhetorical device's historical attestation or rhetorical value. Rather, it reflects a principled commitment to taxonomic coherence and operational clarity. The Encyclopedia maintains a list of devices which have been rejected, along with the reasoning for rejection.
Criteria for Inclusion in the Encyclopedia of Arabic Rhetoric
The Criteria for Inclusion in the Encyclopedia of Arabic Rhetoric are derived from the encyclopedia's theoretical framework which is outlined in the Design Principles of the Encyclopedia of Arabic Rhetoric. A candidate rhetorical device must satisfy all of the following criteria for inclusion in the Encyclopedia of Arabic Rhetoric:
Criterion 1: Attestation
- A candidate rhetorical device must have attestation in established Arabic rhetorical theory (see Principle 1: The Encyclopedia is Based on Classical Sources).
- To strengthen the provenance of the Encyclopedia, the classical Arabic rhetorical tradition must attest to the existence of a candidate rhetorical device through at least two sources.
Criterion 2: Linguistic operation
- A candidate rhetorical device must have a clearly defined linguistic operation rather than only a general effect, purpose, topic, or stylistic quality (see Principle 3: The Encyclopedia Uses a Linguistic Operation-First Approach to Rhetorical Analysis and Principle 4: Rhetorical Devices Are Atomic Units).
Criterion 3: Cognitive relationship
- A candidate rhetorical device must establish or activate an identifiable cognitive relationship between communicator and addressee through which the device functions rhetorically.
Criterion 4: Pragmatic (i.e. rhetorical) effect
- A candidate rhetorical device, operating through that cognitive relationship, must be capable of producing an identifiable pragmatic effect in the addressee.
- The effect need not correspond to demonstrable authorial intent, and a particular occurrence need not demonstrably produce the effect in every addressee.
Criterion 5: Taxonomic distinctiveness
- A candidate rhetorical device must be sufficiently distinct from existing devices in its linguistic operation, or in the combination of linguistic operation and cognitive relationship through which it functions, to justify an independent taxonomic position.
Criterion 6: Operationally identifiable
- Established Arabic rhetorical theory must attest to the candidate rhetorical device with sufficient definitional clarity and exemplification to permit stable operationalisation, such that independent analysts can identify and annotate the candidate rhetorical device using defined criteria derived from this attestation.
See Also
- Design Principles of the Encyclopedia of Arabic Rhetoric - outlines the encyclopedia's theoretical framework from which the Criteria for Inclusion in the Encyclopedia of Arabic Rhetoric are derived.
Page History
- 2026-08-16 - Page created: Criteria for Inclusion in the Encyclopedia of Arabic Rhetoric by splitting from Design Principles of the Encyclopedia of Arabic Rhetoric.
