PROVERB: Proverbialisation

    From The Encyclopedia of Arabic Rhetoric

    إرسال المثل / الكلام الجامع
    PROVERB: Proverbialisation
    CategoryLinguistic Embellishments
    (ʿilm al-badīʿ)
    SubcategoryArgumentation & Illustrative Persuasion
    Built upon4 sources
      
    Annotation Unit
    ARDT CodePROVERB
    Level1 (Rhetorical device)
       ↳ Has 2 subtypes
      
    Included in Taxonomy
    ARDTv0.1.1
    v0.1.0
      
    External Identifiers
    BALAGHAScoreCE-3
    BalaghaBaseQ104
    OpenAlexW4415376916
      
    Cite this page
    🔗 Live DOI10.64393/balagha.Q104
     
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    Definition

    Proverbialisation (irsāl al-mathal, al-kalām al-jāmiʿ) is an Arabic rhetorical device in which the communicator coins, within a larger discourse, a self-contained formulation capable of functioning as a circulating proverb or maxim beyond its immediate context, such as an expression of wisdom, characterization, admonition, or another generalisable expression applicable in comparable situations.[1][2][3][4][5][6]

    Background Information

    The Arabic designation irsāl al-mathal evokes the presentation or "sending forth" of a proverb-like formulation, while al-kalām al-jāmiʿ characterises the resulting formulation as comprehensive or compendious speech.

    Linguistic Operations

    • The communicator coins within a larger discourse a self-contained formulation whose meaning and wording allow it to function as a saying or proverb beyond its immediate context.[5]
    • The formulation is constructed so that it can be detached conceptually from its original situation and applied to comparable situations, thereby running in the manner of a proverb (tajrī majrā al-mathal).[5][2]
    • The device itself is not restricted to poetry: Cachia (1998) defines it as coining, as part of one's discourse, something capable of functioning as a saying, while Ṭabāna explicitly notes that irsāl al-mathal also occurs outside poetry (wa-yajīʾu ayḍan fī ghayr al-shiʿr). The classical examples and classifications recorded by the sources are, however, predominantly poetic.[5][2][7]
    • Within poetry, the proverbial formulation may occupy only part of a verse. Nāṣif et al. (2012) specifically use irsāl al-mathal for this configuration, while Ṭabāna similarly defines its poetic realization as the poet introducing within “part of a verse” (fī baʿḍ bayt) something that runs in the manner of a proverb.[1][7]
    • Alternatively, the complete verse may constitute the proverbial formulation. This configuration is termed al-kalām al-jāmiʿ by Nāṣif et al. (2012), al-Nābulusī as presented by Cachia (1998), and the authorities recorded by ʿAkkāwī (1996).[1][6][4]

    Recognition

    Proverbialisation may be present when:

    • The communicator coins a formulation expressing wisdom, characterization, admonition, warning, general truth, or another meaning in a form suitable for application in comparable situations.[5][2][1]
    • The formulation is sufficiently self-contained and generalisable to function beyond its immediate context in the manner of a proverb, maxim, or quotable saying.[5][2]
    • The formulation is capable of running in the manner of proverbial speech (tajrī majrā al-mathal).[5][2]
    • The formulation is being created as part of the present discourse, rather than introduced primarily as the quotation, incorporation, or evocation of a pre-existing proverb.[5]
    • In poetry, the proverbial unit may comprise either part of a verse or a complete verse, according to the structural distinction recorded in the sources.[1][6][4]

    Communicative Enhancements

    • Proverbial authority: Because the utterance is framed as a maxim or general truth, it acquires an air of wisdom that exceeds its immediate discursive occasion. A particular judgement is elevated into a generalisable principle.
    • Semantic portability: The device compresses meaning into a form capable of functioning across multiple contexts. This portability gives the utterance rhetorical durability and makes it available for reuse beyond its original setting.
    • Proverbial closure: When a statement culminates in a proverb-like unit, it performs an epistemic shift — moving the audience from contingent circumstance to universal principle — giving the impression that the matter has been settled at the level of wisdom rather than argument.
    • Detachable completeness (PROVERB-PV: irsāl al-mathal): When only part of the verse functions proverbially, that segment achieves rhetorical independence from the larger poetic structure, foregrounding economy and concentration of expression.
    • Collective ownership (PROVERB-CV: al-kalām al-jāmiʿ): When a complete verse achieves proverbial status, it becomes detached from its specific poetic occasion entirely, inviting audiences to receive it as shared wisdom rather than the utterance of a particular poet in a particular circumstance.

    Applying the Recognition Framework

    The information on this page can be used to evaluate whether this device is present in a candidate lexical item using the Specific Device Recognition part of the Universal Framework for Identifying Arabic Rhetorical Devices:

    • Use the Definition, Mechanism, and Recognition sections of this page in Step 1.
    • Apply the substitution test in Step 2.
    • Consider contextual indicators in Step 3.
    • Use the Diagnostic Communicative Enhancements section of this page in Step 4.

    Subtypes of Proverbialisation

    The following distinction describes two poetic structural configurations of Proverbialisation according to whether the proverb-like formulation occupies part or all of a verse. It does not restrict the parent device itself to poetry.[1][5][6][4][2]

    Nāṣif et al. (2012) distinguish irsāl al-mathal, in which part of a verse functions proverbially, from al-kalām al-jāmiʿ, in which the complete verse does so.[1] This part-versus-whole distinction should not be taken as an exhaustive definition of irsāl al-mathal across the sources: al-Nābulusī, as presented by Cachia (1998), and ʿAkkāwī (1996) also use irsāl al-mathal more broadly for the production of proverb-like formulations.[5][2]

    PROVERB-PVP: Partial-Verse Proverbialisation (irsāl al-mathal)

    Annotation Unit
    ARDTPROVERB-PVP
    Level2 (Subtype)
    BalaghaBaseQ353
    Official Arabic nameirsāl al-mathal[1]

    A poetic configuration in which part of a verse constitutes a proverb-like formulation. Nāṣif et al. (2012) use irsāl al-mathal specifically for this configuration. Ṭabāna similarly describes the poetic occurrence of the broader irsāl al-mathal as introducing within “part of a verse” (fī baʿḍ bayt) something that runs in the manner of a proverb, while explicitly noting that the device also occurs outside poetry.[1][7] The term therefore has broader application elsewhere in the source tradition.[5][2]

    مَنْ يَهُنْ يَسْهُلِ الْهَوَانُ عَلَيْهِ     مَا لِجُرْحٍ بِمَيِّتٍ إِيلَامُ

    Whoever is abased finds abasement easy; / a wound causes no pain to the dead.

    Explanation
    Al-Nābulusī cites this verse by al-Mutanabbī as an example of irsāl al-mathal.[5] The second hemistich, “a wound causes no pain to the dead,” forms a detachable, generalisable statement capable of functioning proverbially beyond the immediate poetic context. Structurally, the example therefore illustrates the partial-verse configuration represented here by PROVERB-PVP.

    لَيْسَ التَّكَحُّلُ فِي الْعَيْنَيْنِ كَالْكَحَلِ

    Applying kohl to the eyes is not the same as naturally dark-rimmed eyes.

    Explanation
    Nāṣif et al. (2012) cite this as an example of irsāl al-mathal, explicitly distinguishing it from al-kalām al-jāmiʿ on the grounds that the proverbial formulation occupies only part of a verse, whereas the latter comprises a complete verse.[1]

    مَنْ يَزْرَعِ الْخَيْرَ يَحْصُدْ مَحَبَّةَ النَّاسِ     وَمَنْ يَبْذُلِ الْمَعْرُوفَ يَلْقَ ثَنَاءً دَائِمَا

    Whoever sows goodness reaps the love of people, / and whoever gives generously will find lasting praise.

    Explanation
    A constructed verse in which the first hemistich functions as a detachable proverbial saying expressing a generalised moral truth, while the second hemistich completes the verse. The first hemistich illustrates the mechanism of irsāl al-mathal, where part of a verse forms a detachable unit capable of functioning proverbially beyond its immediate context.[1]

    Promises fade, but actions remain; / by what we build, the world knows our names.

    Explanation
    The first part of the line, “Promises fade, but actions remain,” forms a self-contained, generalisable statement capable of circulating independently as a proverb or maxim, while the remainder continues the larger poetic line. This illustrates the partial-verse configuration of irsāl al-mathal.

    PROVERB-CVP: Complete-Verse Proverbialisation (al-kalām al-jāmiʿ)

    Annotation Unit
    ARDTPROVERB-CVP
    Level2 (Subtype)
    BalaghaBaseQ354
    Official Arabic nameal-kalām al-jāmiʿ[1]

    A form of Proverbialisation in which the complete verse constitutes a proverb-like formulation. This is termed al-kalām al-jāmiʿ in the sources, which describe the complete verse as expressing wisdom, admonition, comparison, or another general truth capable of running in the manner of a proverb.[1][6][4]

    إِذَا جَاءَ مُوسَى وَأَلْقَى الْعَصَا     فَقَدْ بَطَلَ السِّحْرُ وَالسَّاحِرُ

    When Moses came and cast down the staff, the magic and the magician were undone.

    Explanation
    Cited by Nāṣif et al. (2012) as an example of a complete proverbial verse.[1]

    جَمْعُ الْكَلَامِ إِذَا لَمْ تُغْنِ حِكْمَتُهُ     وُجُودُهُ عِنْدَ أَهْلِ الذَّوْقِ كَالْعَدَمِ

    Speech, if its wisdom does not avail, is as nothing to people of taste.

    Explanation
    Recorded by ʿAkkāwī (1996) as an illustrative example cited by Ibn Ḥijja al-Ḥamawī for al-kalām al-jāmiʿ, showing a complete verse functioning as a general maxim.[4]

    إِذَا كَانَتِ النُّفُوسُ كِبَارًا     تَعِبَتْ فِي مُرَادِهَا الْأَجْسَامُ

    When souls are great, bodies grow weary in pursuing their aims.

    Explanation
    Cited by ʿAkkāwī (1996) and attributed to al-Mutanabbī as an example of a complete verse functioning as a general proverbial maxim.[4]

    إِذَا ضَاقَتِ الدُّنْيَا بِأَهْلِ الْعَزِيمَةِ     فَتَحَتْ لَهُمُ الْهِمَّةُ أَبْوَابَ الْمُسْتَحِيلِ

    When the world grows narrow for those of firm resolve, / their ambition opens for them the doors of the impossible.

    Explanation
    A complete verse functioning as a general maxim applicable beyond any single context — illustrating al-kalām al-jāmiʿ, where the whole verse runs in the manner of proverbs (tajrī majrā al-mathal).

    A door left closed by fear will never show you what lies beyond.

    Explanation
    The complete line forms a self-contained, generalisable maxim applicable beyond any particular situation. Unlike Partial-Verse Proverbialisation, the proverb-like formulation occupies the whole line, illustrating al-kalām al-jāmiʿ.

    Different From

    • This device concerns the production of a formulation of sufficient generality and self-containment to function proverbially beyond its immediate context. It is therefore primarily a compositional device rather than an intertextual one. The act of subsequently citing such a formulation - once it has passed into proverbial circulation - falls under Allusion when the source is evoked without its wording, or Poetic Incorporation when poetic wording is carried over.

    References

    1. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Ḥafnī Nāṣif, Muḥammad Diyāb, Sultan Muḥammad and Muṣṭafā Ṭammām, Durūs al-Balāgha (Beirut: Dār Ibn Ḥazm, 2012), 112, ISBN 9786144162798.
    2. ↑ a b c d e f g h i Inʿam Fawwal ʿAkkawi, al-Muʿjam al-Mufassal fi ʿUlum al-Balagha: al-Badiʿ wa-l-Bayan wa-l-Maʿani (Beirut: Dar al-Kutub al-ʿIlmiyya, 1996), 59-60.
    3. ↑ Inʿam Fawwal ʿAkkawi, al-Muʿjam al-Mufassal fi ʿUlum al-Balagha: al-Badiʿ wa-l-Bayan wa-l-Maʿani (Beirut: Dar al-Kutub al-ʿIlmiyya, 1996), 60.
    4. ↑ a b c d e f g Inʿam Fawwal ʿAkkawi, al-Muʿjam al-Mufassal fi ʿUlum al-Balagha: al-Badiʿ wa-l-Bayan wa-l-Maʿani (Beirut: Dar al-Kutub al-ʿIlmiyya, 1996), 627-628.
    5. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l Pierre Cachia, The Arch Rhetorician: Or The Schemer’s Skimmer: A Handbook of Late Arabic Badīʻ Drawn from ʻAbd al-Ghanī an-Nābulsī’s Nafaḥāt al-Azhār ʻala Nasamāt al-Asḥār, Studies in Arabic Language and Literature 3 (Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz, 1998), p. 97; §133, ISBN 9783447040327.
    6. ↑ a b c d e Pierre Cachia, The Arch Rhetorician: Or The Schemer’s Skimmer: A Handbook of Late Arabic Badīʻ Drawn from ʻAbd al-Ghanī an-Nābulsī’s Nafaḥāt al-Azhār ʻala Nasamāt al-Asḥār, Studies in Arabic Language and Literature 3 (Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz, 1998), p. 98; §134, ISBN 9783447040327.
    7. ↑ a b c Badawī Ṭabāna, Muʿjam al-Balāgha al-ʿArabiyya, 3rd rev. and expanded ed. (Jeddah: Dār al-Manāra; Riyadh: Dār al-Rifāʿī, 1988), 250-251.



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