Arabic Scribal Practices in the 3rd-4th/9th-10th Centuries: Normative Sources and Manuscript Evidence

Abstract

It is incumbent on scholars of Arabic studies and Islamic studies who deal with manuscripts to understand pre-modern Arabic scribal practices. This thesis aims to improve our understanding of two aspects of Arabic scribal practices from the third/ninth-fourth/tenth centuries: the paratexts of manuscripts and the elements that help establish clarity and correctness. The study of the paratexts includes the title page, the introductory section, and the colophon. Regarding elements that help establish clarity and correctness, this thesis pays attention to the use of diacritical points and vowels, the cancellation of dittographies, the insertion of omissions, and the methods of preventing and correcting text mistakes. This thesis also analyzes the collation process and how it is marked in the manuscripts. The methodology of this study is to synthesize the normative sources that discuss these elements of scribal practice and then use the findings of this analysis on a selection of manuscripts.