structural semantics

Humanities deal with human ideas and thoughts, and its ultimate goal is his spiritual and mental development, which in this sense is related to the goal of the prophets and their teachings. The Qur'an, as a miracle of the Prophet of Islam (S.A.W.), has a fundamental effect on the Islamization of humanities, reforming the lifestyle of humans and elite society. One of the strategies for developing the Islamic humanities and achieving new knowledge is to identify and localize interdisciplinary research methods and refine or combine them to contemplate and understand religious texts in a multifaceted way and efficiently. By using interdisciplinary research methods, it is possible to discover and identify verses related to the newly-emerged queries and provide logical and appropriate answers to new doubts of each era. The issue of creational preordainment and its relationship with Divine predestination is one of the challenging topics among Islamic scholars, in such a way that proponents of predestination always seek assistance from them to prove their theory, while in contrast another group tries to interpret the verses of creational preordainment in the Holy Qur'an. In this article, an attempt has been made with an interdisciplinary approach and using the research methods of "structural semantics" and "qualitative content analysis", to first identify the semantic network of the concept of "creational preordainment" in the Holy Qur'an, and then to extract its fundamental components by qualitatively analyzing their contents. The results of the research show that, firstly, the verses of the creational preordainment are stated with the aim of explaining the sovereignty and absolute power of God, secondly, its main themes are focused on the issue of life and death of creatures, and thirdly, this concept cannot express divine predestination in the matter of guiding and misguiding humans.

Undoubtedly, hyponymy is one of the most important and well-known conceptual relationships at the lexical level. This relationship occurs when the concept of one word encompasses several other concepts. Among other conceptual relationships, hyponymy is particularly significant in elucidating the semantic field of words, as it can facilitate the understanding of other conceptual relationships. The word "Fazl" (grace), as one of the prominent attributes of God in the Holy Quran, holds a special place and plays a central role in shaping the Islamic worldview. Therefore, it is essential to discover its semantic domain within the semantic network of the Quran. By uncovering the hyponymy relationship of "Fazl," the position of this concept in the Islamic worldview becomes evident. This descriptive-analytical research analyzes and elucidates the semantic hyponymy of "Fazl" in the verses of the Holy Quran in chronological order of revelation based on structural semantics and relational semantics. The findings indicate that the core meaning of "Fazl" denotes the concept of abundance and the word has been used beyond its literal meaning in the Holy Quran, encompassing a wide range of meanings. It has a hyponymic relation with words such as inheritance of the book, selection, success in preceding others in good deeds, the abode of permanence, knowledge of the speech of birds, the presence of the throne of the Queen of Sheba, delay in punishment, monotheism, the harmony of mountains and birds with Prophet David (peace be upon him), the system of day and night, the gardens of paradise, eternity in heaven, etc.

The root SRF is used in the Holy Quran 23 times in different forms. Out of this number, the form of active noun (al-musref, al-musrifīn/ al-musrifūn) plus an additional case (man asrafa) is found in 16 uses, and only 7 other uses of this root have other forms. Despite the significant difference in applications, the understanding of Israf in the interpretive tradition and in Islamic culture, especially in the contemporary period, is based on 7 applications in Islamic economic theories. This research aims to answer this question with the approach of constructivist semantics, what are the differences between the two categories of uses of the word "Iserf" from each other? The most important result in differentiating the usages is that the construction of the active noun "Al-Musrafin" in the Holy Qur'an has been upgraded from the level of meaning and turned into a term meaning a group against the prophets whose actions are against divine commands, but the other morphological constructions of this article remain at the level of meaning. They have remained and are considered equivalent to a kind of obscene and abnormal behavior, a meaning that today is mostly mentioned in the understanding of Israf in the Qurʾān as a kind of behavioral and moral abnormality.

Khair is one of the practical words of the Arabic language, the conceptual and examples of which are used in human life. Structural semantics uses the methods of Qur'anic studies to extract the latent meaning of the text from a network of conceptual relationships. The present research based on companion and successor relationships with a constructivist approach to lexical-semantic analysis seeks to discover the semantic components of good in the Qur'an. External emergence, especially in the position of action, infinite blessings of absolute good, both material and spiritual, heart belief, desire, dispersal, touching, finding, and clinging are the semantic components of "good" through relationships and in the axis of the substitution of pure obedience in science and practice, return to the main source of charity, the well-known good deed of reason or sharia, it includes expansion, restraining the soul from deviation, desire, revealing human purity, embodying deeds in the resurrection.

Following Allāh and Rabb, Al-Raḥmān emerges as the most frequent name of God in the Qurʾān. In addition to the Basmalah and Q1:3, Al-Raḥmān is extensively used, particularly within the middle Meccan Surahs. With the acceptance of the perspective of Muslim scholars, where Al-Raḥmān is an exaggerated form of raḥmah (mercy) and a descriptor of God, the issue at hand revolves around the semantic difference between Al-Raḥmān and the descriptor Raḥīm, which is also derived from raḥmah and is an exaggeration regarding God. This is especially evident in the Basmalah and some verses such as Q 41:2, where both are mentioned together. The answer to this issue lies in understanding that Al-Raḥmān is not an exaggerated descriptor of God, meaning an exaggeration of His mercy, but rather it is a proper noun, and like the name Allāh, indicates the essence of God. The first part of this research employs a historical approach and applies comparative Semitics, while the second part adopts a structural approach grounded in Qurʾānic usage. Multiple pieces of evidence are presented to establish Al-Raḥmān as a proper noun. Notabely, its consistent usage as a definite noun in Semitic languages, and its exclusive application in the Qurʾān referring to God are highlighted. The coexistence of definiteness and specificity in reference underscores Al-Raḥmān as a proper noun for God.

Understanding conceptual relations is essential for considering and conveying meaning, because when examining different types of meaning, it seeks to go beyond the level of linguistic construction and determines the exact meaning of a word in and outside the contexts. This research aims to determine the type and frequency of conceptual relations between Gilaki words used in the folklore tales of Guilan, showing the prevailing semantic relationships among them. For this purpose, 62 stories from the book Folklore Tales of Guilan were analyzed. This research was descriptive-analytical. Conceptual relations including hyponymy, synonymy, polysemy, homonymy, homography, member-collection, meronymy, portion-mass, and repetition were analyzed and the frequency of each was calculated. The results showed that among the types of lexical relations, the occurrence frequency of the lexical relation of hyponymy had the highest frequency with 84%. After the lexical relation of hyponymy, the frequency of occurrence of each of the conceptual relations was determined in the following order: meronymy 6%, portion-mass 3%, synonym 2%, homonymy 1%, member-collection 1%, polysemy 1%, homography 1 %, and repetition 1%. Moreover, between Gilaki words in this variety of language, semantic lexical relations of semantic opposition, semantic contrast and collocation have not been used.

This study tries to analyze the Persian translations of banking texts in documentary credit section of international banking by selecting five translated books and having a linguistic view. As semantics is one of the main principles studied in linguistics and on the other hand, transfer of the meaning is one of the main issues in translation studies, therefore, some equivalents in these texts were analyzed by a mixed linguistic and translation view with descriptive-analytic method based on library resources. Findings show that applying three approaches of structural semantics in linguistics including units of the same field, componential analysis and sense (conceptual) relations, by specifying conceptual relationships as well as subtle componential differences among different units of the same field, lead to the appropriate and accurate equivalent selection (making)s related to different types of documentary credits different insurance documents different charges different sendings ), different drawings and shipments as well as different receivings . In conclusion, these three approaches of structural semantics, by helping the realization of meanings, lead to the accurate and correct selection (making) of equivalents and in some cases prevent the Persian language from the influence(s) of other languages in translations of these texts.

This study with a descriptive-analytical method and based on library resources and also by drawing on structural semantics view, conducted to investigate the particular collocations and lexical ambiguities (polysemies) existing in documentary credit section of international banking (customs and practices) and their related problems in equivalent selection in Persian language through comprehensive study of five translated books. The results of the study indicate that the collocations in specific section of the selected banking texts have the peculiarities of being contextual (lexical and structural), simple, usual, nearby, highly frequent, pivot word, situational, semantic and syntagmatic and the translators had two approaches of selecting different or fix equivalent (s) while rendering them in to Persian language. It is also worthy to note that selection of fix equivalent could lead to the development of specific type of language dealing with documentary credit in Persian language. Another finding of investigation reveals the pivotal peculiarity of polysemies in the specific section of selected banking texts by indicating that the vast majority of them are as the result of proficient and novel use of a word (by allocation of new meaning and multi-signification) in banking industry. But these multi-significations do not result in lexical ambiguities as their implementations in special co-texts and collocations make them a unit with a clear, distinct and proficient meaning in selected banking texts.

This study with application of a mixed-view of translation and linguistics, conducted to analyze the translations of banking texts in the documentary credit section (custom and practices) of international banking by selection of five translated books among which one hundred and seventy sentences were randomly selected. To this end, two perspectives of Newmark translation equivalent finding strategies and structural semantics with a descriptive-analytical method based on library resources were applied in order to analyze and recognize those translation strategies which are most frequently utilized and have prominent role in the correct translation and transmission of meaning in these types of text. Findings of the study indicate that transference and through-translation are the most frequent strategies and others are less likely to occur. Also, recognized translation, translation label, compensation, componential analysis, notes, additions and glosses and cultural strategies (in the specialized section of texts) are not utilized at all. Contrary to the frequency and based on the founded samples: functional, descriptive, componential analysis, notes, additions and glosses and through-translation play a more prominent role in translations of these types of text. Of course, this does not mean that other strategies do not play a role in equivalent selections of such texts, but the appropriate use of other strategies seems to be superficial for translation and transfer of correct meaning in these types of text and each strategy must be used in its proper place.

The Holy Qur’an mentions itself and two matters belonging to it eleven times, namely: “hukm (ruling)” and “lisān (language)” with the description of “Arabī (Arabic)”. God’s emphasis on this feature is something worth pondering and researching. Commentators have mostly considered this word “a name attributed to the Arab race” and referred to the meaning of “Arabic language”. However, this interpretation does not correspond to the meanings of its paradigmatic words, the linguistic context and the content of the surahs in which this word is used. Based on the structural semantics and the approach of semantic comprehensiveness of a surah, this research semantically examines the word “arabī” in the verse Nahl: 103[1]. As a result, it is proved that in Surah al-Nahl, “Arabic of the language of the Qur’an” is described with “comprehensiveness of God’s command”, “conformity of the Qur’an with it”, “activation of human cognitive tools (i.e.: thinking, reasoning, listening, mentioning) and “enlightenment according to the end of man”. “Lisān Arabī” has the ability that by presenting the command of God man can turn his attention to matters that along with the activation of cognitive tools and the flourishing of each of them, will enable man to reach the final desired by God, and God’s command will manifest in man’s action and behavior.

Courage is one of the moral virtues that mean bravery and in ethics it is referred to as the middle ground between temerity and fear. Given the importance of the issue of courage in human life and its great impact on his material and spiritual growth and excellence, the need to identify its semantic domain, especially within the limits of Islamic sources, is increasingly determined. Using a descriptive-analytical method and emphasizing the field of structural semantics, the present article intends to examine the meaning of the word courage in a systematic process; Based on the findings of this study, by examining the semantic scope and relations of coexistence and substitution of the word courage in religious sources, the concept of "courage" with a number of words such as "truth and honesty", "self-sacrifice", "rejection of humiliation",  "ambitious", "mettle", "self-control", " humanity", "generosity", "patience" and "wisdom" are strongly related. The concepts of "victory", "virtue" and "endurance" also have a distributive relationship with the concept of "courage". Also, the concept of "courage" is in conflict with words such as "cowardice" and "lack of foresight". Therefore, through courage, one can strengthen those traits that are strongly related to this concept and avoid the negative impact of traits such as "cowardice" and "lack of foresight" that are in conflict with this trait.

The Holy Qur'an establishes a system of meanings between words in which it explains and evaluates concepts based on its worldview. The method of constructivist semantics is a way of recognizing Qur'anic words in this system without any other presuppositions. "Farah" is one of the Qur'anic concepts that, although it has a positive value in some applications, has been criticized in more cases.Thus, Farah's interpretation of happiness reinforces the skepticism of the Qur'an's denial of his opposition to happiness, despite the positive nature of this concept in psychology. Accordingly, this research seeks to find the meaning of Farah in the Qur'an with a descriptive-analytical method and by using constructivist semantics, and then find the reason for its dominant condemnation.This study shows that in the Qur'an, the semantic components of Farah include pride and joy, and this word is divided into two types based on the superiority or non-superiority of the real factor of pride in it, in other words, the existence or non-existence of the component of reality.The Holy Qur'an lists a number of factors for disapproved Farah, including the blessings of the world, the escape from jihad, and the entanglement of believers.In contrast, the divine grace and mercy, which in the Qur'an refers only to spiritual blessings, is the only factor of admired Farah.

The word daraba is one of the most complex words in the Arabic language, which according to some of the earliest philologists is used to refer to all actions. Therefore, a precise understanding of the meanings of daraba in the Quran and finding its semantic components requires a methodological study. Structural semantics is one of the methods of Quranic studies which deals with extracting hidden meanings in a text considering a network of conceptual relations. The present study is based on syntagmatic and paradigmatic relations and seeks to discover the semantic components of daraba using the constructivist approach. An attempt has been made to explain the semantic status of daraba in the Quran through the semantic analysis of the words that are in the same semantic field as daraba and in the two syntagmatic and paradigmatic axes. The semantic components of “daraba” extracted through syntagmatic relations are: to connect, to join, to close, to leave, to turn away from, to entangle, to unfold, to surround, to change, external emergence, power and weight. The semantic components to go, to cut, to turn away from, to surround, to cover, to squeeze and to entangle were further extracted through the paradigmatic axis of “daraba”.

One of the most adjectival Phrases of the Holy Qur'an is "work righteousness." What is God's word about this statement? The commentators have used various methods to achieve their answer. In this research, structural semantics method has been used. The purpose of this article is to show the meaning of "work righteousness" and achieve its meaning. Hence, first, on the basis of historical semantics, its etymology was examined and then on the basis of structural semantics, the semantic circles of "work righteousness" with respect to the semantic fields of their respective words: good(khier), good(hasan) and the good(ma'ruf) And its mutual terms: false, debauchery and corruption have been analyzed. The author, while accepting the emphasis on the well-known definition of "work righteousness", namely, the gathering of the good act and good acting in one act, emphasizes on the role of determining the "leader" and "wisdom" and its relation to the "purpose" of action, and on the semantics of faith, sincerity , The continuity and repetition, the breadth, proportion and factor of time and personality in the semantics of the "work righteousness", and has counted degrees for "work righteousness".

Acceptance is a universal need and encompasses the life span. Maladaptive schemas are the product of the damage to this need, and Satisfying in this need increases the feeling of love, support and meaning. The purpose of this study is to investigate the human need for acceptance in the Quran. The main method of this study is qualitative. Structural method was used for data collection and semantic field approach. For this purpose, research samples, i.e., verses related to the "Rahmat" and "Azab" root derivations, were included in the Max QDA version12 software. The coding task was carried out with content analysis using the Grounded Theory method and with different categories. The research findings for these two origins indicate the abundance of 900 codes related to the concept of acceptance that shows the importance of this need in the Qur'an. The analysis of the research findings has reached four levels of acceptance to satisfying this need; acceptance of God, the Prophet and divine leaders, community and family. The acceptance of human beings in Qur'an is based on a framework in which the analysis of the word against Mercy, ie doom, explains it. The acceptance of God is universal and encompasses all; it is based on a specific framework that results in a state of balance between fear and hope. As a result, acceptance refers to a range of kindness, the lowest level of which involves human need for positive attention and kindness. Doom companions also set the framework for this acceptance.

Sayyiʾah is one of the terms most frequently used in the Qurʾān. It mostly studied in the semantic field of ‘disobedience of God’, while there are many other usages in the Qurʾān which have not been studied semantically yet, and the importance of its meaning has not been clarified. In this study, considering sense relations between sayyiʾah and other concepts used in the Qurʾān, including syntagmatic and paradigmatic relations, semantic fields of the term sayyiʾah has been analyzed by using a structural semantic method. Syntagmatic relations reveal that in the Qurʾān, sayyiʾah has been used in two different meanings: ‘evil deed resulting punishment’ and ‘unpleasant accident’. In the first semantic field, sayyiʾah has paradigmatic relation with ‘ḏanb’, ‘munkar’, ‘ẓulm’, ‘fāḥišah’, ‘ḫaṭiʾah’, ‘fasād’ and ‘kaid’ as well as semantic opposition with ‘ḥasanah’, ‘ṣāliḥah’, ‘ḫair’ and ‘birr’. In the second semantic field, sayyiʾah has paradigmatic relation with ‘ʿaḏāb’, ‘ḍurr’, ‘muṣībah’, ‘halāk’, ‘šarr’ and ‘ḫauf’ as well as semantic opposition with ‘ḥasanah’, ‘raḥmah’ and ‘ḫair’. As a result, the most important semantic components of sayyiʾah in the both semantic fields has been revealed as well as providing a comprehensive definition of sayyiʾah in the semantic system of the Qurʾān.

The semantic study of the Quran's words which have been intelligently and wisely embedded in the ayat and surahs, facilitates gaining access to a cohesive network of deep meanings and concepts in this divine book. Among the holy Quran's words, some seem to be synonymous, while with a careful semantic examination, their subtle differences become evident. This research attempts to account for this semantic precision, trying to investigate the difference between 'al'umu' and 'alwalida' and how they are used in the Quranic phrases and ayat with a survey into the Qur'an and based on structural semantics. The findings of the research show that these two words are characterized by 'temporality'; the word 'alwalida' is on the axis of time and refers to a specific period of time in 'al'ulmu' stages of life. This feature can be seen and studied in most of kinship terms.

Structural semantics of the Qur’an determines the meaning of vocabulary through Qur’anic text as well as syntagmatic and paradigmatic relations. In this method, it is focused on the linguistic units of ‘word’ and ‘sentence’, regardless of ‘discourse’. Therefore, a part of the context of verses for understanding the meaning is not to be considered. Increasing the accuracy of structural semantics of the Qur’an, based on the descriptive-analytical method, the present research seeks to explore how to apply semantic relations between sentences and conceptual paradigmatic relations, in order to take advantage of textual context. Thus by defining semantic complementary, contradictory and booster relations between sentences, corresponding relations between words, more than what is determined through a single sentence, would be at hand. Also attention to conceptual paradigmatic relations, that is a description or exemplification of a concept, reveals more features of the word. In this regard, in addition to more syntagmatic and paradigmatic cases, the relation between words are determined more precisely as well.

One of the requirements of the Islamic religion is to receive the Holy Qur'an's viewpoint in the face of new issues, but before this it is important and necessary to address the "proper research method" for discovering and identifying the verses associated with that subject and is a major step in interdisciplinary research in the field of Islamic sciences. Among the new theories proposed in recent times, is the issue of "soft power" and its components and resources in human societies. Although this theory was originally proposed by Western scholars, it has always been questioned whether the Holy Qur'an has a theoretical background? And by which method can the verses be accessed in this field? And finally, how and on what basis can a valid theory be discovered without entering the domain of interpretation into a vote? In this paper, in an interdisciplinary approach, using methods of research "structural semantics" and "qualitative content analysis", the semantic network of the concept of "power" has been identified, including the words of the companion and the successor in the Holy Qur'an, then by qualitative analysis Their themes and categorization of the contents of the content analysis tables, components and components of the theory of soft power from the perspective of the Holy Qur'an are extracted.