The Notion of Syllable and the Kinetic-Impulsive Theory of Arabic Phoneticians

Abstract

The syllable as conceived by the Greeks was known to the Arabs through the translation of works of antiquity. But there existed long before this Greco-Arab contact, a conception of verbal dynamics. entirely original, based on the notions of harf and baraka. The harf is the minimal segment of the spoken chain. According to al Halil, it has two qualities: a timbre and an impulsive force