This article examines the main principles for describing the broken plural as presented by Ibn Yaʿīsh (13th c.) and notes the main differences between his treatment and that of Sībawayhi (8th c.), the author of the earliest extant grammatical treatise, which makes it possible to gain an idea of how this topic developed in traditional Arabic grammar. The broken plural is of particular interest because of the large number of patterns (more than 30) and the rather complex algorithm for choosing a broken-plural form for a given singular form, and it is precisely this type of plural that receives the most attention in the treatise Sharḥ al-Mufaṣṣal.
Keywords:
Ibn Yaʿīsh, Sībawayhi, broken plural, traditional Arabic grammar
