"الملف 14/115 VII الملحق (B 9) أكسيد جزيرة أبو موسى: مواد خلفية حول هذه القضية" [ظ‎‎١‎٥‎٥] (١٩٠٤/٣٢١)

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A nnex 35. v ' ?
- f
Letter from the Revd. S. M. Zwemer of the
Church in the Persian Gulf, toLieutenant-Colonol
{Dated Bahrain, March 22 nd,
With reference to the meaning of the Arabic sentence and the probable
intention of the writer in using those words concerning which point you asked my
opinion, I take pleasure in replying as follows:—
First, it is evident that whoever wrote the sentence was not a thorough scholar
in Arabic, as he confused the masculine and feminine forms in the last word of the
sentence. To my mind the obvious translation of the phrase is, " the annulment
of this agreement is better than it/acceptance." I do not think it is at ail obvious or
possible to translate the sentence " the annulment of this agreement is better than
to comply with (his wishes)". This translation is, to my mind, a forced one, and not
the natural significance of the words in question, whatever be their connection.
1 am confirmed in this opinion after consulting with one or two Arabs concerning
the popular use of the pronoun in such a sentence, and I find that they agree with
me that there is a great looseness in the use of the feminine or masculine pronoun at
the close of a clause or sentence. I am sure that nine out of ten Arabs would
give the preference to the former translation of the sentence as the obvious and
natural intention of the writer.
Although my opinion does not carry weight beyond that of others who have
a speaking and reading knowledge of Arabic, yet J feel confident that in this case
it is not a matter of expert grammatical opinion, but of everyday usage in
the Persian Gulf, and I have no hesitation in saying that the first 'translation
is the right one.