What others said about Arabic Read in the original
In his Arabic grammar, on the structure of the language:
“Now the means employed in the Arabic Language are precisely such, as with some improvements, a philosopher would probably chuse to adopt in the formation of a perfect system of Speech; insomuch, that if we are ever destined to realise the speculative idea of a universal tongue, to be invented by the Learned, and employed by them as a better instrument for the communication of thought than any Language at present in use, there can be no doubt that the mechanism or fundamental principles of Arabic Inflexion, will be found to furnish the best model of imitation that can be obtained, or even devised, for the successful accomplishment of such an undertaking.”
Matthew Lumsden
1777–1835
Scottish professor of Arabic and Persian at the College of Fort William in Calcutta, author of an Arabic grammar “according to the principles taught in the schools of Arabia”.
In Arabic
والوسائلُ التي تتّخذها العربيّة هي بعينها – مع شيءٍ من التحسين – ما يُرجَّح أن يختاره فيلسوفٌ لو أراد أن يضع نظاماً كاملاً للكلام؛ حتّى إنّه إن قُدِّر لنا يوماً أن نحقّق الفكرةَ النظريّة في لغةٍ عالميّةٍ يبتكرها العلماء، ويتّخذونها أداةً لنقل الفكر خيراً من أيّ لغةٍ مستعملةٍ اليوم، فلا ريبَ أنّ آليّةَ التصريف العربيّ، أو أصولَه الكبرى، ستكون خيرَ نموذجٍ يُحتذى، ممّا يمكن أن يُنال أو حتّى يُبتكر، لإنجاز هذا العمل.
Source
A Grammar of the Arabic Language, according to the Principles taught and maintained in the Schools of Arabia, vol. I, ch. II, sect. 3, Calcutta: The Honorable Company’s Press, 1813, p. 61–62
Read in the Bavarian State Library scan on archive.org. “Chuse” is the period spelling. By “Inflexion” he means the whole system of measures and derivation.
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