A Historical, Descriptive and Cognitive Semantic Evaluation of the Phrase ‘Mītẖāqā Gẖalīẓā’ in the Holy Qur’ān

The semantic analysis of Qur’anic vocabulary has emerged as a significant area of study in recent years. In the Holy Qur’an, God specifically uses the phrase mītẖāqā gẖalīẓā (a firm covenant) to describe the marriage agreement, warranting a semantic investigation to understand the reasoning behind this choice. This study adopts a qualitative approach to explore why this phrase was selected for the marriage covenant. It employs historical, descriptive, and cognitive analyses of the phrase. The term mītẖāqā gẖalīẓā appears three times in the Qur’an: first, in reference to God’s covenant with the prophets (Al-Ahzab: ۷); second, regarding God’s covenant with the people of Israel (An-Nisaa’: ۱۵۴); and third, in the context of marriage (An-Nisaa’: ۲۱). Through historical semantics, the study traces the semantic evolution of mītẖāq. Using descriptive semantics, it analyzes the phrase contextually and examines its paradigmatic and syntagmatic dimensions to uncover its semantic features and components. Furthermore, by applying the principle of authenticity of Qur’anic terms within cognitive semantics, the study concludes that no synonym or alternative phrase adequately conveys the profound semantic depth and layers of mītẖāqā in the given contexts.

کلیدواژه ها:

Authenticity Principle ، cognitive semantics ، descriptive semantics ، historical semantics ، mītẖāqā gẖalīẓā ، Qur’anic Expression