New insights on infixed -an(n)- in Iraqi Arabic dialects

Abstract

In the few studies conducted so far on infixed -an(n)- in Iraqi Arabic, only a small area in southern Iraq was explored. Ingham, in his pioneer research on south Iraqi Arabic, considers it a characteristic feature of the dialects spoken by the dwellers of the marshy and rural areas in southern Iraq. This point of view has been widely adopted in subsequent research dealing with this infix. However, much is yet to be investigated concerning its possible presence in dialect areas other than the southern one. In this paper, I will first argue that infixed -an(n)- is not exclusive for the so-called southern continuum, to follow Ingham’s terminology, but is a regular idiosyncrasy throughout the šrūgi-dialectal area; second, I will show that this infix has, at least recently, crept into the remote qǝltu- and gǝlǝt-dialects outside the šrūgi-area.