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Part of
Handbook of Terminology: Volume 2. Terminology in the Arab world
Edited by Abied Alsulaiman and Ahmed Allaithy
[Handbook of Terminology 2] 2019
► pp. 109–138

Chapter 5
Medical terminology in the Arab world

Current state and developments

The cherished terminological principle of a single term for a single concept seems to be lagging behind in the Arab world despite the serious standardization steps taken to that end. Arabic medical terminology, like terminologies of other disciplines, is unfortunately still in a state of chaos due to the plurality of Arabic terms for the same scientific concept. This article attempts to describe the current state of Arabic health and medical terminology, shedding light on the political, educational and terminological practices followed to overcome this problem. It also highlights certain individual and institutional responses to issues of medical terminology and proposes a number of ways to help standardize Arabic terminology.

Keywords: Arabic terminology, Arabic health and medical terminology, standardization, Arabic terms
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Current state of Arabic health and medical terminology
    • 2.1Methods of producing medical and health terms
      • 2.1.2Arabic linguistic heritage as a source of terms
      • 2.1.3Term production by derivation
      • 2.1.4Term production by translation
      • 2.1.5Term production by metaphor or semantic extension
      • 2.1.6Term production by blending, acronymy and compounding
      • 2.1.7Lexical arabization
    • 2.2Failure of the political decisions to impose new terminology
    • 2.3curricula of medical terminology
    • 2.4Deficiencies in modern Arabic health and medical terminology
      • 2.4.1Lack of agreement on a clear methodology for producing health and medical terms
      • 2.4.2Simple chaos in medical and health terminology
      • 2.4.3Complex chaos in medical terminology due to calls for standardization
  • 3.Developments in Arabic health and medical terminology
    • 3.1Individual responses to problems in medical and health terminology
    • 3.2The response of Arabic Language Academies to terminological problems
    • 3.3The role of institutions in producing terms
    • 3.4The role of Arabization conferences
    • 3.5Standardizing health and medical terminology
      • 3.5.1Standardizing term formation methodologies
      • 3.5.2Standardizing health and medical terms
  • 4.The acceptability of health and medical terms
  • 5.The unified medical dictionary: A success story
  • 6.Conclusion and future prospects
  • Notes
  • References
Published online: 29 January 2019
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/hot.2.06sar
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