Linguistic Analysis of Puns and Common Sayings in Texts of Bilād aš-Šām

Résumé 0

This paper analyses puns and idioms in humorous cartoons produced in dialectal variants of the Syrian-Lebanese-Palestinian area. Colloquial expressions and puns play a predominant role in these artistic productions. In order to give impetus to a text or a concept, the author makes use of puns based on double meanings or on words that sound alike but which are distant in meaning. The aim is to create irony, to arouse other feelings in the reader in order to reawaken the consciousness. The use of colloquial expressions is necessary to engage with and transport the reader to the reality that the author wishes to communicate: it is interesting to examine the various expressions used in everyday life in the Arab world. Idiomatic expressions play a very important role: they are part of ʼadab “being well brought-up” or “good manners”, and they are numerous (greetings, requests, thanks, various exclamations). The collection of such expressions constitutes a rich source for linguistics, sociology and folklore.