Îcaz Tasnifinde “Îcâz-ı Sükût”un Üçüncü Bir Alt Başlık Olarak Değerlendirilme İhtimali
The Possibility of Evaluating “Ījāz al-Sukūt” as a Third Subcategory within the Ījāz Classification

Summary/Abstract: Rhetoric (balāgha) is one of the fundamental disciplines in Arabic language and literature that examines the appropriate use of speech in relation to context. Within this discipline, the branch of maʿānī is grounded in the principle of muqtadā al-ḥāl (contextual appropriateness) and analyzes modes of expression accordingly. Ījāz (conciseness) occupies a central place in this framework, referring to the expression of meaning with minimal wording. In classical rhetorical literature, meaning derived from what is left unsaid has largely been treated within a ḥadhf-centered understanding of ījāz, while forms of silence have not been conceptualized as an independent category within the taxonomy of ījāz. This study examines indications and discussions related to silence in classical rhetorical works from the 2nd to the 8th Islamic centuries, addressing the phenomenon particularly in relation to ījāz and ḥadhf. Through analyses of Qurʾānic verses and hadith reports, it demonstrates that silence functions not merely as an ethical attitude but as a context-driven, audience-centered strategy of meaning construction operating through contextual and situational indicators (qarīna and muqtadā al-ḥāl). Examples from Arabic prose and poetry are excluded from the scope of this study. The findings show that while ḥadhf and silence operate on a shared semantic ground, they differ in the mode of indication and the progression of discourse. Whereas ḥadhf relies on the omission of linguistic elements to be mentally supplied by the addressee, silence produces meaning by deliberately suspending or terminating speech, thereby directing attention to the central meaning of the text or event. In this respect, the article treats silence as a distinct manifestation within the broader functioning of ījāz and proposes, at a conceptual level, that such forms of silence may be examined under a third subcategory within the taxonomy of ījāz, termed “ījāz al-sukūt.”

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