The Electronic Lexicographic Database of Arabic Bedouin Dialects Created from a Card Index Preserved in Alois Musil's Legacy
Abstract
The lexicographic card index found in Alois Musil's inheritance shows possible uses for his work in the field of Arabic dialectology. Apart from other things, Musil collected during his expeditions a large sample of the lexicon of the dialects spoken by the local Arab tribes with which he was in close touch.
As this paper shows it seems that his records of the phonological and morphological particularities of these dialects are relatively faithful, though some irregularities occur. Furthermore his data precede any other similar accounts by more than 20 years.
His lexicographical collection may be used e.g. for diachronic research of Bedouin dialects. The lexicographic database created from this collection is now open for further investigation and elaboration.