Welcome to the The Balagha Corpus, a collection of texts annotated with
Arabic rhetorical devices
(al-balāgha).
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The text is the first two ayahs of Surah Ibrahim, a Meccan surah that emphasizes the themes of divine guidance, gratitude versus ingratitude, and the stories of past prophets, particularly highlighting Abraham's prayerful devotion and the consequences faced by disbelieving nations.
Added on 23 April 2025
24 rhetorical devices
41 word tokens
Rhetorical density: 58.537
The text is the first 17 lines of Sajjil: ʾAnā ʿArabī, a landmark poem of Palestinian resistance literature, in which the speaker defiantly asserts his Arab identity, recounts his personal and collective hardships, and challenges the forces of dispossession and discrimination with unwavering dignity and pride.
Added on 23 April 2025
21 rhetorical devices
64 word tokens
Rhetorical density: 32.813
The text is the first paragraph of Ḥadīth al-Qarya, a reflective short story by Maḥmūd Ṭāhir Lāshīn set in 1920s Egypt that captures a city-dweller’s impressions of rural life, revealing both its idyllic charm and its harsh social realities.
Added on 23 April 2025
22 rhetorical devices
164 word tokens
Rhetorical density: 13.415
The text is the title, lead image caption and first three paragraphs of a September 2022 BBC News Arabic post about Liz Truss winning the leadership of the UK Conservative Party.
Added on 23 April 2025
9 rhetorical devices
98 word tokens
Rhetorical density: 9.1837
The text is a set of instructions accompanying a commercial falafel mix. The instructions guide the user to make falafel using the mix.
Added on 23 April 2025
0 rhetorical devices
50 word tokens
Rhetorical density: 0