‘Qussa’: Our word of the week addresses the simple, universal art of storytelling

One of the ways human beings differ from other species on Earth is the way we use complex language to describe thoughts, feelings and experiences.

Qussa or qissas, meaning story and stories, are a universal means through which human beings connect, communicate and have survived over time.

This week’s Arabic word of the week originates from only two letters, qaf and saad, and, very simply, means story.

There are no hidden meanings and no major developments of the word over time. The meaning of qussa is straightforward. However, the cultural significance of its meaning and the function qussa has had, not only in the Arab region but across the timelines of the rest of the world, is immeasurable.

Qussa can refer to a long or short story. It also refers to a story that can be performed orally or one that is recorded through writing. A qussa can be an imagined story, one that is based on fact or one that is a combination of both. It can be based on news or a current happening or entail a long and epic history of a place, person or object.

In all these varied cases, a qussa is only a qussa, however, if it is built on the specific foundations and the basics of the literary art of storytelling.

It’s important to note here that the foundation, guidelines or rules of storytelling will differ depending on genre, trends and the time a story is created.

See The National's pick of Arabic words of the week

It is generally agreed that a long qussa would entail many characters and themes, as seen in novels and long epics. while a short qussa would describe specific incidents and themes with fewer characters and more concentrated ideas. These can be anything from an article to a work of fiction, such as a fable or parable.

There are two types of storytellers as they relate to the word qussa. Qasaas is the person who orates a story to people and qas or qassasi is one who records a story through the act of writing.

There is also a narrative form of poetry called qassasai, which can be performed or written down.

When qussa is used in reference to a person, event, location or object, it means that the subject has a history, a story or is in some way a thing of relevance.

Another word, qassas, which is derived from the same root as qussa, relates to the traces of a person, thing or incident that has occurred. For example, if someone was to leave a room there would be signs that they occupied that room for some time — a coffee mug, their scent, a strand of hair. These signs or the evidence of them having occupied the room are called qassas.

And from there we have the verb taqasasaa, which is the specific action of investigating these signs of occupation or previous presence. And from here taqasasaa, used in different contexts, can mean one who memorises words or investigates the happenings of a topic or incident, like a journalist who would then write a story, a qussa, on said subject.

The 28th surah or chapter in the Quran is Al Qissas, which translates as The Stories. Consisting of 88 verses, the chapter details the story of the prophet Moses and focuses on how those who are oppressed are capable of defeating their oppressors.

From The Epic of Gilgamesh to the 1001 Nights, and numerous localised Arabic fables and tales from the region, the form and retelling of qussa have had a great significance on Arab culture and been influential around the world.