ABSTRACT
This chapter characterizes the distinctive features of semiotic resources of Nastaliq calligraphy to look for their meaning potentials. It specifies characteristics of minimal units of Nastaliq and identifies features of semiotic resources to outline their potentials in meaning-making. Moreover, this chapter also deals with the principles of a medium (i.e., connotation and metaphor) and the ways through which these principles can be applied in Nastaliq resources.
With regard to Jakobson and Halle’s (1956) theory of phonemes, which describes phonemes as collections of features, and the idea Kress and Van Leeuwen (2002) suggest to consider “these features as having semiotic potentials” (Van Leeuwen, 2006, p. 147), this chapter analyzed distinctive characteristics of Nastaliq calligraphy; in other words, it analyzed units of Nastaliq, modules, or callies, that are equivalent to phonemes in sound, including collections of features/characteristics, for their potentials in meaning-making. Relying on the two principles of connotation and experimental metaphor proposed by Kress and Van Leeuwen (2001, 2002), the chapter discusses why Nastaliq can be considered to be a medium. It demonstrates how and under what conditions each semiotic resource in Nastaliq can fulfill the prerequisites of a medium and connote specific meanings or metaphorically imply specific experiences.
