Arabic Indefinites, Interrogatives, and Negators - Wilmsen, David (Professor of Arabic, Professor of Arabic, The American University of Beirut)

This book traces the origins and development of the Arabic grammatical marker š/ši, which is found in interrogatives, negators, and indefinite determiners in many Arabic dialects. It argues that š/ši does not derive from Arabic šay 'thing' but from a Semitic demonstrative pronoun.