From Title to Religious Symbolism: A Saussurean and Peircean Semiotic Reading of Ghassan Kenefânî’s Umm Saʿd

This study investigates how the title of Ghassan Kenefânî’s Umm Saʿd functions as a conduit for the novel’s religious symbolism. It addresses the question of whether a literary title can symbolically mirror the sacred imagery embedded within a narrative. In Umm Saʿd, the main and subordinate titles form a meaningful intersection where the sacred, the resilience of struggle, and the preservation of identity converge. Through a semiotic approach, the study argues that the title surpasses its nominal role and operates as a multilayered sign that conveys the narrative’s ideological and thematic depth. Employing Saussure’s dyadic and Peirce’s triadic sign models, the analysis demonstrates how the title reveals the spiritual codes and sacred motifs woven into the text. The findings indicate that the title not only encapsulates the thematic core of the novel but also guides readers toward its social, cultural and religious dimensions. By remaining detached from political framings, the study underscores how the title brings together the worldly and the sacred within a unified interpretive space. Ultimately, this research uncovers the hidden religious layers of Umm Saʿd, offering an original perspective on the role of titles in mediating and transmitting religious themes in twentieth- and twenty-first-century fictional narratives.