How did the theological beliefs of early Arabic philologists shape Arabic linguistic theory in the classical Arabic linguistic tradition? I explore the application of kalam and the usul al-fiqh to Arabic linguistic theory, using Ibn Jinni (d. 392/1002)’s theory of al-ishtiqaq al-kabir as a central case study. Ibn Jinni’s Khasais, which discusses Ibn Jinni’s theory of al-ishtiqaq al-kabir, will be the primary text of this study. The Khasais is one of the most compendious texts in the field of general theory (‘usul) of Arabic language, the study of the special characteristics of Arabic. The non-universalist approach of Arabic grammar and its theological basis lay at the heart of the field of ‘usul, in which Arabic philologists projected their ideas of Divine wisdom onto Arabic linguistic theory. The theological debate surrounding the origin of Arabic language also affected linguistic theory due to the varying philological interpretations of the divine nature of language. The secondary literature of contemporary scholars in the field of Arabic linguistics and its intersection between Islamic theology such as Kees Versteegh, Jonathan Owens, and Bernard Weiss are foundational to the analysis of the primary texts of Ibn Jinni and his contemporaries, many of whom opposed Ibn Jinni’s theory with theological reasoning. Theological concerns were based on the compatibility of Arabic linguistic theory with Divine wisdom, including the application of qiyas and the issue of istinbat (invention). Examining the texts of Ibn Jinni and other early Arabic philologists in the field of ‘usul, I will investigate the application of kalam to Arabic linguistics to explore the “divinity” of Arabic language as seen by early Arabic philologists during the most formative centuries of kalam.