Understanding Arabic



Arabic is a beautiful language that dates back to the sixth century.  It is a Central Semitic language which is closely related to Hebrew, Aramaic, Ugaritic and Phoenician.  As many as 420 million people around the world speak Arabic while most are concentrated in the Arab world.  It is the official language in 27 countries and one of six official languages of the United Nations. More than 1.6 billion Muslims speak Arabic in their daily religious worship.

It has influenced numerous languages around the world including Urdu, Persian, Hindi, Malay, Swahili, Punjabi, Kurdish, Turkish, Indonesian, Pashto and many more.  Through Arabic, culture was transmitted in Europe with science, mathematics and philosophy.  Consequently many European languages have borrowed Arabic words.  Arabic words can also be found in Latin and Greek.  

Spanish, Catalan and Portuguese also were influenced by Arabic because of the closeness between Christian European and Muslim Arab civilizations during 800 years of Arabic culture and language in the Iberian Peninsula.  Arabic has also borrowed words from Persian, Greek and Syriac languages.
Those new to the language learn what is called Modern Standard Arabic.  Classical Arabic is found in the Holy Quran the religious book of the Muslims.  Many a traveler, proud of what they’ve learned of the language are greeted with frustration when they arrive in one of the 27 countries where Arabic is the official language and they hear something different than what they’ve learned.   

Puzzled by the difference, is it back to the drawing board to learn a totally new form of Arabic?
The short answer is no.  Modern Standard Arabic is the found around the world in print publications and is understood by many Arabic speakers but in many different countries they have spoken differences.  Egyptian Arabic is spoken by 54 million people.  It is a colloquial language confined to the borders of one of Africa’s largest countries.  It descended from Arabic when the language arrived in the seventh century and was influenced by the Coptics of pre Islamic Egypt.  It is one of the most widely spoken and studied varieties of Arabic.  Egyptian Arabic is basically a spoken language though it can also be found in the culture in the form of poems, plays, and songs.  It has no official status and is not recognized as a language.  
 
But that’s not the only difference in Egyptian Arabic.  Even within the country there are different dialects of Egyptian Arabic.  Saidi Arabic is spoken in the northern part of the country.  It is widely spoken by 19 million people.  The Arabic you speak identifies where you are from in the country.  There is Western Egyptian Bedawi Arabic and there is also Eastern Egyptian Bedawi Arabic.  The differences between the dialects include some reductions of long vowels in open and unstressed syllables, the modal meaning of the imperfect and the integration of the participle.  You may need an advanced English grammar degree to understand that but basically it means that words and phrases adapt to the culture and lifestyle of the people over time.

The dialects don’t end there. Travel to the Eastern Mediterranean coastal strip that includes Syria, Greece, Albania and Turkey you’ll hear Levantine Arabic considered one of the five major varieties of Arabic.  It is spoken only (no written form) and is a part of Eastern Arabic that includes Mesopotamian Arabic and peninsula Arabic.  In that area written Arabic and official documents use Modern Standard Arabic.  Levantine Arabic is distinguished by its stress pattern which closely resembles Classic Arabic.  The differences are also distinguished by whether you come from an urban area, rural or nomadic population.

Travel to Kuwait, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, Iran, Oman or the United Arab Emirates and you will hear Gulf Arabic.  It is spoken by 3.6 million people.  This dialect differs in vocabulary, grammar and accent.  Gulf Arabic is distinct from Saudi Arabic.  Most Saudis speak Hejazi Arabic, Najdi Arabic or Bareqi Arabic.  Neither are an official language.

Travel to northern Africa to Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia or Malta and you will hear Maghrebi Arabic spoken.  It is a colloquial language called Derija or Darija by the natives.  Written communication is done in Modern Standard Arabic or French depending upon the country.  Maghrebi Arabic can also be heard on TV dramas.  Its vocabulary is mostly Arabic with some Berber, French, Spanish and even Italian words thrown in, the language of the historical occupiers of the region.

Well if you’re now totally confused and think the Arabic you’ve learned is useless, think again.  While certain areas have specific dialects they all know Modern Standard Arabic.  Learn what you can and then mix in with the locals where you can learn even more.  One of the best classrooms for learning a language is right among the people.

As salaam alaikum!

Translations2u is a UK legal and commercial translation specialist that offers Arabic language translation.

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