Is It Difficult To Learn Arabic?

By Author: Billy Bobb
Total Articles: 41
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Arabic is one of the world's major tongues, and fluency in Arabic is an ability that is's in high demand. With the ongoing importance of the Middle East for both security purposes and for energy resources, the West will continue to have a stake in and communication with the area for ages. But the Arabic language isn't restricted to the Arab countries of the Middle East. It is also used through North Africa, and some bits of east Africa and even subsaharan Africa. It's the official language or one of multiple official languages in 25 nations, and 26 if we categorize Israel and Palestine as distinct countries, that have a total population of 325 million people. People who are proficient in Arabicare in demand by many corporations that do business with with the Middle East and North Africa, by militaries, and by intelligence agencies. Proficiency in Arabic gives you an opening into some unique career opportunities that are closed to others, so it is valuable to study Arabic. Not only that, but the Arab people are also very social and friendly and love to communicate. Being able to talk their language will change a pleasant ...
... holiday into an incredible one.

Arabic , however , though, is a challenge to learn. The majority take one glance at the Arabic cursive script and realize that there's no way they could learn to read it. It is , however , not complex and can be easily learned with a couple of weeks of solid practice. The pronunciation system is harder, with Arabic having a lot of sounds that are not found in many other languages and are sometimes tough to imitate and tell the difference between. It's best to internalize these sounds by imitating a local spokesperson.

Another challenge of learning Arabic is that it is so set apart from English and other Indo-European languages. As a Semitic language, Arabic's grammar and morphologyis completely different than what you are doubtless used to. Verb tenses work differently, the syntax is different, and there are not many common words and word roots between English and Arabic. Learning Arabic isn't a casual affair, it really requires some discipline as the sheer amount of new concepts and information can be overpowering.

Perhaps the greatest challenge is Arabic diglossia. Diglossia is the employment of two separate varieties of a language by nativespeakers of one language. The variety of Arabic that is an official language around the Arab World is Modern Standard Arabic, which is the formal literary language that's directly adapted from the Classical Arabic of the Koran. This language is utilized in newspapers, news broadcasts, formal speeches, and so on. But all around the Arabic world there are many spoken dialects of Arabic that are different from Modern Standard Arabic. These dialects are the everyday vernaculars of Arabic people. All of these dialects are derived from Classical Arabic, but they can be very different from each other. In general, the wider the geographic gap between two Arabic-speaking areas, the more different the dialects are. There can be quite an amazing language barrier between two native speakers of Arabic.

The secret to learning Arabic is to learn Modern Standard Arabic as your base, and also learn a spoken dialect. Some folk counsel you learn Egyptian spoken Arabic because it is widely comprehendeunderstood due to the prominence of Egyptian television and movies. But I believe this is defective thinking, because even though you may be understood, you will not understand what the other person is saying, who will speak in his regional dialect. I like to suggest that you learn the primary dialect of the nation or area you are most interested in, or will have the most interaction with. If you're in the States army and might be assigned to Iraq, then of course Iraqi Arabic is the smart choice. If you will be doing aid work in the Westbank, then I suggest Palestinian Arabic. If at some point after that you will be travelling or working in a different part of the Arab-World, then Modern Standard Arabic will serve as your foundation, and with a little bit of practice you can most likely communicate in the local dialect, if not perfectly then at least for everday communication. If you're simply going on a trip to an Arab country and don't plan on studying for the long term or on moving to the region, then learning some of that state's spoken vernacular is probably the most effective way to go.

Learning Arabic is difficult on a number of levels. But for people who are deeply interested in the Arab World, Arabic is a fascinating and rewarding language whose wonders will galvanize you to conquer all those difficulties. For people that wish to learn Arabic as a career asset, Arabic is a rare skill that is in demand by various firms and in certain professions. If you've got the patience and dedication to gain fluencyproficiency, it will definitely worth the effort.
Billy Bobb is an avid traveler who has spent a year living in the Middle East. He has also spent many years studying the Semitic languages of Hebrew, Aramaic, and Arabic. His website Middle East Museum features editorials and information about the Middle East, such as this profile of all countries of the Middle East.