Why learn Arabic?

I think it’s very important to start our Arabic studies with a conversation about what we would like to achieve. When a student tells me “I want to learn Arabic”, I often ask them why. This question can often come across as a bit abrupt, dismissive even and I suppose what I ought to ask is “what do you want to use the language for? If Arabic is the key, then exactly which doors would you like it to unlock?” 

In any case, answering these questions at the beginning can save you lots and lots of time and energy. 

Arabic is a vast subject. It is spoken across a huge geographical area, from Asia across the Middle East all the way to North West Africa. Its literature stretches back to pre-Islamic times. With this in mind, it makes sense to narrow things down a little and figure out what sort of Arabic you will need to meet your goals in a reasonable time-frame.

Trying to pin-point our area of study presents its own challenges because there is a certain degree of overlap between the different areas. For example, Classical Arabic and Modern Standard Arabic share a grammatical foundation and Modern Standard Arabic often blends into dialect in conversation.

I have drawn up a chart to shed a little light on this matter. It’s far from a perfect representation and should be seen as a simplification of a rather complex situation. Nevertheless, it is definitely a helpful tool for beginners who are embarking on their Arabic language journey.

- Shukri Habib Ali