Arabic, a member of the Semitic language family, is spoken by over 270.000.000 people worldwide and is one of the six official languages of the United Nations.
Arabic is the official language of a large number of nations in Africa and Asia, which make up the so-called “Arab world“. Considering Arabic also as the canonical language of Islam, it is spoken not only in nations and populations such as Iran, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Afghanistan and Indonesia, but also within prominent communities in other countries such as France, Great Britain and the Philippines.
Arabic is a very rich language and includes the four main dialects of the spoken language, each with different characteristics depending on the country: Maghreb Arabic (North Africa), Levantine Arabic (Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Palestine), Egyptian Arabic (Egypt and Sudan) and Iraqi Arabic.
Features of the Arabic language
Arabic is a language that has spread over such a wide area that it has incorporated important dialectal variations. For this reason, many recommend learning “modern” Arabic, as it is derived directly from the Qur’an and known across various media.
The Arabic language has several consonants and few vowels, which are pronounced in a specific way, making it difficult to distinguish them. As for the consonants, there are some that allow to reproduce glottic sounds. Besides, one of the specific characteristics of Arabic is that it is written and read from right to left and the writing is only found in cursive with the letters attached to each other.
Why is it important to know Arabic today?
The importance of the Arabic language has grown considerably in recent decades. Learning this language, in fact, is of strategic importance in the world of business, cutting-edge technology, culture and so on. In this wide scenario, it is important to know not only the language in all its facets but also the culture of these people.
This language is a mediator between the Western and Eastern worlds: thanks to the events of the last few years but also to the continuous innovations in real estate, technology, business development and so on, Arabic is considered today one of the languages that most allow communication without barriers.
Moreover, knowing a language that may seem somewhat distant from one such as English or Italian, can actually represent a fundamental requirement in fields such as journalism, commerce, education, and interpreting. That is why being a connection between two different cultures and populations is considered crucial for the different purposes that can be achieved.
Another factor to take into consideration is that Saudi Arabia is one of the largest and most cutting-edge technology markets that can exist. Investments and initiatives like the Dubai Blockchain Summit and Dubai’s Museum of the Future are recognized worldwide, making Arabic one of the most important languages to speak today.
After all, the Middle East economy is based on the innovation and growth of the digital economy for the welfare of the people and the planet.
Conclusions
Being surrounded by cutting-edge technology, innovations for the collective well-being, but also by various conflicts that do not cease to exist, the importance of the Arabic language is crystal clear.
Having the ability to communicate in a language that is seemingly remote, distant and with different characteristics from one’s mother tongue is not easy. Once assimilated, the potential opportunities for growth and personal enrichment are endless.
Here are some useful links to use if you want to take advantage of your Arabic skills.