Arabic

Classification and History of Arabic - Arabic is classified as a Central Semitic language. - Linguists differ on the best classification of Semitic language sub-groups. - Innovations of Central Semitic languages are maintained in Arabic. - Arabic vernaculars do not descend from Classical Arabic. - Classical Arabic is a sister language rather than their direct ancestor. - Arabia had a wide variety of Semitic languages in antiquity. - Old Arabic, the precursor of Arabic, emerged around the 1st century CE. - Epigraphic Ancient North Arabian (ANA) was considered distinct and mutually unintelligible from Arabic. - Safaitic and Hismaic, previously considered ANA, should be considered Old Arabic. - Continuous Arabic text in an ancestor of the modern Arabic script dates back to around 125 CE. - Various Central Semitic languages were spoken in ancient Arabia. - Modern South Arabian languages were spoken in southern Arabia. - Dadanitic and Taymanitic were inscriptional languages in the northern Hejaz. - Thamudic C was attested in Najd and parts of western Arabia. - Hasaitic, derived from ASA script, was spoken in eastern Arabia. Diglossia and Language Statistics - Arabic has been characterized by diglossia since the 7th century. - There is an opposition between a standard prestige language (Literary Arabic) and vernacular varieties. - Colloquial dialects vary significantly from Modern Standard Arabic (MSA). - MSA is acquired through formal education and is not spoken natively. - MSA is used in formal contexts, news bulletins, and for prayers. - Arabic is the sixth most spoken language in the world. - Combined, Arabic dialects have 362 million native speakers. - MSA is spoken by 274 million L2 speakers. - Arabic is an official language of 26 states and one disputed territory. - Arabic is one of six official languages of the United Nations. Old Hejazi, Classical Arabic, and Standardization - Old Hejazi and Classical Arabic emerged in the Hejaz region. - It continued to be used in Judeo-Christian texts. - The orthography of the Quran shows an archaic form of Old Hejazi. - A poetic koine developed based on Bedouin dialects of Najd. - Arabic poets and writers in the early Islamic century spoke Arabic as their mother tongue. - Abu al-Aswad al-Duali standardized Arabic grammar. - Al-Khalil ibn Ahmad al-Farahidi compiled the first Arabic dictionary. - Al-Jahiz proposed an overhaul of Arabic grammar. - The standardization of Arabic was completed in the 8th century. - Sībawayhi's Kitāb provided a comprehensive description of Arabic. Spread and Development of Arabic - Arabic spread with the spread of Islam. - It gained vocabulary from Middle Persian and Turkish. - Classical Greek terms entered Arabic through translations in Baghdad. - Knowledge of Classical Arabic became essential for social advancement. - Arabic was written in Hebrew script by Andalusi Jewish philosopher Maimonides. - Ibn Jinni wrote extensively on Arabic morphology and phonology. - Ibn Mada realized the overhaul of Arabic grammar proposed by Al-Jahiz. - Ibn Manzur compiled a major reference dictionary of Arabic. - Neo-Arabic dialects emerged from a contact situation following the conquests. - Colloquial Arabic dialects arose from pidginized Arabic. Nahda, Modern Standard Arabic, and Colloquial Arabic - The Nahda was a 19th-century cultural and literary renaissance. - Nahda writers sought to simplify Arabic language and script. - Arabic presses dramatically changed the diffusion of Arabic literature. - Rifaa al-Tahtawi proposed lexical injection in Arabic for industrial concepts. - Arabic academies were established to develop standardized additions to the Arabic lexicon. - Arabic refers to Standard Arabic, which includes Classical and Modern Standard Arabic. - Regional vernacular Arabic dialects are not mutually intelligible. - Classical Arabic is found in the Quran and follows prescriptive norms. - Modern Standard Arabic largely follows the grammatical standards of Classical Arabic. - Modern Standard Arabic has discarded some constructions and vocabulary not used in spoken varieties. - Everyday spoken language. - Many regional variants. - Geographically distant variants are often mutually unintelligible. - Closely related variants have a high degree of mutual intelligibility. - Used in informal spoken media and some forms of written media. - Hassaniya Arabic is official in Mali and recognized as a minority language in Morocco. - Maltese is official in Malta and considered a variety of spoken Arabic. - Cypriot Arabic is recognized as a minority language in Cyprus. - Diglossia is the normal use of two separate varieties of the same language. - Educated Arabs speak both Standard Arabic and their native dialects. - Code-switching between dialectal and standard varieties is common. - Comprehension between Arabic dialects varies based on geographic proximity. - Political reasons lead to the assertion that all Arabs speak a single language. - Medieval scholars of the Arabic language considered all other languages inferior. - In modern times, knowing English or French is seen as a sign of sophistication and modernity. - Feigning weakness in Arabic is sometimes seen as a sign of status and class. - Arabic is the language of the Quran and Islamic terms, leading millions of Muslims to study it. - Code-switching practices are used to demonstrate education and social status. - Arabic is taught in elementary and secondary schools worldwide, especially in Muslim schools. - Universities offer Arabic classes as part of foreign language and Middle Eastern studies programs. - Arabic language schools assist students in learning Arabic outside of academic settings. - Software, books, and online classes are available for distance learning of Arabic. - Many Muslims, both Arab and non-Arab, study Arabic due to its importance in Islamic texts. - Arabic lexicography has a tradition that extended for about a millennium before the modern period. - Early lexicographers sought to explain unfamiliar