The importance of Arabic

Last Modified: Thu, 07 May 2009 20:10:39 GMT v1.001

For Muslims, Arabic holds a special place in their hearts as it is the language of the Quran. The Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, spoke Arabic and many major Hadith collections and Islamic literature were originally written in Arabic. American Muslims may not all understand Arabic, but they value it. They believe that it will be a great benefit if their children get an opportunity to become conversant in Arabic through the public school system.

However, not just Muslims consider Arabic important. It is not just Muslims that speak Arabic; Christians and Jews around the world also share the language. A 2006 survey by the Modern Language Association revealed that the number of students studying Arabic at U.S. colleges and universities since 2002 has doubled. The State Department has designated it as a language of strategic importance for all Americans.

“I'd like to find new ways to connect young Americans to young people all around the world, by supporting opportunities to learn new languages, and serve and study," said President Barack Obama while visiting Turkey in April. "That's always been a critical part of how America engages the world.... Simple exchanges can break down walls between us."

Another economic development report pointed out that the dearth of proficient Arabic speakers will be magnified since 60 percent of the small group of people in Foreign Service that do speak Arabic will retire in the next few years.

8 reasons to learn Arabic

1. Arabic is an official language in more than 20 countries and one of the official languages of the United Nations. It is the fifth most commonly spoken language in the world with more than 300 million native speakers.
2. People who also speak Arabic can have a competitive edge in law, medicine, journalism, education, finance, translation and interpretation and, Foreign Service.
3. The 2006 National Strategic Language Initiative promotes learning Arabic (and other languages deemed critical) through numerous scholarships and opportunities like language courses, teacher exchanges, and professional development.
4. The annual combined Gross Domestic Product of Arab countries is more than 600 billion dollars. Understanding the language and culture can enhance trade with the region.
5. History has shown that Arabs contributed to the advancement of science, medicine, and philosophy. Much learning from the Greek, Roman, and Byzantine cultures was preserved for the world through the Arab libraries. Arabs have also made significant contributions in such areas as literature, mathematics, navigation, astrology, and architecture. Knowledge of Arabic enables the exploration of this vast body of knowledge in their original form.
6. People in the West often see only the negative stereotypes of Arabic-speaking people through the news media, Hollywood and other sources. At the same time, events in the Middle East are on the news nearly every day.
7. English has borrowed several words from Arabic such as camera (qomrah), cotton (qutun), magazine (makhazin) and algebra (al-jabr). Arabic contributions are also found in Persian, Turkish, Spanish, Swahili, Urdu, and other languages.

A basic knowledge of the Arabic language and culture can improve understanding and acceptance of Arab Americans and other Muslims.

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