Should I Learn Arabic – Participant in the Amazon Services LLC Affiliate Program. As an Amazon affiliate, this site earns money from qualified purchases.
So you want to learn Persian or Arabic but don’t know which one to choose? Don’t worry, I’ve got you covered!
Should I Learn Arabic
In this article, I’ll highlight the pros and cons of each language to help you decide.
Free Arabic Classes In The Uae: Dubai, Abu Dhabi & More
In general, Persian is easier and faster to learn and you will be able to communicate with anyone who speaks Persian in different countries.
Arabic is generally spoken by more people, but each country speaks a different dialect that other Arabic speakers may not always understand. Arabic is also a great language to learn for business purposes.
Of course, part of your decision comes from your personal reasons for studying the language.
Perhaps you have friends who speak the language, perhaps it is the language of your ancestors, or perhaps you have a keen interest in the country where it is spoken.
What Age Should Children Start Learning Arabic?
This should also be considered when choosing which language to learn, as it will be the main motivating factor for learning the language.
Arabic is a Semitic language that belongs to the Afroasiatic language family. Hebrew is actually the language most closely related to Arabic.
Arabic has many different dialects and the official “Modern Standard Arabic” variety used primarily in the media and government.
Almost anyone who speaks an Arabic dialect can understand Modern Standard Arabic, but virtually no one speaks it colloquially.
Arabic Alphabet: The Guide To Learning The Arabic Letters And Script
In total, there are 350 million Arabic speakers in the world (this includes all dialects that are not always mutually intelligible).
Parsi is an Indo-European language spoken in Iran, Afghanistan and Tajikistan. The closest related languages are Kurdish and Pashto.
There are approximately 110 million Farsi speakers worldwide, making it one of the most widely spoken languages in the world.
There are 3 main dialects of Persian: Iranian Persian (spoken in Iran), Dari (spoken in Afghanistan) and Tajik (spoken in Tajikistan).
Germans Should Learn Arabic, Says Green Mp
All varieties of Persian are mutually intelligible, so if you learn Persian, you can easily communicate with people from Iran, Afghanistan and Tajikistan.
One of the main reasons why Persian is easier to learn than Arabic is that there are fewer dialects.
Arabic is the official language in 25 countries, including Saudi Arabia, Morocco, Egypt, Sudan, Yemen, Palestine, Algeria, and more. It is spoken by 350 million people worldwide.
However, learning Arabic does not mean you will be able to speak with all 350 million Arabic speakers…
How Long Does It Take To Learn Arabic?
Arabic has huge regional differences, so if you decide to learn it, you should choose a dialect to focus on.
For example, an Arabic speaker from Kuwait would have a very difficult time understanding an Arabic speaker from Morocco.
Some dialects have a degree of intelligibility, for example someone from Saudi Arabia could understand what a Syrian was saying.
However, North African dialects such as Algerian are notoriously different from each other and are sometimes even considered to be completely different languages.
Learn Arabic To Understand The Quran: A Beginner’s Guide
This makes learning Arabic difficult because you won’t be able to communicate with everyone who speaks Arabic, only those who speak the same dialect as you.
The problem with learning Modern Standard Arabic is that it is the official version of Arabic that is mostly only used in the media and government.
Although almost anyone who speaks an Arabic dialect can understand Modern Standard Arabic, it is never used colloquially.
It seems very strange to use Modern Standard Arabic in everyday conversation. It would be like walking into a shop in the US or the UK and you start speaking Shakespearean English.
Which Arabic Dialect Should I Learn? Clear Answer
To become truly fluent in Arabic, you need to know both Modern Standard Arabic and the dialect. Of course, this will take you a long time to master and is not an easy task.
This means that if you learn Persian, you will be able to communicate with more than 110 million speakers, and it does not matter if they are from Iran, Afghanistan or Tajikistan.
The bottom line is that if you learn Persian, you will be able to communicate with anyone who speaks Persian, but if you learn Arabic, you can only communicate with people who speak the same dialect of Arabic as you.
The Foreign Service Institute has spent decades teaching foreign languages and has graded them by difficulty over the years.
Which Arabic Dialect Should You Learn? Linguist Responds
The categories start from Category I, which includes easy languages like French and Spanish, and go up to Category IV, which includes super-difficult languages like Mandarin Chinese and Japanese.
Persian is in Category III, which they say takes 44 weeks to achieve a “professional working knowledge” of the language.
Remember, these estimates assume you study 25 hours a week, so if you can’t commit to that much, it will take longer.
I actually wrote a whole post about how hard Persian is to learn, but here’s a quick overview.
Most Americans Say ‘arabic Numerals’ Should Not Be Taught In School, Finds Survey
While Persian is not as easy to learn as French, Spanish, or Dutch, it is easier to learn than Slavic languages such as Russian, and much easier than Japanese, Chinese, and Arabic.
Persian grammar is actually very simple. Persian has no gender, irregular verb conjugations, and nouns have only one form.
You also need to learn to read the Persian script (which is borrowed from Arabic). It will take some time to learn, but it’s not that hard.
Pronunciation can also be difficult for English speakers because Arabic has many sounds that do not exist in English.
Which Is The Most Beneficial Arabic Dialect To Learn?
In addition, you will also need to learn how to write Arabic, which may seem difficult at first, but does not take much time to get used to.
The main difficulty is that when writing, vowels are usually omitted from the spelling. It’s a bit like if English were written like this.
It seems as English speakers we can pronounce both “buy” and “dough”. The pronunciations are different, although it is not obvious from the spelling.
Check your inbox or spam folder to receive the PDF confirmation email. (this may take a few minutes)
Reasons Learning Arabic Should Be Your New Year’s Resolution
We need to make sure it’s you and not your ex trying to spam your inbox with random subscriptions… 😅
I actually wrote a whole post about how difficult it is for Arabic speakers to learn Farsi, but here’s a quick overview.
If you’re thinking about learning Persian after Arabic because you think it might be easier, there are a few things to keep in mind.
Many people believe that Arabic and Persian are closely related, but that couldn’t be further from the truth.
Reasons Why You Should Learn Arabic Right Now
The confusion probably stems from the fact that written Persian is very similar to Arabic. This is because in the 7th century, Farsi began to use the Arabic script.
Although Persian uses many Arabic loanwords, which gives you a slight advantage, a native Arabic speaker will not be able to understand someone who speaks Persian.
Farsi is actually an Indo-European language in the same language family as English. This means that English actually has more in common with Persian than with Arabic.
Arabic is spoken in 25 countries around the world (remember that each country speaks a different dialect that is not always mutually intelligible).
How To Learn Arabic
Arabic speaking countries include Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Yemen, Morocco, Libya, Algeria, Egypt, Syria, Tanzania, Tunisia, Jordan, Palestine, Oman, Eritrea, Lebanon, Iraq, Bahrain and many others.
All these countries offer a variety of great experiences for tourists, including history, nature, food and much more.
Iran has amazing nature and a great history, including one of the oldest human settlements. It has magnificent mosques, beautiful palaces and interesting markets to explore.
Of course, Egypt needs no introduction. Everyone should see the iconic pyramids and sphinx of Giza at least once in their life.
Why You Should Learn… Arabic
Other North African countries such as Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia are also very popular tourist destinations. From beautiful markets to vast wilderness and delicious food, you will have a great time visiting these countries.
The Gulf countries are fast becoming major tourist destinations known for extreme luxury. Dubai (part of United Arab Emirates), Kuwait and Qatar are the places to visit if you like skyscrapers and opulence.
Millions of people travel to Mecca every year in Saudi Arabia for the annual Hajj pilgrimage. It’s Islam’s holiest city and the birthplace of the Prophet Muhammad, so if that’s important to you, it’s definitely worth a visit.
The countries of the Levant, including Lebanon and Jordan, are also great places to visit. Jordan has some impressive archaeological sites, including the ancient city of Petra.
Looking To Study Arabic? Any Idea Of The Best Way?
Of course, it must be remembered that each of these Arabic-speaking countries speaks a different version of Arabic.
Although the local population of these countries all understand Modern Standard Arabic, if you try to speak it, they may give you a strange look, a sheepish smile or even a laugh.
If you learn Farsi, on the other hand, you will be able to easily communicate with all Farsi speakers in any country.
If you are trying to decide which language to study will give you better job prospects, Arabic will probably be better.
How To Read Arabic
While Persian can be an advantageous language to learn because Iran has a fairly large economy, there have also been many political disagreements and sanctions over the years.