Article 3:1 - So, You Want To Learn Arabic? Read This!

Do you have any idea how many different languages and dialects there are in the world? Well, if you don't, you sure picked one of the more fascinating ones by wanting to learn Arabic.

People learn Arabic for a variety of reasons: for work, for travel, for religious purposes, because of marriage or friendship with an Arab, or simply as a hobby. The motivation to some extent determines the most appropriate learning method.

Whatever your motive, we suggest you try to learn a little Arabic at home before committing yourself to more serious (and possibly expensive) study of it. At the very least, this will give you an idea of what's involved and give you extra confidence during the early stages of any course you may take later.

The first thing to decide is whether you want to learn standard/classical Arabic or a colloquial dialect.

The one good thing about Arabic, unlike Hebrew, is that it is written from left to right just like the Latin alphabet. So in this respect, you at least have some ties to your normal course of reading, unless of course you grew up in a Hebrew home. Then you've really got your work cut out for you.

Unless your interest is confined to one particular country, the safest option is to learn a version of the classical language known as Modern Standard Arabic. This is what is used in books, newspapers, radio and television news program, political speeches, etc.

If you check out the link in my signature, you'll find a review of a great resource for learning to speak and read Arabic. I think you'll find it quite helpful.

Find out how to learn
Arabic: efficiently and easy: http://learnarabiclanguage.info