Table of Contents
What countries use Modern Standard Arabic?
Speakers
| Country or territory | MSA speakers | \% of MSA speakers |
|---|---|---|
| Saudi Arabia | 24,900,000 | 73\% |
| Somalia* | 2,050,000 | 13\% |
| Sudan* | 26,900,000 | 64\% |
| Syria | 15,900,000 | 93\% |
How old is Modern Standard Arabic?
It’s a modernized form of a language that’s 1300 years old, full of archaic vocabulary and grammatically more complex than any modern spoken dialect.
Is Turkish or Persian harder?
In terms of speaking, Persian is easier to learn as it belongs to the same language family as English i.e Indo – European. However, learning to read and write Turkish is much easier because it is written using the Latin script whereas Persian is written in the Arabic script.
Why is Modern Standard Arabic so difficult to learn?
Modern Standard Arabic isn’t spoken by anyone on Earth as a native language. It’s archaic, it’s grammatically more complicated to learn than spoken dialects and you will understand virtually nobody when you travel to the Arab world (apart from the TV).
Is Modern Standard Arabic really the lingua franca of the Middle East?
A lot of language products and courses market Modern Standard Arabic as the lingua franca (bridge or vehicular language) of the Middle East and North Africa. They teach MSA as a ‘conversational’ language that will make communication between all Arabic-speaking people possible.
What is it like to speak Arabic with an Arab?
Arabs are very proud of their language. Unlike the Germans who are not impressed when foreigners are able to speak their language, the opposite is shown by Arabs. Once a native speaker of Arabic hears a foreigner speak a few words in Arabic, they would be very eager and happy to help you learn their language.
How can I learn Arabic as quickly as possible?
Be a fly on the wall in every Arabic speaking community you can find. I can’t emphasize this enough if you want to learn Arabic as quickly as possible. Assuming you’re living in a Western country in or close by a major city – you’ve probably got Arab community groups and events going on somewhere.