Arabic: how to learn a non-existent language. Foreign languages—Arabic

MacawbskylanguagesTo (Arab. اللغة العربية‎‎, al-luġa al-ʿarabiyya) - Belongs to the Semitic branch of the Afroasiatic family of languages. One of the most basic languages ​​of religion and literature in the world. The language of the greatest book of the Islamic world, the QURAN and a monument of medieval Arabic literature, “Tales of the Thousand and One Nights” (الف ليلة وليلة‎‎ alf laila wa-laila), united by the story of King Shahryar and his wife named Shahrazada (Scheherazade, Scheherazade). The numbers we are all familiar with from 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9 are in Arabic. These figures originated in India (no later than the 5th century), and became known to Europe in the 10th-13th centuries. based on Arabic works (hence the name).

Arabic in the broadest sense of the word - the unification of a large number of different oral forms (dialects) formed over the past fifteen hundred years.

The first epigraphic (mainly on stone) monuments Arabic- These are messages about the movement of fellow tribesmen, shepherds with herds of camels, as well as gravestone and dedicatory inscriptions. IN pre-Islamic period such inscriptions used the Nabataean script (derived from Aramaic) or a variation of the South Arabian (Mabean) script. During this period, the Arabian Peninsula had an expressive poetic language transmitted only orally. Partially based on this poetic language Koran. And to this day, he conveyed to us a picture of what a text consisting of only consonants can look like, subsequently supplemented with vowels located above and below the text. In its final form, the Arabic script was based on the Nabataean script in mid 7th century AD. during the period of recordings of the Koran (first written monument common Arabic language).

Period 8-12 centuries. in history Arabic characterized by its unification, standardization, development of literary and written genres and styles, development of classical poetry, artistic and scientific prose. Arabic is becoming the international language of literature and science in the Near and Middle East. The greatest scientists of the medieval East created their works on it: al-Farabi (870-950) from Tupkestan, Avicenna (Ibn Sina, 980-1037) originally from Bukhara, al-Biruni (973-c. 1050) from Khorezm, Averroes (Ibn Rushd, 1126-1198), native of Andalusia.

The next period in development and modernization Arabic became turn of the 18th-19th centuries., when economic contacts intensified Arab East with the West. The development of book printing, the emergence of the press and, accordingly, new genres of journalism, the emergence of a new fiction, drama and poetry become the most important factor in the development Arabic and its adaptation to new requirements of social, cultural and scientific life. Development of new means mass media and communications in the 20th century contribute to further modernization Arabic.

Modern period characterized by the active penetration of Western European technical terminology into the Arabic vocabulary. Despite the purist activities of Arabic language academies in many countries, in modern Arabic New international scientific and technical terms penetrate, tracings of standard phrases and phrases characteristic of the press and mass media are formed.

Modern colloquial Arabic falls into 5 groups of dialects, which are actually separate languages ​​from a linguistic point of view:

Maghreb group of dialects (these are the countries located to the west of Egypt: from west to east: Mauritania, Western Sahara, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya. Translated from Arabic, Al-Maghrib means “the country where the sun sets” or “The West” .

Egyptian-Sudanese group of dialects;

Syro-Mesopotamian group of dialects;

Arabian group of dialects;

Central Asian group of dialects;

The first one belongs to the Western group, the rest - to the Eastern group of Arabic languages/dialects.

But the concept spoken Arabic"(PARADY) does not exist, but they use the concept of "Arabic literary language" ( ALIA). ALYA is the language of communication and writing; radio and television broadcasts are conducted in it, newspapers are published, books are published (in Tunisia, Morocco and Algeria, along with French), it is the language of the intelligentsia. Without it it is impossible to imagine the life of a civilized Arab society. Often Arabs from different countries when talking among themselves, they switch to ALA to avoid misunderstandings. ALA grammar is based on formulas. With some effort, Arabic writing can be studied, and the grammar of ASL is simpler and more logical than many Western languages, especially the Finno-Ugric family of languages: Finnish, Hungarian). For students you should know that the main advantage ALIA is that it is understandable in any Arab country. No matter what Arab country you are in, you will always be able to explain yourself. A person who speaks ALA or any dialect of Arabic commands great respect from native speakers.

ALA in its ideal form is practically not used in speech at home or in the family, between friends or in informal situations; this area is almost exclusively assigned to the local dialect. ALA remains predominantly a written language, in oral speech its variant can be considered Spoken Standard Arabic(RAYA) (one of the Arabic names عامية المثقفين ʻāmmiyat al-"muthaqqafīn lit. "speak of the educated"). The term itself has not yet been established in Arabic studies. This variety is a grammatically simplified version of ALA with some elements local dialects. Spoken standard more common in the countries of the Persian Gulf and the Levant (the dialects of the Levant are themselves very close to AL), but sometimes the speech of educated Egyptians and residents of the Maghreb is also called this way. Some special radio programs, television, cinematography, considering the audience, refer to PARADISE.

Cultural and historical influence Arabic can be traced in many languages ​​of Asia and Africa. This was facilitated by the spread of Islam and the high cultural status of ALYA.

The question is which option ( ALA or dialect) is more preferable for study by foreigners does not have a clear answer. Depending on the specific needs and applied purpose of training, everyone decides this issue individually. In Russia, teaching Arabic mainly begins with the literary language.

P.S. Classical By and large, it is not very different from Old Arabic. When comparing the roots of Semitic languages, it is clear that they are all the same as classical Arabic. Therefore, Arabic occupies a central place among all Semitic languages. For a long time, many Semitic scholars viewed Classical Arabic as the original Semitic language. Only over time, through comparison with other Afroasiatic languages, it was established that much in classical Arabic is not as original as was thought.

About the features of writing. Based on the Arabic alphabet. Arabic is written from right to left. Moreover, in Arabic, unlike languages ​​​​with Latin and Cyrillic graphics, there are no capital letters - therefore proper names are written with a small letter, as well as the first word in a sentence. Punctuation marks are written upside down, that is, from left to right. Instead underlining, italics or détente Arabs usually use underlining. Fractional word wrapping to another line is not allowed; empty space in a line is eliminated by stretching the letter. In cursive writing, an unwritten word ends with an upward turn. The Arabic alphabet is derived from the Phoenician alphabet, incorporating all its letters and adding letters that reflect specifically Arabic sounds. These letters are sa, ha, zal, dad, for, gain.

Interesting Facts. A considerable amount Arabic words are found in the Russian language, where they came through intermediary languages: Latin, Western European, Persian, Turkish. In addition to exoticisms like genie, jihad, vizier, qadi, some names are Arabic in origin stars and constellations: Aldebaran, Altair; a number of scientific terms: algebra and alcohol via Spanish, number and zero(sifr, Arabic - zero) through European, algorithm from the Latinized form of the name of the mathematician al-Khwarizmi, the name military rank admiral from Dutch and going back to Arabic emir of the sea (amiriI=bahri), and from seas nothing remained in the form of words, but sound appeared d as a result of "folk etymology" linking the word to Latin admirer(to be amazed).

Most of us love coffee. One of the ways to prepare it is Turkish coffee. They cook it in cezve, other name Turk. Word cezve Arab origin: tour. Cezve from Arabic جذوة . Traditionally made from hammered copper.

P.S. We apologize to specialists in the field of language for a simplified presentation of some issues of the origin of language, its development and characteristics. It is written for a “non-linguistic” audience with an interest in foreign languages.

The letter dod has a unique position in the Arabic alphabet and is therefore chosen as characteristic feature Arabs, the differences between their language and others, and the name of this letter was assigned to the name of the Arabic language. They say: “dod talk”, “dod language”, “dod speakers”.

Arabs have been singing this rhyme since childhood:

The land of the Arabs is my homeland, from Sham to Baghdan

From Najd to Yemen, from Egypt to Tatooan

The Dod language unites us, the descendants of Adnan and Qahtan

Note:

Sham - Levant - the territory of modern Syria, Palestine and Lebanon;

Baghdan - province Ottoman Empire in the north of modern Moldavia (1514-1859) ;

Tetouan is a city in northern Morocco;

Adnan and Qahtan are the names of the ancestors of the Arabs.

This term is not ancient, like the Arabic language itself, and was not known either in the pre-Islamic era or at the beginning of Islam, but appeared in the Umayyad era.

The special position of dod manifested itself during the Arabization (study of the Arabic language) of large masses of people, when they unexpectedly encountered the difficulty of pronouncing this letter. Arab scientists paid attention to this during the educational process and especially noted this letter.

Perhaps the most ancient text on this topic has come to us from a hadith transmitted from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him): “I pronounce dod more clearly than anyone, because I am, after all, a Quraysh.”

The meaning of this hadith is reliable and there is no doubt about it, although it is cited among fictitious hadiths, but we are not now engaged in a scientific analysis of the chain of transmitters or content, and we do not present it as evidence in religious theme associated with belief or good deeds. IN in this case The hadith is related only to the topic of the dignity of the prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace.

We have not yet explained the history of the term “Dod Language”. It appeared at the end of the 2nd, beginning of the 3rd centuries. This was the time of fixation and systematization of the language and the period in which such scientists as Al-Khalil, Sibawayh, Asmagiy and others stood out. It was during this period that language scholars began to talk about the letter dod.

Sibawayh (183 AH) said: “Among all sounds, the letter dod is the most problematic. Not many have excelled in Arabic or in reciting the Koran or poetry.” This is because some non-Arabs, and Arabs too, get confused in the pronunciation of the letters zo and dod.

Al-Asmagiy (284 AH) said: “The Romans do not have the letter dod.”

Linguists have written about the problem of Dod’s absence and the fact that he is confused with Zo. These works include Ibn Qutayb's "The Impure Division between Dod and Zo" (276 AH), "The Distinction between Dod and Zo" by Sahib ibn Ibad (385 AH) and Al-Hariri's poem of 19 bayts with big amount words with the letter Zo. It contains these words:

Hey, who asked about Zo and Doda, so as not to confuse them in words,

If you remember these expressions from Zo, they will enrich you, so listen to them carefully:

Zumya, Al-Mazalimu, and Al-Izz, Az-Zulm and Al-Luhaz.

After similar writings and their dissemination about the letter Dod, the Arabic language began to be called the “language of Dod.” And most likely, after the poem of Al-Mutanabiy (303-354 AH), in which he boasts of the letter dod.

I honor my people, so honor them with me

I am proud not only of my grandfathers,

But how proud everyone is of the pronunciation of dod, the hope of the harvester and the concealment of a fugitive.

Arabs write from right to left - almost everyone knows about this. However, only this Interesting Facts, concerning this very unusual, rich and very popular language are not limited. Much more can be said about him.

1. Arabic belongs to the Semitic branch of the Afroasiatic group. Today it is one of the most common and its importance is gradually increasing. According to various estimates, there are from 250 to 350 million people in the world who speak this language. It is public in 26 countries in the East and Africa. Also, to one degree or another, this language is familiar to numerous followers of Islam around the world.

2. There are 5 groups of Arabic dialects. Speakers of individual dialects belonging to different groups, can hardly understand each other, and more often they do not understand each other at all. The most common of them is Egyptian, since it is in Egypt that people live greatest number Arabic speakers (about 70 million). At the same time, there is a single literary or standard language.

3. Standard Arabic is one of the 6 official languages UN. It publishes a huge amount of printed materials. This is the language of literature and business communication. And thanks to the widespread use of the Internet, the differences between individual dialects and the standard language are gradually disappearing.

4. The most ancient work, written in Arabic (classical Arabic literary language) is the Koran. There are many cases where people have successfully studied Arabic precisely for the purpose of reading the Holy Book in the original language. There are also many other wonderful literary monuments. For example, the tales of “A Thousand and One Nights”, the rubai of Omar Khayyam and much more.

5. As modern literary Arabic continues to develop, the number of differences between it and classical Arabic gradually increases. At the same time, not only vocabulary changes, but also grammar.

6. There is an opinion that Arabic is one of the richest languages, containing a huge number of concepts that are very difficult to translate into other languages. It should be noted that Arabs have historically been reluctant to borrow other people's words, preferring to create their own. Fortunately, the word-forming capabilities of this language are truly enormous. However, a lot depends on the dialect. Thus, in the Egyptian dialect there are a lot of borrowings from French.

7. At the same time, there is a lot modern concepts and names from Arabic (Arabisms) came to other languages. These are words such as “algebra”, “algorithm”, “Aldebaran”, “giraffe”, “coffee”, “syrup” and many others.

8. The Arabic language has had a huge influence on the modern language. Not surprising, since a significant part of the Iberian Peninsula for a long time was under Arab rule. At least 10% of the words in modern Spanish come from Arabic. In addition, it was provided noticeable influence on grammar and phonetics.

9. Arabic writing is a special topic. The alphabet of this language includes 28 letters that allow you not just to compose words, but to create entire written designs and patterns. Needless to say, Arabic calligraphy is whole area decorative arts, the origin of which has long been debated by scientists. But for now everything remains only a matter of hypotheses.

10. Capital letters are absent in Arabic, punctuation marks are also written from right to left, and underlining is used instead of underlining. Arabic writing was formed in Arabia in the 3rd-4th centuries. AD Interestingly, Arabs studying Western languages, often make the same mistake - they forget to put capital letters.

11. Arabic is considered one of the most difficult languages ​​to learn. This is facilitated by unusual writing, in which it can be difficult to separate some letters from others, as well as very complex grammar. The matter is not limited to cramming alone; you need to radically change your way of thinking and work a lot on pronunciation.

In this article we present to you full list countries where Arabic is spoken. The list includes not only those countries where Arabic is the official language, but also those where Arabic is the second official language.

The Arab countries included in the first list are arranged in alphabetical order. The article also includes data on gross domestic product (GDP), population and divisions for each dialect group of spoken Arabic. You will find the same data in the list of countries in which a significant part of the population speaks Arabic or whose second official language is Arabic.

List of Arab countries in alphabetical order

Jordan

Mauritania

United United Arab Emirates(UAE)

Palestine

Saudi Arabia

Syria
Tunisia

A Brief History of the Arabic Language and Arab world

About 420 million people speak Arabic, making it the sixth most widely spoken language in the world. The word “Arab” means “nomad,” and this is understandable, because the Arabic language came from the nomadic tribes inhabiting the desert regions of the Arabian Peninsula. The Arabic language developed in the fourth century AD from the Nabataean and Aramaic scripts. Arabic is written from right to left, the script resembles cursive, and the Arabic alphabet includes 28 letters - almost like English language. It has remained unchanged since the seventh century AD thanks to the revelations of the Prophet Muhammad recorded in the Qur'an. From the 8th century, the Arabic language began to spread throughout the Middle East and North Africa, as many people began to convert to Islam. Muslims are required to pray only in Arabic. Today, the Arab World is a region that includes the countries of the Middle East and North Africa, and Arabic is the official language there. Arab countries differ from each other in terms of history, culture, politics and dialects.

List of Arabic-speaking countries by GDP

The combined GDP of Arabic-speaking countries is $2,851 trillion. This is approximately 4% of the gross world product (GWP). Many countries in the Arab world are considered emerging economies. The Arab world, especially the Middle East, is to a greater extent notable for its oil production. Saudi Arabia ranks second in the world in terms of oil production, along with Iraq, the UAE and Kuwait, which occupy 7th, 8th and 11th places, respectively. The economies of many of these countries depend solely on oil revenues. In Qatar, the Arab state with the highest GDP growth (5.6%), oil accounts for more than 70% of total government revenue, more than 60% of gross domestic product and about 85% of export earnings. However, oil production is not the only industry in the Arab world. For example, Jordan does not have oil or other resources for energy production. Their place is taken by services, which in this country account for more than 67% of GDP. Jordan's banking sector is one of the most powerful in the region. Arab Bank, headquartered in the Jordanian capital Amman, is one of the largest financial institutions Middle East. The standard of living in the countries of the Arab world is very different. Thus, Qatar has one of the highest GDP per capita in the world and is about $93,352, and Yemen has one of the lowest, equal to $1,473.

Arabic-speaking frontier financial markets and least developed countries

Many Arabic-speaking countries fall into either the category of frontier financial markets or are considered least developed countries (LDCs). Frontier financial markets tend to have large market opportunities and high potential for rapid growth. On the other hand, these frontier markets are often more risky than established markets, and the lack of infrastructure can make doing business more difficult. Arab LDCs are Arabic-speaking countries with the lowest economic development. Countries like war-torn Syria are losing foreign currency and seeing their economies decline instead of grow.

It is important to note that even in these markets there are still some emerging industries and products in increasing demand.

The study of economics shows that as income decreases, the demand for low-quality goods increases. Traveling by bus is an example of an inferior good that is chosen by those whose incomes have decreased. However, even in countries where the economy is in decline, demand for some expensive goods may increase. Take, for example, armored personnel carriers. In war-torn Arab countries, where safety is a top priority, they are in great demand.

Below is a list of four Arab countries included in this category:

Population of Arabic-speaking countries

According to 2013 data, the total population of the Arab world is estimated to be 369.8 million people. This region extends from Morocco in North Africa to Dubai in the Persian Gulf. The most populous country in the region is Egypt, and the least populated is Bahrain. Many countries in the Arab world have very high population growth rates. For example, Oman and Qatar have the highest population growth rates in the world at 9.2% and 5.65 respectively. About 90 percent of people in the Arab world consider themselves Muslims, six percent are Christians, and four percent practice other religions. Most of all these people are ethnic Arabs; other major ethnic groups include Berbers and Kurds.

Below is a complete list of Arabic-speaking countries, organized according to population:

Other Arabic speaking countries

Many countries either have Arabic as a second official language or have significant Arabic-speaking communities. However, in all these countries, Arabic is a minority language. For example, Chad has two official languages, French and literary Arabic, as well as more than 120 indigenous languages.

Arabic dialects

There are three forms of Arabic: Modern Standard Arabic (MSA), Classical/Quranic Arabic, and Colloquial Arabic. MSA - official modern language Arab world, based on the language of the Koran. MSA is widely taught in schools and universities in Arabic-speaking countries. It is also used to varying degrees in workplaces, government and media throughout the Arab world.

Despite the existence of MSA, Arabic speakers grow up speaking the dialect of the region in which they live. Each Arabic-speaking country has its own form of spoken Arabic, which differs significantly from MSA. A single dialect of spoken Arabic can be used throughout an entire region or even a country. The main dialect groups of Arabic are as follows:

Map of Arabic dialects

Gulf Arabic – Dialects of the Persian Gulf

Bahrani – Bahraini

Najdi - Najdi

Omani - Omani

Hijazi and Rashaida – Hijazi

Dhofari - Dhofar

Yemeni and Somali - Yemeni and Somali

Chadic and Shuwa – Chadic

Sudanese - Sudanese

Sa'idi - Said

Egyptian - Egyptian

Judeo-Arabic – Jewish-Arabic

Nubi - Nubian

Cypriot Arabic – Cypriot Arabic

Iraqui – Iraqi

Levantine – Levantine (Levantine)

North Mesopotanian - North Mesopotamian

Morrocan - Moroccan

Tunisian - Tunisian

Algerian - Algerian

Lybian – Libyan

Hassaniya – Moorish

Saharans - Saharan

About 240 million people speak Arabic as their native language. It is distributed in more than 30 countries around the world. It is spoken in Afghanistan, Algeria, Morocco, Egypt, Tunisia, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Chad, Somalia, Cyprus, Eritrea, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Lebanon, Libya, Kuwait, Syria, Oman, Qatar, Yemen and more many other countries.

As you can see, this is a very common language. Despite the fact that it is considered one of the most. But this, naturally, is from the point of view of Europeans, although it is not easy for the Arabs themselves.

The Arabic language seems unusual and incredibly complex to Europeans due to some of its features. The first thing that catches your eye is the writing is from right to left, and not vice versa, as is customary in our country. The letter itself, the so-called “Arabic script,” is also unusual.

It is interesting that Arabs write letters from right to left, but vice versa, from left to right. And the numbers themselves also differ from those we use. For the first time, when I came across the fact that in Arab countries they use other numbers, I was very surprised, because all my life I thought our numbers were Arabic, because that’s what they are called. But it turned out that the Arabs themselves use completely different ones and call them Indian. This is such a paradox.

Interestingly, each country has its own dialect. Therefore, Arabs from different countries may not understand each other at all.

The Arabic language has more than 30 dialects, including:

Maghreb dialects (the Maghreb includes: Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Mauritania, Western Sahara, Libya), Egyptian-Sudanese Arabic, Arabian dialects, Syro-Mesopotamian dialect, Central Asian dialects.

But there is classical Arabic, the language in which the Koran is written. This language differs from spoken dialects in that it has a more complex structure and is somewhat archaic. He was protected from modern changes, so he remained the same as he was thousands of years ago. Not everyone understands it, although, in theory, every Muslim should read the Koran in its original source.

There is also a standard literary Arabic language, which is understandable in all Arab countries. It is in this language that official documents are written, TV shows, books are published.

The Arabic language has changed interestingly in Malta, where one of the Maghreb dialects has developed into a separate independent Maltese language. This happened largely because Christianity, not Islam, is the main religion there, so there is no such reverent attitude towards the “language of the Koran.”

Arabic has 28 letters and no capital letters, all letters are the same. Words cannot be tolerated. Punctuation marks are written from left to right. Short vowels are not written, but are indicated by dots. Abjad writing type of Arabic. Most letters change shape depending on where they are in the word.

Not so long ago, in many languages ​​(where Islam predominated) the Arabic script was used, then it was replaced by the Latin and Cyrillic alphabet. These are, for example, Turkish, Kyrgyz, Kazakh, Tajik, Tatar, etc. At the beginning of the 20th century, Latinization and Cyrillization of languages ​​were carried out.

In all Arab countries, Arabic is the state language; there are countries, for example the Maghreb countries, where, along with Arabic, the state language is French. Arabic is also the official language of countries such as Israel, Chad, Eritrea, Djibouti, Somalia, Comoros, Somaliland.

Arabic is one of the six official languages ​​of the UN. Well, and, of course, this is the language in which the Koran is written.