Learn Arabic

General Information

The linguistic situation in the Arab world is unique. The spoken and written languages are not only quite different from one another, but the spoken language also varies widely from one region to another. The literary language (Modern Standard Arabic or al-fuSHaa) is uniform across the Arabic speaking world from Morocco in the West to the borders of Iran in the east, and from Lebanon in the North to the Sudan in the South. However, the spoken language changes from country to country, and even from city to city. At the Washington Academy of Languages, courses are designed to teach a form of Arabic called Formal Spoken Arabic (also known as "Educated Spoken Arabic," "Inter-Arabic," and "Middle Arabic"), which represents a blend of the major urban colloquial forms. The writing system is also introduced, although in the beginning, the bulk of the written material will be presented in transcription.

Textbook for level 1: Al-Batal, Mahmoud et al., Alif Baa: Introduction to Arabic Letters and Sounds, 2nd ed. (with DVDs). Washington DC: Georgetown University Press, 2004.

Textbook for levels 2-6: Al-Batal, Mahmoud et al., Al-Kitaab: Part I, 2nd ed. (with DVDs). Washington D.C.; Georgetown University Press, 2004.

Arabic I

30 hours of instruction/5 weeks

By the end of the five-week session, students will be able to carry on simple conversations in Arabic in situations such as introducing oneself, taking a bus or taxi, asking for help, going to the market or a restaurant and being in public in general. Some regional and dialectical differences will be introduced. Although the emphasis will be on expression and comprehension, basic grammar will be covered and will serve as a solid foundation for further study of Arabic. The writing system will be introduced and, by the end of the session, the student will be able to read and write basic literary Arabic. At the end of this course, students will be able to write basic literary Arabic. Cultural notes are introduced in each class as well.

This course may be taken for 4 quarter units of university credit.

Arabic II

30 hours of instruction/5 weeks
Prerequisite: Completion of Arabic I or instructor's permission

This course begins with a review of all the material taught in Arabic I. An emphasis on conversational fluency is continued in this level. Conversational situations include general topics from Arabic I, as well as speaking about family and friends, current events, and various cultural topics. An increasing amount of time will be spent on the written language and grammar. Vocabulary development is continued as well. By the end of the five-week session, students will be able to communicate more efficiently with native speakers and will be able to write simple sentences that relate to the conversational material learned in this level.

Chapters: 1-3
This course may be taken for 4 quarter units of university credit.

Arabic III

30 hours of instruction/5 weeks
Prerequisite: Completion of Arabic II or instructor's permission

This course begins with a review of basic grammar and questions as well as of vocabulary related to the family, work and education. Participants extensively practice communicating using verb forms (tense, aspect, gender and number), adverbs and negation. Topics of education, work, travel, weather and pastimes are explored in reading and conversation as are some historical contexts for the Arabic-speaking world. Both role play and conversation are used to build comfort in expressing ideas and practicing pronunciation.

Chapters: 4 - 6
This course may be taken for 4 quarter units of university credit.

Audio cassette tapes are available to enrolled students for a refundable deposit.