Arabic is the term used to describe standard modern Arabic but in fact, there are 30 different varieties of Arabic language according to the ISO.
Modern Standard Arabic is used in schools, universities, business and is the official language in 28 different countries.
Spoken by 300m people as a first language it is the fifth most spoken language and is one of the 6 official languages of the United Nations.
There are many different dialects within the Arabic language from Egyptian Arabic through Libyan, Tunisian and Maghrebi Arabic and it is often said that where Hindi speakers claim not to understand Urdu speakers even when they can, Arabic speakers will claim to understand each other even when they cannot!
Due to its cultural influence through films, TV, newspapers and books, Egyptian Arabic is probably the most widely understood form and you will generally find dialects being spoken in informal settings and the home and speakers will often switch between standard and dialects within the same sentence.
The trading nature of many of the Northern Arabic nations has meant that words of Arabic origin have become a staple of the English language including guitar, sugar, carat and lemon.
Whatever the variety of Arabic you need help with, we can assist. Our large database of native speakers can translate from and to any Arabic dialect.
