Top 5 Reasons to Learn Modern Standard Arabic Before Any Dialect

Arabic has a very interesting and rich history behind it. Different Arab tribes had different Arabic dialects, and even they pronounced Arabic battles between them differently. The Quranic Arabic emerged amid such dialects that date back to the medieval ages.

Standard Arabic is now the lingua franca of Arabic countries. It’s typically used in formal settings. Standard Arabic is the sole variety deployed in any government or official document.

The standard language is also used by contemporary authors within the domain of Arabic literature. It’s even called the academic language as it’s used in technical literature in Academic journals and has a lot of loanwords from foreign languages, especially European languages in the scientific field.

1. Modern Standard Arabic Is Your Gateway to Quranic Arabic

Classical Arabic or Quranic Arabic is the most revered variety of Arabic as it’s the liturgical language of Islam. During the before and early Islamic eras, and Umayyad and Abbasid eras, poetry and elevated prose used Classical Arabic variety.

Quranic Arabic is very sacred, and whoever can understand it earns the trust and respect of Arab locals. Additionally, many non-native speakers want to unravel the magical feeling of understanding this Arabic variety.

Modern Standard Arabic (MSA) can have similarities with the Classical variety, precisely in Arabic grammar and morphology and even the whole sentence structure with some modifications in lexis and stylistics, making learning MSA feels like possessing the best of both worlds!

2. You Want to Keep Up With Arabic News

Regardless of how intriguing and eventful the political landscape of the Arabic-speaking world is, the news is a vital Arabic language resource in learning as it almost always uses MSA.

You can learn how to say each and every sound impeccably by listening to radio news broadcasts to ace the spoken form on daily basis!

News anchors are native speakers of the Arabic language. They are heavily trained to articulate each phoneme right and to abide by Arabic grammar (Al Nahw) just to be able to be on Radio news broadcasts.

If you gravitate toward Entertainment news, there’re tons of magazines to keep up with all the latest news of celebrities from all Arabian countries.

3. You Want to Specialize in an Arabic Field

It’s not just the language of Arabic speakers. It goes beyond the scope of Arabic people to infiltrate the world of diplomacy and the highest white-collar careers as it’s one of the six official languages of the UN.

For advanced students, having high proficiency in MSA would secure any top-notch journalism or translation job out there.

Also, being competent in the Arabic language is a major requisite for Arabic concentrations at universities. Whether professional or academic, MSA is the only path!

4. You Want to Travel Across the Middle East As Soon As Possible

If you’re a travel enthusiast who’s fond of Arabic culture’s charm, learning Arabic is key to communicating with native speakers. But what variety are you willing to learn?

There are more than 25 major dialects in Arabic. Many Arabic students will recommend the Egyptian dialect as it’s the easiest, the second most popular dialect, and easily accessible. 

Yet, if you go to Arabic countries whose Arabic dialect sounds like a totally foreign language, especially Morocco, most people may not understand you. That’s when MSA comes into play.

And if your dream is to travel across the Arab world any time soon, mastering many dialects can take more time. That’s when MSA should become your go-to guide through all Arabian countries.

You’ll be amazed by how your Arabic will improve through language immersion with people whose mother tongue is Arabic.

5. You Want More Career Opportunities!

If you want a game changer in your career for a variety of fields, such as politics, diplomacy, translation, and all the highbrow careers, MSA is an excellent choice that’ll add a myriad of opportunities.

MSA will open many doors to many careers as it’s a highly demanded language whether inside Arab countries or worldwide.

Next Steps: Learning MSA

Thus, the abovementioned 5 reasons conclude how MSA paves a way full of fun and success for you.

Are you intrigued by the great opportunities that MSA offers and it aligns with your personal goals? What are you waiting for?

Apply now to IH Cairo’s Modern Standard Arabic course!

You’ll learn listening, speaking, pronunciation, reading, writing, vocabulary, and grammar through fun activities utilizing the best resources out there, such as the Lughatona al-Fusha series, published by the American University Press in Cairo, and Al- Kitaab series, published by Georgetown University Press.

If you’re still having second thoughts and want to see your options, read this article to see if Arabic dialects are the right thing for you.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)