Why does Arabic have so many dialects?

lazybone   Sun Jul 26, 2009 9:17 am GMT
Guest   Sun Jul 26, 2009 9:19 am GMT
Because it's Allah's desire.
lazybone   Sun Jul 26, 2009 9:21 am GMT
Which dialect is the language of Allah? Gulf Arabic (Khaliji)? I'm puzzled...
lazybone   Sun Jul 26, 2009 9:31 am GMT
Which dialect does Prophet "Muhammad ‘Abdullāh" speak? Or which kind of dialect is the closest to his accent?
Commonaswhole   Sun Jul 26, 2009 4:26 pm GMT
Because many Arabic speaking peoples are the result of assimilation putting their own stamp on the language. The fact the language was widespread for centuries, there was much analphabetism and there was little contact between different regions made it all evolve like this.
This is the same reason why there are so many Germanic dialects and languags. There are even regional languages that never made it as on official language and that are now marginalized (take Ost-Frisian, Scots, Platt-Dütsch or Low Saxon for instance).

More of a truth is the fact that Arabs still sort of lived in tribes when Europeans invented nationalism. This is subject to change in the distant future as Arabs will become more aware of their own regional identity.
Domine   Tue Jul 28, 2009 2:42 am GMT
Personally I have studied the Costal Arabic variant (Syria, Lebanon, Jordon) because its closeness to the standard Arabic -the fatha. But, I have also studied the Emirati Arabic (U.A.E, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Kuwait) variant as that one is much more prestigious and delightful.

An example of a daily greeting (masculine)

Good morning! How are you? Good and you?
Sabaah Il-kheer! Kiif haluka? Zayed wa anta? = standard arabic
Sabah l-kheer! Kiiak? Maleh wa inta? = costal arabic
Sbaah Ihkeer! Shloonak? Zein wa enta? = iraqi arabic
Sabaah il-kheer! Issayak? Kwayyis wa ta? = egyptian arabic
Sbaah Ilkheer! Shoonak? Zean wa enta? = emirati
Joao   Tue Jul 28, 2009 3:15 am GMT
"Personally I have studied the Costal Arabic variant (Syria, Lebanon, Jordon) because its closeness to the standard Arabic -the fatha. But, I have also studied the Emirati Arabic (U.A.E, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Kuwait) variant as that one is much more prestigious and delightful.

An example of a daily greeting (masculine)

Good morning! How are you? Good and you?
Sabaah Il-kheer! Kiif haluka? Zayed wa anta? = standard arabic
Sabah l-kheer! Kiiak? Maleh wa inta? = costal arabic
Sbaah Ihkeer! Shloonak? Zein wa enta? = iraqi arabic
Sabaah il-kheer! Issayak? Kwayyis wa ta? = egyptian arabic
Sbaah Ilkheer! Shoonak? Zean wa enta? = emirati"

This is interesting. You wrote the variants in Latin characters. My question is:
If this variations are written in the Arabic alphabet are there differences in spelling as well? Or on the other hand, you just tried to write in Latin characters the different accents and phrases?
This is important to know whether this variations can be considered different languages of the Arabic family or mere dialects of one Arabic language.
Softly   Tue Jul 28, 2009 3:21 am GMT
@ Domine

Do you think Gulf Arabic is the most useful dialect in Middle East?
Joao   Tue Jul 28, 2009 3:24 am GMT
"Because many Arabic speaking peoples are the result of assimilation putting their own stamp on the language. The fact the language was widespread for centuries, there was much analphabetism and there was little contact between different regions made it all evolve like this.
This is the same reason why there are so many Germanic dialects and languags. There are even regional languages that never made it as on official language and that are now marginalized (take Ost-Frisian, Scots, Platt-Dütsch or Low Saxon for instance).

More of a truth is the fact that Arabs still sort of lived in tribes when Europeans invented nationalism. This is subject to change in the distant future as Arabs will become more aware of their own regional identity."

Common as whole (lol), the illiteracy you mentioned was not specific of the Arabs. Th whole working class peoples of the world were illiterate. 1000 years ago, the situation was probably even better in the Arab world than in backward Europe.
About nationalism in Europe, well, XIX century Romanticism did a lot to cement the concept of one state, one country, one language.
Arab nationalism only emerged in the XX century, without that concept on having each state speaking a different language though simmilar, as it happens among neighbor European states.
Post a reply   Tue Jul 28, 2009 5:59 am GMT
The various parts of the Arab world are like islands separated by deserts. Even in Maghreb (Morocco, Algeria), Arabic areas were until recently separated by Berberic populations.

This can compare to the huge differences between English, German and Scandinavian. Narrow straits led each group to evolve under insular conditions.
Domine   Tue Jul 28, 2009 6:30 pm GMT
">If this variations are written in the Arabic alphabet are there differences in spelling as well? Or on the other hand, you just tried to write in Latin characters the different accents and phrases?<"

At times yes; however not so grave. But you are certainly correct when you say all I wanted to do was to write in Latin characters (transliteration) along with the different phrases / words each region uses.

">This is important to know whether this variations can be considered different languages of the Arabic family or mere dialects of one Arabic language.<"

In my view they are dialects of the Standard or Classical Arabic. Suffice to say, sometimes some native speakers consider the other a different language of the Arabic tongue due to the unintelligiblity between them.


">Do you think Gulf Arabic is the most useful dialect in Middle East?<"

Well, when it comes to business abroad - yes. Plus the Emirati version resembles a lot the Iraqi one.
eastlander   Tue Jul 28, 2009 6:45 pm GMT
<<This is the same reason why there are so many Germanic dialects and languags. There are even regional languages that never made it as on official language and that are now marginalized (take Ost-Frisian, Scots, Platt-Dütsch or Low Saxon for instance).>>
East Frisian is dialect of Low Saxon.Plattduutsch means Low Saxon or Low Franconian dialects of Low German language.
Scots is dialect of Northumbrian English,mixed with Gaelic, Middle Scandinavian dialects and Flemish.
Situation with Arabic can be compared with Italian dialects.Italian Piedmontese or Venetian dialect is very different from Italian Napulitanu or Sizilianu dialects.
Musulman   Tue Jul 28, 2009 7:21 pm GMT
Spanish and Portuguese are much more mutual intelligible than those Arabic dialects, in fact they shouldn't even call it Arabic, they should call it "Egyptian Arabic, Iranian Arabic, Emirati Arabic, etc."
Guest   Tue Jul 28, 2009 7:23 pm GMT
If you are talking about Brazilian Portuguese, then yes, Spanish and Portuguese are mutually intelligible. But oral Continental Portuguese and Spanish as are intelligible as Russian and Spanish.
Z.J.J   Wed Jul 29, 2009 2:23 am GMT
May I directly start to learn Gulf Arabic without knowing any Modern Standard Arabic?