Reading Arabic

Arabic is kind of a big deal…

Arabic is an important language. Apart from being the liturgical language for approximately 2 billion Muslims globally, it is one of six official languages of the United Nations, the official language of 26 states and a regional / minority language in several others. Arabic has an estimated 400-500 million native speakers located throughout the Middle and Near East and North Africa – the hub of global trade and travel.

For Muslims, Arabic bears special importance. It is the language of the Holy Qur’an, the book revealed through the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be on him) for all of humanity. The Qur’an is “a scripture whereof the verses are expounded, a Qur’an, in Arabic for people who have knowledge” (Qur’an 41:3). That the words of Almighty Allah are expressed in this language is significant, in particular from the vibrations from recitation of these words. Almighty Allah tells us “had We sent down this Qur’an on a mountain, surely, you would have seen it humble itself and cleave asunder, for fear of Allah” (Qur’an 59:21). The Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be on him) is reported to have said, “Recitation of the Qur’an is the best divine service of my followers.”

As a language, Arabic is unique and bears a special significance in world history. The Qur’anic form and structure of language presented a new way of writing to the world, and Classical Arabic (of the Qur’an) is still widely regarded as the preferred language of poetry and literature for Arabic speakers.

But its also kind of difficult.

Arabic is often listed as a notoriously difficult language to learn. Being nested in Afroasiatic family of languages, it is different from much of the popular Indo-European languages that dominate the Western world today. The very fact that it is written from right to left is an example of this difficulty. The British Foreign Service Institute estimates one requires 2200 hours of study time to achieve general proficiency.

But there are ways to get a handle on this. The ability to read a language offers students the ability to expand and understand their grammar and vocabulary, and come to terms with different language structures. Facilitated by visual cues, reading aids in recall, and helps the student accelerate the learning and understanding once literacy skills are mastered.

The MAI Course: Learn to Read Arabic

The course ‘Learn to Read Arabic’ by the MAI Institute helps persons to along the journey of reading Arabic. Assuming no prior experience, the course takes persons from the Alphabet and phonics through vowels and other literacy principles, using words from the Qur’an as the material of practice. In this way, those seeking to learn the language are endowed with familiarity of Classical Arabic vocabulary, while those seeking to be able to read the Holy Quran would see in the exercises many words already familiar to them.

The online platform, allowing for open and ongoing access, is perhaps the best configuration available for self-study. Driven by video lectures, a (free text (included) with complete explanations, examples and exercises, the course is provided for the sole purpose of supporting anyone interested in learning to read Arabic on their own time, and at their own pace.

How To Access

Access is easy.

1. Visit https://maiinstitute.com/product/arabic-001/
2. Add the product to your shopping cart,
3. Checkout,
4. Create an account if you dont already have one (no credit card is required), and
5. Submit.

Your login credentials would be emailed to you, and boom. you’re in.

Good luck and happy reading!