Page 69 - University English for non-speacalist

Since understanding Arabic is so important, most Muslims try to learn at least the basics. And a
great many Muslims pursue further study in order to understand the full text of the Quran in its
original form. So how does one go about learning Arabic, especially the classic, liturgical form
in which the Quran was written?
Background of the Arabic Language
Arabic, both the classical literary form and the modern form, are classified as Central Semitic
languages. Classic Arabic first emerged in northern Arabia and Mesopotamia during the Iron
Age. It is closely related to other Semitic languages, such as Hebrew.

Though Arabic may seem quite alien to those whose native language derives from the Indo-
European language branch, a great many Arabic words are part of the lexicon of Western
languages due to Arabic influence on Europe during the medieval period. Thus, the vocabulary
is not so alien as one might think. And because modern Arabic is closely based on the classic
form, any native speaker of modern Arabic or many closely related languages do not find it
difficult to learn classic Arabic. Virtually all citizens of the Middle East and much of northern
Africa speak modern Arabic already, and a great many other central European and Asian
languages have been heavily influenced by Arabic. Thus, a good portion of the world's
population is readily able to learn classic Arabic.
The situation is a bit harder for native speakers of the Indo-European languages, which
accounts for 46 percent of the world's population. While the language rules themselves—the
way of conjugating verbs, for example—are unique in Arabic, for most people whose native

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