Peninsular Arabic

Last updated
Peninsular Arabic
Arabian Arabic
Region Arabian Peninsula
Native speakers
77 million (2018–2023) [1]
Dialects
Arabic script
Language codes
ISO 639-3 Variously:
abv    Bahrani Arabic
adf    Dhofari Arabic
avl    Eastern Egyptian Bedawi Arabic
afb    Gulf Arabic
ayh    Hadhrami Arabic
acw    Hejazi Arabic
ars    Najdi Arabic
acx    Omani Arabic
ayn    Sanʽani Arabic
ssh    Shihhi Arabic
acq    Taʽizzi-Adeni Arabic
Glottolog arab1393

Peninsular Arabic are the varieties of Arabic spoken throughout the Arabian Peninsula. This includes the countries of Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Oman, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, Southern Iran, Southern Iraq and Jordan. [2]

Contents

The modern dialects spoken in the Arabian Peninsula are closer to Classical Arabic than elsewhere in the Arab world. [3] [4] Some of the local dialects have retained many archaic features lost in other dialects, such as the conservation of nunation for indeterminate nouns. They retain most Classical syntax and vocabulary but still have some differences from Classical Arabic like the other dialects.

Distribution of dialects in the Arabian Peninsula Peninsular Arabic.svg
Distribution of dialects in the Arabian Peninsula

Varieties

Approximate historical distribution of Semitic languages Semitic languages.svg
Approximate historical distribution of Semitic languages

Ingham [5] and Holes [6] both note the existence of two peninsular dialect groups:

  1. A southwestern dialect group that includes most of the dialects of South Arabia, stretching as far north as Al Bahah. Holes generalizes it to a "sedentary" or "peripheral" group that also includes dialects of historically sedentary populations on the Persian Gulf coast, such as Omani Arabic and Bahrani Arabic. These dialects share certain syntactic features with Modern South Arabian languages.
  2. A central-eastern dialect group originating in the center, that spread with the migration of Arab tribes. This group includes the dialects of most bedouin tribes in the peninsula, spanning an area extending from the Syrian Desert to the Empty Quarter. Its most notable examples are Najdi Arabic and Gulf Arabic.

The following varieties are usually noted:

The following table compares the Arabic terms between Saudi dialects of urban Hejazi and urban Najdi in addition to the dialect of the Harb tribe [7] with its tribal area (Najdi, urban Hejazi and bedouin Hejazi groups) which shows a correlation and differences between those dialects:

Comparison between a number of dialects in Saudi Arabia
TermStandard ArabicUrban HejaziḤarb tribe (Hejazi -Urban groups)Ḥarb tribe (Hejazi -Bedouin groups)Ḥarb tribe (Najdi)Urban Najdi
"water"ماء māʼموية mōyaما mā or موية mōyaموية mōya
"what?"ماذا māḏāإيش ʾēšويش wēš or وش wešوش wiš
"I want"أريد ʼurīdأبغى ʼabḡa or rarely أبى ʼabaأبى ʼabaأبي ʼabi
"bread"خُبْز ḵubzخُبْز ḵubuz or عيش ʿēšعيش ʿayšخِبْز ḵibz
"run"يَرْكُض yarkuḍu or يَجْرِي yajrīيِجْري yijriيَجْرِي yajriيَرْكُض yarkiẓ (يَرْكِظ)
"now"الآن alʼānدحين daḥīn or daḥēnذحين daḥīnهالحين hal-ḥīnالحين il-ḥīn
"also"أيْضًا ʾayḍan or كَذَٰلِكَ ka-ḏālikaكمان kamān or برضه barḍuكمان kamān or برضه barẓu (برظه)كَذَٰلِكَ ka-ḏālikبَعَد baʿad
"coffee"قَهْوَة qahwaقَهْوَة gahwaقْهَوَة ghawaقْهَوَة ghawa or قَهْوَة gahwa
"they said"قالوا qālūقالوا gāluقالوا gālawقالوا gālaw or قالوا gālu
"cows"بَقَر baqarبَقَر bagarبُقَر bugarبِقَر bigar
"neck"رَقَبة raqabaرَقَبة ragabaرْقُبة rgubaرْقَبة rgaba
"little"قَليل qalīlقَليل galīlقِليل gilīl
"strong"قَوِيّ qawiyyقَوي gawiقُوي guwi
"talked to you"كَلَّمَكَ kallamakaكَلَّمَك kallamakكَلَّمْك kallamk
"take!"خُذْ ḵuḏخُذْ ḵud (خُد)خُذْ ḵuḏخِذْ ḵiḏ
"all"كُلّ kullكُلّ kullكِل kill
"got bigger"كَبُرَ kaburaكِبِر kibirكِبَر kibar
"he drank"شَرِب šaribشِرِب širibشِرَب širab
"I said"قُلْت qultقُلْت gultقِلْت gilt
"tomb"قَبْر qabrقَبُر gaburقبر gabir
"palace"قَصر qaṣrقَصُر gaṣurقَصِر gaṣir
"poverty"فَقْر faqrفَقِر fagir or فَقُر fagurفَقِر fagir
"it dried"يَبِس yabisيِبِس yibisيِبَس yibas
"say!"قُل qulقول gūlقِل gil or rarely قول gūl
"go!"اِذْهَب iḏhabروح rūḥرح riḥ or rarely روح rūḥ
“he found”لقي laqiyaلقي ligiلقى liga
“she forgot”نَسِيَت nasiyatنِسْيَت nisyatنست nisat
"where?"أين ʼaynفين fēnوين wēn
"early morning"ضُحَى ḍuḥāضَحى ḍaḥaضَحى ẓaḥa (ظَحى)
"we were"كُنَّا kunnāكُنَّا kunnaكِنَّا kinna
"he inhabited"سَكَن sakanسَكَن sakanسِكَن sikan
"he told the truth"صَدَق ṣadaqصَدَق ṣadagصِدَق ṣidag
"he knows"يَعْرِف yaʿrifيِعْرِف yiʿrifيْعَرِف yʿarif
"he wrote"كَتَبَ katabكَتَب katabكِتَب kitab
"he enters"يَدْخُل yadḵulيِدْخُل yidḵulيَدْخُل yadḵulيَدْخِل yadḵil
"he writes"يَكْتُبُ yaktubيِكْتُب yiktubيَكْتِب yaktubيَكْتِب yaktib or يْكَتِب ykatib
"she sits"تَقْعُد taqʿudتِقْعُد tigʿudتَقْعُد tagʿudتَقْعِد tagʿid
"he woke up"صَحِيَ ṣaḥiya or صحا ṣaḥāصِحِي ṣiḥiصَحَا ṣaḥa
"dig"اِحْفِرْ iḥfirاَحْفُر aḥfurاِحْفِرْ iḥfir
"leave!"خَلِّ ḵalliخَلِّي ḵalliخل ḵall
"big"كَبير kabīrكَبير kabīrكِبير kibīr
"truth"حَقيقة ḥaqīqaحَقيقة ḥagīgaحِقيقة ḥigīga
"we"نَحْن naḥnuاحنا iḥna or نحنا niḥnaحنا ḥinna
"them"هُم humَّهُم hummaهُم hum
"this"هذا hāḏāهذا hāda (هدا)هذا hāḏa
"we count"نَحْسِبُ naḥsibuنِحْسِب niḥsibنْحَسِب nḥasibنْحَسِب nḥasib or نِحْسِب niḥsib
"piece of wood"خَشَبَة ḵašabaخَشَبَة ḵašabaخْشِبَة ḵšibaخْشِبَة ḵšiba or خَشَبَة ḵašaba
"camel"جَمَل jamalجَمَل jamalجِمَل jimalجِمَل jimal or جَمَل jamal
"like"مِثْل miṯl or كما kamaزَي zayمِثْل miṯl or كما kima or زَي zayمِثْل miṯl or زَي zay
"he"هُوَ huwaهُوَّ huwwaهو hū or huw or huwah or اهو ihwaهو hū or huw

See also

Footnotes

  1. Bahrani Arabic at Ethnologue (27th ed., 2024) Closed Access logo transparent.svg
    Dhofari Arabic at Ethnologue (27th ed., 2024) Closed Access logo transparent.svg
    Eastern Egyptian Bedawi Arabic at Ethnologue (27th ed., 2024) Closed Access logo transparent.svg
    Gulf Arabic at Ethnologue (27th ed., 2024) Closed Access logo transparent.svg
    Hadhrami Arabic at Ethnologue (27th ed., 2024) Closed Access logo transparent.svg
    Hejazi Arabic at Ethnologue (27th ed., 2024) Closed Access logo transparent.svg
    (Additional references under 'Language codes' in the information box)
  2. Holes, Clive (2001). Dialect, Culture, and Society in Eastern Arabia: Glossary. BRILL. pp. XIX. ISBN   9004107630.
  3. Zhluktenko, Y. A. (1988). Interlanguage relations and language policy. Capitalist states and countries of the "Third World". Naukova dumka. p. 190. ISBN   9785120001410.
  4. Alexeyev, B. A. (2003). All Asia. Geographical handbook. АСТ. p. 311. ISBN   9785897371518.
  5. Ingham, Bruce (1994). Najdi Arabic : central Arabian. Amsterdam: J. Benjamins Pub. Co. p. 8. ISBN   155619725X.
  6. Holes, Clive (2006). "The Arabic dialects of Arabia". Proceedings of the Seminar for Arabian Studies. 36: 25–34. ISSN   0308-8421. JSTOR   41223878.
  7. Il-Hazmy (1975 :234)

Bibliography


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