Peninsular Arabic

(Redirected from Saudi Arabian Arabic)

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]

Peninsular Arabic
Arabian Arabic
RegionArabian Peninsula
Native speakers
77 million (2018–2023)[1]
Dialects
Arabic script
Language codes
ISO 639-3Variously:
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
Glottologarab1393

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

Varieties

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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 and Hejazi parts) which shows a correlation and differences between those dialects:

Comparison between a number of dialects in Saudi Arabia
Term Standard Arabic Urban Hejazi Ḥarb tribe (Hejazi) Ḥarb tribe (Najdi) Urban Najdi
"water" ماء māʼ موية mōya ما mā or موية mōya موية mōya
"what?" ماذا māḏā إيش ʾēš ويش wēš or وش weš وش wiš
"I want" أريد ʼurīd أبغى ʼabḡa or rarely أبى ʼaba أبى ʼaba أبي ʼabi
"bread" خُبْز ḵubz خُبْز ḵubuz or عيش ʿēš عيش ʿayš خِبْز ḵibz
"run" يَرْكُض yarkuḍu or يَجْرِي yajrī يِجْري yijri يَجْرِي yajri يَرْكُض yarkiẓ (يَرْكِظ)
"now" الآن alʼān دحين daḥīn or daḥēn ذحين daḥīn هالحين hal-ḥīn الحين il-ḥīn
"also" أيْضًا ʾayḍan or كَذَٰلِكَ ka-ḏālika كمان kamān or برضه barḍu كمان kamān or برضه barẓu (برظه) كَذَٰلِكَ ka-ḏālik بَعَد baʿad
"coffee" قَهْوَة qahwa قَهْوَة gahwa قْهَوَة ghawa قْهَوَة ghawa or قَهْوَة gahwa
"they said" قالوا qālū قالوا gālu قالوا gālaw قالوا gālaw or قالوا gālu
"cows" بَقَر baqar بَقَر bagar بُقَر bugar بِقَر bigar
"neck" رَقَبة raqaba رَقَبة ragaba رْقُبة rguba رْقَبة rgaba
"little" قَليل qalīl قَليل galīl قِليل gilīl
"strong" قَوِيّ qawiyy قَوي gawi قُوي guwi
"talked to you" كَلَّمَكَ kallamaka كَلَّمَك kallamak كَلَّمْك kallamk
"take!" خُذْ ḵuḏ خُذْ ḵud (خُد) خُذْ ḵuḏ خِذْ ḵiḏ
"all" كُلّ kull كُلّ kull كِل kill
"got bigger" كَبُرَ kabura كِبِر kibir كِبَر kibar
"he drank" شَرِب šarib شِرِب širib شِرَب širab
"I said" قُلْت qult قُلْت gult قِلْت gilt
"tomb" قَبْر qabr قَبُر gabur قبر gabir
"palace" قَصر qaṣr قَصُر gaṣur قَصِر gaṣir
"poverty" فَقْر faqr فَقِر fagir or فَقُر fagur فَقِر fagir
"it dried" يَبِس yabis يِبِس yibis يِبَس yibas
"say!" قُل qul قول gūl قِل gil or rarely قول gūl
"go!" اِذْهَب iḏhab روح rūḥ رح riḥ or rarely روح rūḥ
“he found” لقي laqiya لقي ligi لقى liga
“she forgot” نَسِيَت nasiyat نِسْيَت nisyat نست nisat
"where?" أين ʼayn فين fēn وين wēn
"early morning" ضُحَى ḍuḥā ضَحى ḍaḥa ضَحى ẓaḥa (ظَحى)
"we were" كُنَّا kunnā كُنَّا kunna كِنَّا kinna
"he inhabited" سَكَن sakan سَكَن sakan سِكَن sikan
"he told the truth" صَدَق ṣadaq صَدَق ṣadag صِدَق ṣidag
"he knows" يَعْرِف yaʿrif يِعْرِف yiʿrif يْعَرِف yʿarif
"he wrote" كَتَبَ katab كَتَب katab كِتَب kitab
"he enters" يَدْخُل yadḵul يِدْخُل yidḵul يَدْخُل yadḵul يَدْخِل yadḵil
"he writes" يَكْتُبُ yaktub يِكْتُب yiktub يَكْتِب yaktub يَكْتِب yaktib or يْكَتِب ykatib
"she sits" تَقْعُد taqʿud تِقْعُد tigʿud تَقْعُد tagʿud تَقْعِد tagʿid
"he woke up" صَحِيَ ṣaḥiya or صحا ṣaḥā صِحِي ṣiḥi صَحَا ṣaḥa
"dig" اِحْفِرْ iḥfir اَحْفُر aḥfur اِحْفِرْ iḥfir
"leave!" خَلِّ ḵalli خَلِّي ḵalli خل ḵall
"big" كَبير kabīr كَبير kabīr كِبير kibīr
"truth" حَقيقة ḥaqīqa حَقيقة ḥagīga حِقيقة ḥigīga
"we" نَحْن naḥnu احنا iḥna or نحنا niḥna حنا ḥinna
"them" هُم hum َّهُم humma هُم hum
"this" هذا hāḏā هذا hāda (هدا) هذا hāḏa
"we count" نَحْسِبُ naḥsibu نِحْسِب niḥsib نْحَسِب nḥasib نْحَسِب nḥasib or نِحْسِب niḥsib
"piece of wood" خَشَبَة ḵašaba خَشَبَة ḵašaba خْشِبَة ḵšiba خْشِبَة ḵšiba or خَشَبَة ḵašaba
"camel" جَمَل jamal جَمَل jamal جِمَل jimal جِمَل jimal or جَمَل jamal
"like" مِثْل miṯl or كما kama زَي zay مِثْل miṯl or كما kima or زَي zay مِثْل miṯl or زَي zay
"he" هُوَ huwa هُوَّ huwwa هو hū or huw or huwah or اهو ihwa هو hū or huw

See also

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Footnotes

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  1. ^ Bahrani Arabic at Ethnologue (27th ed., 2024)  
    Dhofari Arabic at Ethnologue (27th ed., 2024)  
    Eastern Egyptian Bedawi Arabic at Ethnologue (27th ed., 2024)  
    Gulf Arabic at Ethnologue (27th ed., 2024)  
    Hadhrami Arabic at Ethnologue (27th ed., 2024)  
    Hejazi Arabic at Ethnologue (27th ed., 2024)  
    (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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