marHaba! Welcome! In this first lesson of your Arabic Language course, you’ll learn how to greet people and how to introduce yourself to someone. You’ll also learn some basics of Arabic pronunciation. First, let’s get started with some vocabulary. You’ll read the words and phrases in English first and then in the Arabic. Repeatedly read aloud each new word or phrase every time you read it. Ready?
VOCABULARY BUILDING 1
Yes. na‘am.
No. [Not at all./By no means.] kalla.
Hello. ahlan.
Good morning. SabãH al- khayr.
Good evening. masã’ al- khayr.
Please. (to a man) min faDlak.
Of course. Taba‘an.
Good- bye. ma‘a s- salãma.
TAKE A BREAK 1
Okay, let’s stop there for a moment. You learned how to say some important basic words, such as yes (na‘am), no (kalla), hello (ahlan), good morning (SabãH al- khayr), good evening (masaa’ al- khayr), please (min faDlak), of course (Taba‘an), and good- bye (ma‘a s- salãma). Did you notice that there are many sounds in Arabic that don’t have equivalents in English? Many Arabic sounds are pronounced in the back of the throat— na‘am (yes), ahlan (hello), SabãH al- khayr (good morning), masã’ al- khayr (good evening), min faDlak (please), Taba‘an (of course), and ma’as- salãma (good- bye)—and are therefore best learned through careful listening and repetition. For example: na’am, Taba‘an and ma‘as- salãma all have the sound a‘a in them; SabãH al- khayr and masã’ al- khayr have the sound kh in khayr, and SabãH in SabãH al- khayr has the sound H. You will read these sounds in many words as you learn more Arabic vocabulary.
Did you notice the word al in SabãH al- khayr (good morning)? This word is the equivalent of the English defi nite article the, but the Arabic al is pronounced as part of the word that follows it. For example, in the greetings above, the word khayr (good) is pronounced together with the defi nite article al— al- khayr. Often, the l in al blends into the word that follows it and “doubles” the first consonant of the following word, making it sound stronger, as in ma‘as- salãma ( good- bye), where the article is pronounced as s, doubling the initial consonant of the word it precedes. Now, let’s continue with some more words and expressions.
VOCABULARY BUILDING 2
How are you? kayf al- Hãl?
Fine. bi- khayr.
Thank you. shukran.
What is your name? (to a man) mã ismuk?
What is your name? (to a woman) mã ismuki?
My name is . . . ismo . . .
I am from . . . ana min . . .
Nice to meet you. Tasharrafnã.
Excuse me. ‘afwan.
I would like . . . uridu . . .
With pleasure. bikull- i surur.
TAKE A BREAK 2
Let’s pause here for a moment. You have just learned how to say mã ismuk? or mã ismuki? (What is your name?). Note the word mã (what) is used to ask questions and usually followed by a noun, such as ism (name). Note also that the -uk on ismuk is the equivalent of the English your but works as an ending on a word in Arabic. So, instead of possessive pronouns, Arabic uses possessive endings or suffixes that attach to the end of a noun. Possessive suffixes show the gender (masculine or feminine) and the number (singular, dual, or plural) of the nouns they attach to: -uk is singular masculine, so the question mã ismuk? can only be addressed to a man. When addressing a woman, say mã ismuki? The possessive suffix for my is -o, as in ismo (my name). But more on that later.
ONE MORE TIME
Okay, let’s put to use what you’ve learned so far. You’ll read the English first, and then the Arabic, which you should repeat for practice.
Hello. How are you? ahlan. kayf al- Hãl?
Fine, thank you. bi- khayr, shukran.
What is your name? mã ismuk?
My name is Jason. I am from New York. ismo jason. ana min new york.
Nice to meet you. tasharrafnã.
BRING IT ALL TOGETHER
Now let’s bring it all together in a conversation and add a little bit more vocabulary and structure.
Hello! ahlan!
Good morning! SabãH al- khayr!
How are you? kayf al- Hãl?
Fine, thank you. bi- khayr, shukran.
What is your name? mã ismuk?
My name is Jason. ismi jason.
Are you from America? anta min amroka?
Yes, I am from New York. na‘am, ana min new york.
Are you a tourist? anta sã’iH?
No, I am a student. kalla, ana Tãlib.
Nice to meet you, Jason. tasharrafnã, ya jason.
Okay, you already knew a lot of the vocabulary used in this conversation, but there were a few new words and expressions, too. You probably noticed the question anta min amroka? (Are you from America?) and the question anta sã’iH? (Are you a tourist? ), as well as the answer kalla, ana Tãlib (No, I am a student). You already know the word ana, meaning I, and now you have also learned the word anta, meaning you. Note that the pronoun anta can only be used to refer to a man; if you are addressing a woman, use anti. You’ll learn the rest of the personal pronouns later. And did you notice the little word ya before jason in tasharrafnã, ya jason? ya is a vocative particle often used in Arabic in front of the name of the person you are addressing directly; it’s a bit similar to the way hey can be used in English, as in Hey, Jason! You’ll be hearing it a lot.
WORK OUT
Now let’s practice some of what you’ve learned. First, you have to read a phrase in Arabic, and then you should translate it into English.
ahlan. Hello.
kayf al- Hãl? How are you?
mã ismuk? What is your name?
tasharrafnã. Nice to meet you.
ma‘a s- salãma. Good- bye.
Great. Now do the opposite, translating the phrase from English into Arabic. You should repeat this for practice.
Good morning. SabãH al- khayr.
Excuse me. ‘afwan.
I would like . . . uridu . . .
Thank you. shukran.
With pleasure. bikull- i surur.
Now translate the following words and phrases into Arabic, then put together short sentences by using the
suggested pronouns— ana (I), anta (you, male), or anti (you, female). For example, if you read student,
ana, you’d respond by saying ana Tãlib. Repeat the correct answers for practice.
student, ana ana Tãlib.
tourist, anta anta sã’iH.
from America, anti anti min amroka.
from New York, ana ana min new york.
PARTING WORDS
mabrak! Congratulations! You’ve fi nished your first lesson of Arabic. Good job! Did you know that there are around twenty different dialects of Arabic spoken throughout the Arab world? The vocabulary you are learning here is the modern version of literary classical Arabic, often referred to as Modern Standard Arabic, which is understood throughout the Arab world. However, there are many local dialects of Arabic, so be ready for variations! Today you’ve learned the basic vocabulary you need to greet people and introduce yourself. You may, of course, want to learn a few other everyday phrases, like Hasanan (all right), shukran jazolan (many thanks), kafa’ (enough), and ila- liqa’ (so long). See you in Lesson 2!
