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World Arabic Language Day was celebrated on December 18 and Arab Canadians took the opportunity to share with OMNI News the importance of keeping the language alive through a variety of activities in the diaspora.
Arab parents are sending their children to schools like the Waterdown Islamic School in Hamilton, Ontario, where they are taught Arabic not just once or twice a week, but every day. Like other languages, learning Arabic at an early age is the key to better practice in the future.
School teacher Leileh Zaidi said, “As a mother I think it’s important for children to learn multiple languages; it opens many doors for them, so the more the merrier.”
Another school in Vancouver focuses specifically on teaching dialects to the younger generation. My Roots Arabic School provides a bridge between classical and spoken Arabic, and spoken Arabic has at least 22 dialects.
“All our classes focus on classical Arabic, but we also have different dialects, so we can preserve our children’s roots. We have Syrian and Lebanese and Egyptian dialects,” said Maha Nagi, manager of My Roots Arabic School.
In addition to formal learning settings, members of the Arab community have taken the lead in pursuing individual initiatives.
Hiba Kalakehse has also created books with an emphasis on dialect to help children learn how to better connect with their Arab surroundings.
He said that each book comes with a reference to the newly learned words.
“As a speech specialist I make sure each story has a phrase for the children to learn. We take out core words from each book and attach them as a document to create something like a dictionary.”
Another form of encouraging young Arabs to learn the language is to organize meetings and events where practice is rewarded with prizes and entertainment.
“Parents are very eager to teach their children Arabic, but the problem lies in the application. One lesson (a week) is not enough to learn. Practice at home and in the community is almost non-existent. Parents speak French and English with their children at home, and this deprives them of the opportunity to practice,” said Imad Hallak, founder of the “Salsabil Al Dhad” project.
Learning Arabic in the diaspora is also not limited to children.
The war in Gaza inspired Nail Abu Jajjar to learn Arabic again at the age of 35. He said he missed that opportunity when he was a child because teachers told his parents they only needed English to succeed.
“The Arabic language is not easy. It is one of the most difficult languages for English speakers to learn. So, I took it for granted until the conflict that was happening in Palestine really reached the dire stage where it is today. It inspired me to learn more.”
A different way to celebrate Arabic is its unique calligraphy, a historical form of art that is distinguished by its immense fluidity.
Yasser Watad said he is making a career of introducing this art to Arabs and non-Arabs alike in Canada, telling OMNI News that non-Arabic speakers express their fascination with the beauty of Arabic words and letters.
“Pablo Picasso said, ‘When he saw Arabic calligraphy for the first time, I think I entered abstract art through its widest door. I realized that Muslim artists are 50 years ahead of me in abstract art’,” Watad said in an interview in Montreal.
Another form of calligraphy is carving words on metals such as copper. Quotations from the Quran or common Arab proverbs are widely applied in Arabic calligraphy, and engraving is no exception. The shine of metals adds more shine to finished pieces.
“There are a hundred ways of making a letter which gives the calligrapher room to be creative (..) Arabic calligraphy does not exist by chance, it has gone through many stages, and the Arabic language is much richer than any other,” said calligraphic engraver Hamid Royd.
Arabic is written from right to left, has a basic system of three letters from which words are derived, has no capital letters, and is used by over 400 million people every day, adding to its appeal.
Established by the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), World Arabic Language Day is celebrated every year on 18 December since 2012.
The date coincides with the day in 1973 when the UN General Assembly adopted Arabic as the organization’s sixth official language, the UN website says.
wThese are the files of Radia Tidafi, Amani Mohana, Charles Abdulaziz, Noel Hagier, Tala Abudabousa and Hiba Alzubaidi