This is an introductory text for studying colloquial Gulf Arabic. Arabic is an extremely difficult language to study, not because the grammatical structures are particularly difficult, but because of the particular circumstances of the language. Modern Standard Arabic is a language that was developed from the language of the Holy Qur'an. Books and news broadcasts are in Modern Standard Arabic, but nobody really speaks the language- -it's a theoretical rather than actual standard. Many Arabic textbooks and courses focus on Modern Standard Arabic. If you learn Modern Standard Arabic, you will be able to read books, and educated people from all over the Arabic world will be able to understand you. But most likely, you probably won't be able to understand what ordinary Arabic speakers are saying because they all speak colloquial dialects. People don't actually converse in Modern Standard Arabic; instead, Moroccans speak Moroccan Arabic, Egyptians speak Egyptian Arabic, and Saudis speak Gulf Arabic. The pronunciation, vocabulary, and even grammar of each of these dialects is different, and many native Arabic speakers have trouble understanding other Arabic dialects. If you manage to find a course in colloquial or conversational Arabic, you will learn to speak a local dialect instead of Modern Standard Arabic. That will get you a lot further than Modern Standard Arabic for conversing with friends and neighbors, but then you won't be able to read, since books and newspapers are written in Modern Standard Arabic. So if you learn to read, you won't be able to speak, and speaking classes won't help with your reading. And if you do learn to read, reading newspapers or books won't help you with speaking either. That's why Arabic is so difficult to learn.
That said, this textbook is based on the colloquial Gulf Arabic dialect. The book focuses mainly on the dialect spoken in Saudi Arabia, but most of the vocabulary and structures are relevant throughout the countries of the Gulf, including Kuwait, the UAE, Qatar, Bahrain, and Oman. Since this dialect is only spoken and not written, all Arabic words in the book are written in Latin script, and the Arabic alphabet is not covered. A typical chapter begins with a 2-page discussion of a grammar point, translation exercises, more grammar, more translation exercises, more grammar, more translation exercises, etc., ending with pronunciation exercises, and translation exercises of dialogs. The accompanying tape contains the pronunciation exercises and dialogs. At the end of each chapter is an alphabetical list of new vocabulary words.
I found this book extremely frustrating and difficult to use for self-study because of the incredibly long lists of poorly selected vocabulary for each chapter. Instead of limiting new vocabulary in the early chapters to commonly used or needed words, Holes introduces words like blind, palace, and outer wall already in the 4th chapter. Between the lack of variety in the exercises and the impossibly long lists of vocabulary, I wasn't able to progress beyond chapter 5 in my efforts at self-study. This, combined with the surprisingly few chances to actually use the language during my extended stay in Dubai meant I made little headway. What progress I did make in Arabic was due to actual conversation, and not through using this book. Despite the shortcomings of the book, if you want to learn the basics of the Gulf dialect, this is one of the only resources available. The grammar explanations are, in general, clear and useful. With a talented and patient instructor who is willing to supply more reasonable vocabulary words, the book might prove effective.
Colloquial Arabic of the Gulf and Saudi Arabia: The Complete Course for Beginners (Book & Cassettes) 1st Edition
by
Clive Holes
(Author)
| Clive Holes (Author) Find all the books, read about the author, and more. See search results for this author |
ISBN-13: 978-0415000741
ISBN-10: 0415000742
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Colloquial Arabic of the Gulf and Saudi Arabia Specially written by an experienced teacher for self-study or class use, the course offers you a step-by-step approach to written and spoken Arabic of the Gulf and Saudi Arabia. No prior knowledge of the language is required.
What makes Colloquial Arabic of the Gulf and Saudi Arabia your best choice in personal language learning?
* interactive - lots of dialogues and exercises for regular practice
* clear - concise grammar notes
* practical - useful vocabulary and pronunciation guide
* complete - including answer key and special reference section.
Cassettes accompany the course to help you with listening and pronunciation skills. By the end of this rewarding course you will be able to communicate confidently and effectively in a broad range of situations.
What makes Colloquial Arabic of the Gulf and Saudi Arabia your best choice in personal language learning?
* interactive - lots of dialogues and exercises for regular practice
* clear - concise grammar notes
* practical - useful vocabulary and pronunciation guide
* complete - including answer key and special reference section.
Cassettes accompany the course to help you with listening and pronunciation skills. By the end of this rewarding course you will be able to communicate confidently and effectively in a broad range of situations.
Product details
- Publisher : Routledge; 1st edition (April 19, 1989)
- Language : English
- Audio Cassette : 319 pages
- ISBN-10 : 0415000742
- ISBN-13 : 978-0415000741
- Item Weight : 1.55 pounds
- Dimensions : 6.75 x 2 x 9.75 inches
- Customer Reviews:
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Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on August 28, 2003
42 people found this helpful
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Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on November 10, 2015
I have just read a scathing review of a newer version of this book and I just wanted to counter it with my love of it! Yes, the format is a little bit crowded and includes lots of grammar-oriented language. I sincerely want it to have an alphabetized "dictionary". Also, knowing the Arabic alphabet made my reading of the transliteration easier. Despite all of these, it is still the most useful book on Gulf Arabic that has ever been written. And for that matter, it STILL beats out any website, podcast, or mobile app, all which teach you "news anchor" Arabic (MSA), impractical for conversational use.
Like most other suckers, I had studied MSA for a year when I picked this up in a used bookstore in Sharjah. My copy is now ripped, stained and coming unbound but I depend on it to communicate here and wouldn't trade it for any other book on Arabic (unless I move to Egypt or the Levant, which are the dialects that the majority of Arabic books will teach you). Most native speakers are surprised and curious about how I know colloquialisms. Of course native speakers get a little funny (embarrassed?) about it because it's not the 'pure' Arabic you're supposed to be learning. That's why this book is your secret weapon for having real conversations.
According to my still limited experience, the words and expressions are more common in Saudi, the UAE and Bahrain, but even now, living in Oman, most of the phrases and constructions in this book are used here too.
The other reviewers have said that some speech is "uneducated", but like a good sociolinguist, Clive Holes notifies you which constructions/pronunciations are considered as such. Buying this book is more worthy of your time and money than any formal class you will take. Holes did some amazingly thorough research on the dialects here. I am forever thankful to the him for this.
Like most other suckers, I had studied MSA for a year when I picked this up in a used bookstore in Sharjah. My copy is now ripped, stained and coming unbound but I depend on it to communicate here and wouldn't trade it for any other book on Arabic (unless I move to Egypt or the Levant, which are the dialects that the majority of Arabic books will teach you). Most native speakers are surprised and curious about how I know colloquialisms. Of course native speakers get a little funny (embarrassed?) about it because it's not the 'pure' Arabic you're supposed to be learning. That's why this book is your secret weapon for having real conversations.
According to my still limited experience, the words and expressions are more common in Saudi, the UAE and Bahrain, but even now, living in Oman, most of the phrases and constructions in this book are used here too.
The other reviewers have said that some speech is "uneducated", but like a good sociolinguist, Clive Holes notifies you which constructions/pronunciations are considered as such. Buying this book is more worthy of your time and money than any formal class you will take. Holes did some amazingly thorough research on the dialects here. I am forever thankful to the him for this.
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Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on July 12, 2013
The book is quite useful but the dialog is quite off. I was approached to check the book as a fluent speaker and most of the dialogue is actually Persian, since the sect from Bahrain this is based on speaks a mix of both.
Useful for sentence structure and grammar, not at all for vocab
Useful for sentence structure and grammar, not at all for vocab
3 people found this helpful
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Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on February 12, 2004
This book is very very good.
Arabic is a extremely difficult language to learn, let alone the written version of it, this book really does let one grasp spoken gulf arabic, which is the closest to classical and the written that there is.
Holes wasnt implying that the books readers are stupid because he didnt include the written, but it was actually a smart decision, its hard enough learning a new language but double the frustration not only trying to learn the spoken BUT also the written! honestly, its much more useful to learn the spoken, as what u can do with this course and then move on the written and reading.
An important note though is that arabic tends to vary depending on which region of the ME/NA you are in so learning Gulf version can be useful but will ultimatly hinder u in some ways if you say, go to Lebanon or Algeria and try to use this dialect.
another thing i liked about this book was that he explained the grammer really really well, which can be infinitly confusing and confounding but its fairly basic and laid out well.
Arabic is a extremely difficult language to learn, let alone the written version of it, this book really does let one grasp spoken gulf arabic, which is the closest to classical and the written that there is.
Holes wasnt implying that the books readers are stupid because he didnt include the written, but it was actually a smart decision, its hard enough learning a new language but double the frustration not only trying to learn the spoken BUT also the written! honestly, its much more useful to learn the spoken, as what u can do with this course and then move on the written and reading.
An important note though is that arabic tends to vary depending on which region of the ME/NA you are in so learning Gulf version can be useful but will ultimatly hinder u in some ways if you say, go to Lebanon or Algeria and try to use this dialect.
another thing i liked about this book was that he explained the grammer really really well, which can be infinitly confusing and confounding but its fairly basic and laid out well.
7 people found this helpful
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TB22
4.0 out of 5 stars
Still to be put to the test
Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on July 31, 2017
Good book, better than most I have used. Clean copy except that early pages had been written on in pen that was a distraction. I would have preferred Arabic script although I appreciate that local words should not technically be written in Arabic script. Getting pronunciation correct from written words will always be difficult in local language.
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