السلام عليكم
Asalaamu alaikum! The 18th of December is the United Nations Arabic Language Day. Did you know that there are over 300 million native Arabic speakers worldwide? This makes Arabic one of the most widely spoken languages in the world.
Arabic is spoken by a diverse range of people across the African continent and the Middle East and is the official language of 22 countries. This includes Sudan, Egypt, Syria, Iraq, Libya, Morocco, and Palestine.
There are more and more people who live in New Zealand who come from these countries, or whose parents or grandparents come from these countries. You could practice saying “Asalaamu alaikum” as a greeting, or just “Salaam”. Which means peace be upon you. You can answer with “Wa’alaikum salaam”
Arabic is written from right to left and is closely related to Hebrew and Aramaic. Some of you may not know that when you read a book in Arabic you read it from the back to the front. Arabic calligraphy is very beautiful and can be seen as, and used in, art.
Here is a really cool video of this amazing calligraphy and graffiti (also known as Calligraffiti!) mural artist, eL Seed, talking about his painting in Manshiyat Nasr on the outskirts of Cairo, Egypt. The title of this work is “Perception”.
eL Seed’s mural quotes a third-century Christian bishop who said, “If one wants to see the light of the sun, he must wipe his eyes” – in Arabic. It is dedicated to the garbage collectors of Cairo, or the Zaraeeb, who are often rejected by society and seen as unclean because of their jobs. The town of Manshiyat Nasr is even known as Trash City, as this is where the Zaraeeb collect and sort through Cairo’s rubbish.
Painted in pieces over more than 50 buildings, the mural lines up and becomes readable when standing on Mokattam Hill, at the edge of town. With this mural, eL Seed asks people to see Manshiyat Nasr and the town’s inhabitants from a different perspective – literally.
Arabic is also known as a very poetic language, and it has the oldest known example of poetry – called Mu’allaqāt! There is a long oral tradition of speaking the poetry and stories aloud and sharing them for entertainment and fun!
In lots of Arabic speaking countries there is a special job known as the Hakawati, or storyteller, who memorises and recites famous poems and stories. Some families have their own Hakawati who tells the family history at weddings and special occasions.
Kids learning Arabic at the Arabic Language School in Wellington.
If you want to learn more about Arabic check out these cool databases on our website:
-
Encyclopedia Brittanica
-
Language Nut: You can learn how to speak and read Arabic
-
Pressreader: Has lots of newspapers and magazines from all over the world – your parents might like know that we have some newspapers in Arabic.
At Wellington City Libraries we’re lucky enough to offer our community a wide selection of books in Arabic for everyone to enjoy! There is an adults’ collection in Kilbirnie Library, and a big part of the children’s collection lives in Newtown and Kilbirnie Libraries. Remember you can request a book to be delivered to your local library for free, as long as you collect it within a week of it arriving for you!
Arabic books in the Newtown Library collection:
al-Timsāḥ al-anānī / Charles, Faustin
The Selfish Crocodile is a classic tale about a crocodile who refuses to share the river with any of the other jungle animals, until his mind is changed by a brave little mouse. This book has beautiful illustrations.
Tala’s Car سيارة تالا / Najjar, Taghreed
This is a great book for the holidays because its all about making your own fun!
Tala asks her friend Sarah to let her ride in her new red car, but Sarah refuses. Tala is sad and goes home crying. But Jad has a great idea that will soon bring the smile back to Tala’s face.
Taghreed Najjar (تغريد النجار)) is a Palestinian–Jordanian writer and publisher She is the writer of over 50 Arabic children and young adults’ books.
Quiet! = Hudūʾ! / Alizadeh, Kate
Ssh! Listen. What’s that noise? What can we hear when we’re really, really quiet? This bi-lingual book moves us through the many different sounds around us as our busy day comes to an end. The rustle and swish of pages as we read our bedtime book, the splish-splash of our bath, and Baba’s quiet whisper as a says “Goodnight”. So many sounds!
Būbī yadhhab ilá al-madrasah / Hill, Eric
Spot the dog has a fun first day at school – a fun, lift-the-flap classic!
Click here to see more Arabic children’s books at Wellington City Libraries
Our Librarian Meena and a young friend share some of our Arabic children’s books