18th December is regarded as the world day for the Arabic language that is one of the oldest, popular, Semitic languages in the world.

The language of Quran is the official or co-official language of 25 countries, mankind knew its literature and notify for more than 1,400 years, and is spoken by more than 400 million Arabs in addition to more than 130 million speak it as a second language, while the numbers are rising with the increasing number of students who want to learn it.

In 1948, the 3rd General Conference of UNESCO held in Beirut (Lebanon), declared that Arabic, in addition to English and French, will become the third working language of the governing bodies meeting in an Arabic-speaking country.

Some of the common Arabic words:

السَّلامُ عَلَيْكُمْ – مَرْحَبًا
Hello – Peace       ʾAssalāmu ʿalaykum – marḥaban

وعَلَيْكُمُ السَّلام – مَرْحَبًا
(To which the reply is): Hello – Peace        Wā ʿalaykumu s-salām – marḥaban

أَهْلاً
Welcome    ʾAhlan        

مَعَ السّلامَة
Goodbye     Maʿa s-salāma

!صَبَاحُ الخَيْر
Good morning!     Sabaḥu l-ḫair

!مَساءُ الخَيْر
Good evening!     Masāʾu l-ḫair

!تُصبِح على خَيْر
Good night! (to a male)  Tusbiḥ ʿala ḫair

!تُصبِحينَ على خَيْر
Good night! (to a female)        Tusbiḥi ʿala ḫair

کَيْفَ ٱلْحَال؟
How are you?       Kayfa l-ḥāl

;كيف حالُكَ؟
How are you? (to a male)        Kayfa hāluka

كيف حالـُكِ؟
How are you? (to a female)     Kayfa hāluki

وَأنـْتَ؟
And you? (to a male)     Wa ʾanta

وَأنـْتِ؟
And you? (to a female)  Wa ʾanti

!أراكَ في مَا بَعد
See you later! (to a male)        ʾArāka fima baʿd

!أراكِ فِيمَا بَعد
See you later! (to a female)     ʾArāki fima baʿd

مَا ٱسْمُك؟
What’s your name?        Mā smuk

…اسْمِي
My name is …      Ismi


.لا أتَحَدَّثُ الْعَرَبيّة
I don’t speak Arabic.      Lā ʾataḥaddaṯu l-ʿarabiyyah

.أتحدث الإنجليزية
I speak English.   Ataḥaddaṯu al-ingilīziyyah

.أتَحَدَّثُ قليلاً من الْعَرَبيّة
I speak a little Arabic.    Ataḥaddaṯu qalilan min l-ʿarabiyyah
.لا أعْرِف
I don’t know.         Lā ʾaʿrif

.لا أفْهَم
I don’t understand.         Lā ʾafham

نَعَمْ
Yes   Naʿam

لا
No     Lā

مِنْ فَضْلِك
Please        Min faḍlik

شُكْرًا
Thanks       Šukran

!شـُكـْراً جَزيلاً
Thank you very much!   Šukran jazīlan

!عفواً
You’re welcome!  ʿAfwan

.عَفْوًا – عُذْراً
Excuse me. ʿAfwan – ʿuḏran