Egyptian Arabic

Egyptian Arabic is one dialect which is widely used in Egypt, along with Modern Standard Arabic. Egyptian Arabic is also known as Egyptian Colloquial Arabic or the Modern Egyptian Language. Egypt is the largest Arabic speaking country and Egyptian Arabic is spoken by more than fifty million Egyptians. Egyptian Arabic is even used in other Arab countries because of the popularity of Egyptian media. In addition, many immigrant communities in Europe, North America, and Australia speak Egyptian Arabic, so it will be useful to start off learning Egyptian Arabic.

It would be helpful to first learn the Arabic alphabet before you proceed to learn grammar and vocabulary. This helpful summary will give you all the basics you need to know about the alphabet, but it will take diligence and persistence on your part before you will master the alphabet.

The alphabet can be difficult to learn since the symbols and pronunciation are so different from that of the American alphabet. However, learning a couple of symbols a day through memorization and practice can help you cover the entire alphabet in just one week. Practice writing each symbol and make flash cards to help you recognize what they look like and sound like. Create sample drills for yourself by grouping different letters together and testing yourself to see if you can correctly write the symbols and say the pronunciation. Learning the alphabet and remembering the order of the letters will come in handy when you want to use an Arabic dictionary later to further help your studies. For more resources for learning the alphabet, see the other articles on the best way to learn Arabic.

After a solid understanding of the alphabet, you can begin to move on to learning basic vocabulary. The Egyptian Arabic Course blog has a list compiled by the blog owner that includes months of the year, common verbs, family members, colors, and much more here.

One useful resource for learning Egyptian Arabic online is through the Egyptian Arabic Online Learning Resource Center. This link is a portal to resources for proverbs and sayings in Egyptian Arabic. There is also an article about the five most important things learners of Egyptian Colloquial Arabic should remember.

ArEg World has audio courses, grammar lessons, phrase booklets, and educational games to help ease the learning process, some of which cost a small fee. There is also a free dictionary of commonly used words and sentences here.

The Egyptian Arabic Dialect Course is an online course designed as a first introduction to the language using examples and vocabulary from the lyrics of popular songs. The songs are a good way to hear and learn pronunciation and basic grammar structures without being bogged down by too much vocabulary. The repetition of the song will also help you retain the material better. The site has 15 lessons that you can study at your own pace and return to at your leisure.