ARABIC 117

Main Course

Levantine Arabic

Description

Lecture, three hours. Orientation to Levantine Arabic, collection of dialects used in daily communication in Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, and Palestine. There are several local, geographical, and social subvarieties of spoken Arabic in the Levant area, but the differences between these are small compared with the large amount of shared vocabulary and structure. Focus on Syrian Colloquial Arabic. In particular, students establish a foundational knowledge in the widely-understood Damascene dialect (Shaami), which is indigenous to and spoken primarily in Damascus, the capital city of Syria. P/NP or letter grading.