Fadhel Al-Omani
Al-Riyadh
Arabic is one of the most important living languages. However, it is facing at least seven grave challenges that have undoubtedly stalled its spread as a glorious language that once contributed to science, art and knowledge.
The first involves the poor political situation in the Arab world which negatively affects one’s pride and trust in anything that is Arabic. This fact is manifested in the attempts to marginalize Arabic. The second is globalization which has contributed to the spread of Western culture, thought, ideas, behavior and customs. The Arab nation is going through a difficult phase and has become disunited and underdeveloped while Western countries have become united and developed.
The third is that differing political loyalties and affiliations in the Arab world have had a major negative impact on Arabic. Fourthly, standard Arabic is no longer used in homes, schools, workplaces and in the street. It is only used in cultural and literary conferences and events. Today, Arabic dialects are the official means of communication, in addition, of course, to foreign languages.
The fifth is that the standard of Arabic on the Internet is poor. That is why the majority of young Arab men and women use English and other languages to surf the web and search for what they want in languages other than Arabic. At number sixth is the fact that illiteracy has reached unprecedented levels in the Arab world where 40 percent of the population of most Arab countries are illiterate. It is a shame and a disgrace to see such a large number of Arabs lagging behind and unable to keep up with the latest developments in civilized countries. Reading and writing should be a basic skill that each and every Arab must know. After all, the Holy Qur’an is in Arabic.
The seventh is that the educational methods employed in our schools and universities do not meet the needs of today’s world with all its modern technologies. Our schools and universities seem to be satisfied with teaching methods which are obsolete.
In fact, there are other challenges as well. For example, Arabic institutes and academies have failed to play an effective role in making standard Arabic the language of communication. Another example is the absence of Arabic language research centers. Then there is our failure to look at Arabic as a language that can contribute to enhancing influence, power and control.
