Globalisation and communication have brought the whole world very much closer unlike it was thousands of years ago. Smarter and faster communication links have made this world a virtual global village. Accordingly, there is an urgent need for global citizens to master and be competent in other languages that help them communicate easily with people from other nations. This has urged people to remember that knowledge of languages is the doorway to wisdom!
Of course learning a foreign language involves several difficulties. The journey to multilingualism feels like a never-ending road trip with countless dead ends. Learners should master the sounds or phonemes that make the language and understand how to arrange words (syntax) to make meaningful utterances. They also must acquire new vocabularies from the new language as well as practice them in dialogues. However, this would not be possible without learners communicating with people from the culture itself and understand the culture on its own terms.
With these difficulties and more, why is learning another language significant? The world now demands nations and people to be more dependent on one another in various spheres of life. Besides, most of us agree that it pays to be bilingual. Each language marks the road map of a culture; it tells you where its people come from and where they are going. Learning a language gives a learner the ability to approach the mind and context of other cultures.
People need each other in the day-to-day life necessities some of which are exchanging ideas and services, ensuring international security and understanding other cultures, besides many other areas of mutual interests. Therefore, lack of intercultural relations can lead to mistrust and misunderstanding, which could obstruct common co-operation between nations and individuals too. Learning another language is just like becoming another person who lives a new life for every language he/she speaks.
Intercultural understanding begins with individuals who have language abilities and who can thereby reflect one's own nation, culture or traditions to other cultures. Every nation needs such individuals to preserve the global community. A competent person in other languages can bridge the gap between cultures, promote national security and world peace and successfully connect the world.
As Nelson Mandela stated, “If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his own language, that goes to his heart."
In this regard, Arabic with its different dialects marks one of the most popular languages across the world. It is a language with a rich history and is spoken by around 1.5 billion people worldwide and in Unesco’s 22 member states where Arabic is the official language of these countries. In addition to its native speakers, millions of other people know Arabic as a foreign language for being the language of the Holy Quran. Among those enthusiasts in learning Arabic are expatriates of different nationalities who live in the Sultanate of Oman.
As a historical language, Arabic has an enormous influence on people all over the world as the majority of countries today officially use the Arabic numerical system. Furthermore, the Arabic language is regarded a key source of vocabulary for many other languages, such as Portuguese, Spanish, English, French, Swahili and Uzbek. It’s becoming the widely spoken language in the globe.
In honour of the language, December 18 is being celebrated annually as the World Arabic Language Day, which was designated by the Unesco in 2010. This date signifies the day in 1973 when Arabic became the sixth official language of the United Nations. The day recognises and acknowledges the contribution of the language in cementing the ties between different cultures and developing science, medicine, mathematics and literature through the ages.
Learn a different language to have a different vision of life and every new word is a milestone on your journey to mastering another language!
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