Arabic

Arabic is the 5th most spoken world language and one of the six official languages in the United Nations. Arabic is the native language of more than 400 million people in 22 Arab states in the Middle East and North Africa, and the liturgical language of nearly 2 billion Muslims worldwide. By studying Arabic, you will learn a language critical to U.S. national security; prepare yourself to do business in some of the fastest-growing economies in the Arab world; and learn about the history of some of the oldest civilizations of the world.

Degrees Offered

Students graduate with a Bachelor of Arts in Arabic. OU offers the only BA in Arabic in Oklahoma. Students may also combine the study of Arabic with other majors and/or minors such as International and Area Studies, political science, linguistics, journalism, and MENA studies. Students can also minor in Arabic or take classes to satisfy OU’s language requirements.

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Arabic at OU

Why Study Arabic at OU?

The only Arabic program in Oklahoma to offer various options to students who are interested in majoring, minoring, or even satisfying a language requirement
Courses for learners of Arabic as a second language, heritage learners of Arabic, and native speakers of Arabic
Five faculty members who are trained in the latest teaching methodologies
Proficiency-based program that helps students learn both academic Arabic and Arabic dialects
Language lab equipped with access to tutoring in addition to cultural and educational visual and audio materials
Students explore the Arabic-speaking world from different perspectives that challenge the stereotypical portrayal of people from the Middle East
Arabic skills could support students planning to pursue graduate work across various disciplines
Students studying Arabic have excellent opportunities in securing competitive scholarships.
The Arabic program welcomes and encourages diverse backgrounds.

Career Opportunities

Media
Security
Diplomacy
Business
Education
Government
NGOs
Oil & Gas
Law
Medicine
Foreign language teaching

Courses Offered

ARAB 1115 Beginning Arabic
- Aims at developing mastery of Arabic phonology and script, control of basic vocabulary, grammar, basic communicative situations, and cultural concepts explicitly expressed in the language. Listening and speaking are emphasized from the very beginning.
ARAB 1125 Beginning Arabic Continued
- Focuses on all language skills (listening, speaking, reading, and writing), including developing the ability to interact successfully in basic communicative situations. Short texts and topics of general import as well as cultural concepts embedded in the language will be covered. Prerequisite: ARAB 1115.
ARAB 2113 Intermediate Arabic
- Aims at developing language skills (listening, speaking, reading and writing) at the intermediate level, with more emphasis on reading and writing. Expands into more complex structures, wider communicative situations and vocabulary relating to practical, social, cultural and media topics. Prerequisite: ARAB 1225.
ARAB 2223 Intermediate Arabic Continued
- Continues developing language skills (listening, speaking, reading and writing) at the intermediate level, with more emphasis on reading and writing. Continues to expand into more complex structures, wider communicative situations and vocabulary relating to practical, social, cultural and media topics. Prerequisite: ARAB 2113; ARAB 2013 or concurrent enrollment.
ARAB 2013 Colloquial Arabic
- May be repeated once with a change of topic (dialect); maximum credit 6 hours. Develops communicative functional abilities, in particular speaking and listening, in one of the regional spoken dialects of the Arab world. The direct connection between the colloquial dialect taught and Modern Standard Arabic will be explored. Relevant aspects of local culture will be covered, as well as the cultural appropriateness of communicative functions introduced. Prerequisite: ARAB 1225.
ARAB 3113 Advanced Arabic
- Students are expected to read, listen to, and understand the content and intent of a variety of authentic texts; write at the paragraph level; and participate in formal and informal discussion on social and professional topics. Prerequisite: ARAB 2223.
ARAB 3223 Advanced Arabic Continued
- Students are expected to read, listen to, and understand the content and intent of a variety of authentic texts; write at the paragraph level; and participate in formal and informal discussion on social and professional topics. Prerequisite: ARAB 3113.
ARAB 3423 Advanced Arabic Composition
- Instruction in proper writing habits at an advanced level, toward the achievement of idiomatic formal Arabic. Focuses on writing in Arabic for personal, professional and academic needs. Develops the ability to narrate and describe in the different Arabic tenses (past, present and future), narrate and describe with a sufficient control of aspect (indicating whether an action is completed), write summaries of familiar topics, combine sentences into texts of paragraph length, and use cohesive devices properly. Prerequisite: ARAB 2223.
ARAB 4413 Arabic Structure
- Detailed explanations of the structure of the Arabic language at both the theoretical and pedagogical levels. The different phonological, morphological, and syntactic rules are presented and discussed holistically, combining both form and function, to achieve adequate knowledge of Arabic structure. The course is conducted mostly in Arabic. Prerequisite: ARAB 3223.
ARAB 4433 Arabic Media and Politics
- Exposes students to various types of mass media covering contemporary political, economic, historical, and social issues in the Arab world. Sociolinguistic features of news reports are examined to understand the content, political underpinnings, and the framing or packaging techniques used in media discourse. The course is conducted entirely in Arabic. Prerequisite: ARAB 3223.
ARAB 4443 Readings Islamic Texts
- Representative texts in Arabic from the Qur'an, Qur'anic Exegesis, Prophetic Hadith, Prophet Muhammad's biographies, and legal, mystical, and theological treatises. The objectives are to understand major Islamic doctrines, and themes, and to develop working knowledge of genre specific vocabulary and style. Class is conducted in Arabic. Prerequisite: ARAB 3223.
ARAB 4993 Readings Contemporary Arab Culture
- Deeper understanding of major cultural issues by examining critical texts of intellectual figures throughout the contemporary Arab world. Prepares students to write their final project in Arabic, and provides opportunities for developing their language skills further for adequate mastery of the language. Course is conducted entirely in Arabic. Prerequisite: ARAB 4413 and ARAB 4433.