85507 - Arabic Language

Learning outcomes

The course aims at making students acquainted with the basic structure of the Arabic language, with specific reference to economic and political lexicon, while educating to the knowledge and understanding of contemporary Arab culture. By the end of the course unit, the student is able to understand the declensions and conjugations of the Arabic language as well as to have knowledge of the main aspects of contemporary Arab culture.

Course contents

PRESENTATION

The course introduces students to the foundational structures of Modern Standard Arabic (MSA), with a strong emphasis on alphabetization, and the progressive development of linguistic competence.
The module addresses the five core linguistic skills—listening, speaking, reading, writing, and interaction—through diversified activities aimed at supporting learners with different backgrounds and learning styles.

By the end of the course, students will be able to:

- Recognize, read, and write all Arabic letters accurately, in their contextual forms, demonstrating basic orthographic competence.

- Use the dictionary English-Arabic Arabic-English (eventually Italian-Arabic Arabic-Italian) correctly.

- Understand and use elementary vocabulary and some basic lexicon relevant to cultural heritage, human rights, and international cooperation.

- Comprehend and produce simple spoken and written texts in MSA, developing the five CEFR-aligned linguistic skills.

- Apply basic grammatical structures (nominal and verbal sentences, gender and number, definite/indefinite forms, personal pronouns, regular verbs in the perfect and imperfect, selected weak verbs).

- Engage in simple communicative tasks such as providing personal information, describing basic situations and contexts, and exchanging basic institutional information.

- Demonstrate introductory knowledge of sociolinguistic features of Arabic, including multi/diglossia, variation, and Arab cultural frameworks.

CONTENTS

1. Alphabetization

This section is designed for students with no prior experience or little experience in Arabic.

- Introduction to the Arabic writing system.

- Recognition and reproduction of all letters in their contextual forms.

- Basic reading and writing exercises.

- Simple listening and comprehension exercises.

2. Grammar Topics

Grammar is introduced gradually, following a communicative and functional approach.

- Nominal vs. verbal sentence: basic sentence patterns.

- Gender, number, definiteness.

- Personal and possessive pronouns.

- Demonstratives and interrogatives.

- Basic verbal system: perfect and imperfect of regular verbs, introduction to selected weak verbs.

- Prepositions.

3. Communicative Competences

Students develop the ability to:

- Introduce themselves and others; describe basic situations; ask and answer elementary questions.

- Understand simple written and spoken texts.

- Produce short elementary written texts.

In addition to the basic vocabulary, lexical areas and semantic fields covered are selected in relation to themes relevant for the Laurea Magistrale in International Cooperation on Human Rights and Intercultural Heritage:

- Arabic culture, Islamic culture.

- Institutions, and public spaces.

- Travel, mobility and migration.

4. Sociolinguistics and Cultural Framing of the Arab World

This section introduces essential knowledge for operating in international and intercultural fields.

Key topics:

- Varieties of Arabic, diglossia (fuṣḥā / ʿāmmiyya-dārija), multiglossia, Arabic continuum.

- Overview of the linguistic situation across the Arab worlds.

- Arabic as a language of culture, identity, religion and heritage.

- Basic cultural communicative norms in institutional and intercultural settings.

Readings/Bibliography

Primary Textbooks

- Wightwick, J., Gaafar, M. (2024). Mastering Arabic. 4th edition, Bloomsbury Academic.

- Wightwick, J., Gaafar, M. (2024). Mastering Arabic 1 Activity Book: Practice for Beginners. 3rd edition. Bloomsbury Academic.

Selected materials distributed by the teacher.

Dictionaries

- Oxford Arabic Dictionary (2014). Oxford University Press. (Arabic-English English-Arabic)

- Baldissera, E. (2014). Il dizionario di arabo. Zanichelli. (Italiano-arabo arabo-italiano)

- Arabic Almanac Online

Grammars

- Mion, G., D’Anna, L. (2021). Grammatica di arabo standard moderno. Fonetica, morfologia e sintassi. Hoepli.

- Ryding, K., A (2012). Reference Grammar of Modern Standard Arabic. Cambridge University Press.

Essays on Arabic Language and Sociolinguistics

- Mion, G. (2016). La lingua araba. Carocci editore.

- Bassiouney, R. (2020). Arabic Sociolinguistics (2nd ed.) Edinburgh University Press.

Teaching methods

Lessons are delivered in person for a total of 24 hours (80%), while 6 hours (20%) are delivered online.

The module adopts a communicative approach integrated with a progressive structural introduction of grammar and cultural contents.

The course is structured according to the model of the didactic unit. Lessons usually begin with a text (oral or written), which functions as the central element from which other dimensions are explored. From there, a balanced set of activities is implemented to develop the five linguistic skills.

The course acknowledges the diversity of students’ learning approaches—including background knowledge, cognitive styles, and preferred modalities.

Key features:

- Emphasis on alphabetization.

- Communicative tasks aimed at real-life scenarios relevant to the LM-9237 domains.

- Interactive sessions, guided readings, audiovisual materials, dictates.

- Use of authentic materials: short and elementary spoken and written texts adapt and/or adapted for beginners.

Assessment methods

The final exam consists of two components, both mandatory.

Written Exam

Duration: 3 hours.
The written exam evaluates:

- Translation of short sentences or a brief text from Arabic into English.

- Controlled production tasks (sentence completion, verb conjugation, short guided composition).

Minimum passing grade for admission to oral exam: 18/30.

The use of the dictionary is not permitted.

Oral Exam

Duration: 20-30 minutes.

The oral exam evaluates:

- Reading short texts studied in class (in Arabic).

- Comprehension and simple oral production on topics covered during the course (in Arabic).

- Discussion of sociolinguistic and cultural aspects introduced in the course (in English).

Every year six months exams sessions are programmed. Generally two in spring, three in summer and one in winter.

N.B. Non-attending students who intend to take the exam are kindly invited to contact the teacher via e-mail to arrange the study of any additional materials.

Teaching tools

Textbooks will be integrated with other tools, mostly relying on authentic Arabic sources and materials (audiovisual, media, press).

Students with a disability or specific learning disabilities (DSA) who are requesting academic adjustments or compensatory tools are invited to communicate their needs to the teaching staff in order to properly address them and agree on the appropriate measures with the competent bodies.

Office hours

See the website of Giacomo Iazzetta