|
 |
MSA or Levantine or Egyptian | ||
Share with:
| ||
 Language Learning Forum : Advice Center |  | |
| grunts67 Diglot Senior Member CanadaRegistered users can see my Skype Name Joined 5237 days ago 215 posts - 252 votes  Speaks: French*, English Studies: Spanish, Russian | Message 1 of 4 06 March 2015 at 5:08pm | IP Logged |
|
Hello,
First, I read a lot on the different positions between MSA and dialect. Still, after reading the many posts on this forum and others website, I can't still make my mind for the following reasons: - My girlfriend is Lebanese. She speaks Levantine Arabic. She doesn't understand MSA as she was born and raise in Canada. So, I wouldn't be able to practice MSA with her. - Her mother speak both Levantine and MSA. - Both told me, I should learn Egyptian arabic because of his cultural influence. That way, I would be understandable to much of the 'arabic world'. At the same time, I have concern about practicing with my girlfriend as she wouldn't pronounce the word the same way as Egyptian speakers do (ex. : 'ye' vs 'a' = yes). - MSA would give me a solide foundation but I wouldn't be able to speak for a couple of years till I get a solid foundation in MSA and I start a dialect. - I want to read, listen and speak in Arabic. With those considerations, I would like to know which Arabic would be more pertinent in my case. Also, I would appreciate any learning material you could propose in (French, Engish or Spanish). Thank you for your time. 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| tarvos Super Polyglot Winner TAC 2012 Senior Member China likeapolyglot.wordpr Joined 4642 days ago 5310 posts - 9399 votes Speaks: Dutch*, English, Swedish, French, Russian, German, Italian, Norwegian, Mandarin, Romanian, Afrikaans Studies: Greek, Modern Hebrew, Spanish, Portuguese, Czech, Korean, Esperanto, Finnish | Message 2 of 4 06 March 2015 at 6:16pm | IP Logged |
|
If you want to speak learn dialect first, and learn the one they speak because it's what
you will need to understand 2 persons have voted this message useful | |
| kanewai Triglot Senior Member United States justpaste.it/kanewai Joined 4824 days ago 1386 posts - 3054 votes Speaks: English*, French, Marshallese Studies: Italian, Spanish | Message 3 of 4 06 March 2015 at 10:49pm | IP Logged |
|
I can tell you from experience that switching dialects is really hard at the beginner
stages - and the beginning stage with Arabic takes a long time to work through! The problem I found is that the various beginner courses all use a different dialect. To wit: Egyptian: Michel Thomas Pimsleur I Levantine: Pimsleur I-III (with rumors of Level IV pending) Syrian Colloquial Arabic Your girlfriend and her mother MSA: Pimsleur I FSI (really hard, no answer key) Living Language (LL courses are beginner's level, despite having an 'advanced' tag) Assimil (French based; gets mixed reviews. I hated it) Mastering Arabic (Jane Wightwick) Koran Focused: Madina Book ______________________________________________ I'd say your real choice is between Levantine and MSA. I never found enough courses out there on Egyptian Arabic. Also, it will take years to be able to understand movies; I can't imagine reaching that level in Arabic without immersion. Others might have had better luck than me. It's a tough choice. I would probably start with Levantine Pimsleur and the Syrian book. I used it awhile back (when it was still free!), and really liked it at first. It's not perfect for the autodidact (not all the dialogues were translated), so your girlfriend and mom will probably have to help you after the fourth or fifth chapter. 2 persons have voted this message useful | |
| thulé Triglot Newbie France Joined 3500 days ago 2 posts - 3 votes Speaks: French*, English, Arabic (classical) | Message 4 of 4 07 March 2015 at 1:54pm | IP Logged |
|
There is a lot of material out there if you want to learn Egyptian Arabic. There is Kallimni arabi which is a very good course.
Since your girlfriend is from Lebanon, it makes more sense to learn Levantine Arabic I guess. If you are serious about learning Arabic you need to learn MSA plus a dialect. If you don't learn MSA at some point you will hit a brick wall and won't be able to make progress any more. It really depends on your goals. If what you are aiming for is conversational Arabic then you don't need to learn MSA. 1 person has voted this message useful |
If you wish to post a reply to this topic you must first login. If you are not already registered you must first register
|  | 
Printable version
|
| Copyright 2024 FX Micheloud - All rights reserved No part of this website may be copied by any means without my written authorization. |
