Weak Verbs: The Agwaf (Hollow) Verb الفعل الأجوف Posted by Fisal on May 30, 2011
We have said before that a weak/sick verb is that which has one or two sick letters in its base (root). The letters that make a verb sick/weak are: Waw (و ), Alif (ا ) and Yaa (ى ). The position of the sick letter in the root verb determines the type of the weak…
Expressing similarities with things Posted by aziza on May 29, 2011
In my previous post, I presented some Arabic idioms that express similaritهثس with animals. In this post, I present other expressions that express similarities with other elements of natures. These expressions are not the only ones that exist, but they are commonly used in speech and writing. Please note that each one of these…
Expressing similarity with animals Posted by aziza on May 29, 2011
Each language uses elements of nature to express certain ideas, e.g. animals. In English, people say ‘quiet as a mouse’ and ‘strong as an ox’. In Arabic, there are many idiomatic expressions like these that are used to express similarity between certain creatures and traits. In this post, I list some of them: شجاع مثل…
Arabic sign language Posted by aziza on May 28, 2011
In this post, I deal with a very important aspect of non-verbal communication, i.e. sign language (لغة الإشارة) in the Arab world. Sign language is used mainly by people with hearing impairment (إعاقة سمعية) that prevents them from communicating acoustically. Therefore, they communicate using hand movements, facial expressions and body movements. Sign language allows its…
Cultural Awareness الوعي الثقافي Posted by Fisal on May 28, 2011
Just like American cultures, Arab customs are rooted deep in tradition. Many Arab values affect how Arabs communicate with each other and with non-Arabs. Today, we are going to look at some facts about the Arab culture that foreigners should be well-aware of when visiting any Arab country or when dealing with Arabs. Arab…
This Day in History: Rifa’ah At-Tahtawy رفاعة الطهطاوي Posted by Fisal on May 27, 2011
Rifa’ah Rafi’ At-Tahtawy (1801 – 1873) Like today and on 27th May 1873, Rifa’ah At-Tahtawy passed away تُوفِى . Tahtawy was an Egyptian writer, teacher, translator, Egyptologist and renaissance thinker. He was among the first Egyptian scholars to write about Western cultures. In all his writings, he attempted to reach a common ground and…
Non verbal communication – actions and reactions Posted by aziza on May 26, 2011
Following on with the topic of non-verbal communication, sometimes we communicate by doing things, e.g. knocking on the door or ringing the bell is a way of communicating that one needs or wants to enter or speak with someone inside. Also, at school, the bell tells students when to start the lesson and finish it…