Arabic for Travelers

Hopefully this post will be useful both for people who have never studied Arabic, and for those who have had a limited exposure to dialect or have only studied MSA. I wish that before I'd left for Jordan last year I'd looked into some important differences between MSA (Modern Standard Arabic, which is used in media, diplomacy, and business, but not in day-to-day life) and Shami, the Levantine (Jordan, Palestine, Syria, Lebanon) dialect of Arabic. While most Arabic speakers understand and can speak some MSA, they are much more comfortable speaking dialect, and MSA is uncomfortable and a little formal for use with locals.

My token MSA/dialect anecdote is a good illustration of the confusion that can be caused by the differences in MSA and dialect: I had just landed at the airport in Amman, and after pledging to myself that I would only use Arabic in public, I went up to an airport janitor to ask for directions to the restroom. Having only ever studied MSA, I approached him and asked, "Ayna al-hammam?" The man only looked at me strangely. Now slightly taken aback, I repeated myself. Understanding belatedly dawnd on him, and he began laughing at me, and said in English: "The bathroom? This way." I wasn't sure why he had laughed at me, but quickly forgot about it. Later, when talking to a friend in Jordan, I asked her about the story. Laughing, she explained that in dialect it kind of sounded like I'd said "I have a pigeon??" While not all differences are this confusing or humorous, it's very helpful to know key phrases and words in dialect, and locals are even more appreciative of efforts to speak in their dialect than they are of MSA. (Though both will work, and will go a long way to show that you are making an effort.)

So, back to the issue at hand: here are some phrases that I found useful when studying in Amman. There are variances in different cities in Jordan, and in different Levant countries, and of course between the Gulf, North Africa, and the Levant, so these may not be as useful or relevant if you are traveling outside of the Levant, but should be completely understandable in Levant countries. (Likely people will understand outside of the Levant as well, as Lebanese and Syrian TV shows, movies, and music are popular across the Arabic-speaking world, but I make no promises.) Also note some things are the same as MSA, but I'll include for those with no previous Arabic experience.

Hello:*There are several different responses, and some are more appropriate in different situations*

As-salamu alaykum/Asalam alaykum / السلام عليكم

This is a religious greeting, but is very commonly used. If someone says this to you it is compulsory to respond: wa alaykumu salam / و عليكم سلام

This literally translates to "Peace upon you / and upon you peace"

Marhaba/ مرحبا

This is another very common greeting. It's pretty casual, like saying "hey"

How are you?

Keefik (f) Keefak (m) OR Keef haluk/Keef il-hal /كيف حالك/ كيفك/ كيف الحال

I'm good!

Ana bikhayr/mneeh (m)/mneeha (f) / انا بخير / منيح / منيحة

Where's the bathroom? (See? Tie-in there.)

Weyn il-hamam? /وين الحمام (Note there is an emphasis on the first "m" in "hamam" so you would just hold onto it a little longer.)

I want (when order food, shopping, etc.)

Bidi / بدي

How much?

Kem? / كم؟

Please.

Low samaht / لو سمحت

I don't speak Arabic/ I don't understand.

Ma bahky aarabi / mish fahim / ما بحكي عربي / مش فاهم

This is obviously not a completely comprehensive post, but I could go on forever! I'll include some photos from Wikipedia that I screenshotted while I was traveling but can't find, and leave some good sources for Jordanian/Levantine dialect. Any questions or suggestions? Leave a comment below or contact us and we'll do our best to let you know!