Arabic Dictionaries

Arabic is a member of the Semitic branch of the Afro-Asiatic language family. Its closest living relatives are Hebrew and Aramaic. Arabic has been a literary language since the 6th century A.D., and is the liturgical language of Islam in its classical form. The spoken (colloquial) languages of the people throughout the Arab world differ from the literary language, and to some extent from each other as well. Because the terms "language" vs. "dialect" are highly politicized, the the neutral term "variety" will be used here instead.The term Arabic refers to several varieties of the language, all of which play an important role in Arabic-speaking countries. These are:

• Modern Standard Arabic (MSA)
  It is the universal language of the Arabic-speaking world. It is the language of education and literature, and is used on formal occasions and in the both electronic and print media.

• Classical Arabic
  This term refers to the written Arabic of the Qur'an and literature. It differs significantly from Modern Standard Arabic. It is used as the language of religious practice throughout the Islamic world. Its vocabulary has many archaic words.

• Colloquial (spoken) Arabic
  This terms refers to the 35 spoken varieties of the language used across North Africa and the Middle East that are sometimes different enough not to be mutually intelligible. Many of them do not have a written form, although there is a certain amount of secular literature in some of them, particularly in Egypt and Lebanon.

The main divisions among colloquial varieties of Arabic are as follows:

• Maghreb varieties vs. those of the Arabian peninsula;

• sedentary varieties vs. more conservative Bedouin varieties;

• varieties spoken in countries where Arabic is not a dominant language (e.g., Turkey, Afghanistan, Cyprus, Chad, and Nigeria) whose vocabularies are less influenced by Classical Arabic and more influenced by the surrounding non-Arabic languages;

• religious communities, e.g., Christians and Jews in Baghdad.

One significant factor that differentiates colloquial varieties is the influence of languages that were spoken in the area prior to the arrival of the Arabs. These languages have influenced vocabulary and pronunciaion, and in some cases, grammar. Another significant factor is the extent to which the varieties have retained features of Classical Arabic.

Dictionary of Arabic words and related Arabic Language resources

	Al Misbar : Translation - English words translated into Arabic. Includes various options.
	Arabic Dictionaries - Word, phrase or acronym finder in Arabic, English, French and Spanish.
	Effel's Arabic Dictionary - Freeware application for fast lookup of words. Also features grammar help.
	Simple English - Arabic Dictionary - Dictionary to teach yourself Arabic language in an Egyptian accent. Suitable for tourists and tourism.
	Islamic Dictionary - A concise list of Arabic terms used for Islamic concepts, with citation links to the Koran.
	American Association of Teachers of Arabic - Resources for teachers/students of Arabic, information on the organization, academic journal on Arabic linguistics, an Arabic mailing list and some related links.
	Arab Gateway - An introduction to the Arabic language, how to study it and common English words which find their roots in Arabic.
	The Arab World - A collection of useful resources such as words, phrases, some grammar and expressions in Arabic.
	Arabic2000 - Arabic Language and Culture - Comprehensive site offering resources about the Arabic language including learning software, Arabic web-based course and links to best Arabic sites. Also includes three bulletin boards and search facilities in both Arabic and English.
	Arabic Language. - Wikipedia article, with links to other articles on Modern Standard and Classical Arabic, as well as other varieties of the language.
	Arabic Language Breakthrough - Results of research on the modernization of the Arabic language and script.
	Arabic Language Resources - Includes phrases, vocabulary, grammar, products, and Arabic language schools.
	Arabic Names and Their Meanings - List of Arabic female first names and their meanings, the list for masculine names is also available.

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Arabic words in English
There are many words of Arabic origin in English. Below is a small sampling.

English word	from Arabic
adobe	al-tob "the brick"
albacore	al bakara "the young camels"
alcove	al-qobbah "the vaulted chamber"
alfalfa	al-fisfisa "the fresh fodder"
algebra	al jebr "reunion of broken parts" (as in computation)
arsenal	dar as-sina'ah "house of manufacture, workshop"
artichoke	al-kharshof "the artichoke"
assassin	hashishiyyin "hashish-users," a fanatical Muslim sect of the time of the Crusades, with a reputation for murdering opposing leaders after intoxicating themselves by eating hashish
ayatollah	ayatu-llah "miraculous sign of God"
carob	kharrub "locust bean pod"
coffee	qahwah "coffee"
cipher	sifr "zero, empty, nothing"
cotton	qutn "cotton"
emir	amir "commander"
fedayeen	plural of fedai "devotee, zealot, one who risks life for a cause"
ghoul	ghul "evil spirit that robs graves and feeds on corpses"
harem	haram "women's quarters"
hashish	hashish "powdered hemp," literally "dry herb"
imam	imam "leader, one who precedes"
intifada	intafada "to be shaken, shake oneself"
Islam	islam "submission" (to the will of God)
jihad	jahada "he waged war."
kismet	qismah, qismat "portion, lot, fate"
Koran (Qur'an)	qur'an "a reading, recitation, book"
lime	limah "citrus fruit," a back-formation or a collective noun from limun "lemon"
mask	maskhara "buffoon"
mosque	masjid "temple, place of worship"
mullah	mawla "master"
mummy	mumiyah "embalmed body"
Muslim	muslim "one who submits" (to the faith)
safari	safar "journey"
Sahara	çahra "desert"
sheikh	shaykh "chief," literally "old man"
Shiite	shi'ah ", followers", members of the Shia sect of Islam who recognize Ali, Muhammad's son-in-law, as the lawful successor of the Prophet
sofa	suffah "bench."
sugar	sukkar
Sunni	sunna "traditional teachings of Muhammad," Muslims who accept the orthodox tradition as well as the Qu'ran
tariff	ta'rif "inventory of fees to be paid"
Vega	bright northern star, from al Waqi translated variously as "the eagle of the desert" or "the falling vulture"