Arabic language is deeply rooted- a fundamental carrier of Arabism

Arabic language has played a very influential role in the emergence of the concept of Arabism that brought together several peoples and civilizations  that gained a lot from this language. So it became the language of science and literature in vast parts of the ancient world for centuries and is still strongly present until now in the human and civilizational scene.

Because the  Arabic language is one of the pillars of the identity of the East and its civilizational facade, it was the focus of the Western colonial powers’ plans, so it sought to combat and befuddle it. The attempts of imposing the French language in the countries of Maghreb and Syria during the occupation and pushing many Asian and African countries to give up writing with the Arabic language is evidence of that.

Regarding the attempts to target the Arabic language as a civilized carrier of Arab nationalism, Dr. Thaer Zain Al-Din, Director General of the Syrian General Authority for Books, Chairman of the Subcommittee for Empowerment of the Arabic Language at the Ministry of Culture, said that some Western powers have been trying for a long time to influence Arab societies by targeting their mother tongue through replacing it with other languages. But, their plans failed because the Arabic language is not only a language of pronunciation, but rather a cultural and historical identity inherited by Arab generations

Zain al-Din pointed out that the Western attempts to target Arabic were preceded by the Turkification policy imposed by the Ottoman occupation for 400 years in the Arab world, which could not influence the Arabic language, but rather the Turkish language was affected by Arabic by the entry of hundreds of Arabic words into its  vocabulary . It’s noteworthy that our language is a reference in the global civilization due to being the language of the Holy Qur’an as well as being the official language of at least 300 million Arabs. It is deeply rooted in the sentiments of entire peoples.

Zain al-Din  noted that European museums boast that they acquire many manuscripts written in Arabic language that dated back to the old eras, which confirms once again that Arabic is a living language and will not die .

He indicated that the Committee for Empowering the Arabic Language at the Ministry of Culture has held many seminars and lectures on the challenges facing the Arabic language and ways to confront them. Syria is a pioneer in preserving the Arabic language through the issuance of many decrees and laws aimed at empowering and  conserving it. The Ministry of Culture carried out a number of activities for empowering Arabic language by publishing books and organizing activities exclusively in the classical language.

Zain Al-Din added that the Empowerment Committee at the Ministry of Culture publishes a monthly book called “Language Issues” that discusses topics related to the language, whether in its development or simplification.

The Director General of the Book Authority emphasized that the Arabic language, which is classified among the six languages of the United Nations Organization, is not a complex language, as some try to depict it, but rather easy and beautiful, especially for its sons.

Inas Abdulkareem