RefuLingua

There are many types of Arabic. Most books, courses and online resources teach Modern Standard Arabic (MSA) – this is a literary language understood across the Arabic speaking world, but is not usually used in day to day conversation. We would recommend learning to read and write MSA if you want to read the Qur’an, engage with Arabic media (i.e. newspapers, websites), or commit to a more academic understanding of the language, for example. Some of our tutors offer MSA 1:1, so it is worth getting in touch if that’s you. 

Arabic is spoken from Morocco to Iraq, and there are at least as many dialects as there are countries. Dialects can vary a lot. It could be argued that each different village, or each area of Damascus, has its own unique dialect. This can make studying dialect feel like a slippery process! Our group classes offer the dip of a toe into a couple of different dialects (Sudanese and Syrian). They cover the basics that should allow you to make a friend, share some food or make a plan across Sudan and the Levant (Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Palestine).

Pashto and Dari are the two official languages of Afghanistan, and are both written using the Arabic abjad (alphabet). In our classes, we transliterate these languages and write them in English. Pashto is originally the language of the Pashtun people and is spoken more in the East of Afghanistan, as well as in Pakistan. Dari is usually the language of business and higher education, and is spoken more widely in the West of Afghanistan. It has many Arabic and Persian loan words. Dari is the Afghan dialect of Farsi, with the main difference being pronunciation and accent.

Farsi (Persian) is the language of Iran, and although it is written in the Arabic alphabet, you’ll find it shares more in common structurally and grammatically with European languages such as German.

Somali is the official language of Somalia and is spoken in several East African countries including Ethiopia, Djibouti, and Kenya. It is the language of the Somali diaspora and there are many Somali speakers in Bristol. Somali is written using the Latin alphabet, so if you can read English you can read Somali.

These are language options we are developing throughout 2024. If you would like to learn (or help us develop these courses) please get in touch.

This course will introduce you to a wide range of common greetings, useful expressions, numbers 0-10, family vocabulary, and how to exchange personal information (what’s your name, where are you from, jobs etc.). It is a great place to start if you are new to the language.

This course will introduce food vocabulary (fruits, vegetables and more), how to request food and drinks in a café or grocery store, useful expressions for sharing food in someone’s home as well as information on popular dishes from different regions from the language and dialect you are studying.

It is helpful (but not necessary) to have completed the ‘Introductions’ course before completing the ‘Sharing Food’ course.

This course will enable you to make basic plans with a native speaker of the language you are learning. It will cover days of the week and time telling, talking about places (café, hospital, park, etc) and prepositions (next to, near to, opposite etc) as well as basic activity vocabulary (drinking coffee, playing football, going to the park etc).

It is helpful (but not necessary) to have completed the ‘Introductions’ course before completing the ‘Making Plans’ course.

This is a basic introduction to body parts internal and external, and common ailments. It will also cover common greetings, useful expressions and basic vocabulary for discussing a problem. We imagine that medical professionals will benefit the most from this course, but that others may also be interested. 

An introduction to reading and writing the Arabic script (very similar to the script used to write Farsi, Dari, and Pashto). This course is suitable for students with some knowledge of spoken Arabic, or can complement one of our beginner courses. 

We start new group courses each term, and you can sign up here. Group lessons are booked in blocks of 8 hour-long weekly classes and are made up of 3-6 students. If you have a ready-made group of 3+ students, we can start a bespoke group class for you.

“It’s the perfect mix of learning basic grammar and rules, while getting a sense of how people actually speak the language, learning slang words and important cultural things. I have felt like I have learnt a lot and it will pave my way towards learning Arabic to a much higher level. Shukran katheer!”

Many of our tutors accept 1:1 or 1:2 students on an independent basis. These lessons may be online or face to face, at any time, according to the convenience of both the tutor and yourself. Your tutor can guide you through any of the above topics, or create a personal programme depending on what you want. This is a popular option with students who have an intermediate or advanced level of language. 

If you are an organisation, business, or group of friends and you would like to learn a language with us please get in touch and we will try to accommodate you.

“It was a wonderful opportunity for me to teach the Arabic language, and through this course, I developed my skills a lot and got to know new people, and this makes me very happy”

RefuLingua tutor