Europe speaks Arabic

[Al-khiyal]

Europe speaks Arabic by Dr. V. Abdur Rahim

Arabic gave Europe cotton to wear, coffee to drink, chess to play, magazine to read, mattress to sleep on, and sugar to sweeten with. This book is a lucid exposition of these and a host of other Arabic words that have become part and parcel of English and other European languages. It is not a catalogue of words, but a lively discussion based on linguistic evidence, enriched with copious literary quotations and characterized by profound regard and respect for each other's culture and views. The book opens up new world of fascinating information in the domains of etymology, phonetic change and semantic development.

[gn4dz]

Europe speaks Arabic by Dr. V. Abdur Rahim

it seems interesting to read..
here is a post I have just made in the same context, it is about history Lorsque le Monde parlait Arabe

[Aaishah-London]

Europe speaks Arabic by Dr. V. Abdur Rahim

Assalaamu 'alaikum Brothers and Sisters,

Warm Greetings from London, U.K.

I am writing to give you my personal review of "Europe Speaks Arabic" which I read over a year ago and thoroughly enjoyed. I learnt many great things from this book which has helped me immensely- not only as a student of Arabic, but also as a Muslim, bi-idhnillaah. I am a student of Arabic in London, studying the language of the Noble Qur'an. I am a distance-learner of Shaykh Dr. V. Abdur Rahim - the author of "Europe Speaks Arabic". 'Distance-learner' means I study from the Shaykh's many, beautiful books and DVDs which he has prepared for teaching Arabic to non-native speakers of Arabic - like myself.

I would like to attract your attention next by asking the forum an interesting question:

Did you know that the English language, as well as the French, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, German, Dutch, Danish, Swedish - even the Russian and Macedonian languages - contain a number of every-day words that are actually Arabic in origin, and spoken by English-speakers and other Europeans, to this very day?!

"Europe Speaks Arabic" supplies us with the fascinating, adventurous and scholarly answer to this question by uncovering the contribution of the Arabic language to the development and enrichment of the rest of the world's languages, cultures and civilisations. The book reveals astonishing and close cultural ties, between Arabic, and all the European languages, showing how such languages are actually Arabic in origin!!

The book is a very warm invitation to Muslims and non-Muslims to discover how the Arabic language has played a formidable role in the development and enhancement of world languages and cultures, over the centuries. Indeed, a host of European languages have developed only because of the tremendous contribution of the Arabic language. Arabic nurtured and enhanced Europe, allowing it to enjoy the state of ease and advancement it enjoys today, bi-idhnillaah.

This book is very different from other materials written on this subject as the style of Dr. V. Abdur Rahim is non-technical, lively and very entertaining! It is written as a dialogue between a scholarly figure named Ahmad, and a lay-man named Eric, who both venture into the fascinating domains of the etymology, phonetic change and semantic development of the following languages: English, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, German, Dutch, Danish, Swedish, Russian, Macedonian, and occasionally the Serbo-Croatian, Polish, Modern Greek, Albanian and Esperanto languages.

The reader journeys with Ahmad and Eric into various academic disciplines like Maths, Astronomy, History, Science, as well as every-day topics like Food, Drinks, Clothing and Entertainment - hunting for fascinating facts and evidences, aiming to uncover how these disciplines have taken many of their common and every-day words, from the Arabic language originally. It is a fascinating fact that all Europeans speak Arabic words, every-day, without knowing it.

The facts and discoveries in this book, affirm the role of the Arabic language in laying the foundation for the development of world culture and human civilisation. We also discover that the relationship between the Arabic language, and European languages, is a very close and ancient one. Through it, a common cultural bond is formed between Arabic and all other world-languages.

Facts are presented plentifully in the book. The author has been very careful and only discussed those words which are recognised and accepted by British and European linguists. So the book is authoritative and sound. Many quotes from English literary works are also cited to support material.

Ultimately, the reader will learn about the real roots of his/her cultural heritage, and massive contribution of Islaam to it - whether he/she is a Muslim or a non-Muslim, an Arabic-speaker, or a non-Arabic speaker, a European or a non-European - this book is for all cultures and communties. The author himself, has demonstrated profound respect and regard for each other’s culture and views.

I believe this book will be an invaluable resource for students, teachers, researchers, scientists, journalists etc. Our foreign language faculties, cultural science departments and international relations offices, would flourish with the possession of this book - bi-idhnillaah - which serves as a unique platform to fostering better multi-cultural relations between the East and West, based on an awareness of our uniform roots.

As Muslims, Dr. Abdur Rahim's book also helps us improve our submission to Allah in many ways. We discover and appreciate our unique Islamic heritage, our hearts become instilled with love for the language of the Qur'aan, and we feel great admiration for Arabic as we discover its mastery over other languages, disciplines and sciences. One closes the book, feeling honour for having Arabic as the language of Islaam.

Here is a brief profile of the author :

* Dr. V. Abdur Rahim is an outstanding Scholar of Arabic Language and Literature;

* He is deeply learned in the knowledge of the Qur'aan and Sunnah;

* He majored in English Language and Literature from the University of Madras, India;

* He obtained his M.Phil and Ph. D. degrees in Arabic Philology from the prestigious University of al-Azhar, Cairo;

* He specialised in the study of loan words in Arabic;

* He was formerly the Professor of Arabic Philology at the world-renowned Islamic University of Madinah for 30 years;

* He possesses a wealth of knowledge in the etymology of European languages;

* Currently, he is the Director of the Translation Centre at the leading Islaamic Establishment: 'King Fahd Qur'an Printing Complex' in Madinah;

* He has been teaching Arabic to non-native speakers of the language, actively for the last 40 years.


Finally, I welcome the users of this forum to read this book and invite you to it. If you are a student involved with research and project-work, a teacher of languages, a reseacher, a journalist , a scientist, an academic - and would like to read and benefit from this book and use it extensively in your area of work, then I have a limited number of FREE copies which I will give to the one genuinely interested, insha Allah.

Enquiries must be directed only to my email please.

Wassalaam
Yours in Islaam,

Aaishah

(Student of the language of the Noble Qur'aan,
and Distance-learner of Shaykh Dr. V. Abdur Rahim)

London,
U.K.

P.S. Anyone wanting to know about Shaykh Dr. V. Abdur Rahim's Arabic teaching materials for non-native speakers of Arabic (there are course books, course-tailored dictionary, answer-books, DVDs, MP3s, Qur'aanic selections, ahaadiith selections, - all for non-native speakers, forming a complete programme for learning and mastering Arabic), then do not hesitate to ask via email.

I will be glad to help.

It has been a pleasant encounter at Algeria.com

[Al-khiyal]

w/salam w alf shukr ya Aaishah

I have removed your email address from your post to protect you from a flood of spam or other abuse. Anyone who wishes to make a contact can do so by emailing you through the site.

fi aman Allah daeman

[Aaishah-London]

wa 'alaykumus salaam Yaa akhii

jazaakAllah khayr. I have read your message. I did not think of that point.

baarakallaahu fii-kum.

Ukhtu-ka fii l-islaam,

Aaishah

[Aaishah-London]

Assalaamu 'alaikum

Following my review above, customers from Africa, India and countries in the Far-East, will find it cost-effective to purchase a copy of the book from 'Goodwordbooks' (in India) who distribute and sell "Europe Speaks Arabic".

(To be directed to their on-line store, please double-click on the name of the author shown under the photo-image of the book in the above posts.)

For Canadian and American customers, it will be cost-effective to purchase a copy from the non-profit bookstore of the following web-site in Toronto:

LQ Toronto - Learn the language of the Qur'an

Greetings and regards from your Sister in Islaam,

Wassalaam

Aaishah

London,

U.K.