An Introduction to Egyptian Arabic

How many speak it?

Egyptian Arabic (EA) is the most widely spoken dialect of Arabic, spoken by a total of 68 million people (Teixeira). It is understood by almost all of the 300+ million other Arabic speakers due to popular movies, music, and other media platforms (Doochin).

Where did it come from?

EA is similar to Modern Standard Arabic (MSA), but it has influences from languages such as Coptic, Greek, Turkish, French, and English (Languages of Egypt).

Egyptian vs. Modern Standard Arabic

Modern Standard Arabic is not a spoken language, but more of a universal language between Arab speakers. MSA is primarily used in government, formal settings, news, and written documents (Modern Standard Arabic language). There are two noticeable differences in  sounds produced by EA compared to MSA: 1) Egyptians pronounce a G sound in place of a J sound, and 2) a glottal stop is used in place of the Q sound.

References:

Analyst, Lavinia DsouzaAward-winning, et al. “5 Days in Egypt Itinerary: A Wonder Worth Exploring! (2023).” Continent Hop, 21 Sept. 2023, continenthop.com/blog/5-days-in-egypt-itinerary/.

Teixeira, Maria Inês. “How Many People Speak Arabic around the World?” Lingoda, 8 Nov. 2022, blog.lingoda.com/en/how-many-people-speak-arabic-around-the-world/#:~:text=Egyptian%20Arabic&text=It%20differs%20quite%20a%20lot,language%20according%20to%20the%20Ethnologue.

Doochin, David. “How Many People Speak Arabic around the World, and Where?” Babbel Magazine, Babbel, 25 Jan. 2019, www.babbel.com/en/magazine/how-many-people-speak-arabic#:~:text=How%20Many%20People%20Speak%20Arabic%20In%20The%20World%3F,%2C%20Spanish%2C%20English%20and%20Hindi.

“Languages of Egypt.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, inc., www.britannica.com/place/Egypt/Languages. Accessed 22 Sept. 2023.