BLOG: The language of Jordan

Without a doubt, the most difficult part of my time in Jordan thus far has been learning the language. That in itself is a testimony to how wonderful my time here has been in the first month.

I’ve encountered very few problems and “cultural hurdles” thus far. Rather, my biggest difficulty has been learning Arabic, a language that is rated as one of the most difficult to learn, along with a few Asian languages, such as Mandarin or Japanese.

I came here knowing little more than the alphabet, some basic greetings and a bit of vocabulary. I learned most of this through Rosetta Stone; I didn’t take an Arabic class before I came here. I was placed in a second-level Arabic course, which is a perfect fit for me.

But learning the language casually — a couple words a day, at my own leisure — is quite different from the truly “immersed” effect of living in an Arab country. It can be a bit overwhelming at times. When I hit the town with my peer mentor and his friends a couple nights ago, we tried to communicate in Arabic about four-fifths of the time.

Most of the night was fine, but there were times when the “translation” mechanism in my head would seemingly switch off from overuse. This is both frustrating and exhausting. But to be honest, I couldn’t imagine, after a month of this style of learning, ever going back to the “casual” days. This is the only way to do it.

Facts and Myths in Jordan
There is only one language in Jordan: FALSE

And no, the “other language” isn’t English — it’s Arabic. Confused? So am I. For those unfamiliar with Arabic, here’s the scoop: There is the “spoken” Arabic (aamiya), which is used in everyday situations and varies by region and country, and the “official” Arabic (foos-ha),
which is used in the media and in other official settings.

Anyone setting out on the difficult endeavor of learning Arabic should have their final goal in mind: Is it to learn the official language, or is it to communicate with the locals in a certain Arabic-speaking community? I’m mainly aiming for the former, though I’m hoping to learn some of the local dialect, as well. I’m taking classes in both (six credits in Modern Standard, and three in Jordanian Colloquial).

Of course, there is significant overlap in these. But there’s enough of a difference that it does at times feel as though I’m learning two languages.