The UAE has launched several initiatives and programmes to enable the Arabic regain its stature as a global language.

The UAE celebrates the UN Arabic Language Day, marked on 18th December of every year, with a track record of achievements towards preservation of the language and supporting its global growth.

The UAE efforts are aligned with the vision of President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan and his keenness on promoting the Arabic language.

The ‘Arabic Language Charter’, announced by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai in April 2021, constitutes an integrated strategy to establish the UAE as a global ‘centre of excellence’ for Arabic language.

In 2012, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid also announced the establishment of the Advisory Council for the Arabic Language, along with a package of initiatives to strengthen the position of Arabic language, including the formation of Committee for Modernisation of Arabic, which is made up of experts and academics, with the task of developing proposals for new tools in Arabic language curricula.

Other initiatives include the publishing of the Mohammed bin Rashid Contemporary Arabic Language Dictionary, and the launch of the Mohammed bin Rashid Award for Arabic Language and the Arab Reading Challenge.

Earlier this year, H.H. Dr. Sheikh Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member, Ruler of Sharjah and President of the Arabic Language Academy in Sharjah, launched today the first 17 volumes of the ‘Historical Dictionary of the Arabic Language’.

The Arabic Language is considered one of the most widely used languages as it is spoken by more than 422 million people around the world.

The UN will organise an event tomorrow at Expo 2020 Dubai to celebrate Arabic language and to highlight the importance of its preservation and supporting its use in global political, economic and cultural affairs.

Source: Emirates News Agency