How long it takes for a non arab to learn to speak Arabic?

Question

I meam modern standard arabic, and will i need to learn a dialect ?

Answer 1

a lifetime

Answer 2

I studied a foreign language institute tape course of egyptian arab for months and I still couldn't hold a conversation when I got to Cairo. It did help, I was able to make myself understood to a few non-english speakers and pleasantly surprise others with the words I came up with. But it was tough. In contrast, I took tape courses of dutch and portuguese and after 3 months could hold basic conversations in each language.

Believe it or not, I had an easier time learning to read arabic (it took me about 3 weeks to learn the alphabet).

Answer 3

I have a cousin who has been studying arabic for at least 4 years. He is in Cairo now taking courses in Arabic. He is learning standard but also trying to learn non-standard which varies greatly.
Arabic from what I hear from my cousin is a very difficult language to learn because there are so many languages mixed in with spoken Arabic and it varies from region to region in the Middle East. It's one reason for the problem with the Palestinians being kicked out of Israel. They can't speak the language of their neighbors in Lebanon, Syria, etc.
Modern standard Arabic will help you get around like a tourist but you won't be able to understand the natives.
Spoken arabic contains old languages mixed in.
I wish you the best of luck with your studies. Don't give up. But don't expect it to be easy either. I would like to learn it. Start with standard and go from there. My cousin is working on his PhD in Middle Eastern studies. This is his 3rd trip to the Middle East that I know of. He's been to Lebanon once and this is his second trip to Egypt. I believe that he's been to Syria. He usually sends us (family & friends) an email account of his travels. I believe this is his 4th year of work on his doctorate. He still can't speak Arabic well or understand the natives or so he tells us in his emails.

Answer 4

if you went to an arab speaking country not very long apparently (a friend of mine's mum pick it up in a few monthes when they moved to lebonon) but apart from that i don't know, depends on how quick you pick things up i guess

Answer 5

These days you can learn how to speak Arabic over the internet. Check out this online course, it's voted as the best Arabic online course of all time: http://www.rocketlearner.com/arabic The course is very easy to follow, I was able to learn Arabic in just 3 months.

I live in New York City, I wanted to go to a Arabic language teacher but that would have cost me over $800 per month. Good thing with this internet, $800 it's a lot of money for me.

Answer 6

It depends on your individual ability and how long it takes you to understand. If your abilities in foreign languages is not strong, it could really take awhile.