This is the third edition, fully revised and updated, of this indispensable introduction to Arabic linguistics.

Concentrating on the difference between the two types of Arabic the classical standard language and the dialects Kees Versteegh charts the history and development of the Arabic language from its earliest beginnings to the modern age. The reader is given a solid grounding in the structure of the language, its historical context and its use in various literary and non-literary genres, as well as an understanding of the role of Arabic as a cultural, religious and political world language.

New for this edition:

• Presents new perspectives on the history of Arabic from the period before Islam in two completely revised chapters reporting on the ground-breaking discoveries in this field
• Covers recent developments in language use in the media after the Arab Spring
• Examines the influence of social media on language use and language attitudes concerning Arabic, and the use of the language in political and religious discourse
• Contains text samples of Standard Arabic in Arabic script and English translation as well as dialect texts in the major Arabic dialects
• Engages with the huge amount of new publications on Arabic linguistics, including several handbooks