Arabic Dialect Processing Tutorial

Mona T. Diab, Nizar Habash

Abstract: Language exists in a natural continuum, both historically and geographically. The term language as opposed to dialect is only an expression of power and dominance of one group/ideology over another. In the Arab world, politics (Arab nationalism) and religion (Islam) are what shape the perception of the distinction between the Arabic language and an Arabic dialect. This power relationship is similar to others that exist between languages and their dialects. However, the high degree of difference between standard Arabic and its dialects and the fact that standard Arabic is not any Arab's native language sets the Arabic linguistic situation apart.