A study of the changes in the language behavior of an American-Lebanese community in Cleveland, Ohio, considering the community's background, its current status, environmental interactions, and linguistic behavior. Findings indicate a reduced ability to be quick and easy, reduced ability to be expressive, and linguistic insecurity. (CB)

In the process of Arabization of Morocco, it is necessary to maintain French language instruciton, but as a necessary foreign language and not as a primary language. French remains an important part of Morocco's diverse cultural identity. (MSE)

The use of interpersonal verbal routines such as greetings and thanks is examined as a universal phenomenon of human languages. Examples from Syrian Arabic, American English and other languages are used to show differing patterns of structure and use, susceptible of grammatical and sociolinguistic analysis. (Author/RM)

A study investigated the beliefs about second language learning held by two populations of students of Arabic at the University of Wisconsin: 17 students studying first-semester Arabic in a campus classroom, and 6 students studying the same curriculum through a correspondence course. The subjects were of widely varying backgrounds, and some…

A well conceived computer-assisted instruction (CAI) program in the Arabic writing system will be a more efficient and effective method than either conventional classroom teaching or programmed instruction. (Author)

Deals with English stress problems for Iraqis under three main headings: single-stressed words, double-stressed words, and unstressed syllables. While stress in Arabic is predictable, stress in English is not. The Iraqi will transfer native-language stress patterns to English. Errors cause miscommunication and are difficult to pinpoint. (PJM)

Investigates linguistic taboo in terms of its relationship with the social context in which it is used and the sociocultural factors affecting it. The article examines different processes involving the creation, development, violation, and replacement of taboo words and argues that these processes are conditioned by the cultural norms of the…

Presents an ethnographic study that explores young bilingual children's early literacy experiences in three different languages (English, Urdu and classical Arabic) and in three strikingly different types of classes in England. Focuses on one bilingual boy of a Pakistani background. Aims to integrate non-dominating language and literacy practices…

Comparison of advanced and intermediate Saudi Arabian students of English-as-a-Foreign-Language comprehension of humor indicated that both cultural and linguistic awareness were important to understanding humorous materials. (CB)

Examines the historical changes in agreement patterns between Old Arabic and the New Arabic dialects to see whether they support Versteegh's radical hypothesis of pidginization, creolization, and decreolization. The conclusion is reached that the changes are chiefly because of processes of normal transmissions, "drift," and diffusion. (24…

Investigates university students' attitudes toward different varieties of Arabic, including Modern Standard Arabic (MSA), Bedouin, Fallahi, and Madani. The highest rated variety was MSA, the lowest rated was Madani, and Bedouin was preferred over Madani as a colloquial variety. (GLR)

The nativelike linguistic competence of an adult second-language learner of Egyptian Arabic who was first exposed to the target language after the close of the critical period is examined to determine what factors differentiate her from less successful naturalistic adult acquirers. The role of internalized grammar is discussed. (Contains 43…

Examines reading and spelling errors made by children learning Arabic within a developmental framework. Finds that errors in reading and spelling persisted throughout primary school, pointing to the difficulties involved in mastering the Arabic written language. Notes that misreadings involved mainly diacritics whereas misspellings were related to…

Tests the relative difficulty for Arab speakers in their acquisition of aspects of English derivational morphology, based on previous work that identified major similarities and differences between Standard Arabic and Standard English through contrastive analysis. Results confirm the usefulness of predictions of contrastive analysis in the…