Arabic Language Study

Callum Tresnan
2020
Author(s)
Callum Tresnan

I would like to thank the 2020 Abbasi Summer Grant for their support of my language study. The Abbasi Grant covered the tuition for an intensive 10-week language program at Sijal Institute for Arabic Language and Culture. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, I was not able to travel to Amman, Jordan to take the course in person. However, I was able to take this intensive program online.

Through this program, I rapidly progressed my Arabic reading, writing, speaking, and comprehension skills from Novice to Intermediate. I received instruction in Fusha/Modern Standard Arabic as well as the Amiyyah dialect colloquial in the Levant. In addition to my classroom experience, I also had the opportunity to develop my language skills and cultural understanding through a language partners program as well as a cooking class.

This academic year, I will continue my Arabic study through my undergraduate coursework. I will begin my studies in Arabic literature for my Comparative Literature major. I will develop my Arabic skills to engage with literature in Arabic in order to study poetry and translation. In the future, I will use these skills to work on my undergraduate Senior Honors Thesis and propel me to future study of Arabic language and literature at the graduate level. I am extremely grateful to the Abbasi Grant for empowering me to realize these goals through their generous support.