Arabic Language Study

Through the generous support of the Abbasi program, I was able to study Arabic language for seven weeks in Meknes, Morocco at the AAIN Arabic Institute during the Summer of 2016. It was an incredible opportunity, not only to rapidly and deeply enrich my Modern Standard Arabic language skills, but to explore first-hand Moroccan history, politics, and experientially the social and cultural dimensions of the country. In addition to the several hours I spent each day one-on-one with a language instructor in the classroom, and traveling to a number of diverse regions, cities, and cultural and archaeological sites, I stayed with and learned much from my Moroccan-Amazigh homestay family.

At AAIN institute, in addition to the rigorous standard coursework wherein I completed the first half of the second year Arabic program, I also studied Media Arabic. I learned the common as well as more technical vocabulary used to refer to media systems and infrastructure, mass communication practices, and the substantive social, political and cultural content that would often be covered in media discourse. In addition to this, I learned how to write and produced opinion or analysis pieces – in Modern Standard Arabic – on issues ranging from the origins of the Arab Spring to contemporary American political happenings. I also designed and wrote a sample front page for a newspaper, and by the end of my studies was able to engage in extended conversation about Moroccan culture, its distinctions from other Arab countries I have visited or studied in, and the United States. As a PhD student in the Department of Communication, with research interests focusing on discourses of national security, terrorism, and democracy and democratic movements, this specialized and intensive study greatly advanced me towards my language goals: to able to read, watch and listen to Arabic news and social media without the need for constant interpretation. This will allow me to scan, identify and analyze potential sources, trends or discover sites for interpretation. I noticed a marked improvement in my comprehension of, for example, BBC Arabic from the time before I studied in Morocco to now. This improvement will not only expedite and deepen my learning here at Stanford, nor just serve me in my later, more substantial analytical portions of my research projects, but will also help immensely in developing theoretical frameworks or empirical questions as well as in completing departmental or funding proposals.

Beyond the intellectual and professional development during my summer in Morocco, I was also able to travel to and experience a number of Moroccan cities, including Fez, Marrakech, and Merzouga, one of the desert communities of the Sahara. There I experienced archaeological sites, “old cities” and souks or markets, and sampled culinary fare from several regions. Through my homestay family, I had the opportunity to learn about the interesting intersection of Amazigh (Berber) and Moroccan culture, and even had the unique chance to attend the equivalent of a Moroccan-Amazigh bachelor party. Not only did I gain intellectually and advance in my language learning goals through my focused language study and immersive cultural experience that activated these skills in context, but I also gained life-long memories and friendships.