MODERN STANDARD ARABIC (CLASSICAL ARABIC)
Modern Standard Arabic (MSA) is a modern form of Classical Arabic written in the Qur’an. The language isn’t spoken in a small, social environment; rather, it is the official means of communication for, for instance, Arabic television personalities and the media. It is a more official Arabic language; any other version of MSA is considered a dialect (referred to as “colloquial Arabic”). Most people in the Middle East and some parts of Africa speak some version of the language, though under most circumstances are able to use MSA to communicate with each other, despite their varying dialects. Still, MSA is the official language of all Middle Eastern countries. MSA is closely related to the religion of Islam, though many Muslims don’t speak the language.
ARABIC DIALECTS
Spoken in: Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, Palestine (West Bank and Gaza), Western Sahara.
The major groups are:
Egyptian Arabic
Maghreb Arabic (Algerian Arabic, Moroccan Arabic, Tunisian Arabic, Maltese and western Libyan)
Levantine Arabic (Western Syrian, Lebanese, Israel, Palestinian, and western Jordanian, Cypriot Maronite Arabic)
Iraqi Arabic (and Khuzestani Arabic) - with significant differences between the more Arabian-like gilit-dialects of the south and the more conservative qeltu-dialects of the northern cities
Gulf Arabic (Eastern Syrian, Kuwaiti, Saudi Arabian, Persian Gulf coast from Iraq to Oman including much of Saudi Arabia's Eastern Province, and minorities on the other side)
Other varieties include:
Massaniya (in Mauritania and western Sahara)
Andalusi Arabic (extinct, but important role in literary history)
Sudanese Arabic (with a dialect continuum into Chad)
Baharna Arabic (Bahrain, Saudi Eastern Province, and Oman)
Hijazi Arabic (West Coast of Saudi Arabia, Northern Saudi Arabia, eastern
Jordan, Western Iraq)
Najdi Arabic (Najd region of central Saudi Arabia)
Yemeni Arabic (Yemen to southern Saudi Arabia)