An accessible grammar reference guide for learners of Levantine Arabic at all levels
A Learner's Grammar of Levantine Arabic is a comprehensive guide to the grammatical structures and rules of the Arabic varieties spoken in the Levant region, such as Palestinian, Syrian, Jordanian, and Lebanese. This book is suitable for beginners through more advanced levels, and it is the first to present North and South Levantine varieties side by side, allowing learners and linguists to compare them with each other and with other varieties of spoken Arabic.
Hitchcock groups major grammatical concepts together, making it easy to find information quickly, and he provides easy-to-understand explanations. The book includes extensive appendixes, with verb charts, prepositions, and conjunctions. Copious examples of native speaker usage—culled from newspapers, television programs, and more—are provided for each concept, helping learners understand how to apply the concepts to their own communications outside the classroom.
Reviews
"A remarkable achievement in the field of Arabic language pedagogy. This book offers a comprehensive, clear, and accessible introduction to the grammatical structures and rules of Levantine Arabic dialects spoken in Palestine, Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon. It is an essential resource for anyone who wants to learn, teach, or research Levantine Arabic. It is suitable for learners of all levels, from beginners to advanced, and can be used as a self-study guide or as a textbook for classroom instruction. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in learning more about the fascinating and vibrant language and culture of the Levant."—Ghada Housen, assistant professor of instruction, Department of Middle Eastern Studies, The University of Texas at Austin
About the Author
Chris Hitchcock is a freelance translator, interpreter, and researcher who has lived and worked in the Middle East. He also maintains the website Team Maha, a blog for learning Syrian Arabic. Elias Shakkour directs the Translator and Interpreter Corps at DePaul University and is a certified translator of Arabic, Dutch, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish.
