Language profiles in Manchester
Select a language from the menu below to see its profile.
Arabic
Language | Arabic |
Language name transliterated | ʻArabī, al-ʻArabīyah |
Language name original script | عربي |
Distribution | Middle East, North and East Africa |
Estimated number of speakers worldwide | 200m (native), 250m (total)
|
Language classification | Afro-Asiatic; Semitic; North Semitic |
Related to which languages | Maltese; Hebrew; Assyrian; Amharic |
Distinctive features in sounds | Pharyngeal sounds (pronounced by moving the tongue base against the back of the throat) |
Distinctive features in grammar | Inflectional templates; three-consonant roots; |
Writing system | Arabic script |
Status | Official language in Arab countries; vernacular dialects. Liturgical language in Islam |
Number of persons identifying as “main language” in England & Wales (Census 2011) | 159,290 |
Number of persons identifying as “main language” in Greater Manchester (Census 2011) | 10,914 |
Number of persons identifying as “main language” in City of Manchester (Census (Census 2011) | 7,037 |
Number of persons identifying as “main language” in Greater Manchester as percentage of total in England & Wales (Census 2011) | 7% |
Number of persons identifying as “main language” in City of Manchester as percentage of total in England & Wales (Census 2011) | 4% |
Proficiency, self-reported in City of Manchester (Census 2011)* | Can speak English very well (38%), Can speak English well (42%), Cannot speak English well (16%), Cannot speak English (4%) |
Distribution in City of Manchester (Census 2011) | Cheetham (685), Moss Side (601), City Centre (597), Ardwick (511), Whalley Range (413) |
Distribution in Greater Manchester (Census 2011) | Salford (1,047), Trafford (753), Bolton (576) |
First language of pupils in Manchester schools (2015) | 3,010 |
Distribution in City of Manchester schools (2015) | Abraham Moss (160), Manchester Academy (128), Whalley Range 11-18 High School (123), Heald Place Primary School (117), Webster Primary School (115) |
Total interpreter requests in Manchester’s GP practices (2014/2015) | 3,019 |
Library loans (2012/2013) | 930 |
Library acquisitions (2012/2013) | 137 |
M-4 interpreter requests (2012/2013) | 870 |
Dialects of the language used in Manchester | Libyan, Iraqi, Syrian, Sudanese |
Other home language common among speakers | |
Supplementary schools | Hijra Arabic School, Noor Arabic School, Al-Manar School |
*Percentages rounded to nearest whole number