Arablish (a blend of Arabic and English) is slang for Arabic–English code-switching or the macaronical combination of English and Arabic. The Arablish term was first recorded in 1984.[1] It is alternatively termed Arbalizi, a portmanteau combining the words Arabic and Inglizi (the word for English in Arabic).
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/13/Arablish_restaurant_%E2%80%9CLazeez_Cafe%E2%80%9D_Nov_2023.jpg/220px-Arablish_restaurant_%E2%80%9CLazeez_Cafe%E2%80%9D_Nov_2023.jpg)
It is used, particularly among the youth, because of their poor knowledge of English, Arabic, or both, or for humorous effect. Arablish is becoming increasingly used in ordinary conversations and online.[2]
Arablish usually consists of either filling in gaps in one's knowledge of Arabic with English words, speaking Arabic in such a manner that (although ostensibly "Arabic") would be incomprehensible to an Arab language speaker who does not also have a working knowledge of English.
See also
[edit]Arabizi – alphabet for Arabic varieties that uses numbers and Latin characters
References
[edit]- ^ Lambert, James. 2018. A multitude of ‘lishes’: The nomenclature of hybridity. English World-wide, 39(1): 31-32. DOI: 10.1075/eww.38.3.04lam
- ^ Al-Quds al-Arabi (via Mideastwire): The 'Arablish' language spreading amongst the Jordanian elite Archived July 14, 2011, at the Wayback Machine