How does it feel to be an Arab and speak fluently in English, but not be able to pronounce two words in Arabic without stuttering? It's shameful, to say the least. What a disappointing Arab I am; I can't spell simple words, but here I am typing this article in English, spelling each word in less than a second. To spell out an Arabic word would take me a century, and I would spell it incorrectly, too.
It was never my intention to be this bad at Arabic, nor am I proud of it. As a student at a private school, Arabic teachers didn’t think they should advance our Arabic skills. All I need is to pass, right? Who cares if I can’t spell a simple Arabic word or read a sentence smoothly; all our material is in English anyway. I refuse to be like that. Arabic is a beautiful language, from the way you pronounce the words to the type of calligraphy. Arabic isn’t as easy as many other languages – that’s why we should have been taught it at an earlier age.
In second grade, I was equally bad in Arabic and English, but only my English teacher made an effort to help me. She made me stay after school and kept telling me: “I know you can read this.” I would cry and say: “I can’t. I don’t understand this.” Eventually, it was easier to read a small paragraph, without crying.
On the other hand, I was failing Arabic. My teacher’s only words were: “I want to speak to your mother.” That didn’t help at all. My mother got me books to read. I tried, failed and eventually gave up. In my mind, I grew up thinking that if I was good at English, that’s all that mattered. I foolishly thought that there would not be any Arabic in my workplace and university. Little did I know.
I’m partly at fault for giving up, but who is mainly at fault here? I don’t blame the teachers or the parents. I blame the idea that all we need is English.
I started reading Arabic novels to gain a better understanding of the language. Although every time I try, I give up eventually and start to feel sad and stupid. I had an assignment for an Arabic course this term, but as I was trying to read and make sense of it all, I got depressed and spent my whole weekend dwelling on my failure. My Arabic professor asked me to sit with him every now and then and practise for an hour. I did what he told me, and Googled and read newspapers, gradually trying to progress my Arabic.
I’m still trying to advance little by little. Not because I have to or because I can simply pass with a D, but because I want to – and that’s how you start to change and develop. It starts with determination and an idea. Our future generations should be more aware, and want and love their language.
Nada Abduallah Al Menhali, 18, is a strategic-communication student at Zayed University.
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Tightening the screw on rogue recruiters
The UAE overhauled the procedure to recruit housemaids and domestic workers with a law in 2017 to protect low-income labour from being exploited.
Only recruitment companies authorised by the government are permitted as part of Tadbeer, a network of labour ministry-regulated centres.
A contract must be drawn up for domestic workers, the wages and job offer clearly stating the nature of work.
The contract stating the wages, work entailed and accommodation must be sent to the employee in their home country before they depart for the UAE.
The contract will be signed by the employer and employee when the domestic worker arrives in the UAE.
Only recruitment agencies registered with the ministry can undertake recruitment and employment applications for domestic workers.
Penalties for illegal recruitment in the UAE include fines of up to Dh100,000 and imprisonment
But agents not authorised by the government sidestep the law by illegally getting women into the country on visit visas.
Teams
Punjabi Legends Owners: Inzamam-ul-Haq and Intizar-ul-Haq; Key player: Misbah-ul-Haq
Pakhtoons Owners: Habib Khan and Tajuddin Khan; Key player: Shahid Afridi
Maratha Arabians Owners: Sohail Khan, Ali Tumbi, Parvez Khan; Key player: Virender Sehwag
Bangla Tigers Owners: Shirajuddin Alam, Yasin Choudhary, Neelesh Bhatnager, Anis and Rizwan Sajan; Key player: TBC
Colombo Lions Owners: Sri Lanka Cricket; Key player: TBC
Kerala Kings Owners: Hussain Adam Ali and Shafi Ul Mulk; Key player: Eoin Morgan
Venue Sharjah Cricket Stadium
Format 10 overs per side, matches last for 90 minutes
Timeline October 25: Around 120 players to be entered into a draft, to be held in Dubai; December 21: Matches start; December 24: Finals
The five pillars of Islam
ICC Women's T20 World Cup Asia Qualifier 2025, Thailand
UAE fixtures
May 9, v Malaysia
May 10, v Qatar
May 13, v Malaysia
May 15, v Qatar
May 18 and 19, semi-finals
May 20, final
Key figures in the life of the fort
Sheikh Dhiyab bin Isa (ruled 1761-1793) Built Qasr Al Hosn as a watchtower to guard over the only freshwater well on Abu Dhabi island.
Sheikh Shakhbut bin Dhiyab (ruled 1793-1816) Expanded the tower into a small fort and transferred his ruling place of residence from Liwa Oasis to the fort on the island.
Sheikh Tahnoon bin Shakhbut (ruled 1818-1833) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further as Abu Dhabi grew from a small village of palm huts to a town of more than 5,000 inhabitants.
Sheikh Khalifa bin Shakhbut (ruled 1833-1845) Repaired and fortified the fort.
Sheikh Saeed bin Tahnoon (ruled 1845-1855) Turned Qasr Al Hosn into a strong two-storied structure.
Sheikh Zayed bin Khalifa (ruled 1855-1909) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further to reflect the emirate's increasing prominence.
Sheikh Shakhbut bin Sultan (ruled 1928-1966) Renovated and enlarged Qasr Al Hosn, adding a decorative arch and two new villas.
Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan (ruled 1966-2004) Moved the royal residence to Al Manhal palace and kept his diwan at Qasr Al Hosn.
Sources: Jayanti Maitra, www.adach.ae
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
EXPATS
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THE%20SWIMMERS
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BUNDESLIGA FIXTURES
Saturday, May 16 (kick-offs UAE time)
Borussia Dortmund v Schalke (4.30pm)
RB Leipzig v Freiburg (4.30pm)
Hoffenheim v Hertha Berlin (4.30pm)
Fortuna Dusseldorf v Paderborn (4.30pm)
Augsburg v Wolfsburg (4.30pm)
Eintracht Frankfurt v Borussia Monchengladbach (7.30pm)
Sunday, May 17
Cologne v Mainz (4.30pm),
Union Berlin v Bayern Munich (7pm)
Monday, May 18
Werder Bremen v Bayer Leverkusen (9.30pm)
