Arabic and Linguistics
Arabic and linguistics is a combination that brings together one of the world's most significant and widely spoken languages with the systematic scientific study of language itself. Arabic is the liturgical language of Islam, the official language of more than twenty countries, and a living medium of literature, journalism, and political discourse across the Arab world and beyond. Linguistics provides the theoretical framework for understanding how languages are structured, how they are acquired, how they vary across communities and time, and what the diversity of human languages tells us about the nature of the mind.
This three-year, full-time programme at the University of Westminster includes a placement year and a year abroad, both of which provide significant opportunities to develop professionally and to engage with Arabic language and culture in an immersive context. The year abroad is typically spent in an Arabic-speaking country, which is transformative for language acquisition and cultural understanding. You will develop your Arabic across all four skills to a professional level, while also studying the scientific dimensions of language structure, acquisition, sociolinguistics, and the relationship between language and thought.
The combination is particularly well suited to those who are drawn to understanding language as both a specific cultural phenomenon and a universal human capacity.
Graduates of Arabic and linguistics programmes are well placed for careers in diplomacy, international organisations, journalism, translation and interpreting, language teaching, the foreign service, intelligence and security services, and businesses with significant operations in Arab-speaking markets. The linguistics dimension also supports careers in language technology, applied linguistics, and language education research. Further postgraduate study in Arabic studies, linguistics, applied linguistics, or area studies is a natural extension for those who wish to develop specialist expertise.