Why are we ashamed of the Egyptian dialect?

A global organization specialized in language statistics and documentation recently published an index ranking the world’s most widely spoken living languages.

Unsurprisingly, Arabic secured fifth place with 335 million speakers, trailing behind English (1.49 billion), Mandarin Chinese (1.18 billion), Hindi (611 million), and Spanish (561 million).

What was really surprising, however, was that the index ranked Egyptian Arabic 15th globally, boasting 118 million speakers.

The organization categorized the Egyptian dialect as a statistically independent language due to its massive demographic footprint, which places it ahead of major global languages like Italian, Turkish, and Korean.

This global classification does not imply that Egyptian Arabic serves as an official language in international forums like the United Nations.

Instead, it signifies that the dialect possesses a cultural weight and reach that extend far beyond Egypt’s geographical borders.

By international standards, any language spoken by over 100 million people automatically qualifies as a major global language.

I am well aware of the historic battle that erupted decades ago—and whose ripples are still felt today—between Modern Standard Arabic (Fusha) and the colloquial dialect (Aamiya).

I also recognize that certain intellectuals, academics, and religious figures view the Egyptian dialect with a sense of disdain, often perceiving it as a threat to, or an assault on, Classical Arabic.

In our cultural sphere, the use of Standard Arabic remains a prerequisite for validating the merit of any intellectual, novelist, or poet. Consequently, those who have historically advocated for the institutional use of the Egyptian dialect, such as the prominent thinker Louis Awad, have frequently been accused of undermining Arab identity.

However, this elevated global ranking achieved by the Egyptian dialect results directly from its widespread reach across the Arab world, driven heavily by Egypt’s soft power in cinema, drama, literature, and media.

Why, then, do we not leverage this status to maximize Egypt’s cultural, technological, and economic capital in a world completely altered from that of the 1930s or 1960s?

Today, language is a major economic asset in addition to being a tool for cultural diplomacy.

For instance, the UK generates nearly $2.5 billion annually from teaching English worldwide. Egypt could establish a genuine, high-yield content industry—akin to the cultural wave spearheaded by South Korea—by expanding the production of series, films, and programs tailored for regional and global streaming platforms, especially given a massive market of 450 million Arabs already receptive to the Egyptian dialect.

Furthermore, Egypt should study the British model of language dissemination by establishing Egyptian cultural centers globally. On the technological front, there is an urgent need to develop advanced data algorithms to train artificial intelligence models using the Egyptian dialect.

This would give local tech firms a distinct competitive edge in the rapidly evolving AI landscape.

The Egyptian dialect is neither an adversary to Modern Standard Arabic nor a detraction from it; Classical Arabic will always remain preserved and safeguarded by the Holy Quran.

However, linguistic evolution is a natural phenomenon, as evidenced by historic European models.

In a world increasingly dominated by technology, there is a premium placed on distinctiveness and exceptionalism. The Egyptian dialect is one of our greatest strategic assets. We should neither be ashamed of it nor wage war against it; on the contrary, we must recognize it as one of the most significant contributions of Egypt and its people.

More importantly, we should capitalize on the fact that this Egyptian creation has been so widely embraced and loved across the Arab world. At a time when our conventional soft power elements are facing challenges, why should we continue to harbor a guilt complex towards our own tongue?

Author’s bio

Abdel Allah Abdel Salam is the managing editor at Al-Ahram newspaper where he writes a daily column titled “New Horizon.”

He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Journalism from the Faculty of Mass Communication, Cairo University (1987).

He began his journalistic career at Al-Wafd newspaper, then moved to the Middle East News Agency before settling at Al-Ahram newspaper in June 1991. He founded the Al-Ahram electronic portal and served as its editor-in-chief from 2010 to 2013.

In 2013, he was the executive editor-in-chief of the Al-Masry Al-Youm website.

Salam also worked as managing editor of the Al Ain (UAE) portal in 2016, and managing editor of the “Al-Watan” (Egyptian) newspaper’s website in 2017.

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