Arab studies class arranges desk in a circle while listening to a discussion led by Khaled Khalifa, a Syrian screenwriter and novelist

Arab Studies Major and Minor

  1. Home
  2. Academic Departments
  3. Arab Studies
  4. Arab Studies Major and Minor
Academic Departments

Arab Studies at Davidson

The Arab Studies Department adheres to the philosophy that the study of the Arabic language cannot be separated from the study of the rich Arabic culture.

Elementary and Intermediate Arab Studies courses, which are highly interactive, focus on giving students a strong foundation in the communicative skills of listening, speaking, reading, and writing.

Arab Studies Minor

Through our department, students can obtain a minor in Arab Studies. 

Arab Studies Interdisciplinary Major

Please review the catalog for more information on the Arab Studies major.

Courses You Might Take

ARB 101
Elementary Arabic

Elementary Arabic (Modern Standard Arabic, MSA), is designed for students with no previous exposure to the language. There is a focus on gaining a strong foundation in the communicative skills of listening and speaking, as well as reading and writing. While the concentration is on Classical Arabic, there will be exposure to dialect through proverbs and music. Student participation and group activities encouraging conversation are vital to the course.

ARB 240
Accelerated Persian for Arabic Speakers

Accelerated Persian for Arabic Speakers is a one semester course for students who have already completed ARB 101. Because the Persian and Arabic languages share the same alphabet, students will be introduced to the few additional letters present in Persian, quickly followed by sentence structure, verb conjugation, and vocabulary building. 

ARB 326
Politically Critical Parodies Past and Present

By subtly deconstructing regime narratives, Syrian political parodies have played a vital role in undermining the Asad regime while operating within the framework of government co-optation. In this course, we will examine televised theatrical productions of plays, and multi-sketch comedies, and discuss the role of political parodies during an uprising, and the role of the artist in general when it comes to revolution. 

Related Programs

Interested in Arab Studies at Davidson?