Best place to learn Arabic?
 

What country is best for an American to learn Arabic in an immersion setting? Of course, things like safety and political stability are important. I was thinking Turkey...

They speak Turkish in Turkey, not Arabic, so you're not going to find the immersion setting you're looking for (or at least not any more than you'd find taking Arabic in New York City).

With one or two exceptions, I don't think you should let concerns about security/political stability influence your choice of an Arabic immersion course in a country to speaks Arabic. Frankly, in countries like Morocco, Egypt and Jordan (some of the countries that have Arabic programmes and that are also reputed to present security concerns), you face a significantly greater risk every day in your hometown of being in a car accident or being hit by a car as a pedestrian. The exceptions (countries that have Arabic language programmes but that do present, in my view, some risks in terms of security and political stability) are Syria and Lebanon.

Probably the safest place you could go that has a well-established programme is Al Ain, in the United Arab Emirates. Have a look at the information at http://www.amerispan.com/language_sc...es/Al_Ain/3610 Al Ain is a moderately sized city, about 100 miles from Dubai, on the border with Oman. The programme offerings are relatively limited, but they do have a summer school option.

Oman would be another great choice. My husband and I visited there last spring and we felt it is the safest place we've ever been to in our entire lives (including the small towns I grew up in in Canada). It felt so safe, we picked up hitchhikers (and they were very nice young men, too, exceptionally polite and friendly) ... However, I haven't been able to find any information on immersion programmes in Oman.

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ttt

I know this is an old thread, but Egypt has the most options (e.g., AUC programs). Important to consider, though, whether you want to learn the standard written language (fusha) or if you want to learn to speak a dialect. There are also programs in Jordan, Lebanon and Palestine that are excellent if the interest is in fusha with Levantine dialect. I'm not sure I would ever take an Arabic course in Morocco as the dialect and vocabulary are different.

I would go with Egypt as well. It is approximately in the middle of the Arabic speaking countries and is also the centre of the Arab film industry so if you learn Egyptian Arabic, you will (probably) be understood in other Arab countries. Personally I would definitely learn street Arabic - unless you're a scholar who wants to be fluent and read and write texts.
http://www.jeremytaylor.eu/egypt_1.html