Iraqi Dialect Orientation Course

(New! - Electronic Version)
This course presumes a rudimentary knowledge of Arabic, and is designed to supplement existing texts. Lesson 1 stresses pronunciation and Iraqi dialect sounds; thereafter Lessons 2 through 11 are grouped by topic. Typical situations include greetings, use of courtesy phrases, expressions of time and weather, and similar topics. Originally produced by the Defense Language Institute for the Persian Gulf War, it is now published by Lucas Language and distributed by Multilingual Books, and comes with a 117 page text and four audio CDs, all for $69.00. 

And we are now pleased to offer an electronic CD-ROM version of the course, with an Adobe PDF of the text and MP3 audio files of the audio CDs, all on one CD-ROM for $39!

MP3 Sample     -     Contents     -     Pricing

Iraqi Dialect Orientation Course

The Iraqi Arabic Dialect Orientation Course was designed to meet the immediate needs of Operation Desert Shield and to supplement already existing Arabic materials. The intended audience for this course includes both non-Modern Standard Arabic linguists and Modern Standard Arabic graduates who are unfamiliar with the Iraqi dialect, and presumes a rudimentary understanding of Arabic. The package includes four CDs and a 117 page text.

The course consists of eleven lessons: The first lesson focuses on pronunciation and an introduction of Iraqi dialect sounds; lessons two through eleven are designed around selected topic areas which highlight common situations one might expect to encounter. Typical situations include greetings, use of courtesy phrases, expressions of time and weather, and similar topics. These lessons illustrate these topics using relevant dialogues, with an emphasis on the key vocabulary related to that topic.

Lessons consist of text and audio tape support. Usually a student can master each lesson in two to three hours. The text also makes it possible for instructors to present a crash course at remote locations. It was not the intent to present an exhaustive or complete Arabic grammar or vocabulary list, instead, the course must be viewed as an effort to teach students to begin to read Arabic. Scripts are included as a reference only for instructors and Modern Standard Arabic graduates.

The recommended way to use the course is as follows:

• 1. Listen to the audio as much as possible.

• 2. Repeat after the audio while listening to it.

• 3. Practice with a friend or a speaker of the language as often as possible.

• 4. Memorize words, phrases and sentence patterns.

• 5. Study the Grammar Charts and examples given, then substitute other verbs and nouns and fit them into the same patterns.

Here is an MP3 Sample for the Iraqi Dialect Orientation Course. MP3 is a common sound format for the compression of CD quality audio, and there are many freeware and commercial players downloadable from the Internet, including current versions of the Windows Media Player.

Pricing