Katz, EdIsmail, Reedwaan2021-04-162024-05-282021-04-162024-05-281995https://hdl.handle.net/10566/15717Magister Philosophiae - MPhilThe Arabic language is a means by which the culture, beliefs and myths of Arabic speaking communities in the world can be understood. The ability to communicate, read and write in the Arabic language, can be used to research, read and write about the customs, traditions, folklore, habits, poetry, music, history and literature of the people where Arabic is considered the mother tongue The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa (act 200 of 1993) states that 11 every person shall have the right to use the language and to participate in the cultural life of his or her choice" (p 16 (31)). The Constitution further states that " no person shall be unfairly discriminated against, directly or indirectly, and, without derogating from the The existence, respect and promotion of the Arabic language has been enshrined in the South African Constitution. Arabic is recognised as a language used by communities in South Africa even though it is mainly used for religious and ceremonial functions at this point in time. In 1993 I started teaching at Cravenby Secondary School, (Sub. A to Std. 10). During that year I did not teach the Arabic language. I, however, enquired from teachers regarding their teaching approach of the Arabic language. I also questioned the pupils about their opinion towards the language and the approach used by teachers. The overwhelming response by the pupils was that they had to learn the meaning of words in isolation and out of context.enArabic languageQur 'anCulturesFolkloreCustomsTraditionsHabitsPoetryMusicHistory and literatureUniversity of the Western Cape