Dialects of Saudi Arabia

There are several different varieties of Arabic spoken in the Arabian Peninsula, and it's commonly stated that only three distinct dialects exist in Saudi Arabia, each corresponding to a different geographical region of what is one of the largest countries in the world. However, there are numerous other dialects, accents, and subdialects, some of which are very distinct. This diversity is often overlooked, and hard to fully capture in a single video. However, in this video, in addition to two of the better-known dialects (Hejazi and Najdi), we also feature a unique one from the southwestern part of Saudi Arabia that appears like a different language and is somewhat unknown to many Saudis. We were also supposed to have someone from the Eastern region as well, but something happened last minute and he was not able to join us. We definitely plan to feature more accent and dialects in the future.

If you speak a language that has not been featured on our channel and would like to participate in a future video, and/or if you have any suggestions or feedback, please follow and message on Instagram:   / bahadoralast  

I just want to mention for non-Arabic speakers, here is the fully translated portion of Hannan's paragraph: "We were gathered at my place this past Eid morning. I thought I would do good and make Masabeeb for my international friend. I handed her the honey to wipe down she came back with an empty sparkling clean jar. I asked her, where is the honey what did you do with it? It turns out she emptied it in the sink. Pure wild honey gone.. It’s true what they say, one who doesn’t know an eagle may cook it."

Hijazi (حجازي) is primarily spoken along the coast of the Red Sea (Mecca, Jeddah, Medina, Yanbu, etc.)

Najdi (نجدية) is primarily spoken in the center of Saudi Arabia, such as in Riyadh, the Ḥa'il Province (منطقة حائل), and among other places in the Rub' al-Khali (ربع الخالی) and Najran (نجران), as well as part of Syria, Iraq, and Jordan.

Southwestern dialects of Saudi Arabia have different subdialects and accent, and geographically range from approximately Al Bahah (الباحة) to the north, and include, among other regions, Asir (عسير) and Jizan (جيزان).

Arabic is a Central Semitic language and has official status in Algeria, Bahrain, Comoros, Chad, Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Oman, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Somalia, Syria, Tanzania (Zanzibar), Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. Arabic is also the liturgical language of Islam. However, there are many varieties (dialects) of Arabic, which at times can vary drastically from the Modern Standard Arabic (Fus'ha).