afb ISO 639
خليجي (Khaliji) Autonyms
Arabic, Gulf Spoken
Visualizations
A language of Kuwait
- ISO 639
- afb
- Autonym
- خليجي (Khaliji)
- Population
- 2,300,000 in Kuwait (2017). Total users in all countries: 10,656,700.
- Location
- Widepread, except scattered in Al Jahra’ governorate.
- Language Maps
- Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates, Iraq, Oman
- Language Status
- 3 (Wider communication). De facto national working language, widely used in public administration. Originated from the speakers of Najdi Arabic who migrated to Kuwait in the 18th century; emerged as a mixture of various different dialects. Became widely spoken around 1914. Used in everyday life, in media, and in business.
- Classification
- Afro-Asiatic, Semitic, Central, South, Arabic
- Dialects
- Kuwaiti Hadari Arabic, Kuwaiti Bedouin Arabic. A member of macrolanguage Arabic [ara].
- Language Development
- Dictionary. Grammar. Texts.
- Writing
- Arabic script, Naskh variant [Arab].
- Other Comments
- Muslim.
- Language Resources
- OLAC resources in and about Arabic, Gulf Spoken
Also Spoken in
- Location
- Widespread.
- Language Status
- 3 (Wider communication)
- Other Comments
- Non-indigenous. Muslim. View other languages of United Arab Emirates
Language Name
Arabic, Gulf Spoken
User Population
3,710,000 in United Arab Emirates (2020).
- Location
- Widespread.
- Dialects
- Bahraini Gulf Arabic.
- Language Status
- 6a (Vigorous)
- Language Use
- Used as L2 by Baharna Spoken Arabic [abv].
- Other Comments
- Non-indigenous. Used primarily by the Sunni population, which is largely of Bedouin descent (Bassiouney 2009). Muslim, Christian. View other languages of Bahrain
Language Name
Arabic, Gulf Spoken
User Population
72,500 in Bahrain (2019).
- Language Status
- Unestablished
- Other Comments
- Non-indigenous. View other languages of Canada
Language Name
Arabic, Gulf Spoken
User Population
46,100 in Canada (2016). Total Arabic speakers in Canada: 420,000 (2016 census).
- Location
- Scattered.
- Language Status
- 5 (Dispersed)
- Other Comments
- Non-indigenous. View other languages of Egypt
Language Name
Arabic, Gulf Spoken
User Population
1,610,000 in Egypt (2019).
- Location
- Al Basrah governorate: south of Basrah city, near Persian Gulf.
- Dialects
- Zubair-Faau Arabic.
- Language Status
- 6a (Vigorous) View other languages of Iraq
Language Name
Arabic, Gulf Spoken
User Population
79,000 in Iraq (2020).
- Location
- Hormozgan province and nearby Persian gulf islands; also Bushehr, Fars, Kerman, and Yazd provinces.
- Dialects
- Al-Hasâ, Khamseh.
- Language Status
- 6a (Vigorous)
- Language Use
- The largest of 5 Khamseh clans uses Iranian Persian [pes] as L1. Also use Iranian Persian [pes]. Used as L2 by Lari [lrl].
- Language Development
- Literacy rate in L2: High in Persian [pes].
- Other Comments
- Non-indigenous. View other languages of Iran
Language Name
Arabic, Gulf Spoken
User Population
275,000 in Iran (2019).
- Location
- Widespread.
- Language Status
- 5 (Dispersed)
- Language Use
- Used as L2 by Kumzari [zum].
- Other Comments
- Non-indigenous. Muslim. View other languages of Oman
Language Name
Arabic, Gulf Spoken
User Population
788,000 in Oman (2020).
- Location
- Widespread.
- Dialects
- North Qatari Arabic, South Qatari Arabic.
- Language Status
- 3 (Wider communication)
- Other Comments
- Muslim. View other languages of Qatar
Language Name
Arabic, Gulf Spoken
User Population
788,000 in Qatar (2019).
- Location
- Eastern Province and Najran region: southeast Kuwait border inland, east to Persian Gulf north of Al Damman; south, Yeman and Oman borders.
- Dialects
- Al-Hasaa.
- Language Status
- 6a (Vigorous) View other languages of Saudi Arabia
Language Name
Arabic, Gulf Spoken
User Population
962,000 in Saudi Arabia (2018), based on ethnicity.
- Language Status
- Unestablished
- Other Comments
- Non-indigenous. View other languages of United States
Language Name
Arabic, Gulf Spoken
User Population
10,200 in United States (2015). Total Arabic speakers in the United States: 924,000 (2015 census).
- Location
- Widespread.
- Language Status
- 6a (Vigorous)
- Other Comments
- Non-indigenous. View other languages of Yemen
Language Name
Arabic, Gulf Spoken
User Population
15,900 in Yemen (2020).
