The status of the Arabic language today is subject to dispute about holding onto our heritage and identity, or engaging with the modern world and evolving. Therefore the Arabic language stands out in these discussions as the most deep-rooted element of our identity as well as the most important tool for interaction in Arabic societies on the one hand; and as a method to engage in knowledge and create modern awareness and a promising future on the other.

Within this vision comes the report: "The Report on the Status and Future of the Arabic Language", an attempt to contribute and direct the debate towards an objective vision of the Arabic language in its societies and its role in these societies, starting from field studies to building monitoring plans and strategies that shed a light on possible capabilities and developing them.

This report was launched by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates, and ruler of the Emirate of Dubai, through his directive issued on the Global Day of the Arabic Language in December 2018 to set the framework establishing the Arabic language as a language of science, knowledge, and identity.

H.E. Ms. Noura bint Mohammed Al Kaabi Minister of Culture and Youth in the United Arab Emirates considers this report a cornerstone for the national agenda on the Arabic language, its objectives, and its priorities connected to the UAE's centennial. This launchpoint makes the report a civilizational pillar in that it comes at a crucial time that Arab society and their language are living through, a watershed historical moment in which technology is holding the reins to the future.

It is no longer acceptable that the Arabic language would not be present in service of its communities and in contributing to building a heritage in the humanities. Except, this moment still witnesses a lack of interaction with the Arabic language and a dearth of knowledge production, which is what has confined it to the scale of historical existence and trapped it to its past glories when it participated in cross cultural knowledge exchange and cohabitation.

The reality is that today we have passed this fruitful stage and have produced Arab linguistic minds that are occupied with lamenting over a lost glorious past, when it would have been better for these minds to understand the crisis it faced and start to build a modern version of their people and communities. This charged atmosphere has created a troubled relationship between the Arabic language and its speakers who have renounced its capabilities as a production tool to open knowledge channels and connections, obliging Arab societies subject to this reality to adopt a language not their own to seek out this knowledge and face the economic, political, social, and cultural consequences of this choice.

If we looked at the current status, we would find the impact of this crisis reflects on all aspects of life in Arab society, as most Arab nations still perform their scientific research and education with minimal to no interaction with the Arabic language, and despite the piling on of Arab government resolutions and summit reports, there has been no success from the Arabic scientific establishment initiatives except in a very few cases and only relatively when considered in legislative, organizational, or individual experience terms.

The Arabic language is still less viable in the public sphere and in the media, where the majority of audiovisual media has seen foreign language creep in and take root over the Arabic language in both its standard and spoken forms. School curriculums are still overly modular and packages in traditional frameworks that do not allow its students to gain the aptitude or flexibility in its use, nor are they able to stay in line with the current needs of the age with its technological and knowledge updates. Additionally, our societies continue to borrow non-Arabic terminology in order to provide services to their people.

At the same time, and despite the bitterness of this picture, this current status holds within the seeds of revival; the Arabic language, in both its traditional and spoken forms is still the language of social interaction, as well as the language of existential communication among members of Arab communities. It is a language handed down from generation to generation, held onto, identified with, and gathered around for social cohesion.

In addition, and as revealed in this report, there is a significant number of decision makers and elite knowledge productions among members of the community who are greatly aware of the necessity of reviving the Arabic language, and applying it to knowledge-based communities to answer staggered requirements.

We confidently say on the heels of this report that we must launch from this current status with a mind-set that examines the various signs of disease, diagnoses it properly, and analyzes its variables in order to search for possible treatments through the various points of light be they few or dim.

This report is not directed to a specific elite within Arab communities, but is in fact presenting its wide set of variables so it can contribute in building a comprehensive picture about the status of the Arabic language, and allow for research in light of that for ways to revive the language and establish it in service of its communities.