In Tunisia, people speak either Arabic or French… but mostly Tunisian Arabic (which is NOT the same as Standard Arabic). In French you can get by, especially in the cities like Tunis, Sousse, and Hammamet. But if you speak only English… it’ll be hard. If you want to function well, you’ll have to learn at least some Tunisian Arabic.

First: Realize that if your goal is to talk to people, you most likely do not want to learn Modern Standard Arabic (MSA). 

Tunisian locals will understand and read MSA, but will not use it to speak with family, friends, coworkers, people on the street, etc. If you ask a question to someone in MSA, they will probably answer in Tunisian Arabic. 

However, if you only want to read Arabic, MSA is what you need, because all books are written in MSA. In that case, you should probably go find another course than this one. 

Second: Choose the dialect that you want to learn. 

This will highly depend on where you want to go. Each country and region has its own dialect, and people using different dialects won’t necessarily be able to understand each other. For example, most Arabic-speakers will understand the Egyptian dialect, but few would understand the Moroccan dialect. 

Note: This course is specifically aimed toward those who want to go to Tunisia and speak with Tunisians. If that’s not you, you would benefit more from a different course.

Third: Know that learning a dialect is easier than learning Modern Standard Arabic.

Pronunciation is still a challenge, but still definitely possible!

If you are still struggling to use the language on a day-to-day basis, you will benefit from this course. The more advanced and comfortable you are, the less useful it will be.

However, even though I was pretty fluent when I built the course, I strengthened my mastery of the language by taking it apart and being exposed to hours of natives speaking their language in a lab context.

Absolutely. The weaknesses of the GPA are offset by this course. For example, you’ll get to read the words you hear, understand the grammar and have sounds explained to you. This course was designed with people who are frustrated with GPA in mind.

Yes and yes. Our program is very different. First, Rosetta Stone and Duolingo offer courses of Modern Standard Arabic (MSA), which, as said above, is not a language useful in daily life and interactions. 

Moreover, while Duolingo is fun and its animations are sleek, it stays on the surface. It doesn’t give a solid foundation for those who want to take their language skills to the next level. And that specifically is the purpose of this course: to jumpstart your journey of learning Tunisian Arabic.

You’ll quickly run out of free options when learning Tunisian Arabic. Competitors offering online tutoring typically charge between $700 and $1,000 for their introductory sections.

It’s much more efficient and cost-effective to learn the basics on your own, as this is the least cost-effective period of language learning if you’re working one-on-one with someone. The advantage of a tutor is tailored lessons, which is not as relevant in the beginning.

Derja is a nickname for the dialect of Arabic spoken in Tunisia. It can also be called “Tounsi”, or simply “Tunisian”.

If you remain primarily in the touristic areas, you will probably be fine with French or English. However, knowing a bit of the language might help you win the favor of Tunisians more easily and get you out of tough situations as well.

There are two extremes in language learning:

1) Translation and grammar method. This is what you are probably familiar with. You start with something you want to say in English, then are taught how to say it in another language.

2) Total immersion that tries to replicate how children learn. That means skipping on grammar, rules, and explanations.

The first one may make you a good reader, but won’t make you fluent. It is geared towards deciphering the language, not producing it. Also, it’s boring. 

The second one is interesting because we all know that children learn languages fast, right? But some concepts are made so much easier to understand when they are explained. (For example, there is no verb “to be” in Arabic. How do you get around that? You’ll have a better time trying to understand our explanations than trying to figure out the pattern by yourself.)

We take the best of both approaches, by simulating immersion while giving you short explanations of key concepts to accelerate your understanding of the language. 

Our goal is to help you notice patterns by placing you in a simple context. 

We offer simple and clear explanations of grammar, sounds, and patterns in your language and then use colorful 2D animations videos for you to start absorbing the language. You will also get a chance to practice what you are learning through retainable and interactive videos.

No. Tunisian Arabic is somewhat intelligible for those who speak Moroccan or Algerian Arabic. However, it will not be intelligible for those who speak Levantine (Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, Israel, and Turkey) or Egyptian Arabic. However, any dialect is a great place to start as you cannot learn one type of Arabic that will enable you to understand and speak to ALL Arabic speakers. Just pick a dialect that is interesting or one you can practice with your friends.

We can divide Arabic dialects into two main groups: Maghrebi (Western) Arabic and Mashriqi (Eastern) Arabic. 

Maghrebi Arabic is prevalent in North Africa, including Tunisia, Morocco, Algeria, Libya, Mauritania, and Western Sahara. Mashriqi Arabic is spoken elsewhere and can be further divided into sub-groups such as Egyptian Arabic, Levantine Arabic, Peninsular Gulf Arabic, and Peninsular Arabic. 

These dialects vary in terms of vocabulary, pronunciation, and sometimes grammar. That being said, speakers within the Mashriqi group can typically understand each other, especially when their accents are clean and they are from neighboring countries.

Learn more: discoverdiscomfort.com; Wikipedia

Well, you can, but you shouldn’t. If someone from a different country is moving to an English-speaking country, would you recommend they learn Latin or Shakespearean English? 

Although an average English-speaker could understand some Shakespearean English, it would be very impractical in day-to-day life, to say the least.

The analogy is not perfect, but you understand. It’s a better idea to use the local dialect.

Ideally, it’d be better for you to learn the dialect you need. If you are moving to Egypt, you should learn the language they speak there, not somewhere else.

However, nothing you learn will be completely lost, because many concepts common to all Arabic dialects are simply absent from English.

Yes.

You will acquire a strong foundation for your journey to fluency.

More specifically, you will master the building blocks of the language and learn how to describe and compare objects, explain simple situations, ask basic questions, and introduce yourself.

You need nothing except the willingness to learn!

Yes! Even though this course wasn’t extensively tested on children, it was created with them in mind. Many people start learning Tunisian Arabic and struggle to have their kids learn it.

My children, between the age of 5 and 10, were easily drawn to the colourful animations and successfully learned words with the course. It’s a great way to make their learning experience enjoyable.

Unlike some of our competitors, we encourage you to find a tutor and practice with them. DerjaPossible is not a replacement for having actual conversations with native speakers.

If you need a tutor, online or in person, send a message through the contact form and we’ll see if we can set up something, free of charge.

However, getting the foundations first will save you wasted time and money paying someone by the hour to teach you the basics. That’s why we suggest you do this course first. Then, you can move on to tutoring with more confidence.