ScriptLookup

Arabic

العربية
ar

Arabic (العربية) is a Afro-Asiatic language . It is written using the Arabic script. Its BCP 47 language code is ar.

Arabic (العربية, al-ʿarabiyya) is a Semitic language and the liturgical language of Islam, used in the Quran. It is the official language of 26 countries and is spoken by over 400 million people across the Arab world.

Modern Standard Arabic (Fusha) is used in writing, formal speech, education, and media, while dozens of regional dialects are used in everyday speech. Arabic is written right-to-left in the Arabic script, which is a cursive abjad (consonant alphabet). Arabic has deeply influenced Persian, Urdu, Turkish, and many African languages through Islamic scholarship and trade.

Writing Systems Used for Arabic

Arabic
العربية
Primary
مرحبا بالعالم
RTL Arab

Frequently Asked Questions

What alphabet or script does Arabic use?
Arabic is written using the Arabic script (ISO 15924 code: Arab). Arabic is a right-to-left script.
What direction is Arabic written?
Arabic is written Right-to-left. Text begins on the right side of the page and reads toward the left.
What language family does Arabic belong to?
Arabic belongs to the Afro-Asiatic language family. It is written with the Arabic script.
What is the language code for Arabic?
The BCP 47 language code for Arabic is "ar". This code is used in software, web standards (the HTML lang attribute), and internationalization contexts.

Language Facts

BCP 47 Code
ar
ISO 639-3
ara
Status
living
Scope
macrolanguage
Language Family
Afro-Asiatic
Scripts
1
Primary Script
Arabic

Other Arabic Languages

Algerian Arabic Bakhtiari Baluchi Beja Brahui Central Kurdish Comorian Egyptian Arabic Gilaki Hausa Kashmiri Kazakh Khowar Kyrgyz Malay Mazanderani Moroccan Arabic Najdi Arabic Northern Luri Pashto

Data sourced from Unicode CLDR and ISO 639-3. Last updated April 20, 2026.