Time for some Iraqi

One of the more useful Arabic dialects nowadays is the Iraqi dialect (especially for military linguists).  But where is a good place to start picking it up?  Just like with any other language, an understanding of the culture is essential if you want to really become proficient in Iraqi.  Start by learning more about Iraqi culture here.  Once you're ready for the actual language, it's a good idea to get a book on Iraqi dialect for easy reference.  Here are a few of the books that I'd recommend:

Modern Iraqi Arabic With Mp3 Files: A Textbook (Arabic Edition) by Yasin M. Al-Khalesi




 

A BASIC COURSE IN IRAQI ARABIC with MP3 Audio Files (Georgetown Classics in Arabic Language and Linguistics) by Wallace M. Erwin

 

 

Iraqi Phrasebook : The Complete Language Guide for Contemporary Iraq by Yasin Alkalesi 

 

 

 

A Dictionary of Iraqi Arabic: English, Arabic/Arabic, English (Georgetown Classics in Arabic Language and Linguistics) by Beverly E. Clarity, Karl Stowasser, Ronald G. Wolfe, and D. R. Woodhead

 

A Short Reference Grammar of Iraqi Arabic (Georgetown Classics in Arabic Language and Linguistics) by Wallace M. Erwin

If you don't want to purchase one of those or get it from a library, you can always search for basic Iraqi dialect lessons for free online.  Here's one that covers the basics of the dialect.  Reading through the basics before you start to listen to it will help you be able to recognize the new words when you hear them.

When you're ready to listen, try to start with some short clips that aren't too heavy on the dialect, and gradually ease yourself into audio clips of pure dialect.  Good places to look for clips are Iraqi tv stations, as well as a few other language resource sites.  The list below has links to some of my favorites.  I started having no knowledge of Iraqi dialect to a level 2+ on the DLPT V a month later simply by practicing with Iraqi tv shows and phone conversations.

Good Iraqi Links:

Al Baghdadia Tv

Al Sumaria Tv

Ishtar Kurdish Tv

Radio Dijla

Iraqi Music (A note here: find and learn the lyrics to popular Iraqi songs and get a cd of the songs you learn.  Once you know the lyrics well enough, sing along with the songs! You'll notice a marked improvement in your pronunciation, which may not get too much practice otherwise, unless you're speaking to natives on a daily basis.)

Native phone conversations

Iraqi multimedia website

Hopefully that many links will keep you busy for a while.  Once you've grown bored of watching the same Iraqi shows over and over (although I don't see that happening, since they are updated pretty frequently), try creating lessons for yourself using the clips.  Forcing yourself to pull the clips apart to make vocabulary lists is a great way to ingrain those tough words in your mind.  Also, try to find a distinct grammar topic in the clip, and try to write a short description of the grammar and its usage.  This will really get your mind focused on the minute details of the language, which may be a bit dry, but will improve your understanding and you'll be glad you did it later on.  When you really think you've got the hang of Iraqi, try transcribing the videos you liked the most, and then translate them into English.  If you reach the point where you can do all of that with no problem, you might as well take the Iraqi DLPT and get yourself a job as an Iraqi linguist!