

Arabic / Year 3 and 4 / Understanding / Language variation and change

View on Australian Curriculum website Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority
Curriculum content descriptions

Recognise that languages change over time and influence one another

[Key concepts: language change, influence, exchange; Key processes: observing, identifying, discussing]


  • identifying how Arabic has influenced other languages, for example, Indonesian (Kitab = كتاب, Kursi =كرسي) and Spanish (aceite = زيت), and the number system in English
  • understanding that Arabic, like all languages, is constantly expanding in response to intercultural experiences to include new words and expressions, for example,

    دردشة على الإنترنت

  • recognising that some Arabic words are derived from other languages, such as الفستق , which is borrowed from Greek to mean ‘pistachio’; or قز , which is borrowed from Persian to mean ‘raw silk’
  • understanding that some languages are continuously evolving while others are endangered or being revived, for example, indigenous languages throughout the world, including Aboriginal languages and Torres Strait Islander languages in Australia
General capabilities
  • Literacy Literacy
  • Critical and creative thinking Critical and creative thinking
  • Intercultural understanding Intercultural understanding
Cross-curriculum priorities
ScOT terms

Arabic language,  Language evolution

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