Face-to-face
Iraqi Arabic interpreters on site for appointments, hearings and meetings.
Arabic dialects · dialect
Iraqi Arabic interpreting and translation
Iraqi Arabic, also called Mesopotamian Arabic, is the everyday Arabic of central and southern Iraq. It has two main dialect groups, and we match interpreters by region for legal, medical and immigration work.
In its own words
عراقي
- Script
- Arabic
- Direction
- Right to left
- ISO 639-3
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Iraqi Arabic is spoken in Baghdad, central and southern Iraq, Anbar and Mosul, and in neighbouring areas: the Euphrates valley in eastern Syria, Khuzestan in south-western Iran and parts of south-eastern Turkey. Two groups are distinguished by the word for 'I said'. Gelet dialects, spoken in Baghdad by the Muslim majority and across central and southern Iraq, are linked to Bedouin speech. Qeltu dialects are spoken in the north, notably Mosul (Moslawi), and historically by Christian and Jewish communities in Baghdad. Mesopotamian Arabic of the south and centre and the North Mesopotamian Arabic of Mosul are often treated separately.
Southern Iraqi speech, around Basra, shares features with Gulf Arabic. Iraqi Arabic has borrowed from Farsi, Turkish, Aramaic, Kurdish and English.
Iraq is multilingual. Kurdish is an official language alongside Arabic and is the language people use in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq; Turkmen, Syriac (Neo-Aramaic) and Armenian are also spoken. A person from Iraq may need a Kurdish, Turkmen or Neo-Aramaic interpreter rather than an Arabic one.
- Main areas: Iraq
- Also used: Syria (Deir ez-Zor), Iran (Khuzestan)
- Other regions
Communities abroad are not shown. Point to an area to see its name.
How we help
Iraqi Arabic services
Video (VRI)
Secure video interpreting when people are in different places.
Telephone, 24/7
Telephone interpreting 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
Certified translation
Certified Iraqi Arabic translation accepted by UK authorities.
SILA Linguists®
Iraqi Arabic interpreters, translators and LADO from SILA Linguists®
Iraqi Arabic is spoken in Baghdad, central and southern Iraq, Anbar and Mosul, and in the Euphrates valley of eastern Syria, Iran's Khuzestan and parts of south-eastern Turkey. Gelet dialects dominate Baghdad and the south, while Qeltu dialects, such as Moslawi, are heard in Mosul. SILA Linguists® provides Iraqi Arabic interpreters, translators and transcribers to asylum and immigration services, courts, police, healthcare providers and resettlement teams in Britain, in the United States and Canada, and in Australia and New Zealand. Iraq is multilingual: people in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq communicate in Kurdish, so for clients from Erbil, Sulaymaniyah, Duhok or Halabja we book a Sorani or Badini interpreter, and we also check whether a client would be better served in Turkmen or Neo-Aramaic.
Iraqi Arabic interpreting matched to region
An interpreter from Baghdad or the south is well understood by most Iraqis, while someone from Mosul may be better served by an interpreter familiar with Moslawi speech. Basra speech shares features with Gulf Arabic. We take all this into account when we book an Iraqi Arabic interpreter for an asylum interview, a police interview, a criminal trial or a psychiatric assessment.
Face-to-face interpreting covers Home Office interviews, tribunals, police stations, courts, hospitals, mental health services and resettlement casework. Phone interpreting is there for out-of-hours police calls and urgent ward rounds alike, and video sessions run on the SILA Linguists® app or the client's own platform. Same-gender interpreters are often requested for healthcare and sensitive interviews, and we arrange them on request.
Translating Iraqi documents
Federal Iraqi documents are in Modern Standard Arabic, while documents from the Kurdistan Region are usually in Kurdish, and some are bilingual Kurdish and Arabic. Document formats have changed over the years, including the move to the unified national card, and our translators know the older and newer formats and their terminology.
We translate national ID cards, civil status records, nationality certificates, marriage contracts, court judgments, police reports, school certificates and medical records. Our certified translations are signed as accurate and accepted by UK authorities for Home Office, court, university and employment purposes, and we keep the spelling of names consistent with passports and existing records.
Iraqi Arabic transcription and LADO
We transcribe Iraqi Arabic recordings, from police interviews to voice notes and video evidence, time-coding each passage and adding English alongside, and marking any Kurdish, Turkmen or English. SILA Linguists® also commissions LADO and nationality assessment reports, which can help where Iraqi, Syrian or Iranian origin is disputed.
Where we can help in Iraqi Arabic
Our vetted, trained and qualified Iraqi Arabic linguists can support asylum and immigration services, courts and police, solicitors, NHS trusts and mental health services, and resettlement and community services. Our Iraqi Arabic coordinators keep each case together, linguists are vetted and sign non-disclosure agreements, and personal data is treated in line with UK GDPR.
Good to know
Working with Iraqi Arabic
Interpreting
- Tell us where in Iraq the person is from. An interpreter from Baghdad or the south will be well understood by most Iraqis, while someone from Mosul or other northern areas may be better served by an interpreter familiar with Moslawi speech.
- Check the person's preferred language before booking. People from the Kurdistan Region, including Erbil, Sulaymaniyah, Halabja and Duhok, communicate in Kurdish and need a Sorani or Badini interpreter, and Iraqi Turkmen or Christians may prefer their own language.
- Same-gender interpreters are often preferred for healthcare and sensitive interviews.
- We provide LADO for Iraqi Arabic speakers, and interpreters work face to face, by video or by telephone.
Translation
- Federal Iraqi official documents are in Modern Standard Arabic. Documents from the Kurdistan Region are usually in Kurdish, and some are bilingual Kurdish and Arabic. We provide certified translations of Iraqi national ID cards, civil status records, certificates and court documents, accepted by UK authorities such as the Home Office, courts and universities, and by international bodies.
- Iraqi documents have changed format over the years, including the move to the unified national card. Translators familiar with Iraqi documents handle these formats and the terminology consistently.
Related languages
Iraqi Arabic and its neighbours
Choose a language to see its page. Getting the right variety matters: tell us the region or dialect if you know it.
Where Iraqi Arabic is often needed
- Asylum and immigration
- LADO and nationality assessment
- Courts and police
- Healthcare and mental health
- Resettlement and community services
Explore more arabic dialects or see all languages A to Z.
Get in touch
Need a Iraqi Arabic interpreter or translator?
Our bookings team will confirm the details with you and arrange the right linguist. Have the language (and dialect, if you know it), the type of assignment and the date ready.