Fifteen Arabic dialects, from the Maghreb to the Gulf
Modern Standard Arabic is the language of writing and broadcasting, but people speak their own dialect at home, at the doctor's and in a police interview. We cover Moroccan, Algerian, Tunisian, Libyan and wider Maghrebi Arabic, Hassaniya from Mauritania and Western Sahara, Egyptian, Sudanese and Chadian Arabic, Levantine Arabic from Syria, Lebanon, Jordan and Palestine, Iraqi Arabic, and the Arabian Peninsula varieties: Gulf, Najdi, Hejazi and Yemeni Arabic.
A Sudanese refugee in London, a Syrian family in Berlin, a Moroccan student in Montreal or an Iraqi engineer in Sydney each deserves an interpreter who understands them without effort. That is why SILA Linguists® confirms the dialect before any booking is assigned.
The right dialect, whatever the situation
Our Arabic dialect interpreters work face-to-face in courts, police stations, hospitals and schools. Telephone interpreting is available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, and video interpreting through our app or your platform connects you with an Iraqi or Sudanese Arabic interpreter wherever you are. For conferences and business meetings with partners in the Gulf or North Africa we provide consecutive, simultaneous and RSI interpreting, plus community interpreting and escort interpreting for travel. Female or male interpreters are available on request, which often matters in medical examinations and family interviews.
Translation, transcription and origin analysis
Official documents are written in Standard Arabic, yet names, places and terms vary from country to country. Our translators produce certified translations of birth certificates, family books, diplomas and court rulings, each with a signed statement of accuracy accepted by UK authorities. For dialect recordings we provide time-stamped transcription followed by translation, as well as subtitling.
A speaker's dialect often reveals where they grew up, so our LADO language analysis and nationality assessments in Arabic are prepared for asylum procedures.
Who our Arabic dialect linguists can support
Our vetted, trained and qualified Arabic interpreters can support solicitors, courts, police, immigration teams, the NHS, mental health services, social services and housing departments. We also localise websites and apps for banks, insurers and energy companies active in the Middle East. Choosing SILA Linguists® means a dedicated project team, vetted linguists and confidentiality backed by NDAs and UK GDPR.
