Arabic beginner question

[Mereloshn]

So I'm a long time linguaholic who has studied several languages but now I'm in a situation where it might be in my best interest to learn how to speak Arabic.  I'm living in an area now with a considerable Arabic speaking population and Muslim culture here, and now whenever I'm out in the neighborhood I see and hear people speaking Arabic all the time so I think given my new neighborhood, it would be a good idea to learn some conversational Arabic.  My goal is to be able to speak it and understand it when others speak it, but not necessarily to read or write it.  Which dialect should I select as my new target language?  Something specific or just standard Arabic?  I believe my best bet would be to go for Darija (Moroccan Arabic) because I've identified some very strong Moroccan cultural influence in my new town.  I don't know for sure what form of the language I keep hearing when I'm out though, so I'm unsure how to go about starting this new language project of mine.  Again, my goal is to verbally communicate with the Arabic speaking population where I'm now living.  Any advice from others studying Arabic would be welcome as I'm a beginner with no background in the language and I'm unsure how to begin. 

[宇崎ちゃん]

I've never learnt Arabic myself before, but I know some people who did.
Based on their opinions, it's a good idea to start off with standard Arabic and then focus on the dialect that is the most relevant to you.
And if you can't decide the dialect you want to learn, your safest bet would be Egyptian Arabic, due to the influence in movies and such (just like how American English is the most commonly used variety of English in movies and such).

[Mereloshn]

Yeah I have read that Egyptian is a commonly understood dialect so that's a strong option.  There is no way for me to know for sure what the most common dialect around here is so standard is a logical starting point.  There seem to be ample online resources for learning Standard Arabic too. 

[teeekilicious18]

  On 12/26/2016 at 5:49 AM, Mereloshn said:

So I'm a long time linguaholic who has studied several languages but now I'm in a situation where it might be in my best interest to learn how to speak Arabic.  I'm living in an area now with a considerable Arabic speaking population and Muslim culture here, and now whenever I'm out in the neighborhood I see and hear people speaking Arabic all the time so I think given my new neighborhood, it would be a good idea to learn some conversational Arabic.  My goal is to be able to speak it and understand it when others speak it, but not necessarily to read or write it.  Which dialect should I select as my new target language?  Something specific or just standard Arabic?  I believe my best bet would be to go for Darija (Moroccan Arabic) because I've identified some very strong Moroccan cultural influence in my new town.  I don't know for sure what form of the language I keep hearing when I'm out though, so I'm unsure how to go about starting this new language project of mine.  Again, my goal is to verbally communicate with the Arabic speaking population where I'm now living.  Any advice from others studying Arabic would be welcome as I'm a beginner with no background in the language and I'm unsure how to begin. 

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haha wow so cool!!! All the best, I know you can do it. Try learning makhraj by getting book that says "Iqra." It will teach you all the pronunciation and letters. you can go to bayyinah tv or youtube nouman alikhan for arabic lessons, yes from beginners to advance  asalamualaikum broh. do send salam to them.

[Mereloshn]

I learned and used my first Arabic word today, shokran which means thank you.  I had lunch at a Moroccan cafe earlier, my favorite restaurant in the neighborhood, and I just asked the waitress, a hijab wearing Muslim woman how to say thank you in Arabic and she told me so I used it twice, once when she brought my order to my table and once when I paid my bill at the counter when I was leaving.  She seemed delighted I bothered to use the word when speaking to her.  It's a good start to my new language journey. 

[teeekilicious18]

  On 12/26/2016 at 7:39 PM, Mereloshn said:

I learned and used my first Arabic word today, shokran which means thank you.  I had lunch at a Moroccan cafe earlier, my favorite restaurant in the neighborhood, and I just asked the waitress, a hijab wearing Muslim woman how to say thank you in Arabic and she told me so I used it twice, once when she brought my order to my table and once when I paid my bill at the counter when I was leaving.  She seemed delighted I bothered to use the word when speaking to her.  It's a good start to my new language journey. 

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aww thats cute! yeah, we would love to welcome people learning about Arabic, bless you all! <3