Page Type: languageArabic, Sanaani Spoken | Ethnologue

AYN ISO 639-3

Arabic, Sanaani Spoken

يمني‎ (Yamani) Autonym

A language of Yemen

ISO 639
ayn
Alternate Names
Northern Yemeni Arabic
Autonym
يمني‎ (Yamani)
Population
11,900,000 in Yemen (2018). Total users in all countries: 12,167,960.
Location:
Widespread; central areas: Amanat al Asimah and Sanaa governorates; outer areas: western Al Bayda’, Al Jawf, Al Mahwit, Amran, central and eastern Dhamar, eastern Hajjah, Ma’rib, and Sa’dah governorates.
Language Status
6a* (Vigorous). De facto language of provincial identity in North Yemen.
Classification
Afro-Asiatic, Semitic, Central, South, Arabic
Dialects
A member of macrolanguage Arabic [ara].
Language Use
Also use Standard Arabic [arb]. Used as L2 by Judeo-Yemeni Arabic [jye], Rāziḥī [rzh].
Language Development
Literacy rate in L2: 10%. Dictionary. Grammar.
Language Resources
OLAC resources in and about Arabic, Sanaani Spoken
Writing
Arabic script, Naskh variant [Arab].
Other Comments
Distinct from Hadrami [ayh] and Ta’izzi-Adeni Arabic [acq]. Muslim.

Also Spoken in

Language Name
Arabic, Sanaani Spoken
User Population
3,960 in Canada (2016). Total Arabic speakers in Canada: 420,000 (2016 census).
Language Status
Unestablished
Other Comments
Non-indigenous.
View other languages of Canada
Language Name
Arabic, Sanaani Spoken
User Population
264,000 in Saudi Arabia (2018). , based on ethnicity.
Location
Scattered.
Language Status
Unestablished
Other Comments
Non-indigenous.
View other languages of Saudi Arabia

Map

Location: Widespread; central areas: Amanat al Asimah and Sanaa governorates; outer areas: western Al Bayda’, Al Jawf, Al Mahwit, Amran, central and eastern Dhamar, eastern Hajjah, Ma’rib, and Sa’dah governorates.