The Arabists - Why Us?

As is the case with every other culture, Arab audiences may easily be offended with certain concepts and statements, perceiving them to be in bad taste. Our thorough understanding of Arab culture allows us to steer clear of controversy.

Relevance

“So, your traction control system works miracles on snow? Who cares! Tell me how it performs on loose sand and I’ll be impressed”. This is an example of what we mean by relevance. In many cases, the original text will present concepts and arguments that are irrelevant or incomprehensible to many Arab reader. As copywriters, we adapt such concepts and arguments to make them relevant.

Currency

By nature, copywriters are required to remain "in touch" with current events and trends. They know what people are talking about, what TV shows they're watching, etc. Because we are copywriters, we can inject a level of currency in our translations.We can capitalize on a current trend, or deliberately avoid associating our client with it, depending on how it helps the product/service we're communicating about.

Proximity

Very often, you will hear comments that a translation sounds like "Egyptian Arabic", or "Lebanese Arabic", etc. In other cases, a translation may be seen as totally alien. Often, this involves translators living outside the Arab World, who "lose touch" with Arab culture. Based in Dubai, the commercial centre of the Arab World, we are able to address our readers in a language and style they all understand.

Technology