Shihhi Arabic (, also known as Shehhi, Khasabi, Musandam Arabic, or Ruʾūs al-Jibāl Arabic) is a
variety
Variety may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats
* Variety (radio)
* Variety show, in theater and television
Films
* ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont
* ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
of
Arabic
Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...
primarily spoken in the
Musandam Governorate
The Musandam Governorate () is a governorate of Oman. With the exception of the exclave of Madha, it is located on the Musandam Peninsula, which juts into the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow entry into the Persian Gulf, from the Arabian Peninsula ...
of
Oman
Oman, officially the Sultanate of Oman, is a country located on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in West Asia and the Middle East. It shares land borders with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. Oman’s coastline ...
and
Ras al Khaimah
Ras Al Khaimah (; ), often referred to its initials RAK, is the largest city and capital of the Emirate of Ras Al Khaimah in the U.A.E. The city had a population of 191,753 in 2025, and is the sixth-most populous city in UAE after Dubai, Abu ...
emirate of
UAE
The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a federal elective monarchy made up of seven emirates, with Abu Dhabi serving as i ...
.
[ It has been suggested that Shihhi Arabic has two main dialect groups, known as "inland" and "coastal". The Al Shehhi, Al Hebsi, Al Dhuhoori and Al Shemaili tribes speak it.
]
Phonology
Consonants
* Sounds /, , / are exclusively heard in loan-words.
* // may be heard as a voiced glottal [] when before voiced consonants.
* The retroflex // may have four different allophones; as a flap [] when in intervocalic positions, as an alveolar [] when before front vowels, or as an alveolar tap or trill when in word-medial position following a consonant.[Shockley, Mark. Ruʾūs al-Jibāl Arabic in Context: A Proposal for an Expanded Typology of Southeastern Arabian Dialects. Journal of Semitic Studies, Volume 69, Issue 1, Spring 2024, Pages 657, https://doi.org/10.1093/jss/fgad026]
Vowels
* Short sounds /, / when in unstressed positions are heard as a mid-central [].
See also
* Varieties of Arabic
* Gulf Arabic
Notes
External links
Languages of Oman
Languages of the United Arab Emirates
Musandam Governorate
Mashriqi Arabic
Peninsular Arabic
{{Arabic-lang-stub