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What is the ruling on a group of Muslims demanding the study of their local language and its official recognition in the constitution, and what is the ruling on vandalism and destruction to achieve that?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

The Arabic language is the best of languages, and it was honored by the revelation of the Holy Quran and the Prophet's Sunnah in its tongue. It is the language of Islam, and its survival, continuity, and spread are linked to the survival, continuity, and spread of Islam. Therefore, Muslims must pay attention to it and prioritize it over others, as it is a fundamental factor for their unity. It is not appropriate to generalize a non-Arabic language in an Islamic country where the majority are Arabs. It is also not permissible for non-Arab Muslims to demand this due to the lack of need for it. As for generalizing the Arabic language, there is a dire need for it in reading the Book of their Lord, understanding their religion, and worshipping their Creator. There is no objection to their own language remaining for communication among themselves, and for knowing, learning, and teaching sciences within their private sphere. Muslims must be aware of suspicious campaigns against the Arabic language, which aim to abandon it, consequently leading to ignorance of Islam, and resulting in the dispersion of Muslims and making it easy to control them. We have seen the effect of this in some Islamic countries that were subjected to colonialism. It is also worth noting that vandalism and similar acts are not permissible, as they involve corrupting public and private property without a legitimate reason recognized by Islamic law.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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