Hello! This is Aida with a new episode of Learn Arabic with Ease for pre-intermediate learners of colloquial Arabic. In this series, I will be speaking about a different topic every time, suitable for this specific level, and obviously at a slower pace than normal to make it easier for you to understand the content.

 

Today, I’m going to talk about why people leave their homeland.

 

Many people nowadays leave their homeland. Some of the reasons for doing so are negative and others are positive. People who are forced to do flee their homeland due to wars are called refugees. They can no longer stay because the circumstances are too dangerous, and they could be risking their lives. These refugees are sometimes accepted in their receiving countries. They are offered assistance and may be able to stay. There are currently around 89 million refugees around the world. Another negative reason that forces people to leave their homeland are natural disasters. Due to flooding or earthquakes, people may lose their homes and decide to move to another country where they feel safer and can try to start and new life.

Still other people emigrate to look for more political freedom. They do not feel that they can enjoy freedom of speech and movement in their own countries, so they emigrate to other countries that are known for more political freedom.

 

A large number of people decide to leave their countries to seek better opportunities. Most of these come from developing countries and wish to study or work in developed countries. In the Arab world, an academic degree acquired in the western world is considered a huge advantage. Also, public universities require high averages for certain fields of study, such as medicine and pharmacy, and private universities are very expensive. Not everyone is able to afford the private universities. Some students decide to study abroad because their chosen field of study is not available in their homeland.

 

One of the most important reasons for emigrating is to seek better job opportunities. Sometimes, there are insufficient jobs in a certain field, or the salary is too low. Therefore, graduates decide to emigrate to another country where their field of specialisation is required, and the salary is better. This might mean learning a new language. Some graduates spend one or two years learning this new language. When they arrive in their destination, it is quite difficult for them at the beginning to become integrated in the new society, and to be able to communicate with the locals in their native language, in spite of the fact that they have already reached the intermediate level.

 

It is not only the language that makes it difficult, but also the different mentality and customs. After one or two years, however, most of these emigrants become accustomed to the new lifestyle and feel happy that they have made the right decision by emigrating to a new country. They appreciate the improved standard of living, which allows them to live more comfortably than in their homeland.

 

A much smaller number of people wish to travel to other countries for the sheer pleasure of being introduced to new cultures and new ways of thinking. The spread of social media has resulted in a rise in the number of Youtubers who have become successful by travelling to other countries and recording their experiences. Some of these Youtubers continue to travel for several years without returning to their homeland. They voluntarily leave because they are able to make enough money through their programme, while at the same time learning new languages and gaining broader world views.

 

 

So, that’s all for today’s episode. I hope you have found it useful. If you liked it, remember that listening to the same episode more than once is very helpful in remembering the new vocabulary you have learnt. It was great having you with me. I’d appreciate you leaving me a like and would love it if you could join me for more episodes.

 

This is Aida from Learn Arabic with Ease! Bye Bye!