Arabic localization: our approach to adapting software for the Arabic market

Here are the essential things to consider before entering the Arabic market and starting the localization of a software product:

Language varieties

Arabic is spoken in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, a vast area that includes many different dialects of the language. Modern Standard Arabic (MSA) is the most spoken version of the language and is commonly used and understood by the Arabic community. In addition to MSA, other major varieties of the Arabic language are spoken by residents of specific areas, including Egyptian, Maghrebi, Gulf, Mesopotamian, Peninsular, and Levantine.

Culture

Many cultural concepts are embedded in the Arabic language, including traditions, customs, and taboos. When localizing software products for the MENA region, it’s vital to respect local culture and history and consider how they affect customer behavior. Titles and honorifics, for example, play a significant role in communication and are used to express respect and consideration. Religion is a sensitive topic for Arabic speakers—it affects many areas of life, society, law, and even politics. Arabic culture relies on traditions, which should be reflected in the localized content to respect the values of the audience.

Poetic nature of the language

Similes, metaphors, figures of speech, proverbs, and even rhyming are all major characteristics of the Arabic language. Some terms that can be expressed with a single word in English have many different variations in Arabic, each carrying slight differences in meaning. These unique and significant characteristics must be considered during the localization process to convey messages clearly and accurately.

Language complexity

Arabic is a descriptive language and has many ways of conveying similar meanings, which makes it almost impossible to produce a one-to-one text conversion. Arabic vocabulary and grammar are nothing like English. Arabic has grammatical genders and some phrases have several valid translations to choose from; for example, ordinal numbers can be male or female. Accurate translation depends on the meaning of the message, as a literal word-for-word approach will likely fail to resonate with the Arabic-speaking audiences.

Arabic also takes up more space than English. This can cause issues in accommodating content for an application or a website. To create a user-friendly and efficient interface, the text should be reduced to communicate the essence of the message and the design and layout should be adapted for Arabic. It might be necessary to create several content options to see which is the most usable and appealing. It is also important to choose professional Arabic localization services with a clear understanding of the target audience and industry-specific knowledge.

Layout

The Arabic language is written from right to left (RTL), though it can be bidirectional for phrases and words that have no direct equivalent and are untranslatable. This language characteristic influences the content layout and elements of the interface. All headlines, navigation bars, buttons, and other necessary components should be adapted to an RTL layout. At the same time, numbers in Arabic are written from left to right (LTR). This means that if a page includes various fields for personal information, such as a name and a phone number, it’s important to consider the direction of each field and make adjustments accordingly.

Tools and technologies

Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) can be valuable tools in localization. However, effective localization requires specialized expertise to train ML models, particularly because Arabic and English belong to different language groups and have distinct ways of describing similar concepts.

The choice of programming language stack is also crucial, as they don’t all support multiple translations and different layout directions. Translation management systems (TMSs) are key to providing a localized software solution for Arabic markets, as they enhance the efficiency, scalability, and quality of localized content. These automated tools allow companies to quickly make changes and updates to the digital product.

Quality

Ongoing quality assurance (QA) for localized software solutions is essential to ensure usability and intuitiveness for the target audience. Regular reviews and analysis of the product help maintain consistent localization, including terminology and design elements, while delivering a seamless and flawless user experience.

Web platform for enhanced auction experiences

Our client, a Saudi Arabian company that provides asset evaluation services with a focus on real estate, wanted to enhance their industry presence with a dedicated platform. Our team designed and developed a web auction platform tailored for the Saudi region. To enable efficient performance and ensure compliance with local regulations, we integrated Alibaba Cloud. Another integration, Nafath (Saudi ID), supports secure authentication—after entering their unique Saudi ID number, users receive a verification code via a government mobile app. Our team also extended the platform functionality with other third-party services, including Google Maps to display locations of items and auctions and GoPay for financial transactions. While the primary audience is Saudi users, the system also incorporates a multilingual plug-in that supports both Arabic and English versions, extending access to international users as well.

As we continue to offer ongoing maintenance and support, the auction platform developed by the EffectiveSoft team stands out as an exceptional solution for streamlined bidding operations, helping identify market trends, understand buyer behavior, and map high-demand regions.

The future of Arabic localization

With the expansion of the Arabic software market, some technology trends will inevitably impact the field of Arabic application and website localization.

AI and neural machine translation (NMT)

While these technologies currently have limited applications in Arabic localization, advancements in AI will eventually enable machine translation to manage tasks such as applying complex morphology and accommodating free word order, conveying ambiguous words and concepts, and even recognizing cultural context and relevance. The use of AI and NMT will allow for faster localization without losing quality.

Cloud computing

By using cloud computing services for Arabic software localization, companies can ensure an easily manageable, scalable, and fast process. Cloud provides localization projects with a centralized translation repository; version control and management; and a collaborative environment that allows different teams, including translators, localization experts, mobile developers, QA, and other specialists, to work together in real time.

Speech recognition

AI-enabled speech-to-text (STT) and text-to-speech (TTS) models for different Arabic dialects are already on the horizon. With the help of these technologies, it will become easier to localize into different dialects and language varieties in real time, converting spoken language into written text and vice versa. STT and TTS models will also be able to power voice user interfaces, enhancing user experience with personalized assistants.