U.S. Marines learning language of Iraq
By Michelle Morgante
Associated Press
CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. — A mispronunciation can mean the difference between an Arabic greeting and an offense. One should speak to men first before addressing a woman in their company. The idea of personal space is much smaller during conversations.
Associated Press
And don't summon someone to you by cupping your hand and flapping your fingers toward yourself — that's a gesture used to call pigs.
At Camp Pendleton, troops from the 1st Marine Division take turns yelling commands to each other in Arabic. In the hands of the kneeling Marines are sheets with common sayings and their Arabic translations.
Those are among the lessons being drilled into a select group of Marines and sailors as part of a new crash course in Arabic language and culture before their upcoming deployment to Iraq.
The training comes as a result of the Marines' experience during their first round of deployments last year, as well as an awareness of the shifting role of the U.S. military in Iraq.
On his first deployment to Iraq last year, Cpl. Stuart Greenfield struggled with his most basic attempts to interact with the local people, whether he was trying to buy a soda or chat with Iraqis at a checkpoint. When the 20-year-old leaves for his second deployment — sometime early this year, according to the Marines — he'll at least have some basic Arabic to help him and his colleagues get by.
Greenfield, of Reno, Nev., is among more than 400 Marines and sailors cramming about two college semesters worth of Arabic language and culture lessons into the intensive four-week course.
During his six-month deployment last year, Greenfield said the lack of language and culture skills was obvious. "But we didn't really focus on it since it was a military operation," the intelligence clerk said during a class break Friday, the end of his first week of the course.
"I think when we go over this time, it'll be more (a case) of trying to understand the local people."
About 200 Marines and sailors, a few women among them, were selected for the program at Pendleton. Another 150 are in classes at Twentynine Palms, Calif., and more than 60 others at Camp Lejeune, N.C.
The Pentagon has ordered 85,000 Army and Marine troops to Iraq to replace those ending one-year tours. Among them are about 20,000 Marines from Pendleton and Twentynine Palms.
Maj. Kirk Greiner, the assistant operations officer for the 1st Marine Division, said the Marine Corps realized after its first deployment that troops needed to communicate in Arabic to function more effectively.
"It can only help if the Marine can speak and interact with the Iraqi people in their own language," he said. "It should go a long way toward winning their trust."
Military leaders and observers have said the lack of language skills has made it harder for soldiers to protect themselves, and hurt efforts to build good will with local people.
Though no one expects the students to become fluent Arabic speakers in four weeks, "what we're looking for is basic survival skills. It's a foundation," Greiner said.
The course was designed by the Berlitz Corporation and the Defense Language Institute, with classes taught by native Arabic speakers.
The students, many who were picked because of a demonstrated ability to absorb new languages, are devoted full-time to the courses, with three hours of study time required each night. Drill sheets are even posted over urinals in the restrooms.
In their first week, they have learned the basics of reading and writing the curving Arabic script, pronouncing the 28 letters of the alphabet, as well as numbers, the names of days and months, and simple phrases such as "sorry for the inconvenience."
Their classroom walls are covered with Arabic words and English translations: "Do you have weapons?" "Where are you from?" "Give me your ID." The students are learning to recognize important phrases they might see on signs or as graffiti such as "minefield," "hospital" and "America Satan."
During an exercise in the parking lot outside their class, instructor Mohammed Ajana, a Moroccan native with nine years of teaching experience, barked out commands to his 25 students, who turned, kneeled, and raised their hands in response.
The students then broke into small teams and took turns yelling the Arabic commands to each other with surprising confidence.
Jaime Bustamante, director of the Berlitz office in San Diego, said the Marines and sailors are proving themselves to be devoted students, willing to work extra hours and to help their classmates.
Teaching them, he said, "is not hard at all because they're very motivated. They're the best students."
Rashid Qamch, a fellow teacher from Morocco, said his students are "doing very well."
The skills the Marines and sailors are learning will open a window into the Arabic culture, he said.
"The whole picture is in the language," he said. "When you have the language, you have what you need. You can rely on yourself. You don't need a translator."
Lance Cpl. Jose Robles, a 20-year-old from Tustin, Calif., said he expects to be much more effective in communicating this time around, compared to his deployment last year. He recalled one case where an Iraqi man approached his unit seeking help for his ailing father, but the Marines couldn't understand him.
"There was not much we could do," he said. "I think this is going to be a huge help in having the Iraqi people know we're there to help them."
