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Culture and Heritage History

SyriaSyriathe First in the World to Teach Medicine in Arabic

This article is an objective look into the history of this fact and its repercussions today, not a call for senseless pride. It is commonly known that medical terminology is derived from classical languages, such as Latin and Greek, and cannot be taught in different languages. If you ever wanted to study medicine and are one of the people who speak your native language better than English, then the sentence "Oh no! How are you going to survive Medicine in English?!", is not strange to you. Some report Arabic as the world's most difficult language to learn, which was not an obstacle for Syria. A surprise for the world is that Syria is the first and only country to teach medicine in Arabic since 1919 and to this day! Countries like Egypt, Sudan, Iraq, Tunis, Libya, and Lebanon have taught Medicine in Arabic for a period of time but switched to English/French due to colonization.

The Arabization of Medicine is not something new, as many conferences and decisions were made in the 19th century by different universities to teach Medicine in Arabic. Unfortunately, most of them switched to English or French after the British and French colonization of the MENA region. Between 1866 and 1883, the Syrian Evangelical College in Beirut (now the American University of Beirut) and the Jesuit School of Medicine taught in Arabic until the French Mandate was established and the two institutions switched to English and French.

Teaching Medicine in Arabic began in Syria in 1919. This happened when the Institute of Arab Medicine and the Institute of Law in Damascus formed the Syrian University (currently known as Damascus University) in 1923. The first professors at the Institute had taken a preference for translating scientific terms and medical literature to Arabic and began issuing the Arab Medical Journal in 1924. Arabic is the language of instruction in all faculties and branches of Damascus University, as it also was in the later-established Aleppo, Al-Baath, and Tishreen Universities.

Teaching in the mother tongue contributes to preserving cultural identity from being lost. It is also important to note that 1919, was a year after the Ottoman Empire fell (after 400 years in Syria), and an atmosphere of independence was brewing.

Abroad, particularly in the U.S., Syrian medical students have often proved themselves stellar. Alongside the Syrian success, many challenges were faced. In its current situation, the Arab Medical Library is unable to absorb the massive and rapid development in medical sciences; a development which sheds light on deteriorating situations of our institutions. Today, these efforts are lying solely on the shoulders of Syrian professors and doctors, who lack the necessary support to fulfill the information of the Medical Library.

Syrian doctor Amin Haykal summarized teaching Medicine in Arabic: “The experience of Arabizing medicine in Syria is undoubtedly a pioneering experience. However, if it continues in its present form, it is an experience that is closer to failure than success, as it does not meet the needs of students and workers in the medical field. The reason for this failure is in us and not in our Arabic language.” He added that the solution is either to work hard to save this experience of teaching Medicine in Arabic, or to admit its failure and adopt foreign languages as an alternative.

If we want to maintain our pride in Syria’s efforts in the Arabization of Medicine and our once glorious past, action must be taken. The world of medicine is constantly renewing, and despite limited resources (further exacerbated by the current situation), communities of Syrian professors and students are doing their best to keep up with translating.