Classical Arabic (CA), also known as
Quranic Arabic or occasionally Mudari Arabic, is the form of the
Arabic language used in literary texts from
Umayyad and
Abbasid times (7th to 9th centuries). It is based on the medieval dialects of
Arab tribes.
Modern Standard Arabic (MSA) is the direct descendant used today throughout the
Arab world in writing and in formal speaking, for example, prepared speeches, some radio broadcasts, and non-entertainment content. While the
lexis and
stylistics of Modern Standard Arabic are different from Classical Arabic, the
morphology and
syntax have remained basically unchanged (though MSA uses a subset of the syntactic structures available in CA). The
vernacular dialects, however, have changed more dramatically. In the Arab world, little distinction is made between CA and MSA, and both are normally called () in Arabic, meaning 'the most eloquent (Arabic language)'. Classical Arabic's only difference toward Modern Standard Arabic is grammar, but in vocabulary and spelling, there is no difference.