Understanding Kuwait Culture

I have spent the last 10 years of my life trying to understand the Arabic Language. It has taken me about 3 serious years to comprehend what is being said, and to start thinking in Arabic. This is because Arabic dialects are different depending on the country you are from, and each dialect appears to be an entirely different language.

I believe I understand the culture here at a much higher level because I understand not only what they are saying, but what their body language and tone of voice is telling me as well. When I first came to the middle-east, I was completely lost. Everywhere I went (including the house I lived in) Arabic was spoken. The television did not have much English programming and shopping mall and street signs were only in Arabic. I used to think everyone was shouting and fighting all the time, because that is what their tone of voice signified to me. When out, people stared at me like I was an alien and talked amongst each other. I always assumed they were making fun of me or making snide remarks. It was a frustrating experience.

Now that I understand what people are saying, I know they are not arguing, nor are they making snide remarks about me. They are communicating with each other in what they consider normal tone (although it is about 10 times louder than the average mid-western American speaks), and they are actually staring at me because they love how different I am from the standard Arab face. When I speak, they are further drawn because I usually start in English, asking if they understand it. When I find they do not, I revert to Arabic to communicate. I speak the Kuwaiti Dialect and this confuses them even more. People of my skin color and light eyes usually speak Egyptian, Syrian or Lebanese dialect. The first question is always, where are you from? Since I have taken the Kuwaiti Nationality, I always answer that first, “I am Kuwaiti”. Of course, the next question is usually, “where are you from before”?

My point in sharing this is with all of you is this: yes, you can learn from a culture without learning the language, but your perception will be stereotypical and most often assumptions incorrect. There is only so much you can learn from books, magazines and videos. To completely understand a culture, you must immerse yourself in their life, and be a fluent speaker. This experience has taught me not only about what life is like in other parts of the world, but also what life is truly like back home. I can compare what is different and similar in the U.S. to people all over the world.