Oman is linguistically one of the most diverse countries in the Arabian Peninsula, hosting not only Arabic but also several ancient languages that predate Islam. Omani Arabic itself has multiple regional dialects, influenced by centuries of maritime trade with India, East Africa, and the Persian Empire — Oman once controlled Zanzibar and parts of the East African coast. Most remarkably, the southern Dhofar region is home to Mehri and Shehri (also known as Jibbali), two Modern South Arabian languages descended from ancient South Arabian and completely separate from Arabic, spoken by small but resilient communities. Omani Arabic also has notable Swahili, Baluchi, Persian, and Hindi loanwords. Classical Arabic is used in education, religion, and formal settings, while English is widely used in commerce and government.
