293 km away
The Arabic of western Saudi Arabia, centred on Mecca, Medina, and Jeddah. Sits between Egyptian and Najdi varieties and is widely understood across the peninsula.
Beja
Also known as: Bedawi
The northernmost Cushitic language, spoken across the Red Sea hills of Sudan, Eritrea, and Egypt. Sometimes classified as its own North Cushitic branch within the Afroasiatic family.
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Frequently asked questions
What language is Beja?
Beja is a dialect of the Beja language.
Where is Beja spoken?
Beja is primarily spoken in Sudan, Eritrea.
Which region is Beja associated with?
Beja is part of the East & Southern Africa region on DialectAtlas.
Is Beja known by other names?
Yes — Beja is also referred to as Bedawi.
Nearby dialects
See on the atlas →447 km away
A Semitic Afroasiatic language of the Eritrean lowlands and adjoining eastern Sudan. Around 1 million speakers; closely related to Tigrinya but mutually unintelligible.
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An Ethiopic Semitic language and the most-spoken language of Eritrea, also widely used in northern Ethiopia (Tigray). Written in the Ge'ez script.
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A Nile Nubian language spoken along the Nile from southern Egypt into northern Sudan. Heir to Old Nubian, the medieval Christian-era written language of the Nubian kingdoms.
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The Arabic of Sudan, retaining a number of older features lost in other dialects and shaped by long contact with Nubian and other African languages.
880 km away
A cluster of conservative Arabic varieties across Yemen. Often cited as preserving features close to Classical Arabic that have shifted elsewhere.