A conference in Jordan last month explored the future of Hebrew as an academic subject in the Arab world, reflecting many Arab thinkers’ growing acknowledgment of the importance of studying and understanding their Jewish neighbors.

A closing document developed at the conference, which was held at the Center for Israel Studies in Amman, called for a push to develop Hebrew-language curricula for Arab universities, as well as for research into how learning Hebrew could improve Arab understanding of the state of Israel.

“If knowledge of (Israeli) society is necessary in times of war, it is even more necessary in times of peace,” an Egyptian professor said at the conference, according to Ynet. A Jordanian professor added that “We have no idea about Hebrew culture, the language, and way of thinking. They know and understand us a lot better than we know and understand them.”

The study of Hebrew at  Arab universities has been going on for some time. There are more than 2,500 students at 13 universities enrolled in Hebrew courses in Egypt, which has approved classes on the subject since the 1960s. Iraq first introduced a Hebrew language curriculum in 1969; Saudi Arabia in 1994; and Jordan in 2000, at Yarmouk University. (The effects of Egypt’s Hebrew language program was on display during protests against the presidency of the Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated president Mohammed Morsi; a number of protesters who were interviewed on Israeli television spoke in flawless Hebrew.)

Some of the attendees indicated that it was difficult to encourage studying Hebrew because of political pressure. Dr. Abdullah Swalha, the head of the Center for Israel Studies, raised concerns that the study of the subject had dropped in Jordan from 500 students to 100. One of the barriers to studying Hebrew in the Arab world is the perception that doing so makes one in favor of normalization with Israel, a speaker explained. (Indeed, the conference was partially funded by the Israel Institute, an organization based in both Tel Aviv and Washington D.C.)

However, some Arab governments have begun talking about ways to improve contacts between Arab professors and students and their Israeli counterparts, despite the fact that in many cases this is currently illegal.

Among the suggestions made at the conference were to establish a society of Arab Hebrew scholars, create projects to translate Hebrew works into Arabic, allocate more resources to ensure that Arab students of Hebrew have job opportunities, and provide scholarships to allow top students to study Hebrew in Western nations, such as Germany or the United States.

The question underlying the conference was whether learning Hebrew was a means to better understand a neighbor, or better understand the enemy.

Ynet reported one answer provided at the conference: Hebrew “is very important to understand the ‘other,’ as it is only through language that we can understand the culture of the society and its way of thinking. The language can bring our nations closer.”

[Photo: Center for Israel Studies, Amman / Facebook ]