QF opens Alif Ba Exhibition in Washington D.C. to mark Qatar-USA Year of Culture 2021

Children and families in the US are being given a taste of the Arabic language through a special exhibition in the nation’s capital organized by Qatar Foundation as part of the celebrations of the Qatar-USA Year of Culture 2021.

The Alif Ba Exhibition – an interactive experience that allows people to explore the Arabic alphabet through 28 hands-on displays of letters – launched on December 18, which is Qatar National Day and World Arabic Language Day, at the National Children’s Museum in Washington D.C., where it will run until the end of February 2022. After this, it will be based at the Qatar America Institute of Culture until August 2022.

Visitors can touch the letters that make up the Huruf al-Abjadiyah – the letters of the Arabic alphabet – and listen to the sound of each of them to discover Arabic words that start with those letters. From this, they can practice writing and tracing the Arabic alphabet for themselves.

The exhibition is part of the latest edition of the Years of Culture cultural exchange program run by Qatar Museums, with the US being Qatar’s 2021 partner country. Through activities, events, and festivals, the program promotes cross-cultural understanding, respect, with the Alif Ba exhibition being designed to help enhance people’s appreciation of how language and communication can connect societies and cultures.

“As a culturally diverse organization committed to building bridges of knowledge, preserving and promoting the Arabic language, culture, and heritage, and fostering social interaction, we are delighted to have brought the Alif Ba Exhibition to the capital of the United States,” said Hend Al-Mousawi, Head of Culture Engagement and Activation, QF.

“This exhibition is an engaging, interactive, and fun way of sharing the beauty, richness, and enduring relevance of the Arabic language with a US audience, and reflects how Qatar Museums’ Years of Culture program – which QF is proud to support – broadens minds and perspectives through bringing people together to learn, explore, and discover.”

To celebrate the opening of the Alif Ba Exhibition, Qatar Foundation International partnered with the National Children’s Museum to host a festival that included an exploration of calligraphy, Arabic music, and storytelling. Over the coming weeks, the partnership will provide families in the US with the opportunity to enjoy a series of cultural programs led by Arabic language educators, including Arabic calligraphy classes, Arabic animal name sessions for children, and Darbuka drumming sessions.

Among those who attended the opening of the Alif Ba Exhibition were a group of students from schools within QF’s Pre-University Education ecosystem, who, during their time in Washington D.C., also attended an event to mark the Qatar-USA Year of Culture 2021 at the Qatar American Institute of Culture.

Meanwhile, in the Years of Culture spirit, the young delegation from Qatar also met students from Washington Latin High School to share stories and experiences, as well as taking a tour of some of the US capital’s cultural and historic landmarks.