The following is a selection of TED talks which were delivered mostly in English, and some in Arabic. If you are a language student, you might wish to follow the Arabic transcript while listening to the talk. The talk delivered in English has also been translated into 33 languages, including Arabic. 

Talk #01 – Why is ‘x’ the unknown?

  • Speaker: TERRY MOORE
  • About: Why is ‘x’ the symbol for an unknown? In this short and funny talk, Terry Moore gives the surprising answer.
  • Terry Moore gave a popular TED talk last year about why we use the letter “X” to represent the unknown. The surprising story begins with the introduction of Arabic texts into 11th century Spain, continues with a small incompatibility between Spanish and Arabic pronunciation, and ends with the familiar X in everything from The X Files to Generation X.
  • Terry more has learnt Arabic and reflects on the logical nature of the Arabic language.

Terry Moore: Why is ‘x’ the unknown?

Why is ‘x’ the symbol for an unknown? In this short and funny talk, Terry Moore gives the surprising answer.

Talk #02 – Don’t kill your language

  • Speaker: SUZANNE TALHOUK
  • About: More and more, English is a global language; speaking it is perceived as a sign of being modern. But — what do we lose when we leave behind our mother tongues? Suzanne Talhouk makes an impassioned case to love your own language, and to cherish what it can express that no other language can. In Arabic with subtitles.

Suzanne Talhouk: Don’t kill your language

More and more, English is a global language; speaking it is perceived as a sign of being modern. But — what do we lose when we leave behind our mother tongues? Suzanne Talhouk makes an impassioned case to love your own language, and to cherish what it can express that no other language can.

Talk #03 -Street art with a message of hope and peace

  • Speaker: EL SEED
  • About: What does this gorgeous street art say? It’s Arabic poetry, inspired by bold graffiti and placed where a message of hope and peace can do the most good. In this quietly passionate talk, artist and TED Fellow eL Seed describes his ambition: to create art so beautiful it needs no translation.

eL Seed: Street art with a message of hope and peace

What does this gorgeous street art say? It’s Arabic poetry, inspired by bold graffiti and placed where a message of hope and peace can do the most good. In this quietly passionate talk, artist and TED Fellow eL Seed describes his ambition: to create art so beautiful it needs no translation.

Talk #04 –  A project of peace, painted across 50 buildings

  • Speaker: EL SEED
  • About: eL Seed fuses Arabic calligraphy with graffiti to paint colorful, swirling messages of hope and peace on buildings from Tunisia to Paris. The artist and TED Fellow shares the story of his most ambitious project yet: a mural painted across 50 buildings in Manshiyat Naser, a district of Cairo, Egypt, that can only be fully seen from a nearby mountain.

eL Seed: A project of peace, painted across 50 buildings

eL Seed fuses Arabic calligraphy with graffiti to paint colorful, swirling messages of hope and peace on buildings from Tunisia to Paris. The artist and TED Fellow shares the story of his most ambitious project yet: a mural painted across 50 buildings in Manshiyat Naser, a district of Cairo, Egypt, that can only be fully seen from a nearby mountain.

Talk #05 -A thousand times no

  • Speaker: BAHIA SHEHAB
  • Description: Art historian Bahia Shehab has long been fascinated with the Arabic script for ‘no.’ When revolution swept through Egypt in 2011, she began spraying the image in the streets saying no to dictators, no to military rule and no to violence.

Bahia Shehab: A thousand times no

Art historian Bahia Shehab has long been fascinated with the Arabic script for ‘no.’ When revolution swept through Egypt in 2011, she began spraying the image in the streets saying no to dictators, no to military rule and no to violence.

Talk #06 – Let’s design social media that drives real change

  • Speaker: Wael Ghonim
  • About: Wael Ghonim helped touch off the Arab Spring in his home of Egypt … by setting up a simple Facebook page. As he reveals, once the revolution spilled onto the streets, it turned from hopeful to messy, then ugly and heartbreaking. And social media followed suit. What was once a place for crowdsourcing, engaging and sharing became a polarized battleground. Ghonim asks: What can we do about online behavior now? How can we use the Internet and social media to create civility and reasoned argument?

Wael Ghonim: Let’s design social media that drives real change

Wael Ghonim helped touch off the Arab Spring in his home of Egypt … by setting up a simple Facebook page. As he reveals, once the revolution spilled onto the streets, it turned from hopeful to messy, then ugly and heartbreaking. And social media followed suit.

 

Talk #07 – A historic moment in the Arab world

  • Speaker: WADAH KHANFAR
  • About: As a democratic revolution led by tech-empowered young people sweeps the Arab world, Wadah Khanfar, the head of Al Jazeera, shares a profoundly optimistic view of what’s happening in Egypt, Tunisia, Libya and beyond — at this powerful moment when people realized they could step out of their houses and ask for change.

 

Wadah Khanfar: A historic moment in the Arab world

As a democratic revolution led by tech-empowered young people sweeps the Arab world, Wadah Khanfar, the head of Al Jazeera, shares a profoundly optimistic view of what’s happening in Egypt, Tunisia, Libya and beyond — at this powerful moment when people realized they could step out of their houses and ask for change.

Talk #08 – 4 reasons to learn a new language

  • About: English is fast becoming the world’s universal language, and instant translation technology is improving every year. So why bother learning a foreign language? Linguist and Columbia professor John McWhorter shares four alluring benefits of learning an unfamiliar tongue.
  • Speaker: JOHN MCWHORTER
  • Subtitles: Arabic & many other languages

John McWhorter: 4 reasons to learn a new language

English is fast becoming the world’s universal language, and instant translation technology is improving every year. So why bother learning a foreign language? Linguist and Columbia professor John McWhorter shares four alluring benefits of learning an unfamiliar tongue.