What is Central Asian Arabic?
{{Infobox language | name = Central Asian Arabic | states = [[Afghanistan]], [[Iran]], [[Tajikistan]], [[Uzbekistan]] | speakers = ca. {{sigfig|1,700|1}}, not counting Khorasani | date = 1997–2003<!--all 3 figs from same source per E13. disregarding data from 1967.--> | ref = e13 | familycolor = Afro-Asiatic | fam2 = [[Semitic languages|Semitic]] | fam3 = [[Central Semitic languages|Central Semitic]] | fam4 = [[South Central Semitic languages|South Central Semitic]] | fam5 = [[Arabic language|Arabic]] | dia1 = Bakhtiari | dia2 = Bukharian | dia3 = Kashkadarian | dia4 = [[Khorasani Arabic|Khorasani]] | dia5 = Chitrali | lc1 = abh | ld1 = Tajiki Arabic | lc2 = auz | ld2 = Uzbeki Arabic | glotto = afgh1238 | glottorefname = Afghanistan–Uzbekistan Arabic | map = [[file:Central Asian Arabic enclaves.png|300px]] | mapcaption = Enclaves in Afghanistan, Iran and Uzbekistan where Central Asian Arabic is still spoken. In brackets, after the name of each region, is the number of villages with Arabic-speaking inhabitants. }} '''Central Asian Arabic''' (العربية الآسيوية الوسطى) is a severely endangered variety of [[Arabic language|Arabic]] historically spoken widely across [[Central Asia]] including [[Khorasan]], but now dying out. Many are now switching to [[Persian language|Persian]] or [[Tajik language|Tajik]]. ==History== Much of the region of Central Asia was under the rule of [[Islam|Islamic]] [[Arab]] [[caliphate|caliphates]]. Many nomadic Arabs moved from [[Khuzestan]] and [[Oman]] to [[Samarkand]] and other parts of Central Asia.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://countrystudies.us/afghanistan/44.htm | title=Afghanistan - Arab }}</ref> After [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] forces took the region, Arabic started dying. The majority of Arabic speakers have switched to [[Dari]] in [