The Abu Dhabi Arabic Language Centre (ALC) was established as part of the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi to support the Arabic language and set general strategies for its development and advancement scholarly, educationally, culturally, and creatively. The ALC supports research in the field of Arabic Studies and promotes the Arabic language in scholarship, education, culture, and media. The Centre has established specialised programmes and close partnerships with major cultural, academic, and technological institutions around the world including Institute du Monde Arabe (France), Universität Leipzig (Germany), and Brill Publishers (The Netherlands).

Operating from its headquarters in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, the ALC is a major international institution fostering the advancement of the Arabic language in all aspects of academic, cultural, and public life. It supports scholars, practitioners, and activists in various domains of Arabic and Middle Eastern Studies. The Centre promotes learning among native and non-native speakers, leads efforts in research and linguistic development and actively supports research, knowledge transfer, creativity, authorship, translation, and publishing.

The ALC works closely with local universities in the U.A.E., and international academic partners, in particular the universities in the Middle East and in the UK. In cooperation with Brill, the ALC publishes Al-Markaz, an internationally renowned open access academic journal in the field of Arabic Studies (https://brill.com/view/journals/mrkz/mrkz-overview.xml). The Centre hosts a digital library and conducts several collaborative research and impact initiatives including Lexicon, a specialised digital dictionary, Kalima, a leading book translation and publishing initiative in the Arabic speaking word. Furthermore, the ALC conducts policy consultations and publishes academic reports. With its research grants, the ALC actively supports scholars, postgraduate and graduate students in the field of Arabic Studies, Middle Eastern Studies, History, Literature, Translation Studies and Digital Humanities. The Centre has established the prestigious Sheikh Zayed Book Award (Shiekh Zayed Book Award (alc.ae)) which recognizes works in languages other than the Arabic, tackling the Arab civilization and culture, including humanities, fine arts, literature, and history. The Centre sponsors also the International Prize for Arabic Fiction, an important literary prize in the Arab world. The ALC regularly organises high-profile international exhibitions, research conferences, academic symposia, and public fora including the Global Arabic Language Summit, and the Abu Dhabi International Book Fair (https://adbookfair.com/en/adibf).