MADRID ? From north to south, the Arabic language and letters are booming in Spain and proliferating in newspapers, road signs and travel agencies thanks largely to the growing number of Arab and Muslim immigrants in the southwestern European country.

"Arabi letters are everywhere. Arabic is no longer a dead language," added Smarten, who learnt Arabic in a Madrid university.

Highways from northern to southern cities are beset by signs showing directions in Spanish and Arabic, guiding Arabic speakers to rest-houses, restaurants and tour operators.

The Arabic road signs can be heavily found in southern cities like M?laga, home to a sizable minority of North African origin.

In bus stops in Barcelona, the second largest city in Spain, big sign boards in Arabic are set up alongside Spanish, Catalonian and English.

The thriving halal shops in the city, which are attracting now non-Muslims as well, have played a key role in the Arabic boom.

Arabic has also become music to the Spanish ears in the past few years with many Spaniards are growing familiar with the language.

Newcomers of Arab or Muslim origin do not feel abandoned or lonely when they arrive in Spain as they used in the past.

Growing Immigrants

Pako Andreas, a Spanish travel agency employee, attributed spreading Arabic to the growing number of immigrants in Spain, most of whom only speak their native language.

"The widespread Arabic road signs and boards with Arabic letters are indicative of the increasing number of Arab immigrants or Pakistanis whose mother language are based on Arabic alphabet," Andreas told IOL.

"Add to that, up to 2 million Moroccans coming from the 4 corners of Europe use Spain as a transit to spend holidays in their motherland," he said.

Barcelona alone is home to some one million immigrants of Arab and Pakistani origin, according to semi-official estimates.

Spain has a Muslim minority of about 800,000 people out of a total population of 40 million.
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