“Arab” is a cultural and linguistic term, referring to those who speak Arabic as their first language.
Arab Americans are people descendant from the 22 Middle East and North Africa countries which are members of League of Arab States: Algeria, Bahrain, the Comoros Islands, Djibouti, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Libya, Morocco, Mauritania, Oman, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen.
"Arab" is not synonymous with religion or geographic location. Worldwide, most Arabs are Muslim (followers of Islam) but there are also millions of Christian Arabs and thousands of Jewish Arabs. Although Turkey and Iran are located in the Middle East, they are not Arab countries as the Turkish and Persian languages are not linguistically related to the Arabic language.
Arab American Heritage Month History
The initiative for official national designation of April as Arab American Heritage Month was launched in 2017 by the nonprofit media and education organization Arab American Foundation and its sister organization Arab America.
In 2019, U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Michigan.) and Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Michigan), introduced a resolution to Congress to proclaim April as National Arab American Heritage Month. The bill remains pending.
National Arab American Heritage Month was recognized in April 2021 and again in April 2022 by President Joe Biden and the U.S. Department of State. In 2023, President Biden issued an official proclamation designating April as Arab American Heritage Month.
In 2021, 37 governors issued proclamations supporting the Arab American month. By 2022, Illinois, Oregon and Virginia passed permanent legislation designating April as National Arab American Heritage Month, with similar legislation pending in other states.
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