Arabic serves as the official language in Qatar. Arabic belongs to the Semitic language family. It is closely related to Hebrew and Aramaic. Modern Arabic consists of 27 sub-languages. However, standard Arabic is widely used in governments and on TV programmes throughout the Islamic world. The Arabic alphabet derives from the Aramaic script and unlike in the Western world Arabic calligraphy has not fallen out of use. Arabic is read from right to left. English as well as many other languages are spoken in Qatar.