


































Education, Language and Sociology Research 

ISSN 2690-3644 (Print) ISSN 2690-3652 (Online) 

Vol. 3, No. 3, 2022 

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66 
 

Original Paper 

Investigating the Effect of the Language of Cartoon Films on 

Children’s Acquisition of Their Mother Tongue: A Case Study 

of Three Children 

Prof. Dr. Mohammed Jasim Betti1* & Prof. Dr. Zainab Kadim Igaab2 

1 Department of English, College of Education for Humanities, University of Thi-Qar, Nasiriya, Iraq 

2 University of Thi-Qar, Department of English, College of Education for Humanities, Iraq 

* Mohammed Jasim Betti, Prof. & Ph.D., Department of English, College of Education for Humanities, 

University of Thi-Qar, Nasiriya, Iraq 

 

Received: July 17, 2022        Accepted: August 9, 2022     Online Published: September 2, 2022 

doi:10.22158/elsr.v3n3p66           URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.22158/elsr.v3n3p66 

 

Abstract 

This study investigates the effect of the language of cartoon films on children’s acquisition of their mother 

tongue. The language used in the cartoon films under study is Modern Standard Arabic (MSA) while that 

of the parents and of the environment is Urban Nasiriya Iraqi Arabic (UNIA). The informants of the 

study consist of three Children who are native speakers of Arabic and whose ages are aged 5,6 and 7 at 

the beginning of collecting the data of this study. The data collection continues for three years in that it 

includes the preschool and some school stages. The data collection tool, which is done by the parents 

from the children, is by means of recordings and daily observation. The children are exposed to the 

cartoon films for about four to five hours in their daily watching. The methodological procedure consists 

of describing the language uttered by the informants to prove or refute the hypotheses of the study 

including that the exposure to the cartoon films has an effect on the informants’ use of MSA, the cartoon 

films have more effect on the type of dialect used by children compared to parents’ and environment’s 

dialect, which is UNIA and the theories of informal learning of Marsick and Watkins (1990) and Marsick, 

Watkins, Callahan, and Volpe (2006) are applicable to acquisition. The study accepts all the hypotheses 

including that words and sentences used by the informants prove that the dialect used by the informants 

is MSA, and that the dialect used is affected by the cartoons’ dialect, MSA, to which the children are 

exposed rather than their parents’ dialect, UNIA.  

Keywords 

Cartoon Films, Acquisition, Mother Tongue, MSA, UNIA. 



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1. Introduction 

Language acquisition is the manner of learning a language by immersion. Language acquisition is a 

product of subconscious process which is informal or natural way of gaining the knowledge of the 

language. Here, language is not taught to children. A child just picks up his native or first language or 

mother tongue just being around his parents, siblings and other people in his environment. The child 

acquires the language without any conscious thought, effort or study. The child acquires his mother 

tongue through imitation and interaction with his parents and the environment that surrounds him. His 

need to communicate paves the way for language acquisition to take place (Igiri, et al., 2020, p. 28).  

The speech of the children, who represent the informants of this study and who are native speakers of 

Arabic, is characteristic of some phonetic processes like assimilation, elision, gemination, nasalization 

and tafxiim, and the main ones are sound shift and metathesis (See: Betti & Igaab, 2019, p. 229).  

In this study, the informants watch Spacetoon and Majid Channels which include some cartoon films 

during frequent periods of time during the day.  

Watching cartoons may help develop our kids’ cognitive skills, logic and reasoning ability, visual and 

auditory processing, and sustained and selective attention of a kid. They may help children acquire the 

Arabic dialect used in the cartoon films, MSA at the expense of the dialect used by the parents and other 

kids of the children’s environment, UNIA. In this regard, Nasiriya different varieties used in Nasiriya 

Iraqi Arabic are MSA, the standardized Baghdadi Arabic; UNIA, and Rural Nasiriya Iraqi Arabic. These 

varieties are borrowed and used in Nasiriya as a sort of dialect or variety mixture cases (Betti, 2003, p. 

32). 

1.1 Research Questions 

1). Does children’s exposure to cartoon films affect their acquiring of MSA? 

2). Does that exposure to cartoon films, all of which are spoken with MSA, have more effect compared 

to their environment in which UNIA is spoken? 

3). Can what is said by Marsick and Watkins (1990) and Marsick, Watkins, Callahan, and Volpe (2006) 

be applicable to this study which is concerned with language acquisition? 

1.2 Research Aims  

The study aims at studying whether the exposure to MSA available in the cartoon films being watched 

by the informants of the study has an effect on the informants’ use of MSA, rather than the UNIA used 

by their parents and by the kids in their environment; and investigating that what is said by Marsick and 

Watkins (1990) and Marsick, Watkins, Callahan, and Volpe (2006) is applicable to this study. 

1.3 Research Hypotheses  

It is hypothesized that: 

1). The exposure to the cartoon films has an effect on the informants’ use of MSA. 

2). The cartoon films have more effect on the type of dialect used by children compared to parents’ and 

environment’s dialect, which is UNIA. 



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3). The theories of informal learning of Marsick and Watkins (1990) and Marsick, Watkins, Callahan, 

and Volpe (2006) are applicable to acquisition. 

 

2. Literature Review  

2.1 Incidental Learning and Acquisition  

Incidental or informal learning sounds like a natural and straightforward process when children or adults 

could learn something from unintentional actions (Marsick & Watkins, 1990) in contrary to formal 

learning which is a traditional institutionally-sponsored, classroom-based, and structured process and 

which do not emphasize informal and incidental learning. Informal learning can occur at anytime and 

anywhere, yet it is not typically classroom-based. Incidental learning could be a byproduct of unrelated 

activity, including personal interaction, communication activities, or task accomplishment (Marsick & 

Watkins, 1990). Informal learning could be used by the teacher, parents, or organizations as a deliberate 

method of incidental learning, even if it could sound like mutually exclusive actions (Marsick, Watkins, 

Callahan, & Volpe, 2006). However, according to this theory, incidental learning could be pre-planned. 

Incidental learning, however, could happen when learners are not conscious of it (Rosales, 2019; cited 

in Singer, 2019). do not emphasize informal and incidental learning. As informal learning is unplanned, 

strategies for improving informal learning are urgently always needed (Marsick & Watkins, 1990, p. 1; 

and Marsick, Watkins, Scully-Russ, & Nicolaides, 2017, p. 32).  

Children could learn better in their environment: every child’s environment is individual and different, 

relying on individual behavior and psychological force, including drives, tensions, thoughts, and specific 

contexts. This is closely connected to incidental learning, as it allows understanding how a child would 

learn by the incident and how this process could be re-constructed (Lewin, 1951; Singer, 2022, p. 233).  

2.2 Cartoons: Features and as an Incidental Learning Tool  

2.2.1 Features of Cartoons 

Animation bridges the gap from reality to the realm of imagination. With fantastic adventures, fairy tales 

being brought to life, humor, engaging imagery (Ellwood-Hughes, 2022). For some, animated kids films 

offer a nostalgic moment, reminiscent of childhood memories, for others it provides a restful family 

moment or a fun way for messages to be portrayed (Ellwood-Hughes, 2022).  

Challenging imagination, telling engaging and even enriching tales and offering exposure to different 

cultures, family dynamics and countries, they are a wonderful form of entertainment. Although designed 

to entertain kids, they are enjoyed by adults throughout the world as well (Ellwood-Hughes, 2022).  

2.2.2 Cartoons as Incidental Learning Tools 

Exposure to the media of children could generate positive learning effects if this practice is used in an 

effective manner and concerning the children’s developmental milestones, the time of exposure, and their 

attention span. This is because cartoons are considered as a means of motivating and encouraging 

thinking processes, discussion and the development of communication skills (Fleischer, 2010; cited in 



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Singer, 2022, p. 231). Most animated films have a message. They are not just created to provide viewing 

pleasure, they have messages, lessons and can aid in children’s development. 

Cartoons come in varied languages and subjects. The dynamic programs in cartoons allow a child’s 

natural interests to be important in that children can choose the program they want to follow and when 

they want to follow it. Thus, children learn language by themselves (Muiruri, 2022, p. 1).  

The multimedia properties of sounds and images help to develop children’s cognitive efficacy in listening 

and observation. Cartoons give children simple ways to enrich their languages, their favourite characters 

in the cartoons make a child easily imitate them making language a natural sequence of life. They offer 

a cultural extension to children especially those growing far away from contacts with their native 

language speakers. They incorporate characters that impress the mind of a child which is advantageous 

since knowledge comes to us through impressions made to us by natural objects. This is because learning 

should be based on children learning interest and curiosity. In addition, parental guidance is paramount 

on the quality of contents of children’s daily cartoon watch bucket list (Piaget, 1952; Muiruri, 2022, p. 

1).  

Likewise, cartoons offer the best Iconic representations to 1-6 years children. Images, diagrams or 

illustrations accompany verbal information which are crucial in the process of a child’s discovery 

learning.  

Thus, a child exposed to cartoons can learn any language. This is because according to Chomsky’s theory 

human beings are born with a set of rules about language called Universal Grammar and is the basis 

which all languages build upon. With minimum exposure to eternal outputs, a child can learn their native 

languages as well as foreign languages regardless of their location. Listening to cartons can be a weapon 

for understanding fast speech and developing a natural speaking style. Children are good at picking 

characters, identify with them and mimicking their pronunciations. This way, they unconsciously learn 

vocabularies and grammar structures. As children recount the events in the cartoons, they perfect their 

speaking skills and become familiar with words and expressions. Their tongue gets used to articulating 

the words and ears get used to the intonations and sound of the language. Before you know it, children 

are fluent and eloquent in a language despite the absence of the native speakers.  

From the above discussions, it is clear that the relationship between language and cartoons is an emerging 

center of interest and worthy of further studies. This is because cartoons play a very critical role in 

cognitive development. They affect cognitive through informational transmission to children and 

defining their intellectual adaptation. This can be summed up by Lev Vygotsky (1986) elementary mental 

functions of Attention, Sensation, Perception and Memory. That is, cartoons attract children’s attention, 

build their sensation and improve their memories (Muiruri, 2022, p. 3). In addition, there is evidence 

showing that when you are emotionally invested, you are more inclined to retain information and 

remember the lesson for longer. This is what makes teaching through cartoon films so different to 

previous textbook forms of learning. Animation can be used, and is used, to aid teaching. Cartoons could 

be used for students’ learning of new words in the classroom or outside of it (Chen, 2021).  



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2.3 Modern Standard Arabic  

There are two main types of varieties of Arabic in each Arab country which are Standard Arabic (later 

on and with the passage of time developed into MSA) and non-standard Arabic (represented by the 

regional dialects and varieties used to the degree that inside any Arabic city in any country, there are tens 

of dialects). In Iraq, nearly for every city in Iraq, there is a number of varieties. For example, in Basrah, 

there are Basrah Urban Dialect, and Baghdadi Iraqi Arabic (Alsiraih, 2021, p. 1). 

The status of MSA is the official language of the Arab countries and is, therefore, superior (prestigious) 

over Non-Standard Arabic. As far as the context of learning is concerned, MSA may be learned in a 

formal classroom situation (Mahmoud, 2000, pp. 129-130) or in an informal situation. 

MSA has two manifestations which are a written manifestation and a spoken manifestation. MSA or 

Modern Written Arabic is defined as the variety of standardized, literary Arabic which was developed in 

the Arab world in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. MSA also indicates spoken Arabic which is 

close to the written standard. It is the language that is used in literature, academia, print and mass media, 

law and legislation (Cowan, 2006). 

Many linguists make a difference between MSA and Classical Arabic but generally native speakers of 

Arabic do not differentiate between them as separate languages; they are referred to both as “the eloquent 

Arabic”. Many linguists consider MSA to be distinct from Classical Arabic—the written language prior 

to the mid-19th century—“There is no chronological point at which Classical Arabic turned into MSA, 

still less any agreed set of linguistic criteria that could differentiate the two”. MSA is merely a handy 

label used in western scholarship to denote the written language from about the middle of the nineteenth 

century, when concerted efforts began to modernize it lexically and phraseologically. Most western 

scholars refer to the formal written language before that date, and par excellence before the eclipse of 

Arab political power in the fifteenth century, as “Classical Arabic” (Holes & Allen, 2004, p. 5).  

Native speakers of Arabic generally do not distinguish between “Modern Standard Arabic” and 

“Classical Arabic” as separate languages; they refer to both as al-’Arabīyah al-Fuṣḥā meaning “the 

eloquent Arabic”. They consider the two forms to be two registers of one language. When the distinction 

is made, they are referred to as (Fuṣḥā al-ʻAṣr) (MSA) and ‘Fuṣḥā at-Turāth’ (Classical Arabic) (Elgibali 

& Badawi, 1996, p. 105). 

There are also no agreed set of linguistic criteria which distinguish CA from MSA, however MSA differs 

most markedly in that it either synthesizes words from Arabic roots such as sayyaara (car) or baakhira 

(steamship) or adapts words from foreign languages (warsha )workshop) or interniet (Internet)) to 

describe industrial and post-industrial life (Holes & Allen, 2004, p. 5).  

2.4 Nasiriya Iraqi Arabic 

Nasiriya is a governorate in south of Iraq. It is situated 350 KMs south of Baghdad and 110 KMs from 

Samawa. It contains a number of cities, towns and rural. It geographically contains some deserts, marshes 

and Euphrates passes within the city. No mountains exist in this governorate. Nasiriya is a town in this 

governorate places (Betti, 1998, p. 78).  



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In Iraq, Arabic is one language, amongst the other four languages in Iraq (Turkumani, Assyrian, Kurdish 

and Armenian). The situation in Iraq is diglossic. It has a High dialect (Classical Arabic or MSA) which 

is the highly codified superposed variety. It is used for formal spoken and writing purposes (See: 

Ferguson, 1959), and is learnt at school. The Low variety is the one used as a mother tongue (Abdulla, 

1969, pp. 49-50), and it is the one, which includes so many regional colloquials in all the parts of the 

Arab homeland. The IA dialectal difference in the middle and south of Iraq belongs to this continuum. 

These regional varieties have some common similarities and differences. It is the high dialect, which 

stands as a nationalistic bond among Arabs, and the low one shares many features with the high one. 

The different varieties used in Nasiriya Iraqi Arabic are: MSA, standardized Baghdadi Arabic, the Urban 

Nasiriya Iraqi Arabic, and Rural Nasiriya Iraqi Arabic (Betti, 2003, p. 32). 

2.5 Children-Directed Speech 

In many societies, adults and older children use a non-standard form of speech when talking to toddlers 

and infants. This form of speech is called Child-directed speech (CDS). It is also referred to as infant-

directed speech or motherese. It can be defined as a clear and simplified way of communicating to 

younger children used by adults and older children. In CDS, many of the same words used in adult 

conversation are used. However, such a speech is thought to appeal more to babies and that they pay 

more attention when they are spoken to in this manner. It helps the baby to grasp the emotional intentions 

of speech. Many researchers believe that CDS is a species-specific behaviour that evolved to enhance 

communication between human babies and their caregivers because of its features such as melody and 

wide use (Anonymous, 2016). 

When communicating with very young children, adults often systematically alter how they talk, using 

specialized CDS that draws children’s attention and highlights the sounds in words, supporting 

vocabulary and other language outcomes. CDS is characterized by unusual auditory features such as high 

pitch, slow pace, exaggerated prosody, and distinct timbre; as well as sparse word volume and frequent 

repetition of words, focus on concrete ideas, and simple syntactic structure. Adults’ CDS changes begin 

to talk and respond on their own using one-, two-, or three-word phrases (i.e., telegraphic speech) 

undergirded by basic syntax and grammar. However, despite all we know about CDS, most research 

targets parents and families, with far less work examining interactions between teachers and young 

children, especially toddlers (Hindman, et al., 2021). 

2.6 Previous Studies 

Ulfa, Salim, and Permana (2017) aims to know whether or not cartoon movie is effective in teaching 

vocabulary at the fifth grade students of SDN Bunklotok Batujai Lombok Tengah. It shows that Cartoon 

Movie is effective toward students’ vocabulary mastery at the fifth grade of SDN Bunklotok Batujai 

Lombok Tengah in academic year 2016/2017. 

A study by Rawan, Dar, and Siraj (2018) experimented on Pakistani children by using Japanese Hindi-

dubbed cartoons as the tool for Hindi language acquisition. The results determined the connection 

between the frequency of the use of Hindi words in cartoons and the expanded frequency of vocabulary 



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acquisition by participants (Rawan et al., 2018). Rawan et al. (2018) confirmed the efficacy of cartoons 

as the means of learning new words among children who have just started learning the language. This 

research was conducted among young children who learn their native language (Singer, 2019). 

A study concerned with EFL was conducted by Mousavia and Gholami (2014) which compared the 

children’s performance in English vocabulary acquisition when they watched the stories with the task 

they had only to read the subtitles. According to the findings, children were more prone to retain new 

words when watching the flash stories with subtitles (Mousavia & Gholami, 2014). Children may be 

prone to learn through cartoons or other visual media, as they use two means of perceiving information 

(visual and auditory).  

The results of a study by Munir (2016) show a significant increase of retained words by EL in the 

classroom when the cartoon is used as a tool in learning new vocabulary among EL when the teacher 

particularly is using it as a primary method to stimulate vocabulary acquisition among students.  

Not only could young children learn through cartoons, but all age groups could also retain vocabulary. 

Of course, the choice of the cartoons or animated series has to be connected to children’s interests and 

comply with their developmental milestones (Torralba & Mazra, 2015; cited in Singer, 2022, pp. 330-

333). 

 

3. Methodology of Research 

3.1 Research Method Type 

This study is qualitative which takes the data from three children relying on a number of cartoon films. 

The children are exposed to the cartoon films, which speak MSA. The data of the study are collected 

from some recordings and daily observation of the children’s words, phrases and sentences which are 

uttered by the informants of the study as a result of being exposed to cartoon films for about four to five 

hours in their daily watching at the preschool stage and one and a half to two hours at the school stage.  

3.2 Data Collection Procedure 

The paper depends on some cartoon films presented by two TV channels which are Spacetoon and Majid 

in order to investigate their effect in so far as their language, which is MSA. The children were so affected 

by the colors, music and stories of those films. Even they kept the songs of the introduction and the end 

of the cartoon films. Those songs were characterized of being enthusiastic, so the children were dancing 

and singing with them all the time.  

In choosing the type of cartoon film to be seen by the informants, there is a correspondence between the 

age of the child and the nature of the film. There is something attractive for those children to watch those 

films, which is the story of the good and the evil. In a number of the films, the good heroes achieve the 

victory and defeat the evil and the bad people. For example, ‘Fire Sword’, ‘Nobel Fighter’, Land Eagles’, 

‘Captain Khalfan’, ‘adnan and Lina adventures’, ‘Hazim al-Ra’ad’. Other cartoon films show the 

sacrifice of the son or the daughter towards his or her parents. This pushes the children to be sympathetic 

with them. How a little son or daughter behaves patiently facing many troubles only to find his father or 



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his mother, for example, ‘Hunter’, ‘The Miserable’. Other cartoon films are sport. Football or handball 

is shown in those films. Such films will attract those children because they are sons. For example, 

‘flaming throw’, ‘Captain Majid’. All the above mentioned cartoon films are Japanese and translated into 

Arabic. So, their language is Modern Standard Arabic.  

The informants of the study are Iraqi, so they are enthusiastic and try to be against the evil. Our children 

followed all the instructions and devices presented by the characters particularly the heroes of the cartoon 

films without any hesitation. Thus, they imitated their movements, voices and words verbatim.  

Their acquisition of the language vocabulary is based on unconsciousness and no prior teaching.  

3.3 Description of Informants 

The children, who represent the informants of this study, are aged 5, 6 and 7 at the beginning of collecting 

the data of this study and the data collection continued for three years so that it includes the preschool 

and some school stages. At the beginning of this study, they were all preschool children. The language 

the children of the environment use is Nasiriya Iraqi Arabic since they are Iraqis living in Thi-Qar 

province (Nasiriya) and their parents use UNIA since they are of educated parents.  

 

4. Data Description, Analysis and Discussion 

The data taken from the three children consist of some recordings and daily observation of a number of 

words, phrases and sentences and uttering such language components depends on children’s ages: When 

they were preschool, they uttered words and phrases, but when they became school children, they began 

using sentences.  

The words and phrases used by the three children at the preschool stage are characteristic of either being 

single words, or part of sentences or as ellipted sentences: 

a. single words: For example, hayya (come on) (Appendix A &B); ?ayșan (too); 9ulba (a tin).  

b. part of sentences: For example, wallah Tayyib (I swear it is delicious); muxtalif 9an (different from); 

ladayya fikra (I have an idea.)  

c. ellipted sentences: For example, ?aHaqqan (really); ?a9taDir. (I apologize); Saddiqny (believe me.) 

d. Phrases: marra Ɵaniya (once again); ra?iHataha zakiya (It smells good); bisur9atin fa?iqatin  (super 

fast).  

 

Hide and seek game lu9bat ?alǧumayșa 

Really?  ?aHaqqan 

Once again marra Ɵaniya 

welcome 9ala ? alraHb walsi9a 

I swear it is delicious.  wallah Tayab  

dub du9billa 

Believe me.  Saddiqny 



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They will be surprised.  sayatafaja?uun. 

sayatafaja?uun. 

Different from  muxtalif 9an 

I have an idea.  ladayya fikra 

Come on.  hayya  

Because it is beautiful.  li?annaha jamiila  

too ?ayșan 

So  hakaDa 

a tin  9ulba 

Forgive me.  samiHny 

I apologize.  ?a9taDir. 

It smells good.  ra?iHataha zakiya 

super fast bisur9a fa?iqa 

an important thing  šay?an muhiman 

stop tawaqqafu. 

later on  laHiqan  

stop tawaqqaf  

 

After being 7 years old, they began using sentences. These sentences and the like are grammatical. They 

are taken from the MSA used in the cartoon films. Those sentences follow the grammar rules of Arabic 

language without studying them. For example,  

 

How crazy you are! ya leka min majnoon. 

Why did you finish? Lima intehayt. 

Come on, be ready. Hayya ista9id. 

Rinsing is a wonderful thing. 

 

?almașmașa šay?un ra?i9un. 

You mean toothbrush? taqSidiina firšat ?al?asnan. 

Be away from me. ?ibte9idy 9eny. 

You will not find any human 

being here. 

len tajida bašaran huna. 

I’ll do. Sawfa ?af9al. 

It Beams taSdur šu9a9an 

This is the truth. haDihi ?alHaqiqa. 

Say the truth. Qul ?alHaqiqa. 



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This fruit is a healthy food. haDihi ?alfakiha ?aklun 

SiHiyun. 

I am your son. Bal ?ana waladak 

I am the strongest. ?ana ?al?aqwa. 

I have a bigger power. 9indy quwwa kubra. 

There is candy. Tujad Halwa. 

We have a delicious dessert. Ladayna Halwa laDiDa. 

This is a wise boy. haDa waladun Hakiim. 

They all don’t do their 

mother’s saying. 

Kuluhum la yunafiDuun 

kalam ?umahatahum. 

This is fun. haDa šay?un mumti9. 

And what happened here? Wama ?alaDy yaHduƟ huna. 

what happened? wamaDa jara 

Is this impossible? Hal haDa mustaHiil 

My eye is well. 9ayny bixayr 

I was looking for 9aboudy in 

all the house. 

Kunta ?abHaƟ 9an 9aboudy fi 

kuly ?amanzil. 

He jumped on him from the 

pool of water. 

qafaza 9alayhi min 

burkat ?lma?. 

I’m just kidding you. ?inny umazuHika faqaT. 

I actually forgot about it. ?ana fi ?alwaqi9 nasaytahu. 

You are exposed to us. uktišifa ?amrak. 

Abbas is a good man. 9abas rajulun Tayab. 

Your words are run out. Laqad nafaDtu kalimatak. 

I want another book. uridu kitaban ?axar. 

What do you think of this 

nestle? 

ma ra?yuka 

bihaDihi ?alnastala. 

It is my turn. laqad Haana dawry. 

I can’t stand it. la ?astaTii9 ?an ? aHtamil. 

Give it to me at once. ?a9Tiny fi ?al Haal. 

Hit him with a knife. ?ișrubhu bilsikin. 

These little ones are called 

insects. 

haDihi ?alSiǧar tud9a Hašarat. 

I want to achieve my goal. ?uridu ?an ?uHaqiq hadafy. 

Try this. jarrub haDa. 

I can’t carry it. ma ?agdar ?aHmilha. 



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Go from here. ruuH min huna 

As the hero said. Kama qala ?albaTal. 

This is a strange book. haDa kitabun ǧaribun. 

He has a lot of cute colors. 9indahu ?alkaƟiir 

min ?alalwan ?alHilwa. 

It is a wonderful tiger. ?innahu fahdun ra?i9un 

Calm down. hadi? min raw9ak. 

Don’t give in to despair. la tastaslim lilya?s. 

I have an idea. ladaya fikra 

I want some delicious fruit. ?uridu ba9șan 

min ?alfakiha ?alaDiDa. 

I want some chocolate. ?uridu ba9șan min?lšukalata. 

I want some vegetables. ?uridu ba9șan min ?alxușar. 

I want a nice book. ?uridu kitaban jamiilan. 

I want a nice bed. ?uridu firašan jamilan. 

Did the cat swallow your 

tongue? (Why did you stop 

talking?) 

hal ?alquT ?ibtala9a lisaanak 

Something stuck in my teeth. šay?un 9aliqun bi?asnany 

I have a history with him. li sabiqa ma9ahu 

The talk is directed at me, not 

at you. 

?inalkalama muwajjahun lii 

walaysa laka 

 

All the above words and sentences follow the Arabic rules of grammar. For example, “Arab grammarians 

pay attention to the role of concord in the sentence and deal with it in different grammatical topics” 

(Igaab, & Altai, 2018, p. 288). In the following sentence,  

 

How crazy you are! ya leka min majnoon. 

 

There is concord between the “kaaf” used for the masculine and the noun coming after the preposition 

which is also masculine. Likewise, “concerning the occurrence of pronouns, they are divided into explicit 

(al-Dhahira) and implicit (al-mustatira). The explicit pronouns consist of three types which are attached 

(al-mutaSila), detached (al-munfaSila) and reflexive (al-?ishariyat)” (Igaab & Tarrad, 2019, pp. 57-80). 

  

Be away from me. ?ibte9idy 9enny.  an attached pronoun. 

Say the truth. Qul ?alHaqiqa. an implicit pronoun. 



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This fruit is a healthy food.  haDihi ?alfakiha ?aklun 

SiHiyyun.  

a detached pronoun. 

 

In addition, case is important and it is related to the use of diacritics (harakat): “The idiomatic definition 

of case is the change that occurs at the end of the word as a result to the change of the element”: 

 

This is fun. haDa šay?un mumti9.  al-dhamma. 

You will not find any 

human being here. 

len tajida bašaran huna.  

 

al-fatha. 

Put the book on the table.  șa9 ?al kitaba 9ala  

?aminșadati. 

al-kasra. 

 

If the diacritics that refer to the types of case of nouns are presented in the sentence, the case is called 

verbal and if they are not presented in the sentence, the case is called maHallii (in the same place) (Igaab 

& Al-Manhalawey, 2010, p. 16). Likewise, the vocabulary belongs to MSA. All the above results prove 

hypothesis 1 which states: “The exposure to the cartoon films has an effect on the informants’ use of 

MSA”. 

In some sentences, there is a mixture between MSA and their Nasiriya dialect:  

 

I can’t carry it. ma ?agdar ?aHmilha. 

Go from here. ruuH min huna 

 

There are some sentences which are similar in their structure:  

 

I want some delicious 

fruit.  

?uridu ba9șan 

min ?alfakiha ?alaDiDa.  

I want some chocolate.  ?uridu ba9șan min?lšukalata.  

I want some vegetables. ?uridu ba9șan min ?alxușar.  

I want a nice book.  ?uridu kitaban jamilan.  

I want a nice bed.  ?uridu firašan jamilan.  

 

Some sentences and phrases indicate the children’s following the doctors’ instructions as they are shown 

in the cartoon films.  

 

Rinsing is a wonderful 

thing. 

?almașmașa šay?un ra?i9un. 



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You mean toothbrush? taqSidiina firšat ?l?asnan.  

This fruit is a healthy 

food.  

haDihi ?alfakiha ?aklun 

SiHiyun. 

 

The children also use some idiomatic expressions which are not easy to utter by such children in that age 

and they do not exist in the vocabulary of the UNIA. The children’s parents tend to use very simple and 

easy words and expressions with their children because they are directed to the children. So, the effect 

of cartoon films on them is rather than that of their parents. This proves hypothesis 2 which states: “The 

cartoon films have more effect on the type of dialect used by children compared to parents’ and 

environment’s dialect, which is UNIA”. 

 

He came back empty handed. raja9a xaaly ?alwifaș 

I’m fed up. laqad șiqtu Dar9an  

Did the cat swallow your 

tongue? (Why did you stop 

talking?) 

hal ?alquT ?ibtala9a lisanak 

 

All the examples drawn above and are available in the data are words in MSA. 

Pragmatically, what was said by the children was used in appropriate situations, for example, ?inal-

kalama muwajjahun lii walaysa laka. (The talk is directed at me, not at you.). “This sentence was used 

when the child was in a discussion with his brothers.”  

Another example is: len tajida bašaran huna. (You will not find any human being here.): “Someone 

knocked at the door and one of the three children said that sentence.” 

Semantically, the children have knowledge of the meaning of every word uttered since they use this word 

not another one in the situation.  

Grammatically, their sentences are either nominal or verbal as in Arabic language. For instance, ?innahu 

fahdun ra?i9un. (It is a wonderful tiger.); 

la tastaslim lilya?s. (Don’t give in to despair.). 

Verbal sentences are of different types. They are: 

a. Compound: For example, ?ijlib lii 9aSiir ?al tuffaH walaysa 9aSiir ?al burtuqal. (Bring me apple juice, 

not orange juice.) 

b. Imperative: For example, ?iTlaq saraHahu. (release him.);  

?irkil ?alkura ?ila ?alamam. (Kick the ball forward.); 

șa9 ?al kitaba 9alal minșadati. (Put the book on the table.). 

Thus, informal learning can be applied to language acquisition. The process of language acquisition is 

not planned and unintentional and it occurs because of unprogrammed exposure to language. Thus, 



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informal learning refers to learning any science and any foreign or native language in school or outside 

while informal acquisition is by nature unintended, unprogrammed and can be applied to any native 

language. Thus, informal acquisition is restricted to language acquisition for native languages and 

language learning if it is not native. Thus, hypothesis 3 is accepted: The theories of informal learning of 

“Marsick and Watkins (1990) and Marsick, Watkins, Callahan, and Volpe (2006) are applicable to the 

acquisition”. This is done unintentionally and with directing it to children. 

 

5. Conclusions 

As a result of the theoretical and practical aspects of the study, the following conclusions are arrived at: 

1). There are several types of sentences used by the children like simple, compound, nominal and verbal 

sentences, and the verbs are in the past, present, future and in the command. All of the previous types 

belong to MSA. 

2). All the sentences in the data are grammatical in that they follow the rules of MSA. 

3). The types of vocabulary used exist in MSA and do not exist in UNIA.  

4). The words and sentences used by the informants are phonetically, phonologically, morphologically, 

syntactically, semantically and pragmatically are well-formed and meaningfully acceptable. 

5). All the words and sentences used by the informants prove that the dialect used by the children as a 

result of their exposure to the language of cartoon films is MSA. Thus, it is proved that there is a 

connection between the use of cartoon films spoken in MSA in cartoons and the expanded frequency of 

language acquisition by participants.  

6). The theories of informal learning of Marsick and Watkins (1990) and Marsick, Watkins, Callahan, 

and Volpe (2006) are applicable to the language acquisition in this study. This is done for two reasons: 

one, because, by definition, language acquisition is done without formality and without programming. 

Second, throughout this paper and as clear from points 1-5 above, the children used MSA rather than 

UNIA. 

7). Before being 7 years old, the informants of the study used words and phrases as single words or as 

ellipted sentences of MSA, or as part of sentences the other part of which is in UNIA, but after being 7 

years old, they used full MSA sentences when they became school ones.  

8). At the beginning of this study, i.e., at their preschool stage, metathesis and sound shift were 

characteristic of their speech at stage, but starting from their school stage, these sound symptoms 

disappeared gradually. (See Betti & Igaab, 2019, p. 219).  

9). The children are so much affected by what they see and hear in the cartoon films.  

10). Cartoon films can be considered as a source for educating children from a variety of sciences.  

11). Although the informants are children living with their parents, with their neighbors and relatives 

kids who speak UNIA in the same house and in the same environment all the time, the dialect used is 

affected by the cartoons’ dialect, MSA, to which the children are exposed to for four to five hours in their 

daily watching rather than by their parents’ dialect which is UNIA. 



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Acknowledgements 

We are very grateful to the informants of this study, our children. 

 

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Appendix A 

List of Iraqi Arabic Phonemic Inventory 

1). The Consonants 

Symbol         Description                 Example 

/f/        Voiceless labio-dental fricative           fiil (elephant) 

https://doi.org/10.5539/ijel.v8n2p288
https://doi.org/10.5539/ells.v9n1p53
https://doi.org/10.1080/07908310008666594
https://doi.org/10.1556/2059.01.2016.003
https://doi.org/10.24093/awej/vol13no1.21
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/Ɵ/       Voiceless interdental fricative            Ɵa9lab (fox) 

/D/       Voiced interdental fricative                Dabha (he threw it) 

/S/       Voiceless dental emphatic fricative     Sabur (patience) 

/ş/        Voiced interdental emphatic fricative  şabuT (an officer) 

/T/       Voiceless dental emphatic stop           TamaTa (tomato) 

/ţ/        Voiced dental emphatic stop               ţaal (staying) 

/s/        Voiceless dental fricative                    suug (market) 

/z/        Voiced dental fricative                       zrar (button) 

/š/        Voiceless palatal fricative                   šmalak (what is wrong with you?)  

/č/        Voiceless palatal affricate                   čaly (bank of the river) 

/x/        Voiceless velar fricative                     xubuz (bread) 

/ǵ/        Voiceless velar fricative                     ǵrab (crow)  

/h/        Voiceless glottal fricative                   hna (here) 

/H/       Voiceless pharyngeal fricative            Hariim (women) 

/b/        Voiced bilabial stop                            bab (door) 

/t/        Voiceless dental stop                           timman (rice) 

/k/        Voiceless velar stop                            ka9ak (cake) 

/g/        Voiced velar stop                               ga9ad (he sat down) 

/q/        Voiceless uvular stop                        qadiim (old) 

/?/        Glottal stop                                        ?amis (yesterday) 

/j/        Voiced palatal affricate                      jamal (beauty) 

/p/       Voiceless bilabial stop                       parda (curtain) 

/d/       Voiced dental stop                             tdanna (be nearby) 

/9/       Voiced pharyngeal fricative              9aly (high) 

/m/      Voiced bilabial nasal                         minhu (who is it?) 

/n/       Voiced dental nasal                           nibaH (barked) 

/l/       Voiced alveolar lateral                       limna (gather us) 

/r/       Voiced alveolar flap                          ramul (sand) 

/w/      High back rounded semi-vowel         wayyana (with us) 

/y/       High front unrounded semi-vowel    yamta (when) 

 

2). The Vowels 

Vowels        Description                       Example 

I      Short half-close front with lip spreadin   mi9da (stomach) 

ii      Long close front with lip spreading         biina (in us) 

a      Short half –open central neutral              saliim (healthy) 

aa     Long open- central neutral                    saalim (safe) 



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u      Short half –close back rounded             ummii (my mother) 

uu     Long close back rounded                     9uud (stick) 

oo     Long half-close to half- open back rounded   tilifoon (telephone) 

Note. They are taken from Betti (2007, pp. 409-10) and Greenlee (1980, pp. 3-4). 

 

Appendix B 

The Data Collected from the Children 

 

Examples in Arabic  Translated into English Transliterated 

 .How you are crazy! ya leka min majnoon يا لك من مجنون 

 .Why did you finish? lima intehayt لَم إنتهيت

 .Come on, be ready.  hayya ista9id هيا إستعد 

 Rinsing is a wonderful المضمضه شيء رائع 

thing. 

?almașmașa šay?un ra?i9un. 

  .You mean toothbrush? taqSidiina firšat ?al?asnan تقصدين فرشاة االسنان 

 .Be away from me. ?ibte9idy 9enny إبتعدي عني 

 You will not find any لن تجد بشرا هنا 

human being here. 

len tajida bašaran huna.  

 Hide and seek game lu9bat ?alǧumayșa لعبة الغميضة 

 Really? ?aHaqqan أحقا 

 too ?ayșan ايضا 

 It is so. hakaDa هكذا 

 Do not mention it.  Maku da9y lilšukur ماكو داعي للشكر 

 .I’ll do. sawfa ?af9al سوف أفعل 

 .Stop. Tawaqqafu توقفوا 

 Beam  taSdur šu9a9an تصدر شعاعا 

 .This is the truth.  haDihi ?alHaqiqa هذه الحقيقة

 .Say the truth.  Qul ?alHaqiqa قل الحقيقة

 This fruit is a healthy food.   haDihi ?alfakiha ?aklun هذه الفاكهة اكل صحي 

SiHiyyun.  

 I am your son.  Bal ?ana waladak بل انا ولدك 

 .I am the strongest.  ?ana ?al?aqwa انا االقوى 

 .I have bigger power.  9indy quwwa kubra عندي فوة كبرى

 .There is candy.  Tujad Halwa توجد حلوى

 We have a delicious لدينا حلوى لذيذة

dessert.  

Ladayna Halwa laDiDa. 



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 .This is a wise boy.  haDa waladun Hakiim هذا ولد حكيم 

 They don’t do what their كلهم ال ينفذون كالم امهاتهم 

mother says.  

Kuluhum la yunafiDuun 

kalam ?umahatahum.  

  .This is fun. haDa šay?un mumti9 هذا شيء ممتع

  .And what happened here?  Wama ?alaDy yaHduƟ huna وما الذي يحدث هنا 

 what was going on? wamaDa jara وماذا جرى 

 Is this impossible?  Hal haDa mustaHiil هل هذا مستحيل ؟ 

 My eye is well.  9ayny bixayr عيني بخير 

ابحث عن عبودي في كل المنزلكنت   I was looking for Uboudy 

in every place of the house.  

Kunta ?abHaƟ 9an 9aboudy fi 

kul ?lamanzil. 

  It is an amazing thing. ?innahu šay?un muDhilun انه شيء مذهل

 A tin 9ulba ُعلبه 

  dub du9bila ُدعبُله

 He jumped on him from من بركة الماء قفز عليه

the pool of water. 

Min burkat ?lma? qafaza 

9alayhi.  

 Believe me.  Saddiqny صدقني

 Once again marra Ɵaniya مرة ثانية

 .I’m just kidding you. ?inny umazuHika faqaT اني امازحك فقط 

 Forgive me.  samiHiiny سامحيني 

  .I actually forgot about it.  ?ana fi ?alwaqi9 nasaytahu انا في الواقع نسيته 

  .I apologize.  ?a9taDir اعتذر 

  .You are exposed to us.  uktišifa ?amrak اكتشف امرك 

 .Abbas is a good man.  9abas rajulun Tayyib عباس رجل طيب

  .Your words are finished.  Laqad naffaDtu kalimatak لقد نفذت كلماتك

  .I want another book.  uridu kitaban ?axar اريد كتابا اخر 

 What do you think of this ما رأيك بهذه النستله؟

nestle?  

ma ra?yuka bihaDihi ?alnastala.  

  .It is my turn.  laqad Hana dawry لقد حان دوري

  .I can’t stand it.  la ?astaTii9 ?an ? aHtamil ال استطيع ان احتمل 

  .Give it to me at once.  ?a9Tiny fi ?al Haal اعطيني في الحال

 Super-fast  bisur9a fa?iqa بسرعه فائقة 

 .They will be surprised.  Sayatafa-ja?uun سيتفاجئون 

 It is different from… muxtalif 9an مختلف عن 

  .Hit him with a knife.  ?ișrubhu bilsikin اضربه بالسكين 

 These little ones are called هذه الصغار تُدعى حشرات 

insects. 

haDihi ?alSiǧar tud9a Hašarat.  



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  An important thing  šay?an muhimman شيئا مهما 

  .I want to achieve my goal.  ?uridu ?an ?uHaqqiq hadafy اريد ان احقق هدفي 

 Later on  laHiqan الحقا 

  Because it is beautiful.  li?annaha jamila النها جميلة 

  .Try this.  jarrub haDa جٌرب هذا 

  .I can’t carry it.  ma ?agdar ?aHmilha ما اكدر احملها 

  Go from here.  ruuH min huna روح من هنا 

  Come on hayya هيا 

  It smells good.  ra?iHataha zakiya رائحتها زكية 

  .As the hero said.  Kama qala ?albaTal كما قال البطل 

  .This is a strange book.  haDa kitabun ǧaribun هذا كتاب غريب

 He has a lot of cute عنده الكثير من االلوان الحلوة 

colours.  

9indahu ?alkaƟiir 

min ?alalwan ?alHilwa.  

  .It is a wonderful tiger.  ?inahu fahdun ra?i9un انه فهد رائع 

  .Calm down.  hadi? min raw9ak هديء من روعك 

  .Don’t give in to despair.  la tastaslim lilya?s ال تستسلم لليأس 

  I have an idea.  ladayya fikra لدي فكرة

  I swear it is delicious.  wallah Tayib وهللا طيب

  Welcome  9ala ? alraHb walsi9a على الرحب والسعة 

 I want some delicious fruit.  ?uridu ba9șan اريد بعضا من الفاكهة اللذيذة

min ?alfakiha ?alaDiDa.  

  The room is a mess.  ?alǧurfa fi fawșa الغرفه في فوضى 

  .I want some chocolate.  ?uridu ba9șan min?lšukalata اريد بعضا من الشكوالتة 

  .I want some vegetables. ?uridu ba9șan min ?alxușar اريد بعضا من الخضار 

  .I want a nice book.  ?uridu kitaban jamilan اريد كتابا جميال 

  .I want a nice bed.  ?uridu firašan jamilan اريد فراشا جميال 

 Did the cat swallow your هل القط ابتلع لسانك 

tongue? 

hal ?alquT ?ibtala9a lisanak 

 Something stuck in my شيء عالق بأسناني 

teeth.  

šay?un 9aliqun bi?asnany  

  I have a history with him.  li sabiqa ma9ahu لي سابقه معه

 ,The talk is directed at me ان الكالم موجه لي وليس لك 

not at you.  

?inal-kalama muwajjahun lii 

walaysa laka 

 .come back empty handed رجع خالي الوفاض 

 

raja9a xaaly ?alwifaș 

  I’m fed up. laqad șiqtu Dar9an لقد ضقت ذرعا



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انا ال اتحدث اليك بل اتحدث الى الذي 

 وراءك 

I’m not talking to you, I’m 

talking to those behind 

you. 

 

?ana la ?ataHadaƟ ?ilayk 

bal ?ataHadaƟ ?ila ?allaDy 

wara?ika.  

  .release him, ?iTlaq saraHahu اطلق سراحه 

  .Kick the ball forward ?irkil ?alkura ?ila ?alamam اركل الكرة الى االمام 

  Put the book on the table.  șa9 ?al kitaba 9ala ضع الكتاب على المنضدة 

?aminșadati. 

اجلب لي عصير التفاح وليس عصير 

 البرتقال 

Bring me apple juice, not 

orange juice. 

?ijlib lii 9aSiir ?al tuffaH 

walaysa 9aSiir ?al burtuqal 

 Write the lesson now, not اكتب الدرس االن وليس غدا  

tomorrow.  

?uktub ?aldarsa ?al?an walaysa 

ǧadan.  

 

 

 


