Arabic, though not native to the Horn of Africa, is widely spoken in two countries where it is not the majority language: the Republic of Djibouti and Eritrea. This region on the west coast of the Red Sea opposite the Tihama region of Yemen has always been one of contact and exchange. Links between the African and Arabian coasts are attested since antiquity and are doubtless much older.

Arabic was spoken there before the arrival of Islam. The Christianization of Abyssinia was carried out by Arabic-speaking priests from Syria who began to evangelize the hinterland, central Eritrea, and the …