ABSTRACT
Heritage students have become the concern of linguists to the point that "the first national conference on heritage languages was held in Long Beach, CA, in 1999" (Kagan et al. 2001, p. 507). Among them are the heritage students of Arabic, who are the main concern of this chapter. Not much literature can be found on heritage students in general, nor those of Arabic in particular. Kagan et al. (2001) mentions that general characteristics are found in all heritage students but that language particulars are found as well. This chapter examines the number of heritage students enrolled in Arabic language classes at the American University in Cairo. It illustrates their linguis tic levels, motivation for studying Arabic, and even their parents' motivation.
