ABSTRACT
The modern descendants of the ancient Aramaeans are rightly proud of their heritage, as are the people of Arab stock. As a matter of general truth it must first be stated that the establishing of the racial origins and affiliations of an ancient people is always and inevitably very difficult. New populations were entering into the settled areas of the Fertile Crescent, taking up residence in trading centres. The conclusion cannot be avoided that it is far more likely that the Nabataeans were of Arab than of Aramaean stock. Indeed, the linguistic evidence of Arabic influences on Nabataean Aramaic suggests that the Nabataeans normally spoke a form of Arabic, while, like the Persians, etc., they used Aramaic for formal purposes and especially for inscriptions. There were various Arab groups speaking early north Arabic dialects and the Nabataeans must have been just one of them. The populace there was mainly Aramaean, though Arabs were a significant minority.
