Today, Saifi Institute continues to be guided by its founder Rana alongside her partner and Academic Director Nada Dirani. Together with a dedicated team of teachers and staff, they have cultivated an environment where academic learning and cultural exchange naturally come together. Many students describe Saifi not only as a place to study Arabic, but also as a welcoming community that supports them throughout their language journey in Lebanon.
Visionary educator shaping Saifi’s mission since day one.
Guides curriculum and the daily life of teachers and students.
Saifi Institute for Arabic Language was founded in Beirut in 2008 by Rana with the goal of rethinking how Arabic is taught to international learners. After beginning her career teaching Arabic to foreigners in 2001, Rana recognized a gap between traditional methods of teaching Formal Arabic and the spoken language used in daily life. This is what inspired her to open Saifi and develop a new teaching methodology known as “Urban Arabic”, a structured curriculum designed to help students learn Lebanese Arabic as it is naturally spoken in everyday conversation while still building a strong foundation in grammar, reading, and writing.
Since its founding, Saifi Institute has welcomed tens of thousands of students from around the world, including members of the Lebanese diaspora, journalists, diplomats, business professionals, researchers, and independent learners. Students come to Beirut to study Arabic while experiencing the culture, daily life, and social environment that shape the language itself. Over the years, Saifi has grown into one of the leading Arabic language institutes in Lebanon and worldwide, offering a wide range of courses and welcoming learners from diverse linguistic and cultural backgrounds.
At the heart of Saifi’s philosophy is the belief that language learning should be both practical and human-centered. The institute’s teaching approach emphasizes communication, cultural understanding, and real-life interaction, enabling students to develop confidence in using Arabic in authentic contexts. Classes are designed to encourage participation, curiosity, and meaningful engagement with both the language and the surrounding community.
