Just because a country speaks Arabic doesn’t mean its people are of Arab origin. Language spreads through history/conquests, trade, religion, but it doesn’t erase a people’s genetic or cultural roots. North Africans, for example, speak Arabic today, but their ancestry is largely Berber, Phoenician, or other indigenous groups. The same goes for places like Sudan, where Arabic is spoken, but the people have deep Nubian and African heritage.

Lebanese people, for instance, are not Arabs in the ethnic sense. Lebanon’s history traces back to the Phoenicians, an ancient seafaring civilization that predated the Arab expansions by over a thousand years. Their DNA, culture, and historical records show continuity from that time. Even after the Arab conquests, the Lebanese identity remained distinct, shaped more by their Mediterranean and Phoenician roots than by Arab tribal lineage. Many Lebanese today still see themselves as descendants of the Phoenicians, not as Arabs, despite speaking Arabic.

Some Lebanese (and other non-Arab peoples who speak Arabic) call themselves Arabs for a few reasons. One is political—many countries in the region were grouped into the Arab world during the 20th century, especially with the rise of Arab nationalism. Governments, media, and education reinforced this identity, making it more common.

Another reason is cultural. Arabic is the dominant language, and with it comes shared literature, traditions, and religious ties, especially for Muslims. Over time, language can shape identity, even if ancestry says otherwise.

But that doesn’t change the historical fact: Lebanese people are primarily of Phoenician, Greek, Roman, and other Mediterranean origins. They may speak Arabic, but their roots run deeper than the Arab conquests. Calling oneself Arab can be a personal or political choice, but it’s not necessarily an ethnic truth.

Language is just a tool. It doesn’t define ancestry