Medical science is divided into numerous fields or specializations. A professional medical translator will not just have strong knowledge of languages, but of that specific medical field and the related terminologies as well.
With millions of native speakers, Arabic is regarded as the lingua franca of the Arab world and is also the liturgical language of Islam. It belongs to the Central Semitic family of languages. Other languages belonging to the Central Semitic family of languages are Aramaic, Ugaritic, and the Canaanite languages of Hebrew and Phoenician. Due to extensive influence of Arabic in the fields of science, mathematics and philosophy during the Middle Ages, it left a great impact over many European languages. As a result languages such as Spanish borrowed a great deal of words from the Arabic language. Other languages influenced by Arabic are Persian, Turkish, Spanish, Maltese, Urdu, Kashmiri, Kurdish, Bosnian, Kazakh, Bengali, Hindi, Malay, Maldivian, Indonesian, Pashto, Punjabi, Tagalog, Sindhi and Hausa and some languages in parts of Africa.
Below are Arabic translation of common terms used in medical documents:
| Medical & Pharmaceutical Industries | |
| Arabic Language | English Language |
|---|---|
| aS-SiHHa | Health |
| an-nisaa’ wal-wilaada | gynaecology |
| al-ashiAAa | radiology |
| jarraaH | surgeon |
 |
|
| al-aTfaal | pediatrics |
| al-jildeeya | dermatology |
| al-Ailaaj aT-TabeeAee | physiotherapy |
| isAaafaat awwaleeya | first aid |
 |
|
| al-jiraaHa | surgery |
| al-wilaada | maternity |
| al-amraaD an-nafseeya | psychiatry |
| al-Auyoon | ophthalmology |
| ghurfa Aamaleeyaat | operating theatre |
 |
|
| al-Aasaab | neurology |
| at-tajmeel | plastic surgery |
| al-ghudad aS-Samaa’ | endocrinology |
| al-amraaD | pathology |
| jurH | wound |
 |
|
| al-jihaaz al-boolee wal-kilee | urology |
| as-saraTaan | oncology |
| Tabeeb al-asnaan | dentist |
| muththabit | braces |
| Taqm asnaan | dentures |
| alam bi-asnaan | toothache |
| khalA | extraction |
| Hashw | filling |
| litha | gum |
| Haadith | accident |
 |
|
| jidhr | root |
| daaHika | premolar |
| Tabeeb al-Auyoon | optician |
| naZZaara | glasses |
| Aadasaat laaSiqa | contact lenses |
| qazaHeeya | iris |
| shabakeeya | retina |
| Aasab baSaree | optic nerve |
| qaraneeya | cornea |
| buAd an-nazar | far-sightedness |
| qiSar an-naZar | near-sightedness |
| al-Haml | pregnancy |
 |
|
| ikhtibaar al-Haml | pregnancy test |
| al-Habl as-sirree | umbilical cord |
| Aunuq ar-raHm | cervix |
| raHm | uterus |
| ibaaDa | ovulation |
| wadA | delivery |
| wilaada | birth |
| Tabeeb tawleed | obstetrician |
| al-qaySareeya | cesarean section |
| thulaathee al-ash-hur | trimester |
| al-wilaada | childbirth |
| tasHeeH al-jism dhaateeyan | chiropractic |
| tajbeer al-Aazm | osteopathy |
| Ailaaj bil-yadayn | reflexology |
| ta’ammul | meditation |
 |
|
| wakhz bil-ibr | acupuncture |
| Ailaaj bit-tanweem | hypnotherapy |
| Ailaaj bi-khulaaSaat az-zuyoot | aromatherapy |
| Ailaaj bil-mithl | homeopathy |
| Ailaaj biD-Daght | acupressure |
| Ailaaj nafsee | psychotherapy |
| tawattur | stress |
| Ailaaj biT-TabeeAeeya | naturotherapy |
| Ailaaj bil-miyaah | hydrotherapy |