Final answer:
Due to Muslim conquests, many people in Southwest Asia adopted Arabic for official use, which led to the widespread use of the language and the spread of Islam. The Arabic script was adapted to several local languages, and in some areas, it facilitated the creation of new languages like Kiswahili. The influence on language due to these conquests is still visible today.
Step-by-step explanation:
Due to Muslim conquests, many people living in Southwest Asia adopted Arabic as a lingua franca, particularly for government and administration. With the spread of the Arabic language came the spread of Islam, as territories such as Egypt experienced Arabization and, in many cases, conversion to Islam. The influence of Arabic extended beyond administration, affecting local languages; for example, Arabic script was adapted to write Kurdish, Pashto, Urdu, and Punjabi.
In regions such as Islamic Spain and India, Arabic coexisted with local languages, and conversion to Islam often resulted in the blending of Islamic practices with indigenous traditions. The use of Arabic enhanced trade and cultural exchange across the vast Islamic world, stretching from Spain to India. In places like Tanzania, the intermingling of Islamic heritage with local Bantu languages led to the creation of Kiswahili, which integrated Arabic words.
The legacy of the Muslim conquests on language is evident to this day; in modern India and Pakistan, for instance, the influence of European colonization made English prevalent in education and governance, a sign of later external influences, while Islamic conquests had earlier contributed to the widespread use of Urdu, which has roots in the Arabic script. The lingual changes brought by Arab expansion were lasting and transformative to the regions affected.