Etiquette 101: The Do's and Don'ts of Visiting an Arab Home

It’s common courtesy to take off your shoes before entering an Arab home, both to keep the inside of the house clean and also to not show disrespect by walking over nice carpets or floors with your dirty shoes. Just be sure you’re wearing clean socks.

When entering an Arab home, be sure to greet everyone there individually with a warm smile and handshake if initiated. Arabs love greetings and welcoming guests, so it’s only respectful to show that you’re also thankful to be in their home.

More likely than not your Arab hosts will have a special living room or seating area specifically for guests, with the best sofas or decorations. Make sure you let them lead you to where the best place to sit is, instead of just plopping down in the closest available seat.

Instead of quickly asking for or accepting tea or coffee, its better in Arab culture (to at least pretend) to refuse an offering of refreshments from your Arab host to be polite. Don’t worry, even if you refuse a thousand times they’ll still give you lots of drinks and food!

Once you do have your tea or coffee, it’s always better to slowly drink it and take your time with your host. When an Arab invites you to their home, they’ll want to enjoy your company and expect you to take your time as well; so drinking your tea slowly assures them that you also are enjoying their company!

Arabs believe that if complementing something too much, you might end up feeling jealous (either consciously or unconsciously), and therefore think it’s better to say “mashallah” after a compliment. This word simply means that God has willed the thing to be as perfect as it is, and therefore we should enjoy its beauty without any feelings of resentment.

Be careful not to compliment an object in your Arab friend’s home too much – in Arabic culture, if someone looks like they have gotten attached to an object then the Arab host will feel obliged to give it to them. This is just another example of how generous and giving Arabs can be, so remember to be careful when complimenting too much.

If you’re starting to feel full after all the amazing Arabic food you’ve been fed at their home, the only way to convince them that you are indeed full is to leave a small bit of food on your plate. If you keep cleaning your plate, more likely than not they’ll keep giving you more helpings of food.

Many Arabs sit on the floor on richly decorated rugs and soft carpets, and you may find yourself in a more traditional Arab house where this will be common. Be sure however not to face the soles of your feet towards anyone, as this is considered extremely rude in Arab culture.

The final goodbyes when leaving an Arab person’s home will usually take longer than anything you’ll do in their home. They’ll usually accompany you out the door to your car or the front gate of their house to make sure you leave safely, so try to engage in the goodbyes with them to show how thankful you are.