<P> The Middle East is very diverse when it comes to religions, many of which originated there . Islam is the largest religion in the Middle East, but other faiths that originated there, such as Judaism and Christianity, are also well represented . Christians represent 40.5% of Lebanon, where the Lebanese president, half of the cabinet, and half of the parliament follow one of the various Lebanese Christian rites . There are also important minority religions like the Bahá'í Faith, Yarsanism, Yazidism, Zoroastrianism, Mandaeism, Druze, and Shabakism, and in ancient times the region was home to Mesopotamian religions, Canaanite religions, Manichaeism, Mithraism and various monotheist gnostic sects . </P> <P> The five top languages, in terms of numbers of speakers, are Arabic, Persian, Turkish, Kurdish, and Hebrew . Arabic and Hebrew represent the Afro - Asiatic language family . Persian and Kurdish belong to the Indo - European language family . Turkish belongs to Turkic language family . About 20 minority languages are also spoken in the Middle East . </P> <P> Arabic, with all its dialects, are the most widely spoken languages in the Middle East, with Literary Arabic being official in all North African and in most West Asian countries . Arabic dialects are also spoken in some adjacent areas in neighbouring Middle Eastern non-Arab countries . It is a member of the Semitic branch of the Afro - Asiatic languages . Several Modern South Arabian languages such as Mehri and Soqotri are also spoken Yemen and Oman . Another Semitic language such as Aramaic and its dialects are spoken mainly by Assyrians and Mandaeans . There is also a Oasis Berber - speaking community in Egypt where the language is also known as Siwa . It is a non-Semitic Afro - Asiatic language . </P> <P> Persian is the second most spoken language . While it is primarily spoken in Iran and some border areas in neighbouring countries, the country is one of the region's largest and most populous . It belongs to the Indo - Iranian branch of the family of Indo - European languages . Other Western Iranic languages spoken in the region include Achomi, Daylami, Kurdish dialects, Semmani, Lurish, amongst many others . </P>

What is the most common language spoken in the middle east