The Arabic language first appeared in the Arabian Peninsula and it is a member of the Semitic family of languages, including Aramaic and Hebrew. The earliest studied form of the Arabic language is referred to as the Old Arabic and was spoken in the 4th century CE. Old Arabic was not completely defined until the 7th century when the Qur’an, the holy book of Islam, was revealed. As Islam spread outside the Peninsula, Arabic spread along with it and became a language of trade, scholarship, and administration.