If you're a beginner, and the intent is to learn C programming, I would start with ubuntu since it's stable and lots of linux questions asked online are often asked by other ubuntu users. Learn how the system is put together and get a feel for the tools. After a while, maybe try out Arch or some other start-from-scratch distro. I say this as someone who runs Arch on my work and personal laptop. I really like Arch, but it certainly requires some upfront knowledge and you can really shoot yourself in the foot.

Reduce as many variables as you can while getting started, and running ubuntu is certainly a great way of doing that. Plus, a lot of shops run ubuntu in production, which makes that experience pretty valuable. Good luck!