Languages of Algeria

Trilingual welcome sign in Isser Municipality, (Boumerdès) written in Arabic, Kabyle (Tifinagh script), and French.

The official language of Algeria is Arabic, as specified in its constitution since 1963. In addition to this, Berber has been recognized as a "national language" by constitutional amendment since May 8, 2002. Between them, these two languages are the native languages of over 99% of Algerians, with Arabic spoken by about 72% and Berber by 27.4% ^[1]. French, though it has no official status, is still widely used in government and education (since primary school), due to Algeria's colonial history, and English is also taught from Middle school.

Currently spoken languages

Arabic

Arabic is the language of 72% of Algeria's population, particularly Algerian Arabic spoken by 60 %; in addition to this, non-native speakers learn Arabic at school, so in fact 83.2% of the population understands Standard Arabic or the Algerian Arabic dialect. In Algeria, as elsewhere, spoken Arabic differs very substantially from written Arabic; Algerian Arabic has a much-simplified vowel system, a substantially changed vocabulary with many new words and many words from Berber, Turkish, and French, and, like all Arabic dialects, has dropped the case endings of the written language. Within Algerian Arabic itself, there are significant local variations; Jijel Arabic, in particular, is noteworthy for its pronunciation of qaf as kaf and its profusion of Berber loanwords, and the dialects of some ports show influence from Andalusi Arabic brought by refugees from al-Andalus. Algerian Arabic is part of the Maghrebi Arabic dialect continuum, and fades into Moroccan Arabic and Tunisian Arabic along the respective borders. In the Sahara more conservative Bedouin dialects, grouped under the name Saharan Arabic, are spoken; in addition, the many Sahrawi refugees at Tindouf speak Hassaniya Arabic. Most Jews of Algeria once spoke dialects of Arabic specific to their community, collectively termed "Judeo-Arabic"; however, most came to speak French in the colonial period even before emigrating to France and Israel after independence.

Berber

Percent speaking Berber in each wilaya in 1966

The Berber languages (or Berber language) are spoken in many parts of Algeria, but mainly in Kabylia, in the Aurès, and in the Sahara (Tuaregs); 27.3% of Algerians speak Berber. The Berber languages/dialects spoken in Algeria include: In the north:

• Kabyle in Kabylia
• Chaouia in the Aurès
• Chenoua in Tipaza Province
• Tarifit around Arzew

Probably extinct, in western Algeria:

• Beni Snous
• Achacha
• Ouarsenis
• Bel Halima
• Haraoua

In the Sahara:

• Tumzabt language in the Mzab
• Ouargli language at Ouargla
• language of Touat and Gourara (called "Taznatit" by the Ethnologue, but that name is in fact used for most of the Zenati languages)
• language of Touggourt and Temacine
• Tidikelt
• Tamahaq, among the Tuareg of the Hoggar (see Tuareg languages)
• "Tachelhit", the dialect of the western ksours (see also Figuig). Despite the name, this is not the same as Moroccan "Tachelhit").

Until the Phoenicians' arrival, Berber was spoken throughout Algeria, as later attested by early Tifinagh inscriptions. Despite the growth of Punic, Latin, and later Arabic, it remained the main language of Algeria until the invasion of the Banu Hilal in the 11th century.

French

French is a part of the standard school curriculum, and is widely understood; Ethnologue estimates indicate that 20% of the population can read and write it^[2] other sources estimate much larger percentages. French is widely used in media and commerce. There is also a very small community of French native speakers, including pied-noirs who stayed behind. During the French colonisation, about one million French native speakers lived in Algeria. The pied-noirs developed a distinctive dialect, termed Pataouète.

English

English, because of its status as a global lingua franca, is taught from the first year of Middle School, and is occasionally used in signs and sometimes in official documents. However, only a tiny number of Algerians speak English, most of them younger people.

Sub-Saharan African languages

The Korandje language of the Saharan oasis of Tabelbala is a heavily Berber-influenced variety of Songhay, a language more widely spoken far to the south in Niger. Another northern Songhay language, Tadaksahak, may be spoken in parts of the far south; its nomadic speakers range over a wide area centered in northern Mali. There are also a few thousand Hausa speakers in the south.

Sign languages

Algerian Sign Language is used in Algeria by the deaf; it has sometimes been used on national TV.

Formerly spoken languages

Other Romance languages

• Ladino was formerly spoken by some Algerian Jews, particularly around Oran, in the Tetuani dialect; however, most shifted to French during the colonial period.
• The Mediterranean Lingua Franca or Sabir, a mixture of many Mediterranean languages, was once widespread as a means of communication with foreigners in the ports, including the slaves of the bagnios and the European renegades that joined the Barbary pirates; after 1830, it gradually disappeared, its functions taken over by French.
• Spanish has a long history in Oran, which was occupied by Spain between 1509 and 1790; it has left some traces in that city's dialect. It was also spoken by pied-noirs immigrating from the Spanish Mediterranean.

Latin itself, of course, was the language of the Roman occupation; it became widely spoken in the coastal towns, and Augustine attests that in his day it was gaining ground over Punic. However, it gave way to Arabic and Berber after the Umayyads' conquest, leaving only a few loanwords in those two languages.

Phoenician

Phoenician, particularly in its North African Punic form, was brought to Algeria by Carthage's influence, and was widely spoken in its east for a time; Augustine grew up speaking it, and quotes occasional phrases. However, by his time the language was losing ground to Latin, and no trace of it survives now (apart from occasional names of places).

Ottoman Turkish

Ottoman rule after the 16th century brought a dominant minority of Turks to Algeria, particularly concentrated in the large cities; for a while, Ottoman Turkish became a major governmental language. However, over time these Turks gradually assimilated, and, while many families of partial Turkish descent remain in Algeria, none speak the language.

References

1. ^ http://www.tlfq.ulaval.ca/AXL/, Jacques Leclerc, L’aménagement linguistique dans le monde.
2. ^ http://www.ethnologue.com/

External links

• Ethnologue listing for Algeria
• Algeria's Unresolved Language Conflict
• A User's Guide to Algerian Languages
• Langues d'Algérie
• PanAfriL10n page on Algeria
• Algerian-Dardja Dictionary