Algerian Arabic in the context of "Languages of Algeria"

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⭐ Core Definition: Algerian Arabic

Algerian Arabic (Arabic: الدارجة الجزائرية, romanizedad-dārija al-jazāʾiriyya), natively known as Dziria, Darja or Derja, is a variety of Arabic spoken in Algeria. It belongs to the Maghrebi Arabic dialect continuum and is mostly intelligible with the Tunisian and Moroccan dialects. Darja (الدارجة) means 'everyday/colloquial dialect'.

Like other varieties of Maghrebi Arabic, Algerian Arabic has a mostly Semitic vocabulary. It contains Berber, Punic, and African Romance influences and has some loanwords from French, Andalusi Arabic, Ottoman Turkish and Spanish. Berber loanwords represent 8% to 9% of its vocabulary.

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👉 Algerian Arabic in the context of Languages of Algeria

Arabic, particularly the Algerian Arabic dialect, is the most widely spoken language in Algeria, but a number of regional and foreign languages are also spoken. The official languages of Algeria are Arabic and Berber, as specified in its constitution since 1963 for the former and since 2016 for the latter. Berber has been recognized as a "national language" by constitutional amendment since 8 May 2002. In February 2016, a constitutional resolution was passed making Berber an official language alongside Arabic. Arabic is spoken by about 81% of Algerians, while Berber languages are spoken by 17%. French, though it has no official status, is still used in media (some newspapers) and education due to Algeria's colonial history. Kabyle, with 3 million speakers, is the most spoken Berber language in the country, is taught and partially co-official (with a few restrictions) in parts of Kabylie.

The 1966 Algerian census, the last to include a question about the mother tongue, showed that 81.5% of the population spoke Arabic as a native language, with about half of the Berber population also speaking it as a second language, while 17.9% spoke Berber languages natively.

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Algerian Arabic in the context of Moroccan Arabic language

Moroccan Arabic (Arabic: العربية المغربية الدارجة, romanizedal-ʻArabiyyah al-Maghribiyyah ad-Dārija lit.'Moroccan vernacular Arabic'), also known as Darija (الدارجة or الداريجة), is the dialectal, vernacular form or forms of Arabic spoken in Morocco. It is part of the Maghrebi Arabic dialect continuum and as such is mutually intelligible to some extent with Algerian Arabic and to a lesser extent with Tunisian Arabic. It is spoken by 91.9% of the population of Morocco, with 80.6% of Moroccans considering it their native language.

While Modern Standard Arabic is used to varying degrees in formal situations such as religious sermons, books, newspapers, government communications, news broadcasts and political talk shows, Moroccan Arabic is the predominant spoken language of the country and has a strong presence in Moroccan television entertainment, cinema and commercial advertising. Moroccan Arabic has many regional dialects and accents as well, with its mainstream dialect being the one used in metropolitan cities, such as Casablanca, Rabat, Meknes and Fez. Therefore, the metropolitan dialects dominate the media and eclipse most of the other regional accents.

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Algerian Arabic in the context of Maghrebi Arabic

Maghrebi Arabic, often known as ad-Dārija to differentiate it from Literary Arabic, is a vernacular Arabic dialect continuum spoken in the Maghreb. It includes the Moroccan, Algerian, Tunisian, Libyan, Hassaniya and Saharan Arabic dialects.

Maghrebi Arabic has a predominantly Semitic and Arabic vocabulary, although it contains a significant number of Berber loanwords, which represent 2–3% of the vocabulary of Libyan Arabic, 8–9% of Algerian and Tunisian Arabic, and 10–15% of Moroccan Arabic. Maghrebi Arabic was formerly spoken in Al-Andalus and Sicily until the 17th and 13th centuries, respectively, in the extinct forms of Andalusi Arabic and Siculo-Arabic. The Maltese language is believed to have its source in a language spoken in Muslim Sicily that ultimately originates from Tunisia, as it contains some typical Maghrebi Arabic areal characteristics.

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Algerian Arabic in the context of Tunisian Arabic

Tunisian Arabic, or simply Tunisian (Arabic: تونسي, romanizedTūnsi), is a variety of Arabic spoken in Tunisia. It is known among its 13 million speakers as Tūnsi, [ˈtuːnsi] "Tunisian" or Derja (Arabic: الدارجة; meaning "common or everyday dialect") to distinguish it from Modern Standard Arabic, the official language of Tunisia. Tunisian Arabic is mostly similar to eastern Algerian Arabic and western Libyan Arabic.

As part of the Maghrebi Arabic dialect continuum, Tunisian merges into Algerian Arabic and Libyan Arabic at the borders of the country. Like other Maghrebi dialects, it has a vocabulary that is predominantly Semitic and Arabic with a Berber, Latin and possibly Neo-Punic substratum. Tunisian Arabic contains Berber loanwords which represent 8% to 9% of its vocabulary. However, Tunisian has also loanwords from French, Turkish, Italian and the languages of Spain and a little bit of Persian.

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Algerian Arabic in the context of Western Beylik

The Beylik of the West (in Arabic: bâylik al-gharb) was one of three Beyliks (governorates) of the Regency of Algiers, with the other two being the Beylik of Titteri and the Beylik of Constantine. It was established in 1563, and it was ended during the French conquest.

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Algerian Arabic in the context of Béjaïa

Béjaïa (/bɪˈdʒə/ bij-EYE; Arabic: بجاية, romanizedBijāya, pronounced [biˈdʒaːja], locally [ˈb(d)ʒæːjə]), formerly known as Bougie and Bugia, is a Mediterranean port city and commune on the Gulf of Béjaïa in Algeria; it is the capital of Béjaïa Province.

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