Algerian Arabic

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Algerian Arabic
Dziria, دزيرية
Native toAlgeria
RegionCentral Maghreb
EthnicityAlgerian Arab-Berbers and Haratins
Native speakers
42.5 million (2020)[1]
3 million L2 speakers in Algeria (no date)[2]
Dialects
Arabic script
Language codes
ISO 639-3arq
Glottologalge1239
Árabe argelino.png
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Reda speaking Algerian Arabic.

Algerian Arabic (known as Darja in Algeria) is a dialect derived from the form of Arabic spoken in northern Algeria. It belongs to the Maghrebi Arabic language continuum and is partially mutually intelligible with Tunisian and Moroccan.

Like other varieties of Maghrebi Arabic, Algerian has a mostly Semitic vocabulary.[3] It contains Berber and Latin (African Romance)[4] influences and has numerous loanwords from French, Andalusian Arabic, Ottoman Turkish and Spanish.

Algerian Arabic is the native dialect of 75% to 80% of Algerians and is mastered by 85% to 100% of them.[5] It is a spoken language used in daily communication and entertainment, while Modern Standard Arabic (MSA) is generally reserved for official use and education.

Dialects[]

The Algerian language includes several distinct dialects belonging to two genetically different groups: pre-Hilalian and Hilalian dialects.

Hilalian dialects[]

Hilalian dialects of Algeria belong to three linguistic groups:[6]

  • Eastern Hilal dialects: spoken in the Hautes Plaines around Sétif, M'Sila and Djelfa;[7]
  • Central Hilal dialects: of central and southern Algeria, south of Algiers and Oran;[8]
  • Mâqil dialects: spoken in the western part of Oranais (noted for the third singular masculine accusative pronoun h, for example, /ʃʊfteh/ (I saw him), which would be /ʃʊftʊ/ in other dialects).[9]

Modern koine languages, urban and national, are based mainly on Hilalian dialects.

Pre-Hilalian dialects[]

Pre-Hilalian Arabic dialects are generally classified into three types: Urban, "Village" Sedentary, and Jewish dialects. Several Pre-Hilalian dialects are spoken in Algeria:[6][10]

  • Urban dialects can be found in all of Algeria's big cities. Urban dialects were formerly also spoken in other cities, such as Azemmour and Mascara, Algeria, where they are no longer used.
  • The lesser Kabylia dialect (or Jijel Arabic) is spoken in the triangular area north of Constantine, including Collo and Jijel (it is noteworthy for its pronunciation of [q] as [k] and [t] as [ts] and characterized, such as other Eastern pre-Hilalian dialects, by the preservation of the three short vowels).
  • The is spoken in the area north of Tlemcen, including the eastern Traras, Rachgoun and Honaine (it is noted for its pronunciation of [q] as [k]) ;
  • Judeo-Algerian Arabic is no longer spoken after Jews left Algeria in 1962, following its independence.

Phonology[]

Consonants[]

Consonant phonemes of Algerian Arabic [11]
Labial Dental/Alveolar Palatal Velar Uvular Pharyngeal Glottal
plain emphatic  plain  emphatic
Nasal m () n ()
stop voiceless (p) t k q (ʔ)
voiced b () d ɡ
Affricate voiceless (t͡ʃ) 1
voiced d͡ʒ
Fricative voiceless f s ʃ χ ħ h
voiced (v) z ʒ ʁ ʕ
Trill r
Approximant l ɫ j w

In comparison to other Maghrebi dialects, Algerian Arabic has retained numerous phonetic elements of Classical Arabic lost by its relatives;[11][12] In Algiers dialect, the letters /ðˤ/