The Politics Of Written Language In The Arab World

The Politics of Written Language in the Arab World connects the fascinating field of contemporary written Arabic with the central sociolinguistic notions of language ideology and diglossia. Focusing on Egypt and Morocco, the authors combine large-scale survey data on language attitudes with in-depth analyses of actual language usage and explicit (and implicit) language ideology. They show that writing practices as well as language attitudes in Egypt and Morocco are far more receptive to vernacular forms than has been assumed. The individual chapters cover a wide variety of media, from books and magazines to blogs and Tweets. A central theme running through the contributions is the social and political function of “doing informality” in a changing public sphere steadily more permeated by written Arabic in a number of media.

Introduction / Jacob Hoigilt and Gunvor Mejdell -- A language for the people? quantitative indicators of written darija and 'ammiyya in Cairo and Rabat / Kristian Takvam Kindt and Tewodros Kebede -- Diglossia as ideology / Kristen Brustad -- Changing norms, concepts and practices of written Arabic: a 'long distance' perspective / Gunvor Mejdell -- Contemporary darija writings in Morocco: ideology and practices / Catherine Miller -- Morocco: an informal passage to literacy in darija (Moroccan Arabic) / Dominique Caubet -- Adab sakhir (satirical literature) and the use of Egyptian vernacular / Eva Marie Haland -- Dialect with an attitude: language and criticism in new Egyptian print media / Jacob Hoigilt -- Writing oral and literary culture: the case of the contemporary Moroccan zajal / Alexander Elinson -- The politics of pro-'ammiyya language ideology in Egypt / Mariam Aboelezz -- Moralizing stances: discursive play and ideologies of language and gender in Moroccan digital discourse / Atiqa Hachimi -- The language of online activism: a case from Kuwait / Jon Nordenson -- The oralization of writing: argumentation, profanity and literacy in cyberspace / Emad Abdel Latif

In this study of the rise of modern Arabic, Ayalon examines 19th-century linguistic change in the Eastern Arab world, describing how the language responded to the infiltration of Western politics, technology, and culture. Focusing on the realm of political discourse, Ayalon looks at a wide array of evidence--local chronicles, travel accounts, translations of European writings, Arab political treatises, newspapers and periodicals, and dictionaries--to show how shifts in the color, tone, and meaning of the Arab vocabulary reflected a new socio-political and cultural reality.

Language and Identity in the Arab World explores the inextricable link between language and identity, referring particularly to the Arab world. Spanning Indonesia to the United States, the Arab world is here imagined as a continually changing one, with the Arab diaspora asserting its linguistic identity across the world. Crucial questions on transforming linguistic landscapes, the role and implications of migration, and the impact of technology on language use are explored by established and emerging scholars in the field of applied and socio-linguistics. The book asks such crucial questions as how language contact affects or transforms identity, how language reflects changing identities among migrant communities, and how language choices contribute to identity construction in social media. As well as appreciating the breadth and scope of the Arab world, this anthology focuses on the transformative role of language within indigenous and migrant communities as they negotiate between their heritage languages and those spoken by the wider society. Investigating the ways in which identity continues to be imagined and re-constructed in and among Arab communities, this book is indispensable to students, teachers, and anyone who is interested in language contact, linguistic landscapes, and minority language retention as well as the intersections of language and technology.

Alshaer's book offers a subtle and historically grounded reading of modern Arabic poetry, emphasising the aesthetic integration of politics within poetic form.

This edited book uses case studies to offer a comprehensive picture of the feedback practices and perceptions pertinent to English as a Foreign Language (EFL) writing in the Arab world. It highlights essential themes about feedback in L2 writing in eight Arab countries, and offers a detailed critical analysis of feedback practices and perceptions in six of these: Egypt, Morocco, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia and the United Arab Emirates. The book will appeal to an international readership of academics, researchers and practitioners interested in EFL writing in the Arab world.

This comprehensive guide captures important trends in international relations (IR) pedagogy, paying particular attention to innovations in active learning and student engagement for the contemporary International Relations IR classroom.

The first systematic survey of the language planning and language policy discourse of major Arabic language academies.

Published in honour of Professor Yasir Suleiman, this collection acknowledges his contribution to the field of language and society in general, and to that of language analysis of socio-political realities in the Middle East in particular. Presenting a range of case studies relating to the role of language in the Middle East, each shows that the study of language unearths deeper processes relating to political affiliations, social behaviour and transnational as well as religious and sectarian identities. It also explores questions related to the power of language as a socio-political instrument, and addresses current issues that facilitate an understanding of the evolving intersections in the areas of language and politics in the modern Middle East. This includes how language forms and is shaped by its social and political surroundings, the language manifestations of social, religious and political identifications, as well as groupings, divisions and polarisations in the encounter between language, conflict and politics in contemporary Middle Eastern communities. Looking at language as a proxy for social and political struggles, the volume gives prominence to the long-lasting legacy and great contribution of Professor Yasir Suleiman to the field.