Language Management and Marketing in Algeria

299 Pages·2007·3.47 MB·English

Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria
Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research
University of Oran

Faculty of Letters Languages and Arts
Anglo-Saxon Language Department
English Section
Language Management and Marketing
in Algeria

Doctorate Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfillment for the Requirements of the
Degree of Doctor in Sociolinguistics
Submitted by Supervised by
Louafia Boukreris Pr. Bouhadiba Farouk

Board of examiners
Chairman Bouamrane Ali P rPorfoefsessosro Ur n i vUenrsiivteyr osift yO orfa nO ran
Supervisor Bouhadiba Farouk P Prorfoefsessosro rU nUivneivresirtsyi toyf oOf rOarna n
Examiner Hocine Nacéra P Prroofefesssosorr U Uninvievresristyit yo fo Af Annnanbaab a
Examiner Benali Mohamed Rachid MMaaiittrree ddee ccoonnffeerreennccee AA UUnniivveerrssiittyy ooff OOrraann
Examiner Benmoussat Ismail P Prroofefesssosorr U Unniviveerrsistiyty o of fT Tlelemmcceenn
Examiner Dendane Zoubir MMaaiittrree ddee ccoonnffeerreennccee AA UUnniivveerrssiittyy ooff TTlleemmcceenn

Academic year 2010-2011
Dedicated to
My dear mother
My dear brothers and sisters
My dear friends
Mostefa Zoulikha ,Leila Moulfi, and Zitouni Mimouna
And my dear colleagues
With love…
This thesis is dedicated to you all

I
Acknowledgements

In a project of this nature, there are always some people who have contributed directly or
indirectly to its completion, and thus, to all of these people, many of whom are not mentioned,
I owe great debts of gratitude. May the almighty God richly bless them?
First, my very special thanks go to my supervisor and academic adviser, Prof. Farouk
Bouhadiba who went beyond the call of duty to give generously his time to offer help during
the various stages of my doctoral research. I am most grateful for his constructive criticism,
unbounded patience, and interest without which this study would never have reached this
stage. I owe him a major debt for having stimulated further thoughts to complement the
subject matter of my dissertation.
My special thanks go also to Professor Ali Bouamrane, my principal magister thesis
supervisor, who advised me in a continual way on how to get on with my research work. It
would not have been possible to write this doctoral thesis without Professor’s Ali Bouamrane
prior academic support, help, and patience he offered to initiate me to sociolinguistic research.
This has paved me the way to further doctoral research. Thus, the personal and intellectual
debts that I owe him as well as my mere expressions of thanks likewise do not suffice.
I would like also to thank Dr. Zoulikha Mostefa SBA for her help, and critical reading of
my first draft, and the valuable comments, and advice she offered me.
My thanks go also Dr. Leila Moulfi for her encouragement, help, and support at times
when she was more than submerged with some duties.
I wish also to thank my colleague, Zitouni Mimouna, who offered her assistance during
the printing phase of my work.
My profound thanks go to all the members of my board of examiners.

II
List of acronyms and abbreviations
CA: Classical Arabic
MSA: Modern Standard Arabic
SA: Spoken Arabic
FR: French
EU: European Union
LL: Linguistic Landscape
HRM: Human Resource Management
Engco: English Company

List of figures
Figure 1: Language Planning Policy Approach………………………………………..96
Figure 2: The world hierarchy of languages…………………………………………..171
Figure 3: Major world languages in the future………………………………………..172
Figure 4: Language management organization……………………………………….210
Figure 5: the education and economic interrelations………………………………….211

III
List of Maps
Map 1: Arabic and Berber language layout……………………………………………26
Map 2: Arabic speaking majorities……………………………………………………..27
Map 3: Distribution of the Amazigh varieties…………………………………………32
Map 4: The distribution of the Berber communities…………………………………...34
Map 5: Linguistic communities in Belgium...………………………………………….38

List of tables
Table 1: Arabic language varieties …………………………………………………….31
Table 2: The ethnic communities in Algeria…………………………………………...35
Table 3: School infrastructure 1962-1992..………………………………………….. 141
Table 4: Evolution of the Algerian teaching staff…………………………………….141
Table 5: Schooling, infrastructure and teaching staff.………………………………...142
Table 6: schooling development of children………………………………………….142
Table 7: Schooling of girls …………………………………………………………...142
Table 8: primary and secondary school infrastructure from 1964-2000 …………......143
Table 9: the EU countries numerical strength………………………………………...178

IV
Contents
Dedication ……...…………………………………………………………………...…...I
Acknowledgements ……………………………………………………….......………...II
List of acronyms and abbreviations ……………………………………………………III
List of figures…………………………………………………………………..............III
List of Maps...........................................................................................................……..IV
List of Tables…………………………………………………………………………...IV
Contents………………………………………………………………………………....V
Abstract.........................................................................................................................VIII
General Introduction …………………………………………………………………....X

Chapter one: Language Diversity
1.1 Introduction...………………………………………………………………………..1
1.2 The Concept of Diversity and its Development...……………………………….…..2
1.2.1 Linguistic Diversity.………………….………….…..….…............ ……4
1.2.2 Approaches to Linguistic Diversity……………………………...………10
1.2.3 Different Views of Language Diversity…………………………………12
1.2.4 Politics and Linguistic Diversity……………………………….….…… 17
1.3 Language and Population in North Africa ………………………………....……....19
1.3.1 Linguistic Diversity in Algeria……..………………………………...….23
1.3.1.1 The Arabic Language………………..…….……………….........27
1.3.1.2 The Berber Language……………………..……….…………….31
1.3.2 The Side Effects of Diversity………………………………..…………..35
1.4 Conclusion……………………………………………………….………………....39

V
Contents

Chapter two: Colonial language planning policy
2.1 Introduction……………………………………………………...………….……...40
2.2 Education before 1830……………………………………………………….…......43
2.3 The Colonial Educational Policy Project...…………………………………......…..45
2.3.1 The French Authorities’ Position……………………………………….46
2.3.2 The Settlers’ Position.………………………………...……….………...50
2.4 The Implementation of the Colonial Policy...……………………………………...51
2.5 The Language Policy of ‘divide to rule’ …………………………………………...56
2.6 The Framing of the Sociolinguistic Situation…………………………………........57
2.6.1 Motivations behind the Arabic Language Status Devaluation…………..59
2.6.2 The French Schooling Policy…………………………………………...62
2.6.3 The Search for Policy Incentives.………………………….…...……….64
2.6.4 Berber Policy Advocators ………………………………….……..…….67
2.6.5 Policy Objective ……….………………………………………….........73
2.7 Conclusion……………………………………………………………...………….76

Chapter three: Language Planning in Independent Algeria
3.1 Introduction……………………………………………………………………......80
3.2 Planning: Definition………………………………………………………………..81
3.3 Language Planning…………………………………………………………………82
3.4 Language Planning and Nationalism….....................................................................98
3.4.1 Language and State Building………………………….………………..101
3.4.2 The Case of Algeria...…………………………………………………..103
3.4.3 Language Selection..................................................................................105
3.4.4 Language Planning Environment………………..……….…………….108
3.4.4.1The Elite: The Clash……………………………………...……..110
3.4.4.2 Importance of Literacy.…………………….…………………..121
3.4.4.3 The Berber Crisis…………………………………..…………...124
3.5 Arabization: Evolution within the French Colonial Legacy..……………….…….137
3.6 Conclusion…............................................................................................................146

VI
Contents

Chapter four: Language Management and Marketing
4.1 Introduction…………………………………………………………………..…...149
4.2 Management Theory………………………………………………………….…...152
4.3 Language Management……………………………………………………………152
4.3.1 Language Auditing…...............................................................................156
4.3.2 Human Resources Management………………………………..……….157
4.3.2.1 Human Capital……………………………………..……………160
4.3.2.2 Social Capital…………………………………………….….......162
4.4 Education and Language Planning..…………….…………..…………………….163
4.4.1 Language Uncertainty…………………………………………………...169
4.4.2 Language Modernization………………………………………………..179
4.5 Language Attitudes……………………………………………………...………...181
4.6 Types of Attitudes…...............................................................................................183
4.7 Economic Consideration of Language Planning …………………………………188
4.8 Marketing: a Definition…………………………………………………………...191
4.8.1 Language Marketing: an economic adaptation……………………..…...192
4.8.2 Baker and Prys Language Marketing Approach…………………………194
4.8.3 Language landscape: Awareness and Marketing Role…………….…….198
4.8.4 Language and the Labour market………………………………………..201
4.9 Language Management Agencies………………………………………………..205
4.10 Translation as a Language Management Activity ………………………………211
4.11Conclusion...…………………………………………………………………..….211
General Conclusion……..…………………………………………………………….215
Bibliography ….............................................................................................................221
Annex …........................................................................................................................239

VII
Abstract

Diversity is one of the most puzzling and challenging feature of the different existing
species in the universe. It is everywhere present in all species. The human species displays a
complex diversity case, which encompasses racial, cultural, ethnic, religious and linguistic
diversities. The latter is one of the concerns of the present work. At far epochs, the linguistic
landscape was rather local. Language difference was not an issue. There was no politico-
linguistic awareness. People identified to their groups on the basis of other factors such as
religious practices and beliefs .However, with the rise of nationalism, language acquired the
power to unite or disintegrate communities and to be identified as a strong correlate with
territorial and group ties. Territorial expansion and its control required that all groups that fall
within the territorial limits to be submitted to a language conversion process for which
strategies were used. Language diversity has been ever since the rise of nationalism associated
with unity promotion and /or conflict fuelling and a strategy for separation purpose. The latter
was used by the ex-colonial countries. Soon after independence, the countries realized that the
political independence was imbued with ingredients for its self-destruction or destabilization
among which the linguistic diversity which was invested purposefully by the colonizers. This
constituted an urgent problem to be considered as early as independence.
All newly independent countries ventured in a language planning policy the
implementation of which confronted ups and downs generating a certain political and social
unrest. Algeria is no exception. It is for this very reason that need arises to think of ways to
conduct an analysis as to the side effects of the planning policy so as to bring the policy to
satisfaction. This is the concern of the fourth chapter which is an attempt to deal with the
different factors that influence the policy. Among these factors is the investment on the
human factor so that the issue of language is espoused by its users.

VIII
Abstract

Governments can assist in such an enterprise. The major work remains within the
hands of the masses. The government together with the influential social organizations, which
are versed or concerned with the language issue, need to create a favorable climate, each
according to its power position to develop the human resources necessary to generate a
knowledge society which is a guaranty for social health , wealth and cohesion. When
members of a community, society or a nation derive or identify some rewards be they moral
or material, they certainly develop a sense of commitment to the collective cause.

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