Language, Society and Ideologies in Multilingual Egypt

Download or read book Language, Society and Ideologies in Multilingual Egypt written by Valentina Serreli and published by Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG. This book was released on 2024-03-18 with total page 220 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The book explores the change over time in language-society relations in a multilingual periphery of Egypt. It examines the role of language ideologies in the construction and negotiation of social identities in the processes of contact, maintenance and shift typical of multilingualism. Based on extensive fieldwork and interviews, it is the first of its kind to portray the inventory of linguistic and accompanying non-linguistic behaviors observed within and between different ethnolinguistic groups in the Siwa Oasis. It provides first-hand information about the linguistic habits of Siwan women, an aspect which is generally difficult to access in this gender-segregated community. The book sheds light on Berber-Arabic contact at the core of the Arab world and at a critical time when individual linguistic repertoires are expanding and Arabic is emerging as a powerful resource.