French colonial rule in Algeria

November 25, 2007 5:17 PM

Can anyone direct me to information on/analyses of language politics in Algeria under the French?

I'm looking for scholarly materials for a short presentation (on the topic of Arabic versus French), so articles are preferred, but I'll take anything (other than Wikipedia links) at this point.

posted by anonymous78 to grab bag (3 comments total)

Hmm, it's never made explicit but it's obvious the role that language plays in the film The Battle of Algiers. I suspect that A Savage War for Peace may address this issue as well.
posted by proj at 5:43 PM on November 25, 2007

Try these. I don't know that any will perfectly answer your question, but they should get you started.

Le français dans le monde. This is a journal.

QUEFFELEC, Ambroise Jean-Marc 1992. "Le français du Maghreb", in L' Encyclopédie culturelle de la France. Paris, CAMIF-ECLECTIS. There may be other items of interest in his CV linked to his name above.

MANESSY, Gabriel. Le français en Afrique noire. Paris: Harmattan, 1994. While this deals mainly with Black Africa, I believe it will be of good use, if for nothing other than its bibliography.

MONEGO, Joan Phyllis. Maghrebian Literature in French.

MORTIMER, Mildred P. Malika Mokeddem: A New and Resonant Voice in Francophone Algerian Literature. Short, but may offer a few insights.

NESSA WOLFSON, Joan Manes. Language of Inequality.
posted by Mo Nickels at 7:19 PM on November 25, 2007

A quick search for "language AND alger* AND poli*" in the OAISTER database turns up these results. I did a quick review of them, and quite a few, if not the majority, of the resulting 29 items appear relevant to your project.
posted by cog_nate at 10:46 AM on November 26, 2007