When language and dialects collide: Standard Arabic and its ‘opponents’

In chapter 2, we dealt with a set of linguistic phenomena to highlight the principles at play in intra- and intergroup conflict in situations of asymmetrical power relations. Placing these phenomena in their socio-political context, we were able to establish aspects of their symbolic meanings by invoking the concepts of identity, tradition and modernization. The role of language as a value-laden resource in society was given as the reason for its ability to act as a proxy for the prosecution of extra-linguistic conflicts of various kinds (see Cameron 1995; Heller 1999; Laforest 1999; Rickford 1999). By examining the discursive practices and lexical choices involved in articulating linguistic conflicts pertaining to Arabic, we were able to highlight the rhetorical import they have – vis-à-vis affect and task orientation – in their socio-cultural milieu. The present chapter will explore these themes further by analysing a number of debates involving Standard Arabic (SA) in the past two centuries, particularly the competition between this variety of the language and the dialects. Some of these debates will be familiar to specialists in Arabic language and culture. This chapter is intended for readers from outside this constituency, who are its primary audience.