Between struggle and official recognition · Global Voices

second-hand bookstore in a popular market in the state of Tizi-Ouzou. Photo by the author. Used with permission

On the occasion of World Novel Week, which begins on October 13 each year, Global Voices spoke with a group of Algerian novelists writing in the Amazigh language. For these writers, writing in Tamazight reflects a deep connection with their mother tongue and a desire to preserve and promote it.

Algerian literature is difficult to fully comprehend due to its multilingual nature, produced in Arabic, French and the Amazigh language, each with its own literary characteristics.

In their responses regarding the motivations that motivated their choice to write in Tamazight, the novelists we interviewed, who are today considered one of the most eminent Amazigh literary figures in Algeria, expressed various ways of express why they write in this language rather than in Arabic. or in French.

A history of Amazigh literature

The beginnings of written literature in the Amazigh language date back to the colonial period, with efforts to document oral popular literature, including poetry and stories, as did Saïd Boulifa (c. 1865-1931), the “White Fathers” or French. officers. The first novel written in Tamazight was published in 1947 under the title “Lwali n Udhrar” (later translated into English as “All Rags’ Journey to Sacred Heights”) by Belaid Ait Ali.

Mural in a village of Tizi-Ouzou, representing local personalities, some of whom have contributed to the Amazigh language in the artistic or literary field. Photo by the author. Used with permission

Since then, Amazigh novels and literary works have continued to be published, ranging from novels and poetry to short stories and drama. These works often reflected the general situation in the country, both by their themes and by their frequency of publication. Before Algeria recognized the Amazigh language as an official language and culture as part of its identity in 2016, most literary works produced in this language were characterized by their activist tone, both in form and content.

A language like any other

Writing in the Amazigh language was an effort to prove that this language, like any other, could be used to produce literature. Many novels from this period (late 1970s-late 1980s) addressed themes of identity and struggle.

The next phase, beginning in 1990, saw the creation of Tamazight language departments at Mouloud Mammeri University in Tizi Ouzou and Bejaia, leading to critical studies of Amazigh literature, particularly poetry and novels.

Amazigh literature and novels experienced significant growth after the language was officially recognized as a national language in 2016. This period was marked by an increase in publications and literary awards, including official ones recognizing the best written works in Tamazight. Writers continued to write with a sense of purpose and connection to their native language and identity.

Self-expression and native language

When asked why he chose to write in this language, novelist Djamel Laceb, 55, a former college physics professor, explains that writing in the Amazigh language is completely natural:

« لم أختر شيئًا… من الطبيعي أن أكتب باللغة الأمازيغية. إنها لغتي الأم التي تسمح لي بالتعبير بشكل أفضل عن مشاعري وحالتي الم زاجية.”

“I didn’t choose anything… It’s completely natural to write in Tamazight. It is my mother tongue and it allows me to express my feelings and moods more precisely.

Novelist Tahar Ould Amar considers the question itself illogical:

« لماذا اخترت الكتابة باللغة الأمازيغية؟ هذا السؤال طرحه عليّ أحد الصحافيين. أجبته: ‘لن تسأل رجلًا إنجليزيًا لماذا كتب بالإنجليزية، أو عربيًا اذا كتب بالعربية.’ مما يدل على درجة الاغتراب التي أوصلتنا إليها القوى المتعاقبة، فمن الطبيعي أن غة الأمازيغية.

Why did I choose to write in Tamazight? A journalist friend once asked me this. I replied: “You would not ask an Englishman why he writes in English, nor an Arab why he writes in Arabic. » This reflects the extent of the alienation imposed by successive powers. It’s completely natural for me to be Amazigh and to write in Tamazight.

Zohra Aoudia, herself a high school Amazigh language teacher and novelist who addresses women’s issues in her writing, says that writing in Tamazight allows her to express her emotions with sincerity. She adds:

“The water is in the water. سالمشاعر بعمق والتعبير عن أصدق أفكاري . من خلال لغته الأصلية ، يستطيع الإنسان أن يبكي ويشعر ويتحدث بكل قلبه. الكتابة بالأمازيغية هي وسيلة للحفاظ على ثقافتنا ونقل القصص بأصالة Yes.

I chose to write in the Amazigh language because it is my native language, which allows me to connect deeply with emotions and express my most authentic thoughts. Through their native language, people can cry, feel and speak with all their hearts. Writing in Tamazight is a way to preserve our culture and transmit stories with a level of authenticity that only this language can provide.

Preserve heritage

Aldjia Bouhar, author of a novel and a collection of short stories in the Amazigh language, declares:

“The water is in the water and in the water. لتي تعلمتها من أمي. أكتب بها لأساهم في ترقيتها والحفاظ عليها، حتى تصبح مثلها مثل غيرها من اللغات.”

I write in Tamazigh, my mother tongue, because I love writing there. It’s the language I learned from my mother. I write there to contribute to its promotion and preservation, so that it becomes like any other language.

The books of Hocine Louni. Photo by the author. Used with permission.

This militant objective of promoting and advancing Amazigh writing is shared by Hocine Louni, poet, novelist and translator, also independent in book publishing. He says:

“It’s time to take care of the water. الأمازيغية هي لغتنا الأم التي تربينا عليها ونتحدث بها يوميًا. مثل كل الشعوب التي تمتلك لغتها الخاصة، لدينا لغة نرغب في حفاظ علي ها لأنها جزء من هويتنا. كما أن من واجبنا العمل على ترقيتها لتصبح مثلها مثل أي لغة أخرى. لم تحظَ الأمازيغية بحقها الكامل، فمن سبقونا لم يكن لهم الحق في الكت ابة بها أو دراستها أو استخدامها في مؤسسات الدولة. لكن اليوم، من الممكن الكتابة بالأمازيغية، مثلما يكتب الياباني بال يابانية أو الألماني بالألمانية، هناك العدي د من الكتاب الذين وينشرون بالأمازيغية، وهناك أيضًا الكثير من القراء.”

Initially, it was a choice that could be considered a form of activism. Tamazight is our mother tongue, the one we grew up with and that we speak in our daily lives. Like all people who have their own language, we also have a language and we want to preserve it because it is part of our identity and our life. We have a duty to work for its advancement so that it is on par with any other language. The Amazigh language has not received all its rights. Those who came before us were not allowed to write on it, study it or use it in state institutions. But today we see that it is possible to write in Tamazight just like the Japanese write in Japanese or the Germans in German. Nowadays, many writers publish in the Amazigh language, and there are also many readers.

Opportunity for improvement

Commenting on the recent quantitative boom in Amazigh literature, journalist and researcher Nourredine Bessadi told Global Voices that while there has been quantitative improvement, there is a need to refine it in terms of quality:

“Subject the water to the water. لذلك يساهم التعبير الأدبي بالأمازيغية في بقاء اللغة واستمراريتها. لكن يبدو لي أن الكتابة الأدبية بالأمازيغية أصبحت في السنوات الأخير ة غاية في حد ذاتها، وغالبًا على ح ساب الجودة. وقد حان الوقت لظهور نقد أدبي موضوعي في مجال الأمازيغية لتمييز الأع مال الأدبية الحقيقية عن تلك التي لا تخدم سوى ملء الصفحات.”

Different forms of expression ensure the survival of a language. Thus, literary expression in Tamazight naturally contributes to the survival and continuity of the language. However, it seems to me that literary writing in Tamazight has recently become an end in itself, often to the detriment of quality. The time has now come for the emergence of objective literary criticism in the field of Amazigh literature to distinguish authentic works from those which only fill pages.

He added that state support for Amazigh writing must be accompanied by strategies aimed at improving the quality of these works.

“The water is in the water. ازيغية، والتي توزع بهدف تحفيز الكتاب ة بهذه اللغة، تظهر محدوديتها ع ندما يتعلق الأمر بجودة الأعمال المنتجة. الكتابة بالأمازيغية، نعم. الكتابة من أجل الكتابة، لا.”

The funding provided by institutions such as the High Commission for Amazighity to encourage writing in this language has shown its limits in terms of the quality of the works produced. Write in Tamazight? Yes. Writing for the pleasure of writing? No.