Cahiers de Traduction
Volume 31, Numéro 2, Pages 500-511
2025-11-20
Algerian Society Between Multilingualism And ‘semilingualism’: Towards A Linguistic Physiognomy
Authors : Ourrad Nawel . Medjadji Aldja .
Abstract
This paper examines the intricate linguistic situation of Algeria, a country officially bilingual yet effectively multilingual. The central concern is whether Algerian speakers achieve balanced proficiency across the languages they use, or whether their linguistic performance reflects a state better described as semilin-gualism. Such a condition is often manifested through code-switching, code-mixing, and other forms of interference that complicate communication. The study begins with an overview of Algeria’s linguistic environment, em-phasizing the gap between official policies and sociolinguistic realities. It then introduces the notion of semilingualism and considers its applicability to the Al-gerian context through selected examples. Finally, the paper discusses the poten-tial implications of semilingualism for both individual speakers and Algerian society at large.
Keywords
Algeria ; multilingualism ; semilingualism ; language interference ; code-switching ; code-mixing ; linguistic policy
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