Literature and Amazigh language debates: the case of Moroccan Amazigh literature in 'other' languages. Issue 4 (8th August 2017)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Twohig, Erin
• Is Part Of: Journal of North African studies. Volume 22:Issue 4(2017)
• Page Start: 536
• Page End: 559
• Publication Date: 2017-08-08
• Subjects: Amazigh novels -- Morocco -- Moroccan literature -- language debates; Africa, North -- Periodicals; 961/.005
• DOI: 10.1080/13629387.2017.1299008
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1362-9387

Abstract

ABSTRACT: This paper examines the intersection between fictional literature and language politics in Morocco, by looking at literature that depicts Amazigh communities. Specifically discussed is the contribution of literary texts in 'other' languages, whether via translation or original versions, to imagining the potential and limits of Amazigh language promotion on a national and global level. The novels Un youyou dans la mosquée (A youyou in the mosque), Jo també sóc catalana (I am Catalan too), and Il était une fois un vieux couple heureux (Once upon a time there was a happy old couple) each deals with phenomena that have propelled Amazigh language debates onto the international stage: language standardisation, new technologies that spread cultural production, immigration, and the growing Amazigh diaspora. These three novels describe the (often negative) effects of these phenomena on local communities, while at the same time suggesting that literature can provide a new way to approach these issues. These novels, both in their content and circulation, demonstrate how literature reconfigures readers' assumptions about the lines between local and global in Amazigh language debates.