Ethnic groups in Algeria
Ethnic groups in Algeria include Arabs and Berbers, who represent 99% of the population, of which 75–85% are Arab and about 15–25% are Berber.[1][2] Algeria also has a minority population of Europeans that represents less than 1% of the population.[1] The minority European population is predominantly of French, Spanish, and Italian descent.[3]
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Arabs
Approximately 75–85% of the Algerian population identify as Arabs.[4] The Arabs of Algeria are primarily descended from the Arabian conquerors and migrants who arrived in the region between the 7th and 17th centuries during the Arab migrations to the Maghreb.[5][6] As a result of the migrations, these Arab tribes have contributed to the Arabization of many indigenous Berber tribes that were native to the region, resulting in their adoption of Islam as a religion, and the replacement of their local languages with the more socially and culturally dominant Arabic.[7] In addition to these two aforementioned processes, the intermingling between Arabs and Berbers has also contributed to the formation of the Algerian Arab identity.
The Arab population of Algeria is concentrated mainly in the northern and coastal regions of the country, where they make up a majority of the population. They are predominantly Sunni Muslim although there is also a minority of Shia Muslims along with others, and their language is the Algerian dialect of Arabic, although there are many regional variations of the dialect.[4]
Throughout the years there has been a growing movement among Algerians to reclaim their Arabic cultural and linguistic identity, which has been suppressed under the French colonization of Algeria.[8]
Berbers
A minority of 15–25% of the Algerian population identifies as Berbers or Amazigh and are divided into groups, which are the Kabyles, Chaouis, Chenouas, Mozabites, Tuaregs, and other smaller Berber groups.[9] The largest Berber group in Algeria is the Kabyle people, who are concentrated in the Kabylie region of the country. The Berbers of Algeria have a long and complex history, dating back to ancient times. They were originally a tribal people, organized into clans and confederations, and they were known for their fierce resistance to foreign invaders. They have interacted with Phoenicians and Romans for centuries. Christianized in Late Antiquity during the Christianization of the Roman Empire, the Berbers became Arabized and Islamized after the Muslim conquest of the Maghreb under the Rashidun and Umayyad Caliphate.
From western Egypt to the Canary Islands (a region called Tamazgha by Amazigh), Amazigh languages were first spoken. Estimates of Tamazight speakers in Algeria range widely, from 17% to 45–55% of the population when bi/trilingual speakers are taken into account.[6]
Due to the growth of Arabic as the official language of culture and religion, the rise of French as a prestige language during colonization, and assimilationist laws that forbade the use of this language, Tamazight in Algeria experienced a decline.[6]
Previous Roman-Berber cities gradually began to become Arabo-Berber cities where an Arabo-Islamic culture was involved. Arabization was considered as a low phenomenon, mostly due to cultural and economical exchanges between the new Maghreb and the old Mashreq of the Arab world until the 12th century with the immigration of the Bedouin tribe Banu Hilal expanded their cultural influence towards the inland areas. Within the few centuries later, the linguistical Arabization of the Maghreb became much more important and dominant.
Berbers have played an important role in the struggle for Algerian independence, and they continue to be an important political and cultural force in the country while keeping their identity and distinct language, customs, and traditions.[6]
Other ethnic groups
Europeans
A small percentage of Algerians are of French, Spanish, or Italian heritage.[10] They represent the faction that persisted following Algeria's 1962 declaration of independence from France. While Algeria was ruled by France, these European immigrants had sizable farms and companies.[10] They had greater economic benefits than Algeria's native population, despite being a minority.[10] The majority of Europeans are Christians or Jews, as opposed to most Algerians, who are Muslims.[10]
Jewish
Algeria was the home of a significant Jewish community, most of which fled after Algeria's independence.[11] The number of Jewish people in Algeria is estimated to be only around 200 by 2020.[11] Jewish people have lived in Algeria from the early centuries of the Common Era.[11] Following the expulsion of Jews from Spain in the fourteenth century, a large number of them relocated to Algeria, greatly expanding the Jewish population there.[12] Under the French rule, Jewish people were given French nationalities and their situations were very good until the Algerian independence when around 130,000 Jews fled to France.[12] It is also estimated that around 25,681 Jews left for Israel since 1948.[11]
References
- Central Intelligence Agency (2 June 2020). The CIA World Factbook 2020-2021. Skyhorse. p. 158. ISBN 978-1-5107-5826-1.
- "Algeria reinstates term limit and recognises Berber language". BBC News. 2016-02-07. Retrieved 2023-08-04.
- UNESCO (2009). "Diversité et interculturalité en Algérie" (PDF). UNESCO. p. 9. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 25, 2013.
- Agency, Central Intelligence (2020-06-02). The CIA World Factbook 2020-2021. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 978-1-5107-5826-1.
- Morrow, James (2014-10-21). Algeria. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 978-1-63355-981-3.
- "Algeria - World Directory of Minorities & Indigenous Peoples". Minority Rights Group. 2015-06-19. Retrieved 2023-03-22.
- Abu-Haidar, F. (2000). Arabisation in Algeria. International Journal of Francophone Studies, 3(3).
- Mehri, Abdelhamid (1972-01-01). "La langue arabe reprend sa place". Le Monde diplomatique (in French). Retrieved 2023-03-22.
- "Les Berbères en Afrique du Nord". Chaire pour le développement de la recherche sur la culture d'expression française en Amérique du Nord., Université Laval Québec, 2016.
- "Ethnic Groups In Algeria". WorldAtlas. 2019-07-18. Retrieved 2023-03-22.
- "Jews of Algeria". www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org. Retrieved 2023-03-22.
- Congress, World Jewish. "World Jewish Congress". World Jewish Congress. Retrieved 2023-03-22.