Libyan Arabic (Lībi ليبي; also known as Sulaimitian Arabic) is a collective term for the closely related varieties of Arabic spoken in Libya. See Arabic languages for the historical family of dialects The Arabic language is a Semitic language with many varieties Libya ( ليبيا ar-Latn Lībiyā; Libyan vernacular: Lībya; Amazigh:) officially the Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab It can be divided into two major dialect areas; the eastern centred in Benghazi, and the western centred in Tripoli. Benghazi or Bengasi ( Arabic بنغازي, transliterated Banġāzī,) is the second largest city in Libya and the Tripolis ( Arabic: طرابلس Ṭarābulus - also طرابلس الغرب Ṭarā-bu-lus al-Gharb Libyan vernacular: The eastern variety extends beyond the borders to the east into western Egypt. This article is about the country of Egypt For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Egypt topics.

Note on transcription notation

The transcription of Libyan Arabic into Latin Alphabet poses a few problems. First, there is not one standard transcription in use even for Standard Arabic. Literary Arabic (ar اللغة العربية الفصحى "the Eloquent Arabic language" or Standard Arabic is the literary and standard variety The use of IPA alone is not sufficient as it obscures some points that can be better understood if several different allophones in Libyan Arabic are transcribed using the same symbol. The International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA is a system of phonetic notation based on the Latin alphabet, devised by the International Phonetic In Phonetics, an allophone is one of several similar speech sounds ( Phones that belong to the same Phoneme. On the other hand, Standard Arabic transcription schemes, while providing good support for representing Arabic sounds that are not normally represented by the Latin alphabet, do not list symbols for other sounds found in Libyan Arabic. Literary Arabic (ar اللغة العربية الفصحى "the Eloquent Arabic language" or Standard Arabic is the literary and standard variety Therefore, to make this article more legible, DIN 31635 is used with a few additions to render phonemes particular to Libyan Arabic. DIN 31635 is a DIN standard for the Transliteration of the Arabic alphabet adopted in 1982 The phoneME project is Sun Microsystems reference implementation of Java virtual machine and associated libraries of Java ME with source licensed under the GNU These additions are as follow:

History

Two major historical events have shaped the Libyan dialect; the Hilalian-Sulaimi migration, and the migration of Arabs from Muslim Spain to North Africa following the reconquista. The Banu Hilal ( بنو هلال) were a confederation of Arab tribes that migrated from Arabia into North Africa in the 11th century, having An Arab tribe that lived in Hejaz and Nejd in the rise of Islam it will settle North Africa along with Banu Hilal in the 11th century Al-Andalus (الأندلس was the Arabic name given to those parts of the Iberian Peninsula governed by Muslims or The Reconquista (a Spanish and Portuguese word for "Reconquest" Arabic: الاسترداد, "Recapturing" was a period Libyan Arabic has also been influenced by Italian, and to a lesser extent by Turkish. Italian ( or lingua italiana) is a Romance language spoken by about 63 million people as a First language, primarily in Italy. Turkish ( tr Türkçe IPA) is a language spoken by over 63 million people worldwide making it the most commonly spoken of the Turkic languages. A Berber substratum also exists. Nomenclature The term Berber has been used in Europe since at least the 17th century and is still used today In Contact linguistics, a substratum ( lat sub: under + stratum: layer → lower layer) is a Language

Domains of Use

The Libyan dialect is used predominantly in spoken communication in Libya. Libya ( ليبيا ar-Latn Lībiyā; Libyan vernacular: Lībya; Amazigh:) officially the Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab It is also used in Libyan folk poetry, TV dramas and comedies, songs, as well as in cartoons. Libyan Arabic is also used by non-Arab Libyans whose mother tongue is not Arabic as a lingua franca. A lingua franca (from Italian, literally meaning Frankish language, see etymology under Sabir and Italian below is any Language widely Libyan Arabic is not normally written, as the written register is normally Modern Standard Arabic, but Libyan Arabic is the main language for cartoonists, and the only suitable language for writing Libyan folk poetry. In Linguistics, a register is a subset of a Language used for a particular purpose or in a particular social setting Literary Arabic (ar اللغة العربية الفصحى "the Eloquent Arabic language" or Standard Arabic is the literary and standard variety It is also written in internet forums, emails and in instant messaging applications.

Phonology

As is the case with all Bedouin dialects, the q sound of Standard Arabic is realized as a g, except in words recently borrowed from Standard Arabic. The Bedouin, (from the Arabic (ar بدوي pl badū) are a desert-dwelling Arab Nomadic pastoralist, or previously The voiceless uvular plosive is a type of Consonantal sound used in some spoken Languages It is pronounced like, except that the tongue makes contact not Literary Arabic (ar اللغة العربية الفصحى "the Eloquent Arabic language" or Standard Arabic is the literary and standard variety The voiced velar plosive is a type of Consonantal sound used in some spoken Languages The symbol in the International Phonetic Alphabet that

The following table shows the consonants used in Libyan Arabic. Note: some sounds occur in certain regional varieties while being completely absent in others. A dialect (from the Greek word διάλεκτος dialektos) is a variety of a Language that is characteristic of a particular group of

The vowel phonemes of Libyan Arabic

In western dialects, the interdental fricatives /θ ð ðˁ/ have merged with the corresponding dental stops /t d dˁ/. Labials are consonants articulated either with both lips ( bilabial articulation or with the lower lip and the upper teeth ( labiodental articulation Interdental consonants are produced by placing the blade of the Tongue against the upper Incisors This differs from a Dental consonant in that the In Linguistics, a dental consonant or dental is a Consonant that is articulated with the tongue against the upper teeth such as /t/ /d/ /n/ and Postalveolar consonants are Consonants articulated with the tongue near or touching the back of the Alveolar ridge, placing them a bit further back in the Palatal consonants are Consonants articulated with the body of the tongue raised against the Hard palate (the middle part of the roof of the mouth Uvulars are Consonants articulated with the back of the Tongue against or near the uvula, that is further back in the mouth than Velar consonants A pharyngeal consonant is a type of Consonant which is articulated with the root of the Tongue against the Pharynx. Glottal consonants are Consonants articulated with the Glottis. Pharyngealization is a Secondary articulation of Consonants or Vowels by which the Pharynx or Epiglottis is constricted during the articulation Pharyngealization is a Secondary articulation of Consonants or Vowels by which the Pharynx or Epiglottis is constricted during the articulation A stop, plosive, or occlusive is a Consonant sound produced by stopping the airflow in the Vocal tract. Voice or voicing is a term used in Phonetics and Phonology to characterize speech sounds, with sounds described as either voiceless Voice or voicing is a term used in Phonetics and Phonology to characterize speech sounds, with sounds described as either voiceless Fricatives are Consonants produced by forcing air through a narrow channel made by placing two articulators close together Voice or voicing is a term used in Phonetics and Phonology to characterize speech sounds, with sounds described as either voiceless Voice or voicing is a term used in Phonetics and Phonology to characterize speech sounds, with sounds described as either voiceless A nasal consonant (also called nasal stop or nasal continuant) is produced with a lowered velum in the mouth allowing air to escape freely through the Laterals are "L"-like Consonants pronounced with an occlusion made somewhere along the axis of the tongue while air from the lungs escapes at one side or both In Phonetics, a flap or tap is a type of Consonantal sound which is produced with a single contraction of the muscles so that one articulator (such as the Approximants are speech sounds ( Phonemes) that could be regarded as intermediate between Vowels and typical Consonants In the articulation of approximants In Phonetics, a vowel is a Sound in spoken Language, such as English ah! or oh!, pronounced with an open Vocal tract Eastern dialects generally still distinguish the two sets, but there is a tendency to replace /dˁ/ with /ðˁ/.

The e and o vowels exist only in long form. This can be explained by the fact that these vowels were originally diphthongs in Classical Arabic with /e:/ replacing /ai/ and /o:/ replacing /au/. In Phonetics, a diphthong (also gliding vowel) (from Greek grc δίφθογγος "diphthongos" literally "with two sounds" or "with In some eastern varieties, however, the classical /ai/ has changed to /ei/ and /au/ to /ou/.

Libyan Arabic has at least three clicks, which are used interjectionally, a trait shared with the Bedouin dialects of central Arabia. Clicks are speech sounds such as English tsk! tsk! used to express disapproval or the tchick! used to spur on a horse An interjection is a Part of speech that usually has no connection with the rest of the sentence and simply expresses Emotion on the part of the speaker The Bedouin, (from the Arabic (ar بدوي pl badū) are a desert-dwelling Arab Nomadic pastoralist, or previously The Arabian Peninsula (in Arabic: شبه الجزيرة العربية šibh al-jazīra al-ʻarabīya or جزيرة العرب jazīrat al-ʻarab) The first is used for affirmative responses and is generally considered very casual and sometimes associated with low social status. The second is a dental click and used for negative responses and is similar to the English 'tut'. The third is a palatal click used exclusively by women having a meaning close to that of the English word 'alas'.

Syllable structure

Although Western Libyan Arabic allows for the following syllable structure to occur.

syllable: C₁(C₂)V₁(V₂)(C₃)(C₄)

(C = consonant, V = vowel, optional components are in parentheses. )

An anaptyctic ə is inserted between C₃ and C₄ to ease ponunciation, changing the structure above into the following. In Phonology, epenthesis (/əˈpɛnθəsɪs/ Ancient Greek ἐπένθεσις - epenthesis from epi "on" + en "in"

C₁(C₂)V₁(V₂)(C₃)ə(C₄).

On the other hand Eastern Libyan always has an anaptyctic ə between C₁ and C₂ in the following manner. In Phonology, epenthesis (/əˈpɛnθəsɪs/ Ancient Greek ἐπένθεσις - epenthesis from epi "on" + en "in"

C₁ə(C₂)V₁(V₂)(C₃)(C₄).

Vocabulary

Most of the vocabulary in Libyan Arabic is of Classical Arabic origin, usually with a modified interconsonantal vowel structure. Many Italian loanwords also exist, in addition to Turkish, Berber and English words. A loanword (or loan word) is a word directly taken into one Language from another with little or no translation Turkish ( tr Türkçe IPA) is a language spoken by over 63 million people worldwide making it the most commonly spoken of the Turkic languages. Nomenclature The term Berber has been used in Europe since at least the 17th century and is still used today English is a West Germanic language originating in England and is the First language for most people in the United Kingdom, the United States

Relation to Classical Arabic vocabulary

Main article: List of Libyan Arabic words and their Classical Arabic counterparts

The bulk of vocabulary in Libyan Arabic has the same meaning as in Classical Arabic. Note on transcription notation The transcription of Libyan Arabic to Latin Alphabet poses a few problems However, many words have different but related meanings to those of Classical Arabic. Classical Arabic (CA also known as Qur'anic or Koranic Arabic, is the form of the Arabic language used in literary texts from Umayyad The following table serves to illustrate this relation. The past tense is used in the case of verbs as it is more distinctive and has been traditionally used in Arabic lexicons. The past tense is a Verb tense expressing action activity state or being in the past of the current moment (in an Absolute tense system or prior In Linguistics, the lexicon (from Greek Λεξικόν of a language is its Vocabulary, including its words and expressions Canonically, these verbs are pronounced with the final 'a' (marker of the past tense in Classical Arabic). This notation is preserved the table below. However, the relation between Libyan and Classical Arabic verbs can be better understood if the final 'a' is dropped, in accordance with the elision rule of pre-pause vowels of Classical Arabic. Elision is the omission of one or more sounds (such as a Vowel, a Consonant, or a whole Syllable) in a word or phrase producing a result that is easier

1. Western Libyan pronunciation is used in the above table.

Italian loanwords

Main article: List of Libyan Arabic words of Italian origin

Italian loanwords exist mainly, but not exclusively, as a technical jargon. Italian loanwords exist in Libyan Arabic mainly but not exclusively as a technical jargon For example machinary parts, workshop tools, electrical supplies, names of fish species, etc.

Turkish loanwords

Turkish words were borrowed during the Ottoman era of Libya. Italian ( or lingua italiana) is a Romance language spoken by about 63 million people as a First language, primarily in Italy. Turkish ( tr Türkçe IPA) is a language spoken by over 63 million people worldwide making it the most commonly spoken of the Turkic languages. The Ottoman Empire (1299–1923 ( Old Ottoman Turkish: دولتْ علیّه عثمانیّه Devlet-i Âliye-yi Osmâniyye, Late Ottoman and Modern Turkish Words of Turkish origin are not as common as Italian ones.

Berber loanwords

Before the mass Arabization of what corresponds to modern-day Libya, Berber was the native language for most people. Turkish ( tr Türkçe IPA) is a language spoken by over 63 million people worldwide making it the most commonly spoken of the Turkic languages. Arabization ( Arabic: تعريب) describes a growing cultural influence on a non-Arab area that gradually changes into one that speaks Arabic and/or Nomenclature The term Berber has been used in Europe since at least the 17th century and is still used today This led to the borrowing of a number of Berber words in Libyan Arabic. Many Berber-speaking people continue to live in Libya today but it is not clear to what extent Berber language continues to influence Libyan Arabic. Nomenclature The term Berber has been used in Europe since at least the 17th century and is still used today

Grammar

Libyan Arabic shares the feature of the first person singular initial n- with the rest of the Maghrebi Arabic dialect continuum to which it belongs. Grammatical person, in Linguistics, is deictic reference to a participant in an event such as the speaker the Addressee, or others In linguistics grammatical number is a Grammatical category of nouns pronouns and adjective and verb agreement that expresses count distinctions (such as "one" Maghrebi Arabic is a cover term for the varieties of Arabic spoken in the Maghreb, including Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria, A dialect continuum is a range of Dialects spoken across a large geographical area differing only slightly between areas that are geographically close and gradually decreasing Similar to other Arabic dialects, Libyan does not mark grammatical cases by declension. In Grammar, the case of a Noun or Pronoun indicates its Grammatical function in a greater Phrase or Clause; such as the In Linguistics, declension (or declination) is the occurrence of Inflection in Nouns Pronouns and Adjectives indicating However, it has a rich verbal conjugation structure. For English usage of verbs see the wiki article English verbs. In Linguistics, conjugation is the creation of derived forms of a Verb, Noun or Adjective from its Principal parts by Inflection

Nouns

Nouns in Libyan Arabic are marked for two genders (masculine and feminine) and three numbers (singular, dual, and plural). In Linguistics, grammatical genders, sometimes also called Noun classes are classes of nouns reflected in the behavior of associated words every noun must belong In linguistics grammatical number is a Grammatical category of nouns pronouns and adjective and verb agreement that expresses count distinctions (such as "one" Paucal number also exists for some nouns. In linguistics grammatical number is a Grammatical category of nouns pronouns and adjective and verb agreement that expresses count distinctions (such as "one" The Diminutive is also still widely used productively (especially by women) to add an endearing or an empathetic connotation to the original noun. A diminutive is a formation of a Word used to convey a slight degree of the root meaning smallness of the object or quality named encapsulation intimacy or endearment In Linguistics, productivity is the degree to which Native speakers use a particular grammatical process especially in Word formation. As in Classical Arabic, rules for the dimunitive formation are based on vowel apophony.

Indefiniteness is not marked. Definite nouns are marked using the same Classical Arabic definite article al, but with somewhat different rules of pronuciation:

• For nouns beginning with Qamari letters, the definite article is pronounced either l -for words with an initial single consonant onset- or lə -for words with a double consonant onset. ( ال۔, also transliterated as el- and in some cases il- and ul-) is a prefix in the Arabic language In this article the Phonemes are transliterated according to the DIN 31635 In the Arabic language, the Consonants Except for the letter j /IPA:ʒ/, Qamari letters in Libyan Arabic are the same as in Classical Arabic, even for those letters that have become different phonemes such as q changing to g. The letter j /IPA:ʒ/, which corresponds to the Classical Arabic phoneme dʒ has changed from being a Qamari letter to a Shamsi letter. In this article the Phonemes are transliterated according to the DIN 31635 In the Arabic language, the Consonants
• For nouns beginning with Shamsi letters, which in Libyan Arabic include the The letter j /IPA:ʒ/, the definite article is pronounced ə with the first consonant geminated. In this article the Phonemes are transliterated according to the DIN 31635 In the Arabic language, the Consonants J is the tenth letter in the modern Latin alphabet; it was the last of the 26 letters to be added In Phonetics, gemination happens when a spoken Consonant is pronounced for an audibly longer period of time than a short Consonant.

Dual

While marking verbs for the dual number has been lost completely in Libyan Arabic -and all Arabic dialects for that matter, nouns have a specialized dual number form. However, in Eastern Libyan it tends to be more widespread.

Demonstratives

Various sets of demonstratives exist in Libyan Arabic. Following is a list of some of these. Please note that the grouping in columns does not necessarily reflect grouping in reality:

Verbs

Similar to Classical Arabic stem formation is an important morphological aspect of Libyan Arabic. However, stems III and X are unproductive, whereas stems IV and IX do not exist. The following table shows Classical Arabic stems and their Libyan Arabic counterparts.

Tripoli dialect is used in the table above

Conjugation

Similar to Classical Arabic and other Arabic dialects, Libyan Arabic distinguishes between two main categories of roots; strong roots (those that do not have vowels or hamza) and weak roots. Hamza ( Arabic: ar الهَمْزة ʼal-hamzah) (ar [[wiktء ء]] is a letter in the Arabic alphabet, representing the Glottal stop. Arabic is a Semitic language See Arabic language for more information on the language in general

Conjugation of strong roots

Strong roots follow more predictable rules of conjugation and they can be classified into three categories for Stem I in Western Libyan Arabic:

• i-verbs (e. Arabic is a Semitic language See Arabic language for more information on the language in general g k-t-b to write) follow an interconsonantal vowel structure that is predominated by an i (normally pronounced [ə])
• a-verbs (e. g r-k-b to mount, to ascend) follow an interconsonantal vowel structure that is predominated by an a
• u-verbs (e. g r-g-ṣ to dance) follow an interconsonantal vowel structure that is predominated by an u

Please note that this classification is not always strictly followed. For example the 3rd f. past of the root r-g-d, which is a u-verb, is usually pronounced rəgdət instead of rugdət. Note also that a-verbs and u-verbs follow the same rules in the past conjugation.

1. The i in an i-verb is usually pronounced as ə.
2. In roots with initial uvular, pharyngeal and glottal phonemes (namely χ ħ h ʁ ʕ ʔ, but not q), i in the present and imperative is pronounced as e. Uvulars are Consonants articulated with the back of the Tongue against or near the uvula, that is further back in the mouth than Velar consonants Glottal consonants are Consonants articulated with the Glottis. For example, the root ʁ-l-b (to overcome) is conjugated as yeʁləb, teʁləb, etc.

1. Realized variously as a and ɑ depending on the consonat structure of the word.

1. In roots with initial uvular, pharyngeal and glottal phonemes (namely χ ħ h ʁ ʕ ʔ, but not q) , u in the present and imperative is realised by o. Uvulars are Consonants articulated with the back of the Tongue against or near the uvula, that is further back in the mouth than Velar consonants Glottal consonants are Consonants articulated with the Glottis. For example, the root ʁ-r-f (to scoop up) is conjugated as yoʁrəf, toʁrəf, etc. \\ It also should be noted that conjugation in the Eastern Libyan Arabic is more fine grained, yielding a richer structure.

Future tense

Future in Libyan Arabic is formed by prefixing an initial bi - usually contracted to b- to the present tense conjugation. Thus, 'tiktəb' (she writes) becomes 'btiktəb' (she will write). This should not be confused with the indicative marker common in some Eastern Arabic varieties. Grammatical mood is one of a set of distinctive Verb forms that are used to signal modality.

Intelligibility with other varieties of Arabic

Libyan Arabic is highly intelligible to Tunisians and to a good extent to eastern Algerians. However for most eastern Arabic speakers, including Egyptians, it can be difficult to understand and requires some adaptation.

Libyans usually have to substitute some Libyan Arabic words to make themselves understood to other Arabic speakers, especially Middle Easterners. The Middle East is a Subcontinent with no clear boundaries often used as a synonym to Near East, in opposition to Far East. Substitute words are usually borrowed from Modern Standard or Egyptian Arabic. The following table shows some of the commonly replaced words.

Generally, all Italian and to some extent Turkish loanwords are substituted. It should be noted, however, that if a word is replaced it does not mean that it is exclusively Libyan. This situation sometimes arises because the speaker, mistakenly, guesses that the word does not exist in the hearer's dialect. For example the word zarda (feast, picnic) has close variants in other Maghrebi dialects but is usually substituted in Maghrebi contexts because most speakers do not know that such variants exist.

Pidgin Libyan Arabic

Pidgin Libyan exists in Libya as a contact language used by non-Arabs, mostly Saharan and sub-Saharan Africans living in Libya. A pidgin is a simplified language that develops as a means of communication between two or more groups that do not have a language in common in situations such as Trade A pidgin is a simplified language that develops as a means of communication between two or more groups that do not have a language in common in situations such as Trade Libya ( ليبيا ar-Latn Lībiyā; Libyan vernacular: Lībya; Amazigh:) officially the Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Similar to all pidgins, it has a simplified structure and limited expressive power.

Bibliography

• Roger Chambard, Proverbes libyens recueillis par R. Ch. , ed. by Gilda Nataf & Barbara Graille, Paris, GELLAS-Karthala, 2002 [pp. 465-580: index arabe-français/français-arabe]- ISBN 2-84586-289-X
• Eugenio Griffini, L'arabo parlato della Libia - Cenni grammaticali e repertorio di oltre 10. 000 vocaboli, frasi e modi di dire raccolti in Tripolitania, Milano : Hoepli, 1913 (reprint Milano : Cisalpino-Goliardica, 1985)
• Abdulgialil M. Harrama. 1993. "Libyan Arabic morphology: Al-Jabal dialect," University of Arizona PhD dissertation
• Jonathan Owens, "Libyan Arabic Dialects", Orbis 32. 1-2 (1983) [actually 1987], p. 97-117
• Jonathan Owens, A Short Reference Grammar of Eastern Libyan Arabic, Wiesbaden : Harrassowitz, 1984 - ISBN 3-447-02466-6
• Ester Panetta, "Vocabolario e fraseologia dell’arabo parlato a Bengasi" - (Letter A): Annali Lateranensi 22 (1958) 318-369; Annali Lateranensi 26 (1962) 257-290 - (B) in: A Francesco Gabrieli. Studi orientalistici offerti nel sessantesimo compleanno dai suoi colleghi e discepoli, Roma 1964, 195-216 - (C) : AION n. s. 13. 1 (1964), 27-91 - (D) : AION n. s. 14. 1 (1964), 389-413 - (E) : Oriente Moderno 60. 1-6 (1980), 197-213

Links

• Varieties of Arabic
• Maghrebi Arabic
• Tunisian Arabic
• Algerian Arabic
• Moroccan Arabic