Arab World - Definition

Definition

The linguistic and political denotation inherent in the term Arab is generally dominant over genealogical considerations. Thus, individuals with little or no direct ancestry from the Arabian Peninsula could identify themselves or be considered to be Arabs, partially by virtue of their home language (see Arab identity). Such an identity however, is disputed by many peoples. Egyptians for example, may or may not identify themselves as Arabs.

In Morocco Algeria, and Tunisia, Arabic language is only used by the government, the language of the nation is called Darija. Darija shares the majority of its vocabulary with standard Arabic, but it also includes significant borrowings from Berber (Tamazight) substrates, as well as extensive borrowings from French, and to a lesser extent Castilian Spanish and even Italian (primarily in Libya) – the languages of the historical colonial occupiers of the Maghreb. Darija is spoken and to various extents mutually understood in the Maghreb countries, especially Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia, but are unintelligible to speakers of other Arabic dialects mainly for those in Egypt and the Middle East.