Abstract (eng)
This dissertation discusses current French language usage in Egypt today. Most previous studies have been concerned with the role of French in the 19th century; more recent analyses are rare.
The first chapter begins with a historical overview describing the key phases in the development of Franco-Egyptian relations as well as that of the French language in the country, both of which originate in Napoleon Bonaparte’s 1798 campaign in Egypt. This part also focuses on the foreign communities based in Egypt’s major cities and the French schools which were considered the chief dissimulators of the language in the 19th century. The functions and the fields of application at the time of the language’s heyday are discussed. In addition, the various factors responsible for its decline in the second half of the 20th century are analysed, namely the establishment of the British protectorate (1882-1936), the revolution in 1952 and the nationalisation of the Suez Canal in 1956. A description of the social, political and linguistic consequences of these incidents complete this chapter.
The relevant theoretical framework is comprised of the following linguistic phenomena: language contact, multilingualism and language conflict. A development of the definition for diglossia and different views of language conflict culminate in a discussion of Egypt’s linguistic situation in 1952/56 and finally with the country’s current sociolinguistic situation characterized by a diglossia between literary and Egyptian Arabic.
The study continues with a description of the presence of the French language in Egypt today, both in the fields of education (public and private schools, universities,) and the media (such as newspapers and magazines, radio and TV).
The empirical investigation is preceded by an overview of the research methodology, the process of selecting the interviewees and some remarks concerning the realisation of the interviews and the statistical analysis of the results. The chief part of the dissertation presents the various opinions and statements of the interviewees, starting with their assessments related to the French language and thus, implicitly, their attitudes towards French. The next chapter is concerned with domain-specific use of French, namely its usage and application in different aspects of everyday life, such as language practices within the public and private spheres, i.e. the family and the workplace. The dissertation also seeks to question and explain how the older probands experienced the events of 1952 and 1956 and how interviewees in general judge the decrease in the number of French speakers. The next part analyses the social make-up of current francophone speakers with reference to key diverging and key continuing common elements. The section concludes with an assessment of the position of the French language in Egypt and a review of its future perspectives, both positive and negative, as described by interviewees and some of the staff members of the French Cultural Centre in Cairo. A presentation of the results of a survey by questionnaire among students completes the analysis.
In a final statement, the data elicitation is summarized and evaluated. Observations regarding the future prospects and the possible development of the French language in Egypt conclude the dissertation.