Hebraic, the emerging new variety among Palestinians in Israel: Characteristics and sociolinguistic reflections

Abstract

Language is not abstracted from reality but responds to emerging changes. Arabic-Hebrew contact among Palestinians in Israel offers a fertile background for a study of sociopolitical conflicts, given the unique civil and national status of Palestinian citizens of Israel, a polity defined and perceived as a Jewish state. The current article focuses on Arabic-Hebrew contact in Israel. More specifically, it describes Hebraic, the formation of a “new variety” – Arabic mixed with Hebrew in the linguistic repertoire of Palestinian Arabs, citizens of Israel. The linguistic characteristics and the motives that led to its creation are described. The sociolinguistic reflections in relation to identity are introduced to provide explanations for its formation and its meaning.