Landscaping in Moroccan Arabic

Abstract

This chapter explores the use of Moroccan Arabic (MA) in linguistic landscapes situated in urban spaces in Morocco, using urban sociolinguistic and linguistic landscape studies. These new language practices are linked to processes of social, political, economic and demographic transformation in which MA is considered, capitalized and marketed as an apt vehicle to reflect societal changes and modernity. To this aim, this chapter asks i) in what social, political and economic context is the increasing use of MA as a language resource in the linguistic landscape (LL) taking place? ii) How do the recent political, socio-economic and demographic transformations in Morocco create new spaces of communication in which MA is reconfigured as a local language resource? iii) How does the use of MA in the public space and in the LL create ipso-facto language policies that transform the sociolinguistic regime, the language ideologies and identities in contemporary Morocco? The data analyzed in this chapter are part of a multimodal corpus (text and image) of linguistic practices in MA, which includes a broad repertoire of the LL from several Moroccan cities. The results point out that the use of MA in the LL reveals a transformation in attitudes and ideologies toward this variety. This use is more than a process of sociolinguistic configuration of the public space, but it is also a process of interaction and negotiation of local identities and new forms of belonging in contemporary Morocco.