Language ideologies and heritage language maintenance among Egyptian Nubian families: a comparative study of urban and rural families

Abstract

ABSTRACT This article explores language ideologies in urban and rural Nubian families in Egypt toward Arabic, English, and Nubian, analysing how these families’ different language ideologies could influence heritage language maintenance. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews and observations with three urban and three rural families in Egypt, and qualitative content analysis was conducted to compare differences in parents’ ideologies between rural and urban Nubian families. The survey results show that parents from urban and rural families greatly emphasise Arabic learning. Parents in urban families are more willing to invest in their children's foreign language education. In contrast, parents in rural families consider Nubian to be of great significance for their children's education, which leads parents to prioritise having their children speak Nubian as the main language at home. They strongly recognise the value of the Nubian language in ethnic identity and cultural inheritance. The results suggest that parents’ language ideologies and heritage language maintenance in urban and rural Nubian families may be affected by macro factors (e.g. national language policy, socio-cultural environment) and micro factors (e.g. parents’ education level, family economic level).