Saudi Cultural Missions Theses & Dissertations
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Item Restricted Language Variation: Arabic Dialects in Madinah, Saudi Arabia(University of Mississippi, 2024-12) Alsindy, Arwa; Coles, FeliceArabic sociolinguistics, namely Arabic dialectology, is a demanding area of study. Therefore, the current research was conducted to fulfill some of those needs. Qualitative methods were applied in order to answer the research questions: What are the salient linguistic features of the Hijazi Hadari dialect, Urban Bedouins Hijazi dialect, and the emerging Saudi Arabic White dialect in Madinah? When are these dialects used? What changes or accommodations are made to these dialects when communicating with the other social groups? To provide answers to those questions, observations and interviews were applied. By applying the SPEAKING model (Hymes, 1974), six participants (three from each social group) enrolled to collect the needed data. Two social factors played a role in my study: age and register. The findings present the linguistic features of the three dialects in Madinah (HH, UBH and WD). The results affirm that both social groups adapt their dialects to form the WD in order to better align with one another. However, most phonetic changes are made by HH speakers. Notably, the White dialect is more commonly spoken among the younger generation than among the middle-aged participants. However, middle-aged participants tend to use WD more when communicating with the other social group or in informal settings. On the contrary, elderly speakers do not use the WD entirely and prefer to preserve their dialects. Keywords: dialects, Arabic, Madinah, HH, UBH, WD54 0Item Restricted Perceptions of Two Urban Saudi Dialects: The Emergence of New Saudi koiné(Saudi Digital Library, 2023-11-24) Alerwi, Amani; Cowie, ClaireThis research examines the attitudes and perceptions of two social groups, Hijazis and Najdis, toward each other's dialects. It also sheds light on the underlying ideologies that shaped these views. The Hijazi and Najdi dialects are the main linguistic variants in Saudi Arabia; these dialects have significant historical, social, and political significance. Another objective of this research is to investigate the existence of a new Saudi koiné, which may be considered a national dialect. The participants were asked to complete an online survey that included both open-ended and closed ended questions in order to get their explicit attitudes regarding these dialects and the new koiné. Subsequently, semi-structured interviews were conducted in order to provide a more comprehensive insight into the participants' perspectives. A total of 50 individuals participated in this study. Their ages ranged from 18 to 50 years old, and the distribution of participants between groups was balanced. The investigation indicates that Najdis perceive Hijazi as 'impure' and 'soft/effeminate' and have voiced some unfavourable feelings towards it. In contrast, Hijazi openly stated their admiration for the Najdi dialect, describing it as aesthetically pleasing, authentic, and symbolic of Saudi identity. Additionally, the data demonstrated a substantial correlation between the perception of the dialect and the perception of the speakers of that dialect. The data at hand suggests the existence of a koiné, which participants commonly named the 'white dialect'. Although participants believe this white dialect is still in its early phase, both groups agreed that the Najdi has the most significant influence. The study's findings provide valuable insights into language attitudes and views about the Saudi linguistic landscape.46 0