Tumzabt

Primary tabs

ISO 639-3

Alternate Names

Ghardaia, Mozabite, Mzab, Mzabi

Population

150,000 (2010 UNESCO). Women are monolingual.

Location

Mzab region south of Algiers. 7 oases, Ghardaïa is principal one.

Language Maps

Language Status

6b (Threatened).

Classification

Dialects

Only minor dialect variations.

Language Use

Vigorous. Also use Algerian Spoken Arabic [arq], French [fra], Spanish [spa].

Language Development

Poetry. Dictionary. Grammar. Bible portions: 1950.

Language Resources

Writing

Arabic script, Naskh variant [Arab]. Latin script [Latn]. Tifinagh (Berber) script [Tfng].

Other Comments

Strong cultural vitality. Tumzabt villages are interspersed among Arabic-speaking villages. Muslim.