Derija Association ( in Arabic; in French) is a group that advocates for the use of

Tunisian Arabic Tunisian Arabic, or simply Tunisian, is a set of dialects of Maghrebi Arabic spoken in Tunisia. It is known among its over 11 million speakers aeb, translit=Tounsi/Tounsiy, label=as, تونسي , "Tunisian" or "Everyday Language" to distingu ...

(also known as 'common') as a written language. It argues for an expanded public role for the vernacular language as an authentic expression of Tunisian identity and culture. It holds an annual conference and awards prizes for literature written in Tunisian.

Activities

The Derja Association holds an annual conference, scheduled to coincide with

International Mother Language Day International Mother Language Day is a worldwide annual observance held on 21 February to promote awareness of linguistic and cultural diversity and to promote multilingualism. First announced by UNESCO on 17 November 1999, it was formally r ...

. with guest speakers who present about Tunisian language. Association president, Ramzi Cherif, has described the purpose of these conferences as "raising the value and recognition of Tunisian" as well as developing it into an "independent" language. A particular focus of the association is advancing the status of Tunisian as a written language. To this end, the association maintains a library of materials written in Tunisian Arabic and offers downloadable keyboards (in Arabic letters and Latin letters) on its website. It also advocates for the adoption of Tunisian as an official language in Tunisia, second to

Standard Arabic Modern Standard Arabic (MSA) or Modern Written Arabic (MWA), terms used mostly by linguists, is the variety of standardized, literary Arabic that developed in the Arab world in the late 19th and early 20th centuries; occasionally, it also refe ...

Prizes

At the annual conference, the association awards several prizes for literature written in Tunisian Arabic: the

Ali Douagi Ali Douagi or Ali el-Du'aji ( aeb, علي الدوعاجي; January 4, 1909 – May 27, 1949) was a Tunisians, Tunisian literary and cultural icon who is considered to be one of the pioneers of modern Tunisian literature. He is best remembered ...

Prize for best work in Tunisian Arabic; the Abdelaziz El Aroui Prize; and the Hedi Balegh Prize for translation. The prizes are all named after 20th-century Tunisian literary figures who contributed works in Tunisian Arabic.

wrote plays and short stories in which the characters' dialogue was written in Tunisian. Abdelaziz El Aroui told traditional Tunisian folktales on his popular radio (and later television) programs. Hedi Balegh was a pro-vernacular advocate from the late 20th century who, in addition to other contributions, translated ''

Le Petit Prince ''The Little Prince'' (french: Le Petit Prince, ) is a novella by French aristocrat, writer, and military pilot Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. It was first published in English and French in the United States by Reynal & Hitchcock in April 1943 and ...

'' into Tunisian Arabic. The Tunisian Writers' Union also issues a prize called the Ali Douagi Prize, which is awarded at the annual Tunis Book Fair and is one of the most important literary prizes in Tunisia. This has caused confusion and some have criticized the Derja Association for choosing the same name as the more prominent prize. The president of the Tunisian Writers' Union, Slaheddine Lahmadi, after mistaken reports that Faten Fazaâ had won the Union's Ali Douagi Prize, expressed that Tunisian vernacular "is not a literary language" and called for all books written in Tunisian to be "withdrawn from libraries."

Leadership

* President: Ramzi Cherif ()

Prize winners

References

{{Reflist Language advocacy organizations Tunisian Arabic Arabic-language culture