Toponymy in Algiers: do glottopolitical decisions take into account real uses? Urban sociolinguistic study

Abstract

Since Algeria’s independence in 1962, real work has been done to set up a toponymic naming system and anthroponymic which takes into account the Arab-Berber-Muslim identity of the country. That is why, over the past 50 years, there has been a glottopolitical dynamic of naming in favor of a toponymy Algerian who draws on history and the war of liberation.
However, a question must be asked: is there any agreement between the decisions made to re/name places, street names, and practices real toponymic sites? These places that are spaces because they make account "complex relationships between socialization, social bond vs languages and language practices.” Are they named in the same way as do the social actors? In an urban context like that of Algiers, how can the Do Algiers name their quarters? To answer these questions, a survey of speakers was conducted Algerians to observe their actual toponymic practices and check if the glottopolitical decisions taken have resonated with the land or not. For this purpose, we chose the questionnaire survey because despite all the flaws we can find at this method of investigation, if it continues to be often used is because it provides major trends and very often allows to to clear the ground for installation other observation modes allowing a finer knowledge of the phenomena. «Walking through the Algerian streets is like leafing through a great book Of history. The heroes of the revolution haunt the arteries of cities all like the executioners who fought against them1 »