The Perceived Religiousness of the Repertoire of the Muslim Minority in France

Author

Brian Mawyer, Graduate Center, City University of New YorkFollow

Date of Degree

10-2014

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

M.A.

Program

Liberal Studies

Advisor

Cecelia Cutler

Subject Categories

Anthropological Linguistics and Sociolinguistics | Linguistics | Near Eastern Languages and Societies

Keywords

France, immigrants, Laïcite, Muslim, repertoire, secularism

Abstract

France is a secular society with a deeply rooted Catholic tradition. This environment affects the acceptability of demonstrations of Muslim religious identity. Muslim immigrants to France are often ghettoized into rent controlled housing in suburbs around the cities. Rejected from French society, these immigrants cling to what links them together, which is their religion. By the third generation, fluency in heritage languages declines greatly, yet the youth of the banlieues re-appropriate Arabic words into their French speech, leading to the emergence of a Muslim repertoire that is not always accepted by speakers of standard French. This thesis surveys French people of diverse backgrounds as to how they rate elements from this repertoire in terms of religiousness and which they find acceptable in French shows the correspondence between perceived religiousness and social acceptability. Religious terms in Arabic can be interspersed in French. Uttering these words or phrases in the original Arabic instead of French translation demonstrates knowledge of religious Arabic and a connection to the religion.

Recommended Citation

Mawyer, Brian, "The Perceived Religiousness of the Repertoire of the Muslim Minority in France" (2014). CUNY Academic Works.
https://academicworks.cuny.edu/gc_etds/452