The Arabic dialect of Chebba: preliminary data and historical considerations

This paper presents preliminary data on the Arabic dialect of Chebba (Tunisia), based on fieldwork conducted in February 2020. The dialect of Chebba, on the Tunisian Sahel, represents a mixed variety, apparently originated out of contact between Hilali and pre-Hilali varieties spoken in the area. It features Hilali phonology but, at the same time, a markedly pre-Hilali morphology. One neighborhood of the town, which was a separate village until the second half of the 19th century, still bears traces of its original Hilali morphology, which appears to be losing ground to pre-Hilali forms employed in the other neighborhoods. The paper also advances the hypothesis that the category of Tunisian ‘village’ dialects might be better explained in terms of contact or mixed varieties, rather than as a self-standing class.