The Social Stratification of Qaf in Egyptian Arabic

Abstract

The present study aims to investigate the phonological behaviour of Egyptian speakers stratified by age, gender and region in the pronunciation of the voiceless uvular plosive /q/ sound. The application of sociolinguistic methodology shows that the study has observed the role of some social variables such as age, gender and region in language change. The study has concluded that the /q/ sound is used by men more than women and the older generation more than the younger generation. Furthermore, the study points out the role of regional differences in the speech of Egyptian speakers as the /q/ sound is used by those speakers who live in rural areas more than those who come from urban areas. In sum, this study helps to enrich our understanding of language variation and change in Arabic dialect, more specifically Egyptian Arabic.