A SOCIOLINGUISTIC VIEW OF LINGUISTIC TABOOS AND EUPHEMISTIC STRATEGIES IN THE ALGERIAN SOCIETY: ATTITUDES AND BELIEFS IN TLEMCEN SPEECH COMMUNITY

This research paper sheds light on the dark side of Algerian culture in relation to language use through investigating linguistic taboos and euphemistic usage. It shows that the attitudes of Algerian speakers are linked to certain socio-cultural and psychological factors including the social norms of the society, the social upbringing of its individuals and the social environment in which they get in contact in addition to their identity construction and other parameters. It also shows that Algerian people have developed a rich vocabulary which includes euphemistic substitutions. These substitutions are the results of societal, psychological and cultural pressures. In fact, euphemisms and linguistic taboos represent a wealth vocabulary of Algerian dialects and, henceforth, they provide a fertile soil for researchers in dialectology and sociolinguistics, although not much scholarly ink has been spilled on by Algerian investigators in this field of research. To these ends, we have relied on many research instruments including a questionnaire and an interview. Thus, the outcomes of this study show that the percentages of both taboos and euphemistic usage are nearly equal, although statistical analysis of the questionnaire reveals that the respondent’s attitudes towards taboos are highly positive. The results also show that Algerian people try to discuss taboo topics in single sex groups depending on their age and gender. Lastly, these research findings prove that sex has remained as the most tabooed topic, whereas death is also handled with care in Algerian society.