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ETHNIC MINORITY LANGUAGES IN

Asher Shafrir

Tel Aviv

The non-Jewish minorities make up nearly 25% of the population of Israel. Among them are 4 groups differentiated in various ways from the general Arab Israeli population. The are differentiated by their traditional residence patterns, the by , the by religion and ethnicity. The brings Greek-speaking priests to Israel, who teaches the language in their church schools. There are Arab Christian families with knowledge of Greek. There are speakers of (Syriac), but most members of the Syriac community now speak . For the rest of the Churches, such as the Coptic and Ethiopians, the speakers are generally clerics. The exception to this is the small but significant Armenian community. The Armenians, like the Circassians, are working effectively for maintenance of their own language. In this paper we will look at language issues that affect these groups.

Ethnicity, religion, minority, Aramaic, , Circassian, Arab,

Some 1.8 million people, comprising Christian , some 150,000, live some 24 percent of Israel's population, are mainly in urban areas. Although many non-. Although defined collectively as denominations are nominally represented, the , they include a number majority are affiliated with the Greek of different, primarily Arabic-speaking Catholic, Greek Orthodox and Roman groups, each with distinct characteristics. Catholic churches Religion Total Grand Jews Moslems s Christian Druze Other

Muslim Arabs, over 1.2 million

people, reside mainly in small towns and villages, over half of them in the north of the country. The majority of Israel's Arab ds usan Tho 7419.1 5608.9 1254.1 150.2 121.9 284 population lives in self-contained towns and villages in and Center. Percen 100 75.60 16.90 2.03 1.64 3.83 The Druze, some 122,000 Arabic- tage speakers living in 22 villages in northern Table 1 Index of Israel population by religion, based on the Census Israel, constitute a separate cultural, social, of 2008 (CBS, 2010) and religious community. While the Druze religion is not accessible to outsiders, one The Languages of Non-Jewish Minorities known aspect of its philosophy is the concept, which calls for complete loyalty by its The non-Jewish minorities make up adherents to the government of the country in nearly 25% of the population of Israel. which they reside. Among them are 4 groups differentiated in The Circassians, comprising some various ways from the general Arab Israeli 4,000 people concentrated in two northern population. The Bedouin are differentiated by villages, are Sunni , originally from their traditional residence patterns, the Druzes northern . While maintaining a by religion, the Circassians by religion and distinct ethnic identity, they participate in ethnicity. Among the Christians, the Israel's economic and national affairs without Armenians are distinct. assimilating either into Jewish society or into the Muslim community.

493 Arab Arabic is an optional third language. On the other hand, Hebrew is obligatory from the Although defined collectively as Arab third grade on in Arabic-speaking schools. citizens of Israel, the Arab Israeli sector The high competence which Arab students includes a number of different groups – generally achieve in Hebrew – the wide primarily Arabic-speaking – each with its majority of Arabs under forty know Hebrew distinct dialect. Muslim Arabs, the largest well – contrasts with the feeble dedication of group, constitute three-quarters of the Arab many to the learning of Arabic in Israeli sector and most are Sunni Muslims. the Hebrew educational system (Ben-Raphael, Arab Israelis are citizens of the Israel with 1994). equal rights. In 1948, Israel's Declaration of The determinant factor of inter-group Independence called upon the Arab interaction is the dominant culture, which inhabitants of Israel to "participate in the legitimizes a linguistic and cultural pluralistic upbuilding of the State on the basis of full and model of majority-minority relations. Within equal and due representation in all this context Arabic is by no means held in its provisional and permanent institutions". high respect by the majority, which tends to Israeli Arabs sat in the state's first downgrade its value. The underprivileged parliamentary assembly; currently, 14 of the status of Arabs in Israel and other factors 120 members of the (Israeli explain why Arabic is most often left out of Parliament) are Arab citizens, most the Jews cultural repertoire – even though it is representing Arab political parties, and one of diffused by schools. On the other hand, the Israel's Supreme Court judges is an Arab. minority which is dependent on the language Linguistically-speaking, the majority majority is determined to acquire it. The price of Arabs of Israel are fluently bilingual, it pays for this enrichment is the downgrading speaking both a dialect and of the social value of its own language (Ben- Hebrew; some are also trilingual. In Arab Raphael, 1994). homes and towns, the primary language spoken is Arabic. Some Hebrew words have Bedouin Arabs, also Sunni Muslim, entered the colloquial Arabic dialect. For estimated at approximately 250,000, belong to example, Arabs often use the word beseder some 30 tribes, living in , Center and (equivalent of "Okay") while speaking North. Formerly nomadic shepherds, the Arabic. Other Hebrew words that are Bedouin are currently in transition from a regularly interspersed are ramzor (stoplight), tribal social framework to a permanently mazgan (air conditioner), maxshev (computer) settled society. etc. The Bedouin are linguistically marked The Zionist enterprise in Israel started by use of dialects that are quite distinct from with the revival of Hebrew as the nation those of the cities and villages. Tribal legitimate language (Cooper, 1989). Even so, differences remain and are important, and Arabic remained an of the until recently their society has been State. It is much less employed in official traditional, tribal and feudal. documents and dealings than Hebrew, but the presence of Arabic in Israel nevertheless real. The Druzes In all one finds departments of The Druze community in Israel is Arabic. Arabic is supported by daily TV and officially recognized as a separate religious radio broadcasting, daily newspapers and entity with its own courts (with jurisdiction in periodicals. Arabic is the teaching language of matters of personal status: marriage, divorce, the Arabic educational system where more maintenance and adoption) and spiritual than 90% of Arab children study – from leadership. Their culture is Arab and their kindergarten to teachers' . Moreover, language Arabic but they opted against in the Hebrew-speaking school system, mainstream in 1948 and

494 have since served in the vernacular mother tongue. It is just as clear and the Border Police. that the Circassian language symbolizes Worldwide there are probably about Circassian ethnicity and constitutes the 'core one million Druze living mainly in and value' of their culture. The Circassian , with 122,000 in Israel, including language can be regarded as the 'cultural about 18,000 in the Golan (which came under marker' of the Circassian's minority existence Israeli rule in 1967). and a model of the cultural pluralism in the The Druze community in Israel has a ethnically heterogeneous society of Israel. special standing among the country's minority (Stern, 1991). groups, and members of the community have attained high-level positions in the political, The Christian Communities of Israel public and military spheres. The Druzes in Israel live in 22 villages in the Galilee and on Of the over 7 million people living in Mount Carmel. Most of those villages are Israel today, Christians constitute about 2% of populated exclusively by Druze, although in the population. Christian Arabs, who some of them minorities of Christians and constitute Israel's second largest minority Muslims have become residents. The group of some 150,000, live mainly in urban community is said to have remained feudal areas. Although many denominations are and patriarchal, with continuing opposition to nominally represented, the majority are mixed education of the sexes. The fact that affiliated with the Greek Catholic (42%), Druze man all serve in the Army has had a Greek Orthodox (32%) and Roman Catholic major effect on their social and political (16%) churches. Except for national churches, integration, and there is increasing knowledge such as the Armenian, the indigenous of Hebrew. The 1983 census (the last to communities are predominantly Arabic- include this question) found a higher index of speaking. Hebrew speaking among Druzes than among the non-Jewish population as a whole. The The Chalcedonian-Orthodox Churches index is higher among men than women, and (Eastern) highest in age groups that include those who The Chalcedonian-Orthodox (Eastern have served in the army (Spolsky & Shohami, Orthodox) churches are a family of self- 1999). governing churches that follow the doctrines of the seven Ecumenical councils, and The Circassians acknowledge the honorary primacy of the Circassian, or Cherkess, is a general Patriarch of Constantinople. The Greek name for a group of peoples who formerly Orthodox Patriarchate of considers inhabited the northwestern Caucasus and part itself to be the "mother church" of Jerusalem. of the east coast of the Black Sea. In the It is the largest of the Christian communities. 1860s and the 1870s, when the Russians Two historic Eastern Orthodox began their conquest of the Caucasus, most of national churches have representation in the survivors were forced to migrate to Israel: the Russian and the Rumanian.1 Ottoman . In the 1870s, some of the Circassians settled in villages in . The Non-Chalcedonian Orthodox Today there are some 4000 Circassians in Churches (Oriental) Israel. 2500 live in , a village on The non-Chalcedonian Orthodox the Tabor Mountain road on the way to churches are churches of the East (Armenian, . Almost 1000 more live in Reihaniya, a village located along the Coptic, Ethiopian and Syrian) that refused at Lebanese border. About 25 families are in the time to acknowledge the decrees issued by Jewish towns. The entire community of the the Council of Chalcedon in 451. Circassian population in Israel speaks the

495 The Armenian Orthodox (Apostolic) The (Melkite) Greek Church dates from the year 301, the first is the result of a schism in the Greek nation to embrace . They are Orthodox Church of Antioch.5 The traditional around 2000-3000 in Israel and liturgical languages of worship are Arabic or Greek. language is Armenian. The Syriac Catholic Church, a uniate The Coptic Orthodox Church has its breakaway from the Syriac Orthodox Church, roots in , where most of the population is a small local community in Jerusalem and became Christian during the first centuries Bethlehem. They use the West Syrian Rite. CE. Their liturgy is in Coptic language, one The Armenian Catholic Church of ancient Cushitic languages of Egypt. separated from the Armenian Orthodox Today the Ethiopian Orthodox Church Church, had been in contact with Rome since in Israel is a small community consisting the Crusader period. The community is mostly of a few dozen monks and nuns living Arabic-speaking and the liturgical language is in Jerusalem. Armenian. The Syriac Orthodox Church The Chaldean Catholic Church is a (Jacobits) is a successor to the ancient Church uniate descendant of the ancient Assyrian of Antioch. Among its traditions is the Apostolic Church of the East (Nestorian) and continued use of the Syriac language numbers no more than a few families. Its (Western Aramaic) in liturgy and prayers.2 members still preserve the use of East Syrian The Roman Catholic and Uniate Churches Rite (Eastern Aramaic).

The Roman Catholic and Uniate The Protestant Churches churches are churches that are in communion The Protestant communities in the with Rome. In matters of liturgy, the Eastern Middle East only date from the early 19th churches in communion with Rome follow century. The intention of these missions was their own languages and traditions. to evangelize the Muslim and Jewish Until a few years ago, there were just communities, but their only success was in a few hundred Hebrew-speaking Catholics in attracting Arabic-speaking Orthodox Israel. But they are growing steadily, and Christians. today number at least seven communities. The new Anglican Protestant They are called Messianic Jews and they Episcopal Church in Jerusalem and the incorporate elements of Judaism with the Middle East is the largest Protestant tenets of Christianity. community in the Holy Land with the first In popular parlance, local Roman Arab bishop in Jerusalem. This community Catholics are referred to as "Latins", in attracted an increasing number of Arabic- reference to their historic liturgical language. speaking members. Since the Second Vatican Council, however, There are also small Danish, Swedish, the liturgy is generally celebrated in the German and English-speaking Lutheran vernacular, except at some of the holy places, congregations for the benefit of members who such as the Church of the Holy Sepulcher and are visiting or resident in Israel. the Church of the Nativity, where the mass The Association of Baptist Churches and other services are still celebrated in in Holy Land has eighteen churches. The Latin3. majority of the congregants are Arabic- The Maronite Church is a entirely speaking. Catholic community of Syrian origin, most of The (Presbyterian) Church of Scotland whose members live in Lebanon. As a uniate and the Church of Mormons has a small, body4 it possesses its own liturgy in the mostly expatriate community serving pilgrims Syriac language (Christian Aramaic). Most and visitors. members of the Maronite community in Israel reside in the Galilee.

496 Some marginalized minorities south of Nablus in , which is their religious centre. The rest live in Holon district The Hebrew Israelite Community right outside in Israel. Labeled over the years as “the Black With the revival of Hebrew as a Hebrews,” community members began spoken language in Israel, most arriving in Israel in 1969. They came from the today speak . The spoken via Liberia stating they are mother tongue of the Samaritans in the West descendants of the tribe of Judah. They Bank is Arabic. For liturgical purposes, presently number about 2000 in Dimona in Samaritan Hebrew and Samaritan Aramaic the Negev, with additional families in other are used, all of which are written in the towns. Samaritan alphabet, a variant of the Old The community has become most Hebrew alphabet, distinct from the so-called noted for its healthy holistic lifestyle. All square script "Hebrew alphabet". members are vegans, they do not smoke or drink alcohol. They speak mostly English as The Ahmadis well many of them Hebrew. The Ahmadis are a Muslim sect which was founded in Qadian, Punjab, in the The Gypsies in Israel nineteenth century. The Ahmadis accept four Communities of Dom (the term that of the five basic principles of , namely many in Middle East refer to themselves) can prayer five times a day, the Ramadan fast, the be seen in Jerusalem, Gaza and the West Pilgrimage to Mecca (Haj) and alms-giving. Bank. The Domari population is estimated They do not accept the fifth principle, that of between 2000 and 5000. the Jihad or Holy War against non-believers. Dom people often "hide their ethnic Many Muslims regard them as heretics and identity by declaring themselves to be refuse to accept them as a legitimate part of nationals. The term "nawar" is one of the Islam. The core community is in Pakistan, most widely used designations in the Arab about 3-4 million (Gualtieri, 2004). world. The word is commonly used as an Kababeer, a small town on Mount insult, not only as an ethnic designation, but Karmel in , is the center of Ahmadis also to designate them as worthless (Eliyahu, activities in Israel. Established in 1928, 99% 2001) of the residents of this town are Ahmadis. Nawari is also a dialect of Domari Some 2000 members of this community language. Dom people know the local dialect belong to more or less to the same family. of Arabic. When their native language lacks a word, they borrow that term from the Arabic The Baha'is that is spoken in the area. The Baha’s is a religious minority whose numbers worldwide probably exceed 5 The Samaritans million. Baha’ism is a modern religion, The Samaritans are a small tribe, founded in the mid-nineteenth century in totaling as of November 1, 2007, there were southern as an offshoot of Shia Islam. 712, both a religious and an ethnic group Baha’is believe in a completely transcendent located in the West Bank and in Israel. and unknowable God, manifestation of whose Ethnically, they are descendents of the divine essence is revealed to believers in the inhabitants of ancient Samaria, the center of form of prophets or messengers who appear the Northern Kingdom of Israel. Religiously, through the ages. they hold to a tradition based on the ancient The Bahá'í Faith's relationship with Israelite religion, but they reject normative the was formed in 1868 when Judaism. About half of the Samaritans live in the founder was exiled with members of his Kiryat Luza, close to Mount Gerizim, just family and a small band of his followers, to

497 the Holy Land, which was then part of the . The Bahá’í World Centre, overwhelming Christian. Many have settled in the spiritual and administrative heart of the Israel. Their children attend Israeli public Bahá’í community, is located in the cities of schools and speak Hebrew. Acre and Haifa in northern Israel. 4 An Eastern Church in communion with Summary: Pluralism and segregation Rome, which retains its respective language, As a multi-ethnic, multi-cultural, rites, and canon law. multi-religious and multi-lingual society, 5 Israel has a high level of informal segregation The term "Melkite", literally "royalist", is patterns. While groups are not separated by derived from the Syriac, Western-Aramaic official policy, a number of different sectors word malko, which means "royal" or "king. within the society are somewhat segregated and maintain their strong cultural, religious, References ideological, and ethnic identity. However, despite a fairly high degree Ben-Rafael, Eliezer. (1994). Language, of social cleavage some economic disparities identity and social division: the case and an often overheated political life, the of Israel. Oxford: Clarendon Press society is relatively balanced and stable. The Cooper, L. Robert. (1989). Language moderate level of social conflict between the planning and social change. different groups, notwithstanding an inherent potential for social unrest, can be attributed to Cambridge: Cambridge University the country's judicial and political systems, Press which represent strict legal and civic equality. Developed Community. A.B. The Samaritan Thus, Israel is not a News Bi-Weekly Magazine, November society, but rather more of a mosaic made up 1, 2007 of different population groups coexisting in Eliyahu, Ariel. (2001). The Gypsy people of the framework of a democratic state. Israel, Gaza & the West Bank. International Romani Report. Dom Notes Research Center Gualtieri, Antonio. (2004). The Ahmadis: Community, gender, and politics in a 1 A mission representing the Rumanian Muslim society. Quebec: McGill- Orthodox Church was established in 1935. It Queen's Univerity Press is led by an archimandrite and consists of a Population, by religion. (2010). CBS, small community of monks and nuns resident Statistical abstract of Israel. P. 88 in Jerusalem. Spolsky, Bernanrd & Shohami, G. Elana 2 Syriac is a Middle Aramaic language, and as (1999). The : such a language of the Northwestern branch Policy, ideology and practice. of the Semitic family. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters Stern [Shafrir], Asher. (1991). Educational 3 The largest contingent of Israeli Catholics is immigrants from the former . In policy towards the Circassian minority the great wave of immigration to Israel in in Israel. In K. Jaspaert & S. Kroon 1990s, up to 300,000 Christians arrived along (eds.). Ethnic minority languages and with about a million Jews. In addition, some education (pp. 175-184). Amsterdam: 200,000 foreign workers now reside in Israel, Swets & Zeitlinger including Africans, Eastern Europeans, Latin Americans, and . They are

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