Day after day, talk about the crisis experienced by the Emirati dialect, especially among young people in light of the great openness experienced by the UAE and the nature of a mixed society in which many languages, cultures and dialects intersect, imposing new patterns of communication, and perhaps new behaviors, has an impact on the Emirati dialect Distinctive and beautiful young people abandon to what may be considered a white tone lacking privacy.

Some warned of the danger of ignoring practical solutions to this matter, "because after 25 years we will find generations far from reality, do not know the vocabulary of the ancestors and their conversations."

Despite the efforts of many community and government bodies in this area, the real problem seems intractable, not to mention its sources, which many refer to the patterns of "wrong" upbringing, the apparent absence of national competencies from the Emirati school, and the decline in the teaching space of "Arabic". The lack of interest in them and the local dialect derived from young people.

On the other hand, another group holds out hope for a strong national media, capable of supporting and protecting local culture, and integrated national programs that support individual efforts and support their presence in the local social scene.

the bell of danger

Fatima Al-Mughni, a UAE national working in the fields of social, psychological and educational research, did not hide her concern about the future of the local dialect, which is now threatened in her presence. “This problem is already invading the UAE community and the Gulf region in general. It is not far from the language of the Koran, '' Fatima added, `` We do not have the right to fault our parents for their keen interest in enrolling their children in foreign schools, but at the same time we are betting on their role in pushing their children to stick to their local dialect and speak it. ''

Education localization

Fatima Al-Mughni stops at the subject of the school system and the academic environment, which is primarily concerned with bringing foreign expertise to the detriment of national competencies, saying: “There is no real Emiratisation rate in education, although the citizen teacher can fill an important gap in this area, even if we talk in detail. We found that those who prepare the curricula of the Arab brothers do not know the specificity of the Emirati dialect and the multiplicity of the people of the sea, land, mountains and desert, and this is what I have always felt through my permanent visits to some schools and lectures there ».

Away from the crisis

Jamal bin Huwaireb, Executive Director of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Knowledge Foundation, said that there is no real crisis facing the Emirati dialect among the youth, stressing that “there is no crisis in the Emirati dialect, and I see that Emirati youth adhere more to our local dialect. Through my daily relationship with the children, 'he added that the Emirati child, who is in the early stages of his studies at a foreign school, finds himself obliged to deal with this language, but he soon returns to talk with his Emirati dialect that expresses his identity and is consistent with his daily habits. Bin Huairib stressed that the responsibility to support and devote the dialect and its active presence more broadly, falls on the media, businessmen and influencers through social media, saying: «Let us recognize that what is presented on television screens is a white tone does not bear the characteristics of the UAE dialect characterized by diversity and richness, which branch into Dialects cannot be adopted in the local dialect, because the curriculum is spoken in Mandarin, but we can in turn devote the presence of the local dialect through the media and through social media through constant reminders alone. The initiative and organizing meetings, seminars and workshops addressed by the elderly who master the local dialects and its subsidiaries to benefit young people, and contributes to the sponsorship and financing of businessmen through individual initiatives that adopt the cause of the dialect and consider it a aspect of devoting belonging to the homeland and pride of national identity ».

Local presence

The picture does not look so bleak for the local media in the UAE, which appears to have sought, through its audiovisual media, to devote an intense presence to the local dialect and its vocabulary as well as its characters. Ahmed Saeed Al Mansoori, Executive Director of the Radio and Television Sector at Dubai Media Incorporated, said: “Sama Dubai, launched in 2005, has a Gulf flavor and is an Emirati dialect that seeks to address all segments of society. The channel supports the Emirati dialect and preserves the UAE's folklore and heritage through a list of programs ranging from local programs, heritage programs and programs aimed at Emirati youth groups, including what was presented last summer.

Al Mansoori concluded by saying: “The list of programs with Emirati flavor that has been presented through the screen of Sama Dubai is long, and it is enough to remind the public of programs such as shepherd shepherd, shepherd of the poem, Khattar, narrator, al-Mandoos, narration of memory, kashtat, UAE this evening, dozens of series and dramas Emirati mission and local cartoon series, such as Freej and popular cartoon ».

Consciousness and openness

It is clear that the scene is somewhat different for the president of the Sharjah Heritage Institute, Abdul Aziz Al-Muslim, who confirmed that TV stations in the Gulf region are moving away from the production of local programs and bias towards the acquisition of ready-made programs, most of which take the form of “dubbing” or “FORMAT”. The new generation is moving away from the local dialect, with the spread of modern technology, one needs long and cumbersome steps to access some of the applications of digital Arabic stations to follow a specific program or a local series, while it takes only smooth and easy access to the cheek. Netflix, which has become available to all with its flexible foreign content, which is available at the touch of a button, is something that in itself leads many to prefer it over "hard-to-reach" Arabic content. On the reasons for the growing reluctance of young people to use the dialect and their preference «English», the Muslim pointed to the transformation of the UAE family extended through parents and grandparents in the same house in the periods of the seventies and eighties to move away today, due to the accelerated conditions of life and remote workplaces, and their excessive dependence on the «maid In the past, this dilemma has not been raised, given the openness of our parents and grandparents to the other in a way that is not without consciousness and rationality, and do not forget that the English while in the region during the last century, brought with them three Languages, Farsi, Hindi and Swahili, we were seeing the first Emiratis mastered all with the Arabic language of course and English, and each of them speak fluent Emirati dialect without the rest of the other languages ​​and dialects barrier to him ».

Beauty and diversity

The Muslim defended the aesthetics, diversity and richness of local dialects, which prompted a university in the Spanish city of Barcelona to request to add to the curriculum in addition to classical «our dialects Emirati able to accommodate various arts such as poetry, story and yearbooks. On the other hand, strengthening the national identity and dedicating the presence of the Emirati dialect, such as media, culture, literature and curricula, depends on an integrated national program and not on individual efforts alone. We are counting on Emirati schools created by the Ministry of the Future because they have an emphasis on Arabic and Emirati dialect. ”

family comes first

Kholoud Mohammed, a UAE national, points out the role of the family and the importance of its adherence to the principles of the dialect spoken at home, saying: “Unfortunately, some parents adopt English as a language of communication at home, in order to save time and effort, and to facilitate the role of maids and nannies in the home, in addition to the fact that most of the children of these families are Attaching them to private schools adopts English as a language of daily communication, and this sounds very dangerous, because if it touches the dialect, it also affects customs, traditions and identity. Hence the impact of the family responsible for rooting the values ​​of identity and originality originating from the mother tongue, and then the tone that defends its being. Impose their presence. » On the other hand, Kholoud stops at the positive role played by grandparents in the UAE family. “Their presence can help transfer some aspects of the local culture and its rich vocabulary to the new generation, including the folk proverbs to which our fathers relate and lean on them. “If we do not seek to cherish our dialect and protect it from fading, we will lose our footsteps and be imprisoned between the bars of modernity and the illusion of being open to the other,” she concludes.

Sound upbringing

The role of the family is based on the experience of Sadaf Al-Awadhi (housewife), whose young daughters speak English at an age that may seem too early for some, because of their daily communication with the nanny and use electronic games and videos of YouTube and animation on cell phones and tablets, but the mother remains keen to push them and their father towards The local dialect, which they adopt in the process of communication between them, stressed Al-Awadhi «We are keen to teach them the original dialect, and happy to see them talk with us inside the house, fearing the difficulty of palatability and receive at a later stage, and then adapt to the local dialect and returned The traditions of the UAE society since the first upbringing in which the child begins to receive, speak and use the mother tongue at the beginning of his communication with those around him (2-4 years).

Seeking solution

Before specializing in linguistics and studying at the university, Dr. Mona al-Faqih is aware of her role as a mother and educator, and believes in the growing responsibility of parents and their awareness of the importance of supporting the dialect today compared to the past, the parents are now university graduates, intellectuals and workers aware of the value of the spirit of language, which is part of identity `` For me, the memorization of the Koran in my home for the children, as well as the teachers of the Arabic language, did not stop because I know that the programs available in the school are not able to meet the conditions established by the pupils. '' Based on a survey conducted on the models of her students, Faqih revealed the ability of 80% of them to identify the meanings of the old Emirati vocabulary, selected from the heritage series «Alagotan Qatto», and their willingness to continue to search, and the formation of seminars on the topics of folklore, which they consider a focus and priority Urgent they have.

Risk «Default»

Fatima Al-Mughni does not deny the negative role played by social media and virtual worlds in perpetuating the culture of the other, and hence distancing the local popular culture. And is occupied by his cultural gains and popular heritage ».