Notes on a Moroccan Arabic Secret Language of the Tafilalet

The present work analyses one category (family) of the Moroccan Arabic Secret Languages of the Tafilalet (TSLs), the south-east of Morocco. In this family, which involves thirty-three varieties, a consonant of the word is substituted by the consonant of the variety. Then the new word is followed by the disguise element "rin", the substituted consonant (that of the word) and the vowel "u". For instance, the word "ktab" (a book) is encoded in one variety of the TSLs as "stabrinku" and as "wtabrinku" in another one.

The present book involves eight chapters and a detailed bibliography for secret languages research. The first chapter presents major methodological backgrounds to our study. Chapter two introduces major sociolinguistic aspects of the TSLs with reference to such aspects as sex, age and locations, for example. Chapter three investigates the encoding operations of prefixless words, like nouns and adjectives, for example. Chapter four scrutinizes the encoding of prefixed items, like verbs and passive participles, and their negated versions. Chapter five is concerned with the encoding of long, short and lengthened parts of speech. Chapter six aims at a description of the encoding of sentences, phrases, clauses and negated sentences. Chapter seven mirrors the uses of the TSLs in everyday-like encounters. Chapter eight presents a detailed account of the rules governing the varieties of the x.rinCu family of the TSLs.