<\/p>\n
Let us first start with the signification of the\u00a0Arabic term \u0647\u0650\u062c\u0640\u0640\u0640\u0640\u0640\u0640\u0640\u0640\u0640\u0631\u064a<\/strong> (Hijri<\/strong>.)<\/p>\n As explained by Aziza<\/strong> in her post “The New Hijri Year<\/a><\/strong>“, “The word Hijri<\/strong> is derived from the word Hijra<\/strong> (emigration of Prophet Mohammed<\/a><\/strong> from Mecca<\/strong> to Medina<\/strong>.)”<\/p>\n Therefore “\u0647\u0650\u062c\u0640\u0640\u0640\u0640\u0640\u0640\u0640\u0640\u0640\u0631\u064a<\/strong>” is an adjective, and its corresponding noun is “\u0647\u0650\u062c\u0640\u0640\u0640\u0640\u0640\u0640\u0640\u0640\u0640\u0631\u0629.<\/strong>”<\/p>\n A few days ago, according to an article published in the Dubai<\/a><\/strong>-based daily Gulf News<\/a><\/strong>, the Saudi government\u00a0has\u00a0decreed that the\u00a0Hijri calendar and Arabic language\u00a0are now mandatory in\u00a0all official dealings.<\/p>\n According to the same article, “the decision was taken after the authorities noticed a violation of the royal orders governing the use of the Hijri calendar and Arabic language<\/a><\/strong>, and the massive use of English<\/a><\/strong> in the receptions of hotels and companies.”<\/p>\n These new steps aim to safeguard the cultural and linguistic\u00a0heritage of the country.<\/p>\n The use of the Gregorian calendar<\/strong> is not forbidden though. The officials said that it\u00a0could be used whenever needed,\u00a0provided that it is associated with the\u00a0corresponding Hijri date.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Cited by Gulf News, a Saudi blogger, Thamer Bin Mohammad<\/strong>, said that “Saudis have a moral duty to preserve and protect the Arabic language, which should not be replaced by English or any other language.”<\/p>\n Thamer has also expressed \u0627\u0644\u063a\u064f\u0640\u0640\u0640\u0640\u0640\u0640\u0640\u0640\u0640\u0631\u0628\u0629 <\/strong>(the feeling of being a foreigner, a stranger)\u00a0experienced by\u00a0many Saudis in their own country.\u00a0This social phenomenon is somewhat comparable to what some psychologists define as “unheimlich<\/strong><\/em>“,\u00a0or the “Uncanny<\/strong>” (“borrowed” by Freud<\/strong> from German<\/a><\/strong> romantic author E.T.A. Hoffmann<\/strong>, who famously used Arabic manuscripts<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0as a theme in his “alchemical” novella “The Golden Pot<\/strong>“), which\u00a0also occurs in\u00a0all countries\u00a0that\u00a0are subject to a massive flow of immigration.<\/p>\n “We have started to feel like strangers in our won land, especially with the tsunami of foreigners who resort to marginalising Arabic in local and foreign companies and in hotels.”<\/p>\n The Saudis<\/a><\/strong> are not\u00a0the only ones\u00a0concerned about the status of their culture and language. A big wave of\u00a0“cultural protectionism<\/strong>” has recently swept the region, and similar steps were taken in the\u00a0UAE<\/strong>, Qatar<\/strong>, and even\u00a0Morocco<\/strong> to a certain extent.<\/p>\n