Algerians#Ethnic groups

{{Main|Ethnic groups in Algeria|Arabs|Berbers}}

{{Pie chart|caption=Ethnic groups in Algeria{{Cite web |title=Algeria {{!}} Flag, Capital, Population, Map, & Language {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Algeria |access-date=2022-09-18 |website=www.britannica.com |language=en}}|label1=Arabs|color1=DarkGreen|label2=Berbers|color2=Yellow|label3=Arabized Berbers |color3=Red|label4=Others|color4=LightBlue|value1=73.6|value2=23.2|value3=3|value4=0.2}}

The majority of the population of Algeria is Arab, constituting between 75%{{Cite web |title=Algeria – Drainage |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Algeria/Drainage |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221222022251/https://www.britannica.com/place/Algeria/Drainage |archive-date=22 December 2022 |access-date=2022-12-25 |website=Britannica |quote=More than three-fourths of the country is ethnically Arab}}{{Cite book |last=DK |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=joxoDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA201 |title=Reference World Atlas: Everything You Need to Know About Our Planet Today |date=2016-08-01 |publisher=Dorling Kindersley Limited |isbn=978-0-241-28679-1 |pages=201 |language=en |quote=Ethnic groups: Arab 75%, Berber 24%, European and Jewish 1%}}{{Cite book |last=Seddon |first=David |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=buyrxARN_H0C&pg=PT39 |title=A Political and Economic Dictionary of the Middle East |date=2013-01-11 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-135-35561-6 |pages=39 |language=en |quote=The population was estimated at 32,277,942 in July 2002, of which 75% were Arabs, 24% Berbers, and 1% others (mostly Europeans).}}{{Cite book |last=DK |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cVVtZn6goCAC&pg=PA82 |title=FT World Desk Reference 2005 |date=2005-01-27 |publisher=Dorling Kindersley Limited |isbn=978-1-4053-6726-4 |pages=82 |language=en |quote=Arab 75%, Berber 24%, European and Jewish 1%. The population is predominantly Arab, under 30 years of age and urban; some 24% are Berber. More than 85% speak Arabic and 99% are Sunni Muslim.}} and 80%{{Cite web |title=Algeria - History Background |url=https://education.stateuniversity.com/pages/19/Algeria-HISTORY-BACKGROUND.html |access-date=2024-08-18 |website=education.stateuniversity.com |language=en |quote=The combined Arab-Berber people comprise more than 99 percent of the population (Arabs approximately 80 percent; Berbers 20 percent), with Europeans less than one percent.}}{{Cite book |last=Laaredj-Campbell |first=Anne |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=C7UvCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA31 |title=Changing Female Literacy Practices in Algeria: Empirical Study on Cultural Construction of Gender and Empowerment |date=2015-12-10 |publisher=Springer |isbn=978-3-658-11633-0 |quote=Ethnically the population is made up of about 80% Arabic and 20% Berber. |access-date=1 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230326164800/https://books.google.com/books?id=C7UvCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA31 |archive-date=26 March 2023 |url-status=live}}{{Cite book |last1=Bouherar |first1=Salim |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1ppXEAAAQBAJ&pg=PR8 |title=Algerian Languages in Education: Conflicts and Reconciliation |last2=Ghafsi |first2=Abderrezzaq |date=2022-01-03 |publisher=Springer Nature |isbn=978-3-030-89324-8 |language=en |quote=In Algeria, on the other hand, Berberists supported by France ask to expand the use of Tamazight even on Arabs who represent 80% of Algerian population.}} to 85%{{Cite book |last=Naylor |first=Phillip C. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ftFbCQAAQBAJ&pg=PA87 |title=Historical Dictionary of Algeria |date=2015-05-07 |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield |isbn=978-0-8108-7919-5 |pages=87 |language=en |quote=Most Algerians, approximately 85 percent of the population, today claim an Arab background.}}{{Cite web |title=Algeria Ethnic Groups |url=https://study.com/academy/lesson/algeria-ethnic-groups.html |access-date=2024-08-18 |website=study.com |quote=Partly due to the strong association between Islam and Arab identity, there is a fair amount of social pressure in Algeria to identify with Arab ancestry. In fact, roughly 85% of the nation identifies much more strongly with their Arab heritage than their Berber heritage.}} of the population. Berbers on the other hand make up between 15%{{Cite CIA World Factbook|country=Algeria|access-date=24 December 2013}} and 20%{{Cite book |last1=Tschudin |first1=Alain |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6sXnDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT28 |title=Extremisms in Africa Volume 2 |last2=Moffat |first2=Craig |last3=Buchanan-Clarke |first3=Stephen |last4=Russell |first4=Susan |last5=Coutts |first5=Lloyd |date=2019-06-18 |publisher=Jonathan Ball Publishers |isbn=978-0-6399928-3-9 |language=en |quote=The majority of Algerians are Arab, but around 20% are Berbers.}} to 24% of the population. According to Britannica, the country's population is 73.6% Arab, 23.2% Berber, 3% Arabized Berber, and 0.2% other.{{Cite web |title=Algeria {{!}} Flag, Capital, Population, Map, & Language {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Algeria |access-date=2022-09-18 |website=www.britannica.com |language=en}} Centuries of Arab migrations to the Maghreb from the Arabian Peninsula and the Levant since the 7th century Muslim conquest have significantly altered Algeria's demographic landscape, culturally and linguistically.{{Cite journal |last1=Arauna |first1=Lara R. |last2=Mendoza-Revilla |first2=Javier |last3=Mas-Sandoval |first3=Alex |last4=Izaabel |first4=Hassan |last5=Bekada |first5=Asmahan |last6=Benhamamouch |first6=Soraya |last7=Fadhlaoui-Zid |first7=Karima |last8=Zalloua |first8=Pierre |last9=Hellenthal |first9=Garrett |last10=Comas |first10=David |date=February 2017 |title=Recent Historical Migrations Have Shaped the Gene Pool of Arabs and Berbers in North Africa |journal=Molecular Biology and Evolution |volume=34 |issue=2 |pages=318–329 |doi=10.1093/molbev/msw218 |issn=0737-4038 |pmc=5644363 |pmid=27744413}} Berbers, Phoenicians, Romans, Byzantines and Turks as well as other ethnic groups have contributed to the culture and languages of the Algerian population.{{cite web |author=UNESCO |year=2009 |title=Diversité et interculturalité en Algérie |url=http://rabat.unesco.org/IMG/pdf/Diversite_InterculturalitAlgerie.pdf |publisher=UNESCO |page=9 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130725111743/http://rabat.unesco.org/IMG/pdf/Diversite_InterculturalitAlgerie.pdf |archive-date=25 July 2013 }}

Descendants of Andalusi refugees are also present in the population of Algiers and other cities.{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WIRWgrbE_fEC&pg=PA22 |title=Modern Algeria – The Origins and Development of a Nation |page=22 |author=Ruedy, John Douglas |publisher=Indiana University Press|isbn=9780253217820|year=2005}} Moreover, Spanish was spoken by these Aragonese and Castillian Morisco descendants deep into the 18th century, and even Catalan was spoken at the same time by Catalan Morisco descendants in the small town of Grish El-Oued.{{cite book|last=De Epalza|first=Mikel|title=El español hablado en Túnez por los moriscos (siglos XVII-XVIII)|year=2011|publisher=Universitat de València|pages=32–38–39–444|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=D7_VKzdSIzwC|isbn=9788437084152}}

The Arab population of Algeria is a result of the inflow of sedentary and nomadic Arab tribes from Arabia since the Muslim conquest of the Maghreb in the 7th century with a major wave in the 11th century.{{cite book |last1=Stearns |first1=Peter N. |title=The Encyclopedia of World History: Ancient, Medieval, and Modern, Chronologically Arranged |last2=Leonard Langer |first2=William |publisher=Houghton Mifflin Harcourt |year=2001 |isbn=978-0-395-65237-4 |edition=6 |pages=129–131}} The Berbers are divided into many groups with varying languages. The largest of these are the Kabyles, who live in the Kabylia region east of Algiers, the Chaoui of North-East Algeria, the Tuaregs in the southern desert and the Shenwa people of North Algeria.{{cite book|last=Marion Mill Preminger|title=The sands of Tamanrasset: the story of Charles de Foucauld|year=1961|publisher=Hawthorn Books |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xfCfAAAAMAAJ}}{{page needed|date=February 2013}}

During the colonial period, there was a large (15% in 1960){{Cite book |author=Cook, Bernard A. |title=Europe since 1945: an encyclopedia |year=2001 |publisher=Garland |location=New York |isbn=978-0-8153-4057-7 |page=398}} European population who became known as Pied-Noirs. They were primarily of French, Spanish and Italian origin. Almost all of this population left during the war of independence or immediately after its end.{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=N8VHizsqaH0C&pg=PA25 |title=Migration and Development Co-Operation |page=25 |author=De Azevedo, Raimond Cagiano |publisher=Council of Europe|isbn=9789287126115|year=1994}}

File:Algerians in traditional costumes.jpgModern Standard Arabic and Berber are the official languages of Algeria.{{Cite web |title=Constitution of Algeria |url=https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Constitution_of_Algeria |via=Wikisource}} The vast majority of Algerians speak Algerian Arabic as their native language, although other Arabic dialects are spoken such as Algerian Saharan Arabic, Hassaniya Arabic, Moroccan Arabic, Egyptian Arabic and Iraqi Arabic.{{cite web |author=Leclerc, Jacques |date=5 April 2009 |title=Algérie: Situation géographique et démolinguistique |url=http://www.tlfq.ulaval.ca/AXL/AFRIQUE/algerie-1demo.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100124150058/http://www.tlfq.ulaval.ca/axl/afrique/algerie-1demo.htm |archive-date=24 January 2010 |access-date=8 January 2010 |work=L'aménagement linguistique dans le monde |publisher=Université Laval |language=fr}} Colloquial Algerian Arabic has some Berber loanwords which represent 8% to 9% of its vocabulary.{{Cite book |last=Wexler |first=Paul |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YJpdiPiG2g4C&pg=PA174 |title=The Non-Jewish Origins of the Sephardic Jews |date=2012-02-01 |publisher=State University of New York Press |isbn=978-1-4384-2393-7 |language=en}}

A minority of Algerians speak one of the various Berber languages. The largest Berber language is Kabyle with 3 million speakers. It has significant Arabic, French, Latin, Greek, Phoenician and Punic substratum, and Arabic loanwords represent 35%{{Cite book |last1=Baldauf |first1=Richard B. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Sabe8l9hox0C&pg=PA50 |title=Language Planning and Policy in Africa |last2=Kaplan |first2=Robert B. |date=2007-01-01 |publisher=Multilingual Matters |isbn=978-1-84769-011-1 |language=en}} to 46%{{Cite book |last=Kossmann |first=Maarten |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Se-BAAAAQBAJ&pg=PA98 |title=The Arabic Influence on Northern Berber |date=2013-07-18 |publisher=BRILL |isbn=978-90-04-25309-4 |pages=98 |language=en}} of the total Kabyle vocabulary.

File:Alger الجامع الكبير و الجامع الجديد بالجزائر.jpg]]

Islam is the predominant religion in Algeria, with the vast majority of adherents being Sunni Muslims. The dominant madhhab is Maliki, there are a few followers of the Hanafi rite among people of Turkish descent.{{cite book|author=Hamilton Alexander Rosskeen Gibb|title=The Encyclopaedia of Islam|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DXcRAQAAMAAJ|year=1967|publisher=Brill|page=371|quote=Virtually the only rite practised in Algeria is the Malikite; there are a few followers of the HanafI rite among people of Turkish descent}} According to the 2021 CIA World Factbook, Muslims make up approximately 99% of the population, while Pew Research estimated this figure at 97.9% in 2020.{{cite web |url = http://www.globalreligiousfutures.org/countries/algeria/religious_demography#/?affiliations_religion_id=0&affiliations_year=2020|website = Global Religious Futures|publisher = Pew Research Center's Religion & Public Life Project|title = Religion in Algeria |url-status = live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131216182816/http://www.globalreligiousfutures.org/countries/algeria/religious_demography#/?affiliations_religion_id=0&affiliations_year=2010 |archive-date=16 December 2013 |year = 2010}} Additionally, there are around 290,000 Ibadis, primarily residing in the M'zab Valley in the Ghardaia region. Islam was introduced to Algeria by the Umayyad dynasty during the Arab expansion, beginning with the invasion led by Uqba ibn Nafi.

Christianity was introduced to North Africa during the Roman era. Its influence waned during the Vandal invasions but was later reinforced under Byzantine rule.Deeb, Mary Jane. "[http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?frd/cstdy:@field(DOCID+dz0074) Religious minorities]" Algeria (Country Study). Federal Research Division, Library of Congress; Helen Chapan Metz, ed. December 1993. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain. However, indigenous Christianity in North Africa persisted beyond the Muslim conquest until the early 15th century.[https://books.google.com/books?id=IgYqDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA322 Ancient African Christianity: An Introduction to a Unique Context and Tradition] By David E. Wilhite, page 322{{cite web|url=http://www.bethel.edu/~letnie/AfricanChristianity/WesternNorthAfricaHomepage.html|title=Office of the President – Bethel University|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070202083455/http://www.bethel.edu/~letnie/AfricanChristianity/WesternNorthAfricaHomepage.html|archive-date=2007-02-02}} Before Algeria’s independence, the country was home to more than 1.3 million Christians, most of whom were of European descent, along with a small number of Algerians who had converted to Christianity.{{cite book |last1=Naylor |first1=Phillip C. |title=Historical Dictionary of Algeria |date=7 May 2015 |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield |isbn=978-0-8108-7919-5 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ftFbCQAAQBAJ |pages=441–442 |access-date=24 September 2024 |language=en}}{{cite book|last1=Greenberg|first1=Udi|last2= A. Foster|first2=Elizabeth|title=Decolonization and the Remaking of Christianity|year=2023|publisher=University of Pennsylvania Press|location=Pennsylvania|isbn=9781512824971|pages=105}} Following independence, the majority of these settlers emigrated to France. Since the 1960s, an increasing number of Algerians have converted to Christianity. The number of Algerian converts to Christianity, most of whom practice in secret, is estimated to range between 50,000 and 200,000.{{citation|first=|last=|url=https://unpo.org/article/21520|title=Kabylia: Christian Churches Closed by Algerian Authorities|date=28 May 2019|publisher=Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization|quote=Since 2000, thousands of Algerian Muslims have put their faith in Christ. Algerian officials estimate the number of Christians at 50,000, but others say it could be twice that number.}}{{cite web|url=https://www.justice.gov/eoir/file/826846/download|title=Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada|date=30 June 2015|publisher=Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada|quote=there is an estimated 20,000 to 100,000 evangelical Christians in Algeria, who practice their faith in mainly unregistered churches in the Kabyle region|access-date=27 May 2023|archive-date=15 July 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210715132018/https://www.justice.gov/eoir/file/826846/download|url-status=dead}}{{cite journal|last1=Johnstone|first1=Patrick|last2=Miller|first2=Duane Alexander|title=Believers in Christ from a Muslim Background: A Global Census|journal=Interdisciplinary Journal of Research on Religion|date=2015|volume=11|page=8|url=https://www.academia.edu/16338087|access-date=30 October 2015}} Today, most Christian Algerian citizens belong to Protestant denominations, which have faced growing governmental pressure in recent years, including numerous forced church closures.{{Cite web|title=Algeria|url=https://www.state.gov/reports/2018-report-on-international-religious-freedom/algeria/|access-date=6 April 2021|website=United States Department of State|archive-date=10 June 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200610190351/https://www.state.gov/reports/2018-report-on-international-religious-freedom/algeria/|url-status=live}}

Algeria’s Jewish community, with roots dating back to antiquity, was largely composed of descendants of Spanish refugees.{{cite book | last=Ayoun | first=Richard | title=La communauté juive d'Algérie et la période 1954-1962 | year=2003 | url=https://www.cairn.info/des-hommes-et-des-femmes-en-guerre-d-algerie--9782746704213-page-151.htm | language=fr | pages=151–175| publisher=Autrement | isbn=9782746704213 }} Before independence in 1962, about 140,000 Jews lived in Algeria, but most emigrated to France due to their French citizenship. By the 1990s, only around 1,000 remained, with the last synagogue in Algiers vandalized in 1977.

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{{Demographics of Algeria}}

{{Algeria topics}}

{{Algerian diaspora}}

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Category:Algerian diaspora

Category:Society of Algeria

Category:Arab people

Category:North African people

Category:Maghreb