ABSTRACT
Algeria is suffering from a problem undermining its society, subjecting it to recurring tensions: identity and language. The roots of this problem go back to the colonial era. The struggle of the Algerian national movement required the tightening of the ranks through the imposition of an implacable policy of national unity, while denying any diversity. This became the decisive reference in the ideological orientation of the post-independence nation-state articulated around the unity of the language, religion, and the government of the nation. It enabled the regime to block and repress any discussion about these issues, especially in the Kabylie region and in the Mzab, the home of the Ibadi religious minority.
