ABSTRACT
In this paper I intend to examine the spoken language of some first-generation Moroccan immigrants living in Edinburgh and, more specifically, will look at the use of Arabic with English in code-switching. 1 The relevant background to the gathering of data is as follows: eight first-generation Moroccans participated in a number of sessions during which the researcher led discussions by asking questions in Moroccan Arabic. Respondents’ ages ranged from 34 to 49, they came mainly from Tangiers with two people from Rabat and had lived in Edinburgh between 17 and 22 years at the time my research was concluded in 1994. Their socio-economic backgrounds were relatively similar, viz with little or no formal education and having or having had employment as waiters, cleaners or factory workers. They thus formed a fairly homogenous group. Furthermore, the respondents were aware that the sessions formed part of a study on the Arabic language; they also viewed the recordings as an excellent means by which the researcher could learn more about their language and dialect in particular. It must be assumed, therefore, that they appreciated the need to speak in Arabic and not in English during this time and this should be borne in mind when the data are examined and it becomes apparent that English was used during the sessions by many people and, by a few, to a considerable degree. Thus in the case of some respondents it appears that English has somehow been incorporated into speech which is largely conducted in Arabic. What is more interesting is that this was still the case when there were two or more respondents participating at the same time.
