Emphatic and vowel lengthening and identity in the city of al-Ahsa, Saudi Arabia

Abstract EN

This study is an attempt to analyze the use of one of the key features of Hasawi dialect in Al Ahasa (Saudi Arabia).

The study indicates that this particular key feature (the emphatic and lengthening of some sounds) is used by both the young generation in emphasizing their identity, fulfilling a sense of belonging, and by the older generation as a reflection of the social pressure to guard and carry on traditions.

In this sense, the preservation of the old form of the Hasawi dialect was to be expected.

Contrary to these groups, the members of the middle-aged group use dialect less.

This is possibly because the members of this age group have reached an age where they can find other tools to define themselves.

They have recognized that being local is not sufficient to achieve social power; they have instead found this in themselves in becoming business professionals or earning degrees in higher education