Resumen de ”Arabness” in the Syrian Media: political messages conveyed by linguistic means

Mordechai Kedar

• The historically fragmented society of Syria is a source of potentiell tension between the ruling (Alawi minority on the one hand and the ruled Sunni majority and other minority sects on the other hand. In order to gain the good will ofthe majority, the official media invest great effort in accentuating the one element held in common by mostparts ofthe Syrian population:

  the 'Urübah — the national character of the Arabs. By emphasizing this element the regime endeavors to foster a rallying consciousness of unity based upon the common ethnic and linguistic background of all Syrians — majority and minorities — äs Arabs, and upon their state being an Arab state with its president recognized äs a true Arab leader in spite ofhis belonging to the €Alawi minority sect. Thispaper describes some ways in which linguistic means — such äs orthography, terminology, syntax, and semantics — are utilized in the Syrian public political discourse to convey messages of "Arabness."