Languages of Libya


The official language of Libya is Modern Standard Arabic. Most residents speak one of the varieties of Arabic as a first language, most prominently Libyan Arabic, but also Egyptian Arabic and Tunisian Arabic.

Major language

Arabic

The official language of Libya is Arabic. The local Libyan Arabic variety is the common spoken vernacular.

Minority languages

Berber

Various Berber languages are also spoken, including Tamasheq, Ghadamès, Nafusi, and Awjilah. Both Berber and Arabic languages belong to the wider Afroasiatic family.
Berber speakers number around 1 million individuals. Of these, the most significant group, the Nafusi, is concentrated in the Tripolitanian region. Berber languages are also spoken in some oases, including Ghadamès, , Sawknah. Tamahaq is spoken by the Tuareg.
Libya's former Head of State Muammar Gaddafi denied the existence of Berbers as a separate ethnicity, and called Berbers a "product of colonialism" created by the West to divide Libya. The Berber language was not recognized or taught in schools, and for years it was forbidden in Libya to give children Berber names.
After recent uprisings in Libya, the National Transitional Council has shown an openness towards the Berber language. The independent Revolutionaries "Libya TV", has included the Berber language and its Tifinagh alphabet in some of its programming.

Domari

The Domari, an Indo-Iranian language spoken by the Dom people.

Tedaga

The Nilo-Saharan Tedaga language is spoken by the previously nomadic Teda people. The exact number of Teda is unknown.

Foreign languages

is a notable foreign language in business and for economical purposes and also spoken by the young generation.
Italian is spoken in the Italian Libyan community. Number of Italians and Italian speakers has drastically diminshed since Libya's declaration of independence and mass repatriation of Italians.
After the Libyan Civil War and the help coming from France, the French language gained popularity among the younger generations. French authorities expressed their interest to encourage the teaching of French in Libya.

External Links

http://www.endangeredlanguages.com/lang/country/Libya