Algeria · الجزائر
5 names on record · 5 connections · Read with Attested spellings
The name through time
Jazāʾir Banī MazghannaArabicAD 972 – 1516
shortening
الجزائرArabic1516
translation
Cezayir-i GarpOttoman Turkish1516 – 1830
translation
AlgérieFrench1839 – 1962
translation
AlgeriaEnglish1962
Connections and origins
+ Propose a connectionDالجزائر became AlgérieProposed
Through the city's French name, Alger. Three of the five consonants are kept; z and the hamza are lost. A dated Arabic source for the form al-Jazāʾir at the start is still needed.
CJazāʾir Banī Mazghanna → الجزائرVerified
The city’s name, shortened, became the country’s under the Ottomans.
Cالجزائر → Cezayir-i GarpVerified
Arabic into Ottoman Turkish.
CAlgérie → AlgeriaVerified
French into English.
Dالجزائر → DzayerProposed
From al-Jazāʾir, or from “those of Ziri”: both are proposed.
How it changed · الجزائر → Algérie
DالجزائرArabic→Algérie
| Sound | Became | What happened | Rule | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ل | → | l | the article al- kept, fused into the name | same soundIsmail 11.18 |
| ج | → | g | French g before e is the same sound | same soundIsmail 8.2, 8.15 |
| ز | → | — | dropped to make the word shorter | deletedIsmail 16.1 |
| ء | → | — | languages without the glottal stop delete it | deletedIsmail 5.14 |
| ر | → | r | same soundIsmail 8.2, 8.15 |
Vowels are shown but not compared: they are not part of the root.
3 / 5sounds kept
0changed
2deletions
evidence: no dated source for both forms