- Reporter: Salma Abdelnasser
- Editor: Yasmin Hamoud
Language is shifting fast in the digital era, and Egyptian/Arab Gen Z is leading the change. One moment it’s “Ana hrfyaan bamoot min aldahik,” [I am literally dying from laughter], and the next moment it’s “bro, that’s wild.”
This Arabic-English back and forth is not random— it’s code-switching. For Gen Z in Egypt and the Arab world, it’s increasingly becoming a major part of how they talk, think, and communicate.
Why do Gen Z alter how they speak? What do these habits reveal about who they are, how they feel, and how they feel the need to belong? Is it merely a trend? Social status indicator? Or perhaps it is a greater, evolving identity that moves across cultures and tongues?
Code-switching is about more than just language, it could be body-mannerisms, clothes and more. A person who code-switches is not lost or lacking in his/her language ability. Quite the contrary— experts say it typically means the person has high linguistic knowledge and is able to shift socially.
For Arab Gen Z, who have been exposed to both global media and local culture since birth, moving between Arabic and English tends to come naturally, almost second nature.
Others contend that Gen Z’s increas- ing use of English in everyday conversations may weaken their attachment to Arabic. But the majority of young speakers see things differently.
“I don’t think I’m losing Arabic at all,” said Farah Hassan, a senior majoring in Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC). “I alternate languages based on the subject. If I’m joking around or being dramatic, I use Arabic. When I’m discussing work or school, English is more suitable.”
Language is deeply emotive. Among Gen Z, Arabic often carries emotion- al weight, while English tends to be reserved for academic or formal contexts.
“If I’m sad or angry, I speak in Arabic, even to my English-speaking friends,” says Adam Tarek, 21, who grew up in both Cairo and Toronto.
“It’s like my emotions live in Arabic, even if I think in English sometimes.”
“For example, with friends, you might speak in a trendy way or use multiple languages, which helps you feel more at ease. In other situations, such as a more serious conversation, you might use a more formal tone, which also influences how your emotions are expressed,” said Dr Mariam.
In this way, language becomes intertwined with emotional expression, showing how code-switching is not just a social skill but also a way of managing emotions.
This means that code-switching is not just a linguistic choice—it reveals where reason and emotion intersect in the minds of bilingual speakers . English may be more dominant in school or workplace environments, but Arabic represents cultural and emotional identity that cannot be replaced.
The switch of language is no arbitrary reaction; one of the reasons Gen Z code switch is so they can belong to several different social groups. Whether they’re posting captions on Instagram or chatting on campus, alternating between Arabic and English is often a way of showing where they belong.
Code-switching honestly helps me blend in,” says Adham Khalifa, 22, a Chemistry student.
“It’s a way to signal you’re educated or part of a certain group, you feel me? But at home with my grandparents, I eliminated English altogether.”
“Code-switching allows the person to talk to each group in a way they speak. For example, I’ll speak to people my age in the trendy way we speak, to my family in the way we talk at home, and to my close friends in a more relaxed manner,” said Dr Mariam.
This shows how code switching helps adapt to different social contexts.
This type of code switching is also a marker of sensitivity to context, to audience, and even to class. Speaking English can connote cosmopolitan- ism or intellectual superiority, while switching back to Arabic has the effect of announcing cultural origins. Code-switching into English here may signal a form of social mobility or worldliness, bringing the speaker into alignment with globalized norms and elite spaces.
Conversely, reverting to Arabic would be a means of anchoring oneself in heritage and cultural authenticity, consolidating local identity in the face
This contrast illustrates the way bi- lingual people usually compartmentalize their experience.
“Gen Z lives in a world surrounded by social media content in both Arabic and English, which has made bilingualism an essential skill for navigating their environment.
As Fikry Boutros, a senior instructor at the Department of Rhetoric and Composition at The American University in Cairo, explains, ‘First of all, in order to code-switch, you need to be comfortably bilingual to start with.’
This bilingual capability reflects Gen Z’s desire for full self-expression.
‘Their inclination to code-switch when they speak (and write) only confirms their conformity to their surrounding environment and their desire to express them- selves fully using the codes (languages) available to them,’ Boutros explains.
For Boutros, code-switching is not a conflict between languages, but a strategic use of both. He adds, ‘For them, both languages do not represent a conflict but rather a harmony whereby they resort to the lexicon of each language to express precisely what they mean, especially if one language does not offer to them the exact semantic force (meaning) they’re looking for.’
He also highlights Arabic’s unique structure in this context. ‘Let’s also remember that Arabic is diglossic by nature (Fus7a and Ammia). When people code-switch, they do that in colloquial Arabic (Ammia) most of the time, rather than in standard Arabic (Fus7a),’ says Boutros.”
To explore the psychological dimension of code-switching, Dr. Mariam Hassan, a school psychologist at both EBIS and Concordia schools, provides insights based on her experience with Gen Z students.
“The psychological theory behind code-switching is that it allows people, especially Gen Z in this context — to explore their personalities, become more independent in their identity, express more emotions, and switch between different emotional expressions and states.”
Gen Z is a part of many different communities in their lives, such as family, friends, and classes. Each group has its own way of speaking, and code-switching allows Gen Z to adapt their language to each of these groups.
As Dr. Mariam Hassan, a school psychologist, explains: This flexibility in expression helps individuals fit in better with different social contexts. The way you speak changes based on who you are interact- ing with, making it easier to connect.
On the other hand, you use your second language when you want to be more detached from the conversation. For instance, when you’re having a serious conversation with your boss, instead of speaking in Arabic, you speak in English because the tone is more formal and there shouldn’t be any emotions involved.
“Another thing is that code-switching shows your social awareness that you understand how to speak with whom, and you’re aware of the people around you, and you know how to adapt yourself to their way of communicating. It’s a form of social intelligence shown through code-switching.”
And lastly she explained that, it’s something simple — you’re still young, before reaching adulthood, and you still don’t fully know your identity and you’re exploring it.
Code-switching allows to approach and try out so many identities. In a way, it helps switch between identities and see how you want to present yourself in society, and which one feels most authentic to.
