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Algeria
Algerian Nationalism
A new generation of Muslim leadership emerged in Algeria at the
time of World War I and grew to maturity during the 1920s and
1930s. It consisted of a small but influential class of évolués,
other Algerians whose perception of themselves and their country
had been shaped by wartime experiences, and a body of religious
reformers and teachers. Some of these people were members of the
few wealthy Muslim families that had managed to insinuate themselves
into the colonial system in the 1890s and had with difficulty
succeeded in obtaining for their sons the French education so
coveted by progressive Algerians. Others were among the about
173,000 Algerians who had served in the French army during World
War I or the several hundred thousand more who had assisted the
French war effort by working in factories. In France they became
aware of a standard of living higher than any they had known at
home and of democratic political concepts, taken for granted by
Frenchmen in France, which colons, soldiers, and bureaucrats had
refused to apply to the Muslim majority in Algeria. Some Algerians
also became acquainted with the pan-Arab nationalism growing in
the Middle East.
Data as of December 1993
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