Cypriot Arabic, known as Sanna, is severely endangered. The traditional Arabic variety of Cyprus’ Maronite community has survived for centuries, but its future is increasingly uncertain as fewer people use it in everyday life or pass it on to younger generations.
In February 2025, the Council of Europe published an assessment warning that Cypriot Maronite Arabic remained in danger of extinction, despite government support and ongoing preservation work.
The findings reveal an uncomfortable reality: a language can be officially recognised, researched and taught, yet still face the possibility of disappearing from everyday conversation.
But what does severely endangered actually mean? How did Sanna reach this point? And can its future still be changed?
How endangered is Cypriot Arabic?
Cypriot Arabic is recognised as a severely endangered minority language.
The Council of Europe’s seventh evaluation report on Cyprus, published on 27 February 2025, describes a clear generational gap in the use of Sanna.
According to the report, the language is spoken mainly by older people. Many younger members of the community have limited proficiency, and there is a significant gap between generations who speak Sanna in everyday life.
This is particularly concerning because language survival depends on more than the number of people who can understand or remember particular words.
It also depends on whether children are learning to speak the language and whether speakers have regular opportunities to use it.
Sanna has not disappeared. But the conditions that once sustained it have changed profoundly.
What does “severely endangered” mean?
UNESCO’s framework for assessing language vitality places particular importance on intergenerational transmission: whether a language is passed naturally from parents and grandparents to children.
Its Language Vitality and Endangerment framework describes several degrees of language endangerment.
At the severely endangered stage, a language is generally spoken mainly by grandparents and older generations. Their children may understand it, but it is no longer routinely passed on to younger family members.
This does not mean every household has the same experience. Some families may maintain stronger linguistic connections than others.
Nor does it mean a language is beyond recovery.
The term identifies an urgent risk, not an inevitable outcome.
Why is Cypriot Arabic disappearing?
There is no single explanation for the decline of Sanna.
Its current situation reflects a combination of historical disruption, changing patterns of community life and limited opportunities for younger generations to learn and use the language.
1. The displacement of Cypriot Maronite communities
For generations, Cypriot Arabic was closely associated with Kormakitis (Kormajit), one of Cyprus’ historic Maronite villages.
Within a relatively close-knit community, Sanna could be heard in homes, conversations between neighbours and everyday social life.
The events of 1974 changed those circumstances dramatically.
Following Turkey’s military intervention and the division of Cyprus, many Maronite families were displaced from their villages and settled elsewhere on the island or abroad.
This meant that speakers were increasingly separated from the places and social networks in which their language had traditionally been used.
The consequences extended beyond geography.
When families become dispersed, a minority language can lose some of the everyday settings that support its transmission.
The Council of Europe’s 2025 report specifically identifies the dispersal of Maronites from their traditional area as part of the contemporary linguistic situation.
2. The shift towards Greek in everyday life
As Cypriot Maronite families established lives away from their ancestral villages, Greek became increasingly important in education, employment and daily communication.
For younger generations, Greek often became the language most closely associated with school, friendships and wider society.
The challenge is not bilingualism itself. Many people successfully maintain more than one language.
The difficulty arises when one language gradually replaces another in the home and in ordinary conversations between generations.
A child may hear a grandparent speaking Sanna while replying in Greek. Over time, understanding the language can become more common than actively speaking it.
This distinction is important.
A language can remain familiar to a community even as the opportunities to speak it decline.
3. Limited access to formal language education
Teaching can help maintain an endangered language, especially when it is no longer being acquired naturally at home.
Yet educational provision for Sanna has been limited.
The Council of Europe’s evaluation, reflecting conditions in June 2024, documented an optional Cypriot Maronite Arabic class at the Agios Maronas school in Nicosia.
The class was taught for 40 minutes, once a week, outside normal school hours, with 33 pupils enrolled at the time.
The report also identified a shortage of qualified teachers as a major obstacle to expanding provision.
These figures are not a complete picture of all language-learning activity. Summer camps, cultural programmes and other educational initiatives also existed.
Nevertheless, they illustrate how difficult it can be to build meaningful proficiency when formal teaching opportunities are so restricted.
4. Too few trained teachers
One of the most striking findings in the 2025 evaluation concerns teacher availability.
At the time of the Council of Europe’s assessment, only one qualified teacher of Cypriot Maronite Arabic was reported in Cyprus.
The Committee of Experts called for stronger teacher recruitment, training and longer-term professional support.
This is an important distinction: speaking a language and teaching it effectively are not necessarily the same skill.
Language revitalisation requires people who understand the language, but also suitable teaching methods, resources and opportunities for learners to practise.
A sustainable programme cannot depend indefinitely on a very small number of individuals.
How many people still speak Sanna?
This is one of the most frequently asked questions about Cypriot Arabic, but it is also difficult to answer reliably.
The number of people who identify as Cypriot Maronite is not the same as the number who speak Sanna.
Even among those with some knowledge of the language, abilities vary.
Some people use it fluently. Others understand conversations but seldom respond in Sanna. Some remember expressions, greetings or family sayings without being able to hold a conversation.
Different studies may count these groups differently.
The University of Cyprus’ MapCyArS research project, conducted between 2017 and 2020, specifically examined the linguistic demography and proficiency of Kormakitis-connected Maronites.
Its work illustrates the importance of studying language competence rather than treating community population figures as speaker totals.
Without a clearly dated, methodologically consistent survey, it would be misleading to present any single number as the definitive current speaker population.
What the evidence does establish is that everyday use and intergenerational transmission are under serious pressure.
What is being done to preserve Cypriot Arabic?
Although the challenges are substantial, Sanna is not an undocumented language that has simply been left to disappear.
Academic researchers, community members and public institutions have been working to preserve and revitalise it.
The Sanna Oral Tradition Archive
One of the most important initiatives is the University of Cyprus’ Sanna Oral Tradition Archive.
Supported through a research programme financed by Cyprus’ Ministry of Education since 2013, the archive records spoken Cypriot Arabic and the experiences of members of the Maronite community.
Its purpose extends beyond collecting vocabulary.
Recordings preserve pronunciation, stories, personal memories and examples of how Sanna has been used in natural conversation.
The Council of Europe’s evaluation reported that the archive had accumulated more than 190 hours of conversations and stories by the period covered in its 2025 report.
That represents an important body of linguistic and cultural material.
Not all archived material is necessarily available for unrestricted public reuse, but the project has made selected recordings and educational resources accessible.
Turning recordings into teaching materials
The University of Cyprus’ work is also connected to language learning.
Its audiovisual collection includes Ten Small Stories in Sanna, a project based on narratives associated with everyday life in Kormakitis.
The stories were developed to connect language documentation with efforts to support younger learners.
This is an especially valuable approach.
Rather than presenting Sanna as a collection of isolated words, stories offer learners the opportunity to encounter the language in a cultural context.
They also preserve experiences that might otherwise be difficult for future generations to access.
Summer camps and community activities
Language revitalisation is not limited to classrooms and archives.
The Council of Europe’s report describes the annual Sanna Camp in Kormakitis, where children take part in language and cultural activities.
The report recorded 98 participating children in 2023 and described teaching programmes that brought together language learning, community participation and cultural education.
Such activities provide something that written materials alone cannot: opportunities for young people to encounter the language alongside others who share a connection to the community.
This matters particularly when everyday opportunities to hear Sanna have become limited.
Recognition and institutional support
Cypriot Maronite Arabic has been recognised by the Republic of Cyprus under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages since 2008.
The Council of Europe’s evaluation acknowledges government funding for education, research and cultural initiatives.
It also calls for stronger action, particularly in teacher training, education across different age groups and the presence of Sanna in broadcasting.
Recognition and support therefore provide an important foundation, but the report makes clear that existing measures have not yet resolved the threat facing the language.
Can Cypriot Arabic be saved?
There is no simple answer, and it would be misleading to suggest that an archive, a language course or a social media project could independently guarantee Sanna’s survival.
The evidence does, however, point towards several priorities.
Teaching needs to become more accessible. That includes opportunities for children and adults, sufficiently trained teachers and resources appropriate to different levels of proficiency.
Speakers need opportunities to use Sanna. Learning materials are useful, but a living language also needs conversation, cultural activities and settings where it can be spoken naturally.
Documentation must continue. Recordings, linguistic research, transcripts and properly attributed oral histories preserve knowledge that may otherwise become inaccessible.
Younger generations need a place in the process. Language preservation is stronger when people are able to engage with their heritage in ways that are meaningful to their own lives.
These priorities reflect a broader distinction between two related forms of work.
Language documentation preserves evidence of how a language is spoken.
Language revitalisation seeks to increase opportunities for people to learn, speak and transmit it.
Both matter, but they are not interchangeable.
A recording can preserve a voice. Revitalisation helps create opportunities for its language to be spoken again.
Why documenting Sanna matters to Kohẓen
At Kohẓen, our contribution begins with a simple belief: the voices of Cyprus’ Maronite community deserve to remain accessible.
We are an independent heritage project focused on documenting Cypriot Arabic through selected recordings, working transliterations, English translations and cultural context.
Our aim is not to replace academic research or established community initiatives.
Instead, we seek to make carefully sourced material easier to encounter and understand, including for people who have grown up with a connection to Cypriot Maronite heritage but without the opportunity to learn Sanna.
We also recognise the responsibilities involved.
Recordings require appropriate attribution and attention to permissions. Translations need checking. Uncertainties should be acknowledged rather than hidden.
Careful documentation takes time, but its value lies in preserving material that future generations can trust.
Kohẓen cannot single-handedly reverse language endangerment. What it can do is contribute to the accessibility and visibility of a heritage that deserves continued attention.
Whether you already speak Sanna, remember hearing it from relatives or are discovering it for the first time, there is value in listening.
Hear Cypriot Arabic and explore Kohẓen’s documentation project.
Frequently asked questions
Is Cypriot Arabic officially endangered?
Yes. The Council of Europe’s seventh evaluation of minority languages in Cyprus, published in February 2025, describes Cypriot Maronite Arabic as severely endangered and warns that urgent measures are needed to support its survival.
Is Sanna already extinct?
No. Sanna continues to be spoken, although primarily by older generations, and its transmission to younger speakers remains severely threatened.
Is Cypriot Arabic recognised by the government?
Yes. The Republic of Cyprus recognised Cypriot Maronite Arabic under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages in 2008.
What is the biggest threat to Cypriot Arabic?
One of the most serious challenges is the breakdown of intergenerational transmission: fewer children grow up learning and using Sanna as an everyday language. Limited teaching provision and the shortage of trained teachers make recovery more difficult.
Where can I hear recordings of Sanna?
The University of Cyprus’ Sanna Oral Tradition Archive offers selected audiovisual material. Kohẓen also presents selected recordings with contextual information and working translations where available.
Sources and further reading
- Council of Europe (2025): Seventh Evaluation Report on Cyprus, European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. Published 27 February 2025; assesses conditions principally as of June 2024. Particularly relevant: education, teacher training and language vitality, pp. 9–11 and 16–17.
- Council of Europe (2025): Cypriot Maronite Arabic in danger of extinction. Accessible summary of the evaluation’s findings.
- UNESCO (2003): Language Vitality and Endangerment. Framework for evaluating language transmission, usage and endangerment.
- University of Cyprus: Sanna: Oral Tradition Archive for Cypriot Arabic. Research programme, language documentation and educational resources.
- University of Cyprus: Sanna Audiovisual Collection. Recorded narratives and related preservation activities.
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