Speaking about the spread of the Arabic language around the world, researchers often limit themselves to the limits of the designated area for it, i.e., the states of the Arab world, in which the majority of the population is made up of Arabs themselves. Nevertheless, the Arabic language, most often accompanying the expansion of Islam, penetrated into the countries of sub-Saharan Africa. This definition of a region is often used in the literature to distinguish it from the region of North Africa (Egypt, Libya, and the Maghreb).

In the case of African states, the spread of the Arabic language was not associated with large-scale Arab conquests and coincided with the area of distribution of the Muslim religion. Because of this factor, Arabic has often taken a strong position in a new territory, within which there may sometimes be hundreds of languages fighting for survival.

Keywords: Comoros, Arab countries, Arabic language, Islam, Koranic schools, Arab League, Muslim education.

POSITION AND STATUS OF THE ARABIC LANGUAGE ON THE COMOROS

The Comoros is one of the most poorly explored states in Afrikanstudies. Arabic holds a special place in the local sociolinguistic situation and has the status of official language there, although it is rarely used in everyday communication. Being a non-Arab state in itself, this country, however, is a member of the Arab League despite the fact that its admission to this organization was rather motivated by religious, political and economic considerations. Arabic on the Comoros still plays a key role as the language of Islam and the sacred book of all Muslims - Quran; it is constantly used in various religious rituals and ceremonies. Besides, it is an integral part of preschool training in Quranic schools and secondary Muslim education in state and private madrasas.

Keywords: the Comoros, Arab countries, Arabic language, Islam, Quranic schools, the Arab League, Muslim education.

In some sub-Saharan countries, Arabic is now the official language or one of the national languages, and this status was granted to it after the independence of these countries. In others

Andrey A. BLINOV, Candidate of Philological Sciences, Researcher at the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences; e-mail: progrock1@yandex.ru.

Andrey BLINOV - PhD (in Philology), Research Fellow, Institute of Oriental Studies, RAS, Moscow, progrock1@yandex.ru.

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In the states of the region, it functions as an additional language that serves strictly defined areas and plays the role of the language of religion. At the same time, Arabic remains a non-native language for the majority of the population of this territory and is mainly used for worship.

The Comoros is an archipelago of volcanic origin in the Indian Ocean, located between Madagascar and Africa and consisting of four large islands, which combines the features of both of the above groups of countries. On the one hand, Arabic has the status of the state language (along with French and Comorian), on the other hand, it performs the functions of a confessional language as the language of the Koran - the holy book of all Muslims. Moreover, the State of the Comoros (or Comores), being non-Arab in essence, is a full member of the League of Arab States (LAS) and is the last to be included in this pan-Arab organization. Therefore, the language situation in this country located south of the Sahara is of great interest for Arabic studies, although this territory is still relatively poorly studied and insufficiently described in Oriental studies.

Considering the position and status of the Arabic language in the Comoros makes it possible not only to clarify the extent of its distribution in various parts of the world, but also to analyze the nature of its functioning and development in cases where it is not dominant against the background of other languages.

The State of the Union of the Comoros is formed from the islands of Ngazidja (Grand Comore), Ndzuani (Anjouan) and Mwali (Moheli).1. The fourth major island, Mayotte (Maore), geographically belongs to the Comoros, but is an overseas department of France. The population of the country is approximately 800 thousand inhabitants (according to the CIA World Factbook for 2014), 95% of the population are Comorans-Antaloatra ("people who came from the sea") - descendants from mixed marriages of local Africans with Arabs, Malagasy and European colonists (Portuguese, French and Dutch).

Unfortunately, to date, not much is known about the first inhabitants of the Comoros. Various groups of immigrants began to arrive here from Africa and the Persian Gulf region, from Madagascar and the islands of the Malay archipelago starting from the 5th-7th centuries. This is indicated by archaeological excavations on the island of Ndzuani, where the remains of an ancient settlement dating back to the VI century were discovered.

Despite the fact that strong migration processes in region 2 forced ancient Africans, Arabs and Austronesians to seek refuge in the Comoros no later than the sixth century, some historians believe that the active settlement of this territory could have begun much earlier. Thus, Indonesian navigators probably used the islands as a transit point on the way to Madagascar before the first century AD. In addition, according to local legend, the first inhabitants of the Comoros archipelago were representatives of two families from Arabia after the death of King and Prophet Solomon (931 BC).3 [Gould, 1996, p. 29].

Thus, the Comoros became a place where African, Malay-Indonesian and Arab spheres of influence intersected already in ancient times, which is reflected not only in the modern ethnic composition of the population, but also in the peculiarities of language, culture, social order and religion.

The name of the Comoros is derived from the Arabic word qamr ("moon"). Medieval Arab travelers and geographers called them "lunar" 4 because

1 The French-language names of the islands are given in parentheses.

2 For example, native Swahili speakers appeared in this area as part of the extensive Bantu migration that took place in Africa in the 1st millennium AD.

3 They appear to have come from the South Arabian region of Hadramaut and Oman.

4 Interestingly, the word was first used to refer to Madagascar, and then it was used to refer to all four islands in the Comoros archipelago.

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the chaotic mounds of black volcanic lava rocks seemed unearthly to them. Moreover, the first inhabitants of the archipelago worshipped nature and the moon, which, according to their beliefs, controlled the tides. Similar religious beliefs united the inhabitants of all the islands.

According to pre-Islamic myths and legends, a genie flying over the sea dropped a pearl, and in its place formed a giant pillar of fire. It turned into the Karthala volcano, from which the Comoros grew (Gould, 1996, p. 30).

In the light of the above, another version of the etymology of the name of the Comoros, which connects it with the ancient Polynesian word chamrnoras, which was also used to refer to another Austronesian settlement by immigrants from Polynesia, Melanesia and Australia, seems less convincing.

For a long time, it was believed that Islam came to the Comoros along with Arab and Persian traders only in the 11th century. However, in 2010, ruins of an ancient mosque dating back to the 7th century were discovered on Ngazidja Island. Local myths and legends also tell about the first acquaintance of the Comoros with Islam. In 632, the population, having heard about the spread of the new religion, decided to send their messengers to Mecca. The choice fell on two noble nobles-Fei Beja Mwamba and Mtswa Mwandze. However, when they arrived in the city, they found that the Prophet Muhammad had already died. However, Fei Beja Mwamba and Mtswa Mwanjo spent some time in Mecca and returned to preach the Muslim teachings to the islanders.

The oldest description of the Comoros archipelago is found in the writings of a famous Arab historian, geographer and traveler of the tenth century. Abu al-Hasan al-Masudi. In 933, he mentions it in one of his works as a point at the intersection of the most important trade routes used by Muslim merchants from Arabia and Persia, as well as navigators from Basra. They sailed to the Comoros in search of coral, ivory, spices, beads, and ylang-ylang wood, 5 but also indirectly participated in the spread of Islam.

Much linguistic information can be gleaned from Al-Masudi's historical essays. Thus, according to him, the inhabitants of the Comoros speak "their own elegant language" and worship a heavenly deity, and call their king waglimi ("son of god") [Allen, 1993, p.28]. Since the word wag, or waga, often refers to a celestial deity in the Kushite languages, it can be concluded that at that time one of the Kushite languages was used by the islanders at least for naming court titles.

In addition, al-Masudi cites one of the local words for god (mkalanjulu), which clearly represents the Bantu language, which by this time had become lingua franca in all coastal settlements (the ancestor of Swahili) [Allen, 1993, p.28]. In this regard, it can be assumed that the Bantu language and later Swahili gradually replaced the Kushite language that became archaic in the Comoros, which was still used for some time in certain areas (for example, in the religious sphere).

Nevertheless, in the tenth century, the knowledge of Arabic and the degree of penetration of Muslim teachings in the Comoros were insignificant. The situation began to change when the Arabs of the Shirazi ethnoconfessional group appeared here in the XII-XIII centuries, which traditionally traced its origin to the legendary natives of Shiraz (Persia).

By this time, the Comoros was ruled by elected chiefs, or beja. In the future, they were replaced by representatives of the ruling class called fani, many

5 Omani navigators even nicknamed the Comoros the "fragrant islands" because of the ylang-ylang tree, whose flowers were used in perfumery.

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some of them were probably already of Shiraz origin and converted to Islam. These names (beja and fani) also came from the Swahili language, which at that time was considered dominant in this territory. However, the last fani representatives on Ndzuani Island already had Arabic names, such as Ali and Isa (Rotter, 2014).

Swahili's vocabulary and grammar were clearly influenced by Arabic, which was particularly strong in the cultural and religious sphere. Native speakers of this language were descendants of Arab and Indian settlers (mainly merchants and seafarers). and the inhabitants of the interior of East Africa, who belonged to various Bantu tribes. The Comoros was considered an integral part of the Swahili distribution area. In addition, the Old Suahili script was based on the Arabic alphabet and is reflected in several monuments (unfortunately, there is no written evidence of its use in the Comoros), but later Arabic was replaced by Latin graphics, introduced by European missionaries in the mid-19th century.

The second wave of immigration of Shirazi Arabs began in the mid-15th century and strengthened the foundations of the Muslim religion in the Comoros. Islamization of this region, as a rule, did not meet resistance from local residents, since their previous religion, whose name has not been preserved, was also based on the principles of justice, equality and brotherhood.

The Shirazi established Sunni Islam (Shafi'i madhhab 6) as the main religion throughout the Comorian archipelago and began actively building mosques and promoting Arab-Muslim culture. At the same time, the use of Arabic has increased dramatically, and not only in the religious sphere ('imam "imam", qadin "Muslim judge", faqih "Islamic theologian-lawyer"). The four islands were divided into numerous sultanates (from the Arabic saltanah), each headed by a local ruler, who often did not recognize the authority of another sultan and openly feuded with him. At the court of sultans, other Arabic-language designations were often used: wazir "minister", katib "clerk", 'amir " emir", etc. Often, the power of Shirazi was challenged by other clans, which were called here by the word kabylya (from Arabic. qabilah ("tribe"): on the island of Ndzuani, for example, there was a constant struggle between the Arab tribes of al-Madwa and al-Masyl, who are of Hadramaut origin.

In the 16th century, strong ties were established between Madagascar and the Comores, especially with the island of Mayotte, which led to the migration of a number of Malagasy ethnic groups to the territory of the Comoros. Until now, Malagasy is actively used in about one-third of all villages in Mayotte (Alnet, 2009, p. 15).

The first Europeans visited the Comoros in the early 16th century. The Portuguese and Spanish, and a little later the English and French, were looking for new trade routes to India and began exploring the archipelago, which was considered one of the largest slave trade centers in East Africa. However, these expeditions did not allow them to establish new colonies in this territory. Some of them met with tough resistance from the local population, while others were forced to retreat under the onslaught of the army of the Sultan of Oman, Seif ibn Sultan, at the end of the XVII century. His successor, Sa'id ibn Sultan, subsequently moved his capital from Muscat to Zanzibar, in the immediate vicinity of the Comoros, and expanded Arab influence in the region.

All the nearby islands (Comoros, Zanzibar, Madagascar, etc.) were united by a similar hierarchical structure, where a special place was occupied by tarifs (from the Arabic sarif "honest") - noble, noble, spiritually exalted people who trace their ancestry back to the Prophet Muhammad himself. They were descended from the Ba Alawi clan of

6 One of the legal schools in Sunni Islam, founded by Muhammad ibn Idris al-Shafi'i.

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Hadhramaut region in the south of the Arabian Peninsula. The Sharifs quickly intermarried with the nobility of the Comoros and formed a local religious aristocracy. Subsequently, they not only became part of the ruling elite, but also penetrated all social groups, including scientists, merchants, artisans, etc.

The Sharifs considered their main goal to spread Islam and transfer baraka (from Arabic. barakah ("grace, heavenly gift") - the blessings of Allah, which he bestowed on his messengers. At the end of the XIX century. They began to form numerous Sufi fraternities in the Comoros, which were engaged in the creation of Koranic schools, where the basics of the Arabic language were taught. The Arab-Muslim enlightenment was also promoted by the Omani sultans of the al-Busaid family, who ruled Zanzibar. They were directly involved in the cultural and religious development of the islands. Despite the establishment of French rule in the Komors in 1886, the influence of Oman continued during the colonial period, although with less intensity.

The development of new territories by colonialists was accompanied by the widespread introduction of the French language, which began to be used in the administrative apparatus and secular education. However, the French at the same time tried to preserve the system of Quranic education, considering it an important component of the process of eliminating illiteracy. Despite the ever-increasing role of French in education, those who wanted to continue studying Islam and, consequently, Arabic could go to Zanzibar (the most popular place of study among Comorian students), and then consolidate their knowledge at Hadramaut, Al-Azhar University in Cairo, or perform the Hajj to Mecca. The deep-rooted ties between the Komors and the Arab world allowed them to improve their language skills even during the colonial period.

Thus, by the beginning of the 20th century, the Comoros developed the same linguistic situation that is still observed here today. In everyday communication, the Comorian language was used, which stood out from the Swahili language as an independent one. All the islands of the archipelago had their own dialects of the Comorian language, such as Shimaore, Shimwali, Shinzuani and Shingazija, which were considered native languages by the locals. 30% of the population on the island of Mayotte also spoke Malagasy. French was actively used in the official sphere and in the education system. The use of Arabic was limited to the scope of worship and, as a rule, did not go beyond the limits of religious word usage.

Despite its purely confessional status, the Arabic language gradually increased its importance among the population of the Comoros, which was inextricably linked with the activities of numerous Sufi fraternities. The largest of these was considered to be the Shazili tariqa 8, founded by Sheikh Abu al-Hasan al-Shazili, which spread throughout the archipelago, Madagascar, and the coast of Africa [Blanchy, 2014]. The Qadiriyya Sufi order, named after the Persian theologian Abd al-Qadir al-Jilani, was equally popular. Rifaiya, one of the oldest tariqas, had the largest number of followers on the island of Ndzuani, where it firmly established itself as the main Sufi brotherhood. Orders such as dandarawiya (only in the capital Moroni) and Alawiya are less widespread.

Recitation of the Qur'an, repeated prayers and recitation of panegyric poems in Arabic became a mandatory element of all religious ceremonies and musical festivals organized by Muslim fraternities.

7 Sufism is a mystical and ascetic trend in Islam, one of the main directions of classical Muslim philosophy.

Tariqa 8 (from Arabic. tariqah ("the road, the way") is the path of spiritual asceticism followed by numerous Sufi orders.

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in the Comoros as a form of cultural expression. Sometimes they included more than just the reading of Qasid9 (from Arabic. qasidah "poem") and reciting Dua10 (from Arabic, du'a' "call"), but also performing special dances.

The main rituals of the Shizilites and Qadirites were daira 11 (from the Arabic da'irah "circle") and dhikr 12 (from the Arabic zikr "remembrance"). During the recitation of dhikr, the performer could glorify Allah alone or at general meetings of representatives of the Sufi community, perform remembrance aloud or silently, make special rhythmic movements or take a certain prayer pose. Rifaites also paid great attention to the Muslim holiday of Mawlid 13 (from the Arabic mawlid "birth"). and the performance of religious chants, such as kyandza, deba, etc.

The celebration of Mawlid in the Comoros, whose population was particularly devoted to this event, not only perpetuated the memory of the Prophet Muhammad, but could also be timed to coincide with the birthday of the sheikh, a deceased relative, etc. During the celebration, famous poems in Arabic were read out, glorifying the Prophet and telling about his life (they were also called mawlids). For example, the panegyric "Mawlid al-Barzanji", named after its author, a Muslim poet and legal scholar of the XVIII century, was highly revered. Ja'far ibn Hasan al-Barzanji. Another important Arabic text praising the Prophet Muhammad was the mawlid Sharaf al-Anam (from the Arabic sarafu l-'anam "the most honest of men"), which was long used by the inhabitants of the East African coast. For example, special rituals to protect the village were often accompanied by loud recitation of excerpts from this composition during a roundabout of the village. However, this work was later replaced by "Mawlid al-Barzanji", brought by Muslim scholars from Hadramaut.

The Sufi ceremonies and rituals described above are still performed on all the islands of the Comoros Archipelago, accompanying important events in people's lives and uniting them as a separate social institution. The use of Arabic is considered here as one of the components of local spiritual rites. The ability to compose qasids and recite the Koran is especially highly valued, and numerous competitions in this art are held between various madrasas, in which both students and teachers take part.

Astrology is recognized as the most important field of knowledge in the country and is revered along with Islamic law (fiqh). Komorans try to use the Quranic texts for their own purposes and needs: they believe that the repeated recitation of Surah 14 from the Holy Book of Muslims in various cases can protect people or property. Passages from the Qur'an are often engraved on historical monuments. Public readings of the entire Qur'an (Hitim) or hadiths 15 about the Battle of Badr 16 serve as the Judgment of God, ready to bring down divine punishment on the hidden sinner. People often attend religious meetings (they are called majlis), where they listen to theological lectures and widely known theological writings in various languages.

9 Genre poetic form in the literatures of the peoples of the Near and Middle East, Central and South Asia.

10 In Islam, prayer addressed to Allah is also a form of worship.

11 Circular prayer.

12 Islamic spiritual practice, which consists in repeatedly reciting a prayer formula containing the glorification of God.

13 Celebrating the birthday of the Prophet Muhammad.

14 One of the chapters of the Qur'an.

15 Traditions about the words and actions of the Prophet Muhammad, affecting various religious and legal aspects of life.

16 The first major battle between Muslims and Quraysh took place in 624 in the Hejaz (west of the Arabian Peninsula).

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in Arabic. For example, the book Ratibul-Haddad (Prayers of Haddad), written by the Yemeni Sufi Imam Abdullah al-Haddad and introduced by the Supreme Mufti of the Comoros Omar ibn Soumeit back in the 1970s, is still very popular at such meetings [Blanchy, 2014].

After the Comoros gained independence in 1975, the country's leadership began to encourage the development of relations with the Arab world through the establishment of strong diplomatic contacts, constant cultural exchange and the strengthening of Arab-Muslim values. Ali Sualih, who came to power, pursued a policy of limiting the influence of Muslim clergy and modernizing the methods of teaching the Koran in schools. Ahmed Abdullah, who succeeded him as president in 1978, declared Islam the state religion in order to gain the support of Muslim countries, which he needed along with the help of the West. Arabic became the second official language (after Comorian), and the spiritual administration of the Supreme Mufti was established.

The new leadership of the country emphasized the symbolic significance of the Arab-Muslim heritage for the cultural identity of the Comorian people, and tried to introduce the population to the study of the Arabic language and Muslim theological sciences. Increased interaction with Arab countries has opened up new opportunities for religious education, which has enabled tens of thousands of young people from the Comoros to appreciate the benefits of studying there. The economic crisis in the country has led to a deterioration in the quality of teaching and disruption of the education system, which has forced many parents to apply for scholarships for their children to universities in Arab countries. At the same time, the rise in oil prices in 1974 stimulated the flow of large amounts of money to the oil states of the Arab world, which allowed them to accept many students from Muslim countries in Asia and Africa, including the Comoros. Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and a little later Egypt, Sudan, Libya, and Syria provided Comorian students with various educational grants and organized internships at their universities, and established a number of schools and centers of Arab culture on the islands themselves. In September 1993, the Comoros became part of the Arab League.

Currently, the official languages of the Comoros are Comorian, French and Arabic. On the island of Mayotte, which was declared the fifth overseas department of France, only French has the official status.

The Comorian language is represented on each island by a corresponding dialect: Shimaore (Mayotte), Shimwali (Mwali), Shinzuani (Ndzuani) and Shingazija (Ngazija). Writing is based on the Arabic or Latin alphabet, and currently the latter is given priority, although, according to UNESCO, knowledge of the Arabic alphabet and the ability to read and write Arabic far exceed the Latin alphabet among the population of the Comoros (more than 90% compared to 57%). This discrepancy is obviously due to the effectiveness of the Arab-Muslim education system, which functions here in the form of an extensive network of Quranic schools and madrasas.

The influence of Arabic on Comorian is evident not only in the written sphere, but also in phonology and vocabulary. Thus, as a result of such an impact, the phoneme [b] in the Comorian language has two variants - explosive and implosive; the same situation is observed with the phoneme [d] (two variants - dental and alveolar) [Alnet, 2009, p. 23]. Lexical borrowings are quite extensive and make up a significant part of the words of the Comorian language: mahaba "love", mali "prosperity", baki "stay", hasibu "count", karibu "close", etc.

The penetration of the Malagasy language on the island of Mayotte was associated with the migration of the inhabitants of Madagascar in the middle of the XIX century. They quickly assimilated

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they learned Shimaore, but they also retained their own language, which the Comorans themselves often call Shibushi (or kibushi). There are usually two main dialects of Malagasy that are strongly influenced by Arabic and Shimaore - Shibushi and Kiantalaotsi (the latter is spoken in only a few villages) [Wardburger, 2013, p. 263].

The French language, as already mentioned, was inherited by the Comoros from the era of the French protectorate. The colonialists immediately introduced it in administrative work, which also included the possibility of using dialects of the Comorian language (especially in oral communication), but their use was limited to certain limits due to the lack of approved spelling standards for all dialects. Despite the official status of the Comorian and Arabic languages, French is currently the language of instruction in public schools in the Comoros.

Thus, the French language co-exists and actively competes with the dialects of the Comorian language on all four islands of the archipelago. Its influence is especially strong on the island of Mayotte, which is part of France, and therefore the widespread use of the French language is part of state policy here. It is used not only in the administrative system and secular education, but also in other areas. French on the island of Mayotte has almost completely replaced the native dialect of Shimaore from radio and television programs, and is constantly used in advertisements and signs. Aware of the prestige of the French language, some parents prefer to talk to their children only in it, in order to give them the opportunity to achieve a higher position in society.

In other islands of the Comoros Archipelago, the predominance of the French language is less pronounced. Nevertheless, it is considered fashionable among young people to insert words and expressions in French while communicating in the local dialect or simply speaking in this language, so there is a danger that in the near future the native languages of Antaloatr may disappear or turn into a kind of French-based Creole language. In addition, in some cases, when speakers of various dialects do not understand each other, French acts as an auxiliary means of neutral communication.

It is interesting that French can be considered in this territory as a competitor to Swahili, because from a functional point of view, both languages are the main ones in the implementation of external contacts. Although Swahili may not be fully considered an autochthonous language of the Comoros, it still plays an important role here.

Swahili has long been the lingua franca of trade relations between the Arabian Peninsula, the west coast of Africa and the Comoros and retains some of its position. He was highly respected both before and after colonization, especially during the struggle for independence in the 1960s, when Comorans who had moved to Tanzania broadcast in various dialects of the Comorian language and Swahili in an effort to be heard by their Comoran comrades.

Today, only 1% of Comorans speak Swahili, and French has taken over its functions as the new lingua franca of commerce in the region. Nevertheless, the attitude towards Swahili remains very respectful, although this language is no longer used in everyday communication. Many Comorans point to the connection between Swahili and the Comorian language and believe that Swahili is a real language with a higher status, and various varieties of the Comorian language are its dialects [Wardburger, 2013, p. 267]. They support their arguments with the fact that the Swahili language has a generally accepted writing system and a literary tradition based on it. In the case of the Comorian language, there is no approved written language, although many residents try to write in their own dialect.

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The Arabic language retains its influence and significance due to the widespread spread of Islam as the dominant religion (98% of the country's population). Although many scholars claim that the Komorak language proficiency remains low, the majority of the population treats Arabic with great respect due to the presence of a written language. Almost all Comorans learn to read and write in the Koranic school, many use the Arabic alphabet to write words of the Comorian dialect, but they practically do not use Arabic in oral everyday speech. Nevertheless, it is recognized here as one of the main components of the local sociolinguistic situation, since Arabica can serve as the written basis for the Comorian language and has served this purpose for centuries. In addition, it is the language of religion, which is associated with the majority of events in the social and cultural life of the country's population, including a special system of spiritual rituals and rituals, which include reading the Koran and hadith, reciting Qasid, reciting Muslim prayers, etc.

Almost all children in the Comoros begin attending Qur'anic school at the age of 5. The training lasts for two or three years, during which they learn the basic tenets of the Muslim faith and acquire knowledge of classical Arabic. Parents pay special attention to this stage, as it seems to them a kind of counterbalance to the secondary education system based on the French model, which is still perceived with distrust by Comorans.

Unlike in other Muslim countries, especially in West Africa, the main purpose of religious education in the Comoros is not to teach children to memorize passages from the Koran, but to teach them the basics of reading and, to a lesser extent, writing. Training is conducted in the Koranic school and consists of several stages. The first stage is called kurasa (from Arabic. kurrasah "notebook, booklet") [Chanfi, 2006, p. 450]. Kurasa is a small tutorial divided into two parts. The first part is made up of invented words, most of which have no meaning in either Comorian or Arabic. The student must repeat them until they can decipher and understand the real full-meaning words. Thus, children are taught the letters of the Arabic alphabet using fictional groups of words. However, it is not so important that they do not mean anything, provided that children can read and pronounce them correctly.

Along with kurasa in the Comoros, wooden tablets are often used during lessons 17, which were introduced throughout Africa at the dawn of the penetration of the Arabic language to explain its features and read Quranic texts. Children try to take turns recognizing the words written in the kuras and on the tablet by the teacher. This universal method involves the gradual development of students ' reading and writing skills, moving from less to more.

A year later, students begin to fill out the second part of the Qur'asa, which is intended for writing down the chapters of the Qur'an, starting with the first surah "Al-Fatihah" (from the Arabic al-fatihah "opening the Qur'an") and ending with the 78th - "An-naba" (from the Arabic an-naba' "message").. At this stage of learning, the tablet is no longer used, since, based on the experience of previous generations and considerations of logic, it is assumed that the student should already have the skills to read and write the Quranic texts. The order of training in the final part of kurasa is practically the same as in the previous stages. The teacher reads aloud a few verses 18, which the student must repeat several times and memorize throughout the day, then he moves on to the next student, and the same sequence of actions occurs. At the end of the lesson, all the children read aloud what they have learned one by one.

17 Religious education classes, as well as the Koranic schools where they are taught, are often referred to in the Comoros by the word darasa (from Arabic. darasa "to learn").

18 is the smallest structural unit of the Qur'an, sometimes understood as a "verse".

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When students are already well versed in all surahs up to An-Nabah, they can focus on the rest of the Qur'an. After completing all the stages of religious education, only those students who are going to devote themselves to spiritual activities and have the necessary skills and mental abilities to become ulama remain in the Koranic school. 19 (from Arabic, 'ulama' "knowledgeable, learned"). Under the guidance of their mentor, they attend special training courses designed to help them achieve this goal. Such training allows students to achieve the maximum level of knowledge that the teacher is able to provide them with. Subsequently, they leave the Qur'anic school and continue the learning process with other Ulama of the Comoros in madrassas, and then go to other countries, regions and cities (Zanzibar 20, Hadhramaut, Mecca, Medina, Al-Azhar University in Cairo) to complete their studies. Thus, the young ulema travels all the way from the Koranic school to prestigious Islamic intellectual centers abroad in an effort to study various religious subjects. Priority areas of research remain such important areas for Islam as Fiqh (Shafi'i madhhab) and the interpretation of the Koran. These disciplines attract students ' special attention.

The Comoros ' Muslim secondary education system, aimed at increasing interest in the Arabic language and gradual Arabization, now includes public and private madrasas. State-run madrasas are partially funded and controlled by the World Islamic League, 21 while private madrasas are established by Comorans returning from Saudi Arabia in their villages with the support of the World Islamic League and the Saudi Fatwa Academy.

Teaching here is based on textbooks on the Koranic sciences imported from Saudi Arabia, Egypt, India or Zanzibar, despite the fact that traditionally all educational activities in the Comoros were carried out orally, books were rare, and the most important texts were copied by hand. The most famous work in this area in the archipelago, which was constantly used in madrasa training, is Minhaju-t-Talibin ("Programs for Knowledge Seekers"), written by the outstanding Syrian theologian Muhyiddin al-Nawawi for the training of Muslim judges (qadis) [Blanchy, 2014].

In the 1990s, two large centers of Arab culture opened in the Comoros, fully sponsored by the States of the Arabian Peninsula. Kuwait has established an African Muslim Agency to work in Central and West Africa, and Saudi Arabia has established a charity organization for two holy sites. These centers were engaged not only in the development of charitable programs and the promotion of Arab-Muslim culture, but also in the dissemination of the Arabic language: thanks to their support, appropriate educational institutions were created. The African Muslim Agency has opened a bilingual (French-Arabic) comprehensive secondary school for 600 students. The charity organization of the two shrines has organized so-called madrasas of faith, where courses for obtaining a secondary education diploma are held.

Maahads (from the Arabic ma'had "institute") - schools of secondary Muslim education-are considered a kind of madrasah in the Comoros. Six Ma'ahads

19 Collective name of recognized and authoritative experts on the theoretical and practical aspects of Islam.

20 This island has long been a favorite destination for those residents of the Comorian Archipelago who wish to continue their theological studies and complete an advanced course in theology, as it was home to a fairly large Comorian diaspora prior to the outbreak of the Zanzibar Revolution in 1964.

21 International Islamic organizations that unite major Muslim figures from different parts of the world and countries.

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They were established by the World Islamic League: three are on Ngazije, two on Ndzuani, one on Mwali. All the teachers here are Comorans who have studied in Arab countries with the support of Moroccans, Egyptians and Saudis.

Graduates of such institutions strive to popularize the Arabic language in everyday communication and thereby contribute to the consistent Arabization of the country. Nevertheless, this process is proceeding very slowly and does not meet the expectations of its supporters (the Arabic-speaking part of the country's population, the Arab League). The French ruling circles involved in public administration are quite satisfied with the current state of affairs or with the development of the Arabic language, which does not interfere with the introduction of the French language and meets the requirements of the Arab League. The highest strata of Comorian society, who were educated in a French school and contributed to the entry of the Comoros into the Arab League, also do not support the idea of cultural integration of their country into the Arab world. Membership in the Arab League appears to have been driven by the tangible financial benefits that the country's leadership hoped to receive from it, which explains why it did not pursue a policy of Arabizing the education system or the administrative apparatus, and ignored the Arab League's advice on this issue.

The situation with the Arabic language is also complicated by the fact that the inhabitants of the Comoros are not Arab from either a cultural or linguistic point of view. In this sense, this country can be compared to Somalia or Djibouti, where two large ethnic groups live-the Afar and Somalia. The entry of all three countries into the Arab League at one time was rather due to religious and political motives. So, the candidacy of Djibouti was actively lobbied by Yemen and Saudi Arabia. In this regard, the further Arabization of the Comoros is difficult not only because of the lack of State support for securing the status of a mandatory language for Arabic, but also because of the peculiarities of the country's socio-historical development.

Secular education was first introduced by the French in the Comors after the beginning of colonization in the late 19th century and still functions in almost unchanged form. School attendance is mandatory for children between the ages of 7 and 15. According to Comorian legislation, children must complete 8 grades of secondary school.

Arabic entered the curriculum of state educational institutions in the late 1950s: it appeared in local French lyceums as a new language, along with English and Spanish. Textbooks on the Arabic language were published, teaching methods were developed, and teachers were trained in this field - all of which were new to the Comorian population and characterized by an innovative approach.

The textbook "Guide to Classical Arabic", written by French Arabists Gerard Lecombe and Amir Ghedira, was based on the teaching methodology proposed by French scientists for students in France, so this book was based on the same logical categories that were used in the preparation of its authors [Chanfi, 2006, p.449]. The school system in France and the colonies, as a rule, was built on the same principles of thinking formulated by Descartes, Antoine Arnault and Claude Lanslo in the "Grammar of Port-Royal" and Charles-Francois Lomon. The authors of the textbook actually used the terminology used by the French orientalist Sylvester de Sacy in his famous work on Arabic grammar, which was first published in 1820 and influenced many subsequent European books in this field.

Zh. Textbook Lecombe and A. Guedira collected a large number of positive reviews and became the main manual on the Arabic language in French secondary schools.

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Moreover, this book was the recommended Arabic language textbook at the National School of Oriental Languages and Civilizations in Paris until the end of the 1980s, which is not surprising, since J. R. R. Tolkien was the first author of the book. Lecom headed the local Arabic studies department until the mid-1980s.

Approaches to the organization of training in general did not differ from those provided for in textbooks in other languages. The manual consisted of sections with the following structure: a text with a list of words from it, questions for self-testing (dialogue), which were answered by students, a grammar section and exercises designed to repeat the content of the text just studied. The textbook was based on a passive non-experimental teaching method, which did not involve active participation of students in the learning process and their independent work at the earliest stage, for example, using an Arabic dictionary.

In addition, the socio-cultural conditions described in the textbook were strikingly different from the features of life in the Komors. A similar situation is still observed when considering other modern textbooks in all subjects. For example, they do not mention the most important religious rituals and events in the country, such as mawlid, Majlis, Friday or Holiday prayers, the departure of Comorian pilgrims to Mecca and their return to their homeland, funerals, life in a Quranic school, or social events, such as tuarab (a genre of poetry accompanied by music). Children acquire a stock of Arabic vocabulary related to life in New York skyscrapers or the political life of the Abbasid empire, but do not find in the textbook a single word about what objects or gestures are used during a local religious ceremony. For obvious reasons, this part of the textbook, as well as its teaching methodology, was met with disapproval by the Comorian youth.

After the Comoros gained independence in 1975, a new textbook, written by Hamida Atui, replaced the previous manual, but it practically did not differ from its predecessor either in content or form.

In August 1981, a seminar on educational orientation held in the city of Moroni recommended introducing "Islamic and Arabic language instruction at all levels of public education", organizing Arabic-language instruction in parallel with French in primary school, and studying Arabic in secondary school for 11 hours a week at the first level (6 hours of language training and 5 hours of Islam training) and 5 hours per week-at the second stage (3 hours per language and 2 hours per religious disciplines) [Shagal', 1998, p. 247]. These proposals are still in the draft stage, but the very fact of their publication indicates a serious attitude to mastering the Arabic language.

Today, Arabic-language teachers who have received appropriate training at various Muslim universities in Arab countries are responsible for teaching Arabic in madrassas and ma'ahads, as well as in public and private French secondary schools. They speak perfect Arabic, but they do not know French at all, i.e. they are not able to communicate in the language of instruction approved in the country's educational system, so the bachelor's degree exam is conducted in two languages - French and Arabic.

This situation in general cannot but affect the quality of teaching Arabic, which still leaves much to be desired. The poor academic performance of many students is not so much related to the qualifications of teachers (most of them have excellent knowledge of Arabic), but rather to the inconsistency and diversity of teaching methods within one educational system.

University education in the Comoros is not developed, but there are specialized secondary education courses to train teachers, specialists in agriculture, health and business. Those who want to get

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higher education, leave the country and often do not return back, there is a phenomenon of "brain drain".

Thus, it can be stated that the functioning of the Arabic language in the Comoros is limited to the religious sphere. Despite its status as a confessional language, it nevertheless plays an important role in the life of the country as a link in various Muslim rites and rituals, which co-exist and are organically connected here with the ancient animistic cult actions of the peoples of Africa. In addition, the extensive network of Koranic schools and madrassas, where students are taught to read and write in Arabic, occupies a special place in the local education system, although Arabic is almost never used in everyday communication.

The entry of the Comoros into the Arab League did not entail a comprehensive Arabization process in the country, and the spread of the Arabic language is mainly due to the efforts of the Arabian monarchies to open centers of Arab culture. The lack of significant state support and the lack of attention of senior management to the problems of the Arabic language negates all attempts by the Arab League to somehow influence this situation, and Arabization is moving slowly here and rather not "thanks", but "despite". This situation suggests that the status of the Arabic language is unlikely to change here in the very near future.

* * *

Below is a phonetic transcription of Arabic letters on a Latin graphic basis with a number of additional diacritical marks added.

Appendix 1

Transcription used in the work

Consonant sounds

Vowel sounds

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