Algeria and Its Heritage: Inventory of the Various Heritage Policies, from the Pre-colonial to Colonial and Post-colonial Times

The question of heritage in Algeria is a crucial issue waiting to be addressed. For, despite its historical roots, Algerian heritage remains little known and valued. The first heritage policies emerged during the colonial period (1830–1962). After the country’s independence (1962), a policy of oblivion/omission—and a rather selective one—was practised by the supporters of a conservatism that is still alive today. This manifested itself in the falsification of a secular identity, neglecting in some cases and overvaluing in others, to give more vigour to a particular ideology. The purpose of this article is therefore to examine the interest aroused by the question of heritage by addressing the various policies that have been implemented against it. In order to do this, we thought it appropriate to consider a plan that is articulated into two parts, according to a chronological order that starts from the pre-colonial and colonial period, to the post-independence era.