Miloud Boukhenoune

THE PRESENT PAPER DISCUSSES THE SYMBOLIC REPRESENTATION OF HISTORICAL MONUMENT CALLED ' MARTYR'S MEMORIAL ', AND ORIGINALLY KNOWN AS ' MAQAM ECHAHID ', THAT HAD BEEN BUILT IN ALGIERS AT ' RIADH EL-FETH', TO COMMEMORATE THE MARTYRS KILLED DURING THE ALGERIAN WAR OF INDEPENDENCE.MAQAM ECHAHID HAD BEEN DESIGNED BY THE ALGERIAN PAINTER ' BACHIR YELLES ', AND THE POLISH SCULPTOR " MARIAN ADAM KONIECZNY " (1930-2017 ). ON JULY 5th,1982, ALGERIAN PRESIDENT " CHADLI BENDJEDID", HAD INAUGURATED MARTYR'S MEMORIAL TO CELEBRATE THE (20th ) ANNIVERSARY OF ALGERIA'S INDEPENDENCE AND YOUTH DAY. ACTUALLY, THIS MONUMENT IS THE FIRST DESTINATION OF FOREIGN HEADS OF STATE AND DIPLOMATS DURING THEIR OFFICIAL VISITS TO THE COUNTRY.it IT IS ALSO THE WORLDLY REPRESENTATIVE IMAGE OF ALGERIA USED IN THE MEDIA, BY JOURNALISTS, FILM ACTORS, AND TOURISTS. NOWADAYS, MAQAM ECHAHID, INCLUDING BOTH THE MILITARY AND SOLDIERS EL-MOUDJAHID MUSEUM, IS OPEN TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC TO DISCOVER THE HISTORICAL AND CULTURAL BACKGROUNDS OF THE ALGERIAN SOCIETY.THE STUDY ALSO AIMS TO REVEAL THE WAY THE ALGERIAN PEOPLE PRESERVE AND HIGHLIGHT THEIR NATIONAL IDENTITY BY CONSTRUCTING THE MARTYR'S MEMORIAL BEING A HISTORICAL MONUMENT AND A UNIVERSAL EMBLEM OF ALGERIA.IN FACT, REFFERING TO THE SEMIOTIC APPROACH, OUR STUDY IDENTIFIES THE COMMEMORATIVE FUNCTIONS OF THIS NATIONAL MONUMENT AND ITS ROLE IN ADDRESSING THE POLITICAL ENGAGEMENT ACCORDING TO THE COUNTRY'S RELATIONSHIP WITH THE FOREIGN COUNTRIES.

KEYWORDS :  MARTY'S MEMORIAL, MAQAM ECHAHID , ALGERIA, SYMBOL, NATIONAL IDENTITY