Throughout the colonial era, interpreters were indispensible intermediaries between European administrators and the African population. As in the case of other categories of employees, interpreters were organized into professional bodies within the colonial civil service. The structure of these bodies were the same everywhere, with the exception of a few local adjustments. The texts organising the bodies notably defined the conditions for recruitment, remuneration and promotion. But for various reasons, these texts were rarely followed to the letter, with the result that the doors of the profession were open to practically any type of profile. The relations between administrators and interpreters were characterized by suspicion. Some administrators lauded interpreters for their loyalty and competence, while others viewed them as notoriously incompetent and untrustworthy. however, although officially the interpreter was no more than an administrative underling, he enjoyed a tremendous prestige within the local community because by the nature of his job, he was the African who was closest to the centres of power. Such an enviable position sometimes brought about resentments in the other local elites, and even in some administrators, and interpreters were often the object of various accusations. Finally, as compared to the other French territories in Africa, the body of interpreters of Algeria was different in that it was made up of French, native and foreign interpreters, a situation which resulted in considerable difficulties.
