Tag Archives: arabic

Arabic-Akkadian Roots: ء-ك-ل ,ع-ل-و, and ب-ك-ي

دَجاج root: د-ج-ج / collective noun / definition: chicken Have you ever roasted a chicken upside down? Well I have. Twice. Well, it was one time—but two chickens. No questions, please. This was a cathartic confession, blurted out in a fluster of shame, and no more than that. Thank God for the antidote of blushing:Continue reading “Arabic-Akkadian Roots: ء-ك-ل ,ع-ل-و, and ب-ك-ي”

Around the Knot in Ten Blinks

غَمْضة root: غ-م-ض / noun / definition: a blink Can you believe it’s been ten years since I enrolled in my Arabic and Linguistics bachelor’s degree? No way! scream the imaginary crowd in my head. But yes, yes indeed. I’d stepped into university, fresh off of A-Level stress, printed timetable in hand—and then, in justContinue reading “Around the Knot in Ten Blinks”

Exploring Time in the Arabic Dictionary: “the Present”

ذِكْرى root: ذ-ك-ر / noun / plural: ذِكرَيات / definition: a memory Sometimes, we spend so long immersed in thoughts of the future and memories of the past that we forget that we’re floating in the present. I remember writing about floating, and then I think about how every all-consuming present of mine—well, all ofContinue reading “Exploring Time in the Arabic Dictionary: “the Present””

Dictionary Finds: مراح

شَلّال root: ش-ل-ل / noun / plural: شَلّالات / definition: waterfall It’s been a beautifully busy long weekend. Beach walks, waterfalls, countryside drives—oh, and still stealing some minutes here and there to upload videos to my YouTube channel. But it’s back to my laptop now and a return to the Dictionary Finds series…

Arabic-Akkadian Roots: q-b-l, k-l-m, and m-l-k

كَلام root: ك-ل-م / noun / definition: speech Since I stopped attending Akkadian evening classes, I’ve been feeling a little detached from this language I’d started falling in love with. And I miss learning and writing about the connections between Arabic and Akkadian—so here we are today. I’ve previously explored some lexical similarities between theContinue reading “Arabic-Akkadian Roots: q-b-l, k-l-m, and m-l-k”

Root Exploration: ء-ر-ب

مُسْتَشْفى root: ش-ف-ي / form X passive participle / plural: مُستَشفَيات / definition: hospital Four hours is how long we spent in A&E yesterday. And it’s interesting how the brain keeps itself busy during those drawn-out periods of waiting on seemingly uncomfortable-by-design chairs. My mind, for example, kept wandering between Subway sandwiches and the spacingContinue reading “Root Exploration: ء-ر-ب”

Between Observations and Wishful Thinking

حالِمة root: ح-ل-م / form I active participle, feminine form / definition: dreamer, dreaming Maybe, from my writings on this blog, you get the impression that I’m always floating between thoughts. An observation here, a dictionary find there, multiple pivots per post… And you’d be right to think so, of course. My mind is alwaysContinue reading “Between Observations and Wishful Thinking”

Arabic Observations: ذانِكَ

بُرْهان root: ب-ر-ه-ن / noun / plural: بَراهين / definition: proof It seems that I’ve unintentionally created a new series of posts this Ramadan, and now I can’t help but add to it. We’ve been looking at variations of ذلك/تلك in the Qur’an—specifically, how these demonstratives are modified with pronoun suffixes: But things don’t endContinue reading “Arabic Observations: ذانِكَ”

Arabic Observations: تِلكَ and تِلكُما and تِلكُم

التَّوْطين root: و-ط-ن / form II verbal noun / definition: to grant citizenship Ten-thousand-and-something days after my birth, Cyprus has finally acknowledged my existence. I can’t blame them for not granting me citizenship earlier though, as—well, how could they have known me? I was born in a London borough and have, since then, spent aContinue reading “Arabic Observations: تِلكَ and تِلكُما and تِلكُم”

Arabic Observations: ذلكَ and ذلكِ and ذلكُم

مُنْتَشِر root: ن-ش-ر / form VIII active participle / definition: widespread, ubiquitous We all know ذٰلِكَ. And how could we not? It’s that ubiquitous demonstrative pronoun meaning “that”. But have you also heard of ذٰلِكِ and ذٰلِكُمْ? Because those are demonstrative pronouns too—but ubiquitous? Not so much. More like rare, actually. So, where can weContinue reading “Arabic Observations: ذلكَ and ذلكِ and ذلكُم”