Arabic is significantly different from English: different forms are used when addressing males, females and groups; plurals and verb conjugations are highly irregular and difficult to figure out from their roots; and the pronunciation includes some very difficult sounds. Lebanese, luckily, is a much-simplified from standard Arabic, and should not be overly difficult for the traveler.
Arabic is significantly different from English: different forms are used when addressing males, females and groups; plurals and verb conjugations are highly irregular and difficult to figure out from their roots; and the pronunciation includes some very difficult sounds. Lebanese, luckily, is a much-simplified from standard Arabic, and should not be overly difficult for the traveler.
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Learning some basic Lebanese Arabic dialect expressions could always come in handy; however, knowing either English or French should be enough for a tourist visiting [[Lebanon|Lebanon]], since many Lebanese people (especially the youth, particularly in [[Beirut|Beirut]]) are trilingual.
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Learning some basic Lebanese Arabic dialect expressions could always come in handy; however, knowing either French or English should be enough for a tourist visiting [[Lebanon|Lebanon]], since many Lebanese people (especially the youth, particularly in [[Beirut|Beirut]]) are trilingual.
Line 70:
Line 70:
; How are you? : kifak (male), kifik (female)
; How are you? : kifak (male), kifik (female)
; (I'm) fine. : Mni7 (Male) - Mni7a (Female)(Lebanese people also say l 7amdella, literally: "thank God")
; (I'm) fine. : Mni7 (Male) - Mni7a (Female)(Lebanese people also say l 7amdella, literally: "thank God")
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; Well (health) : bikher
+
; Well (health) : bikher, tamem
; Good : mni7(m) mni7a(f)
; Good : mni7(m) mni7a(f)
; Excellent : be jannin (it's excellent) or bjannin (I'm excellent)
; Excellent : be jannin (it's excellent) or bjannin (I'm excellent)
Line 81:
Line 81:
; Please. : Eza bet reed (m), eza bet reedeh (f) (literally : if you please). Also, 3mol ma3roof (m), 3mele ma3roff (f). Proper : La-w sama7et (m), la-w sama7teh (f) (literally : only if you allow it) (Lebanese people use also the English term : please)
; Please. : Eza bet reed (m), eza bet reedeh (f) (literally : if you please). Also, 3mol ma3roof (m), 3mele ma3roff (f). Proper : La-w sama7et (m), la-w sama7teh (f) (literally : only if you allow it) (Lebanese people use also the English term : please)
; Thank you. : shookran (Arabic) yeslamo (Arabic) merci (French) they also use the English expression but pronounce it "tank you, sank you, or tanx"
; Thank you. : shookran (Arabic) yeslamo (Arabic) merci (French) they also use the English expression but pronounce it "tank you, sank you, or tanx"
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You're welcome : tekram (male) tekramé (female)
+
; You're welcome : tekram (male) tekramé (female)
; Welcome (welcoming someone). : ahla w sahla (it will be enough to say just "ahla")
; Welcome (welcoming someone). : ahla w sahla (it will be enough to say just "ahla")
; If God wills (or used as 'hopefully') : eza alla rad
; If God wills (or used as 'hopefully') : eza alla rad
The Lebanese dialect of Arabic is similar to that spoken in Syria, Jordan and the Palestinian Territories, somewhat different to that spoken in Egypt, and very different to other forms of Arabic. As with all dialects of Arabic, the dialect is a spoken language only; the written language always conforms to standard Arabic.
Arabic is significantly different from English: different forms are used when addressing males, females and groups; plurals and verb conjugations are highly irregular and difficult to figure out from their roots; and the pronunciation includes some very difficult sounds. Lebanese, luckily, is a much-simplified from standard Arabic, and should not be overly difficult for the traveler.
Learning some basic Lebanese Arabic dialect expressions could always come in handy; however, knowing either French or English should be enough for a tourist visiting Lebanon, since many Lebanese people (especially the youth, particularly in Beirut) are trilingual.
For some Arabic sounds, there is no easy transliteration (and no single agreed transliteration). The pronunciation guide shown below is case sensitive; for example, 'th' is a different sound to 'Th' and 'TH'. Note that there is no such things as a diphthong in Arabic; instead, some consonants map to English diphthongs.
The following 3 consonants are pronounced by rounding the mouth as you say them. You can get an approximate effect by accentuating them in the following pronunciations.
S
like 's' in "sorry"
D
like 'd' in "dot"
T
like 't' in "taught"
The following consonant is almost never pronounced in the Lebanese Arabic dialect but replaced with a glottal stop, which can also be represented by an apostrophe.
q
in regular arabic : like 'c' in "call" (with the back of the throat)
gh
like a French or German letter "r"
The following consonant (called "ha", which will be represented by the number 7), is similar to English "h" but stronger. It is pronounced deep in the throat, like the sound you make when breathing on a pair of glasses to clean them.
7
a little like a mixture of "h" and "kh"
2
a glottal stop (IPA: ʔ), or the constriction of the throat as between the syllables uh-oh, but in Arabic this is often found in strange places such as the beginning of a word. Known in Arabic as hamza ء
The following consonant (called "ayn", which we will be represented by the number 3), is very difficult to say. In English, the only time you will use the throat muscles used to say this letter is when you are throwing up; if that's how it feels, you're probably doing it right.
ahla w sahla (Lebanese people use also the French (bienvenue) or the English terms or they say just "ahlan"
How are you?
kifak (male), kifik (female)
(I'm) fine.
Mni7 (Male) - Mni7a (Female)(Lebanese people also say l 7amdella, literally: "thank God")
Well (health)
bikher, tamem
Good
mni7(m) mni7a(f)
Excellent
be jannin (it's excellent) or bjannin (I'm excellent)
And you?
w enta (male), w enté (female)
Blessed
l 7amdella
What is your name?
shoo esmak? (m), shoo esmik? (f)
My name is ______ .
esmé ______ .
Nice to meet you.
Tsharrafna
How old are you?
addé 3omrak? (m) addé 3omrik? (f)
Please.
Eza bet reed (m), eza bet reedeh (f) (literally : if you please). Also, 3mol ma3roof (m), 3mele ma3roff (f). Proper : La-w sama7et (m), la-w sama7teh (f) (literally : only if you allow it) (Lebanese people use also the English term : please)
Thank you.
shookran (Arabic) yeslamo (Arabic) merci (French) they also use the English expression but pronounce it "tank you, sank you, or tanx"
You're welcome
tekram (male) tekramé (female)
Welcome (welcoming someone).
ahla w sahla (it will be enough to say just "ahla")
If God wills (or used as 'hopefully')
eza alla rad
Really?
Walla or 3anjad
Yes.
eh or na3am
No.
la2
Maybe
yemkin
Excuse me. (getting attention)
ma twekhezne
Excuse me. (begging pardon)
"pardon" (French is used here)
I'm sorry.
"sorry" (English is used here) or Be3tezeer (I excuse myself)
This is a usable phrasebook. It explains pronunciation and the bare essentials of travel communication. An adventurous person could use it to get by, but please plunge forward and help it grow!
