Archive for April, 2009
Happy Easter! Posted by aziza on Apr 12, 2009
Easter is a very special occasion for Christians and non-Christians alike in Egypt. For Christians, it celebrates Jesus Christ’s resurrection (عيد القيامة). It comes at the end of a 50-days fasting for Eastern Christians. Celebrating Easter typically lasts for a whole week, i.e. the last week of fasting, including celebrating Good Friday (الجمعة الحزينة), Ash…
Idafa Construction in Arabic Posted by aziza on Apr 9, 2009
Idafa construction (الإضافة) is a construction of 2 nouns. The first noun is indefinite, e.g. (كتاب) “book”, and the second noun is usually definite, e.g. (الطالب) “the student”. The meaning of both words become related with the relationship of ‘of’, i.e. the first noun is presented as one that belongs to or that is specific…
Negation of Arabic Sentences Posted by aziza on Apr 3, 2009
There are different particles used for negation in Arabic. (لا) is used to negate present tense verbs. It must be used immediately before the verb, e.g. لا أذهب إلى عملي بالسيارة. “I do not go to my work by car.” أصدقائي لا يحبون السفر معي. “My friends do not like travelling with me.” (ما) is…