Archive for 'Culture'
Winter in Fairuz’s Love Songs (1) Posted by Hanan Ben Nafa on Feb 10, 2020
In this post, we’re going to learn about a common theme in Arabic music and that is the association between winter الشتاء and love الحب. In this post, I’m focusing on two works by the Lebanese singer – Fairuz – and look at the words/phrases used to address this theme. In the first part of…
Colors in Arabic and Arab Culture Posted by yasmine on Nov 6, 2019
In this post we’ll be looking at what some colors symbolize in Arab culture and the flags of some Arab states. In addition to the Arabic names of some colors that don’t exist in your regular basic color list. I also thought to remind you how to ask someone what their favorite color is in…
Coffee القَهْوة and Tea الشَّاي in Arab Culture Posted by yasmine on Oct 23, 2019
Whether they call it Turkish or Arabic coffee, both refer to the same method of coffee preparation. The ground beans are boiled in a special pot called إبْريق ibreeq. The coffee is boiled with sugar and sometimes cardamom هَيل hail then served in a small cup called فِنْجان finjan and allowed to sit for a…
Special Fruits in the Middle East Posted by yasmine on Oct 9, 2019
In this post, we’ll be learning a little about five of the common fruits فاكِهة grown in the Middle East, how to say them in Arabic, their significance أهَمية, and what they symbolize يَرمُز . Figs تِّين teen Figs have been growing in the Middle East since pre-historic times. According to the Quran, fruits like figs…
The Lebanese Dabke رقصة الدبكة اللبنانية Posted by Anastasia on Oct 8, 2019
The Greek have the Zorba, the Russian have the Kalinka, and we have the Dabke. If there is one thing that the Lebanese people can agree on, it’s the Dabke. Dabke is a traditional form of dancing in line holding hands preformed on weddings or joyous occasions that dates many centuries back. Dabke is a…
How Arabic Speakers Address their Family Members Posted by yasmine on Sep 25, 2019
When it comes to learning family members in Arabic from Arabic textbooks, you usually find a family tree showing mother, father, sister, etc. But how do Arabs actually address their family members? In English, children often address their father as dad, daddy, papa, pap, etc. In Arabic, you may find children addressing their father as…
The Traditional Sobhiye الصبحية التقليدية Posted by Anastasia on Sep 17, 2019
Marhaba readers! Since the moment you are born into an Arab family, you learn that there are two things that are sacred : family and the sobhiye. . Sobhiye doesn’t have a literal translation in English, because it is a concept born in the Middle-East. A sobhiye is sharing a morning coffee with a group…