Lebanese Arabic: Level 1

وينك

Waynik

“Where are you”

جو اشقر

 

• طل الليل بأول نجمة قمرنا وعي

Ṭall il-layl(i) b-awwal nižmi, ’amarna wa‘i

طل الليل بأول نجمة قمرنا وعى

The night has emerged with the first star, our moon has woken up.

– Note: layl doesn’t become lēl because in Lebanese Arabic diphthongs remain

– nižmi – the t-marbūṭa in Lebanese Arabic turns into an „i“ rather than an „e“ (but only after non emphatic sounds so e.g. مريضة will remain marīḍa)

 

• يمكن هلأ تمرق نسمة وما تشوفك معي

yimkin halla timro’ nasmi u-ma tšūfik ma‘i.

يمكن أن تمرق نسمة الآن ولا تراك معي

Maybe there is a breeze passing by at the moment and it doesn’t see you with me.

halla = الآن (from هالوقت= هذا الوقت)

 

• وينك عني يا حبي وينك قتلتني الغربة

waynik ‘ani ya ḥubbi waynik, ’atalìtni il-ghurbi

اين انتيا حبي اين انتقتلتني الغربة

Where are you (away from me), my love, where are you, this estrangement has killed me.

waynik = اين انت

’atalìtni = qatalàtni (more common though: ’atlìtni)

 

• وينك رح يوقف قلبي وين صرتي تعــــــي

waynik, raḥ yū’af ’albi, wayn ṣirti, ta‘i

اين انت سيَقِفُ قلبي، إلى اين وصلت، تعالي

Where are you? My heart will stop beating, where have you gone, come back.

raḥ = Future participle like fusha س or سوف

yū’af= يَقِفُ

ṣirti = lit.: you have become, reached

ta‘i = short form of تعالي

 

• عم جرب خبي عينيي من درب القمر

‘am jarrib khabbi ‘aynayyi min darab il-’amar

أحاول أن أخفي عيني من درب القمر

I’m trying to hide my eyes from (the path of) the moon.

‘am jarrib = present continuous

jarrib and khabbi – note how for the first person singular in verbs where a vowel follows the first consonant no “a” or “i” is needed (i.e. it is not ajarrib or ijarrib)

‘aynayyi = dual (the dual is normally not used in Shami dialects, only for body parts. It is not acting as a realy dual though because it can be used for more than two (e.g. “our eyes”) and it only appears on the noun, verbs and adjectives will take plural agreement)

 

• واشتلقوا النجمات علي بكاني السهر

u-ištal’u in-nižmāt‘alayyi bakkāni is-sahar

وتشعر النجمات أن شيئا ما خطأ بي والسهر جعلني أبكي

The stars can sense something isn’t right with me and the sleeplessness made me cry.

u-ištal’u in-nižmāt = note how “the stars” take a plural verb, unlike in Fuṣḥā where it would have a singular feminine agreement.

 

• هزيت الليل بتنهيدي بلكي بتسألي…

hazzayt il-layl bi-tinhīdi, belki btis’ali…

هززْتُ الليل بتنهُدي لعلك تسألين…

My sigh made the night tremble, maybe you (as well) ask (what’s happening to me)?

tinhīd = تنهُد

belki = maybe (from Turkish, originally Persian “bal ke” (= “instead”, “but”; from Arabic “bal” (= but) + Persian “ke” (= that))

 

• حامل كل العمر بإيدي وناطر توصلي

Ḥāmil kill il-‘umr b-īdi u nāṭir tūṣali.

أحمل كل عمري في يدي وأنتظر أن تصلي

I’m carrying the (/my) entire life in my hand, waiting for you to arrive.

naṭar = انتظر

kill = kull

īd = يَد

 

• دخيلك تعي

dakhīlik ta‘i!

أتوسل اليك، تعالي

I beg you, come!

dakhīlik = from dakhīl (“guest, one who seeks refuge, new person to a tribe, convert”) = I beg you (sometimes also short “dakhlak”)