3okkaz عكاز

Algerian Darja · noun

“3okkaz” (عكاز) is a noun in Algerian Darja meaning cane, walking stick.

Meanings

1. cane, walking stick
2. crutch

Usage

Okkaz denotes the stick you lean on to walk: an elderly person's cane, a shepherd's staff, or a crutch after an injury. The word is common and used in all registers. For example, "ymchi b l'okkaz" means "he walks with a cane". The plural is "3kakez". Depending on the region, the pronunciation varies between okkaz, 3okkaz and 3kaz, and online spelling often follows the local pronunciation. For a medical crutch, you may also hear the French word, but okkaz is understood everywhere.

Example

How to write it in Latin letters

In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “3okkaz” but also “okkaz”, “3kaz”, “3okaz” and “3akkaz”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.

Digits stand in for Arabic letters that have no Latin equivalent: 3 is ayn (ع), a voiced sound from deep in the throat with no English equivalent.

Type “3okkaz” on the Arabic keyboard

In Moroccan Darija

Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “crutch”; “cane, walking stick”: 3kkaz in Moroccan.

In Tunisian Derja

Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “crutch”; “walking stick, cane”: 3kkaz in Tunisian.