7alwaji حلواجي
Algerian Darja · noun
“7alwaji” (حلواجي) is a noun in Algerian Darja meaning maker of traditional pastries.
Meanings
- maker of traditional pastries
- seller of oriental sweets
Usage
7alwaji refers to the craftsman who makes and sells traditional cakes such as zlabia, qalb elouz, baklawa or makrout. The suffix -ji, of Turkish origin, is used to form names of trades, as in qahwaji (café owner). It is often heard during Ramadan, when people queue at the neighborhood 7alwaji. The word does not apply to the French-style pastry chef who makes cream cakes: for that, people rather say pâtissier. The usual plural is 7alwajia. The register is neutral and everyday.
Example
روح جيب الزلابية من عند الحلواجي
roh jib ezzlabia men 3and el 7alwaji
“Go get some zlabia from the pastry maker.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “7alwaji” but also “halwaji”, “hlouaji”, “7elwaji” and “halouaji”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Digits stand in for Arabic letters that have no Latin equivalent: 7 is ha (ح), a breathy h from the throat.