7arrag حراق
Algerian Darja · noun
“7arrag” (حراق) is a noun in Algerian Darja meaning illegal sea migrant (harraga).
Meanings
- illegal sea migrant (harraga)
- spicy, burning
Usage
7arrag (plural 7arraga) refers to someone who leaves Algeria clandestinely, most often by boat to Europe. The word comes from the verb 7reg, "to burn", in the sense of burning the border or one's papers. One says 7reg l Espagne (he left illegally for Spain). The term is very common, in the press as in conversation, and the plural harraga has passed unchanged into Algerian French. As an adjective, 7arrag also describes what stings or burns, like a chili pepper. The migration sense remains clearly dominant.
Example
ولد جارنا راح حراق لإسبانيا
wled jarna ra7 7arrag l Espagne
“Our neighbor's son left illegally for Spain.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “7arrag” but also “harrag”, “harraga”, “7arraga” and “hrag”. 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.