balkon بالكون
Algerian Darja · noun
“balkon” (بالكون) is a noun in Algerian Darja meaning balcony.
Meanings
- balcony
Usage
Balkon is the adapted loanword from French "balcon." It is the normal word in Algeria for the balcony of an apartment, much more common than Standard Arabic char-fa. It is used with the article: el balkon, f el balkon ("on the balcony"). The balcony plays a large part in apartment-building life: people hang laundry there, get some air, and watch the street go by, especially on Ramadan or summer evenings. The plural balkonat exists but is rare. The word is neutral and used in all registers.
Example
خرج للبالكون يشم الهوا.
khrej l el balkon ichem el hwa.
“He went out onto the balcony to get some air.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “balkon” but also “balcon” and “balkoun”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.