fartas فرطاس
Algerian Darja · adjective
“fartas” (فرطاس) is an adjective in Algerian Darja meaning bald, hairless.
Meanings
- bald, hairless
- with a shaved head
Usage
Fartas describes a person who has lost their hair, or by extension someone who has shaved their head completely. The word is informal and often used in a tone of friendly teasing; it also serves as a nickname ("el fartas"), and exists as a family name. The feminine is fartassa. In some regions, gar3a is also heard with the same meaning. The word may seem neutral, but said directly to someone it can offend: best to keep it for close friends and relaxed contexts.
Example
باباه ولّى فرطاس وهو صغير
babah wella fartas w houwa sghir
“His father went bald young.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “fartas” but also “fartass”, “farttass” and “fertas”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Type “fartas” on the Arabic keyboard
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “bald”; “scabby, with a bare scalp”: fartas in Tunisian.