fouta فوطة
Algerian Darja · noun
“fouta” (فوطة) is a noun in Algerian Darja meaning bath towel, hand towel.
Meanings
- bath towel, hand towel
- tea towel, kitchen cloth
Usage
Fouta is the common word for a bath or hand towel: the one you take to the hammam, to the beach or after a shower. By extension, it also means a tea towel or kitchen cloth used for wiping. The word is feminine: el fouta, foutti (my towel), foutat (plural). It is used in all registers, at home as well as in the shop. Note that fouta does not mean a table napkin, which is more often called serbita or mendil depending on the region. To be specific, say fouta ta3 lebher (beach towel).
Example
جيبلي الفوطة من الحمّام
jibli el fouta mel hammam
“Bring me the towel from the bathroom.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “fouta” but also “fota”, “foota”, “foutta” and “fotta”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Type “fouta” on the Arabic keyboard
In Moroccan Darija
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “hand or bath towel”; “bath or hammam towel”: fouta in Moroccan.
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “bath or beach towel”; “traditional hammam cloth”: fouta in Tunisian.