hda حدا
Algerian Darja · preposition
“hda” (حدا) is a preposition in Algerian Darja meaning next to, near.
Meanings
- next to, near
- by, with (someone)
Usage
Hda indicates immediate proximity: hda dar, "next to the house". The preposition combines with suffixed pronouns: hdaya "next to me", hdak "next to you", hdah "next to him", hdaha "next to her". It is very common throughout Algeria, in speech and in informal writing. It is used to locate a place or to say that a person is standing near oneself. Do not confuse it with hata, "until, even", or with the standard word had, "limit".
Example
قعد حدايا وما قالي والو
9a3ed 7daya w ma galli walou
“He sat down next to me and said nothing to me.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “hda” but also “7da” and “hdaa”. 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.
Type “hda” on the Arabic keyboard
In Moroccan Darija
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “beside, next to”; “at, with (someone)”: 7da in Moroccan.
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “next to, near”: 7dha in Tunisian.