khti ختي
Algerian Darja · noun
“khti” (ختي) is a noun in Algerian Darja meaning my sister.
Meanings
- my sister
- friendly term of address to a woman
Usage
Khti is the possessive form of okht ("sister"), with the first-person suffix. It primarily refers to one's own sister, but is used much more widely to address any woman politely and warmly, often a stranger, including in online comments: "choukran khti" ("thank you, sister"). It is the feminine counterpart of khouya. It is not at all informal in a pejorative sense: it is a mark of respect and closeness. The plural is khwati or khawati, "my sisters".
Example
شكرا ختي، ربي يحفظك
choukran khti, rabbi y7afdek
“Thank you, sister, may God protect you.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “khti” but also “5ti”, “kheti”, “khty” and “o5ti”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Digits stand in for Arabic letters that have no Latin equivalent: 5 is kha (خ), like the ch in Scottish loch.
Type “khti” on the Arabic keyboard
In Moroccan Darija
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “my sister”; “my dear (friendly address)”: khti in Moroccan.