ma3louma معلومة
Algerian Darja · noun
“ma3louma” (معلومة) is a noun in Algerian Darja meaning information, piece of information.
Meanings
- information, piece of information
- knowledge, instructive fact
Usage
Ma3louma refers to a specific piece of information, a fact that you tell someone. The plural is ma3loumat. The word comes from Standard Arabic but is well established in darja, especially in comments, educational videos and at school. Typical phrases are "3andi ma3louma", "I have a piece of information", and "nzidek ma3louma", "let me tell you something". For "news" in the sense of current events or gossip, lkhbar is used instead. For "information" at a service desk, many people use the French word "information".
Example
نزيدك معلومة ما كنتش تعرفها
nzidek ma3louma ma kontch ta3refha
“Let me tell you something you didn't know.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “ma3louma” but also “ma3loma”, “maalouma” and “ma3lomaa”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Digits stand in for Arabic letters that have no Latin equivalent: 3 is ayn (ع), a voiced sound from deep in the throat with no English equivalent.
Type “ma3louma” on the Arabic keyboard
In Moroccan Darija
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “information, piece of information”: ma3louma in Moroccan.
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “piece of information, tip”: m3louma in Tunisian.