risala رسالة
Algerian Darja · noun
“risala” (رسالة) is a noun in Algerian Darja meaning message sent to someone.
Meanings
- message sent to someone
- written letter
- text message
Usage
Risala refers to a message addressed to a person or a group. It can be a letter, a text message or a public appeal. On social media, it is often used at the start of a comment, followed by the preposition l: "risala l…" (message to…). In speech, for a text message, one also hears "message" pronounced in the French way. The word belongs to the everyday register, but it is a little more formal than these spoken equivalents. The plural is rasayel. The term is also used in a religious sense: the mission of the Prophet.
Example
بعثتلك رسالة البارح وما جاوبتنيش
b3athtlek risala lbare7 w ma jawebtnich
“I sent you a message yesterday and you didn't reply.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “risala” but also “rissala”, “rsala”, “resala” and “risale”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Type “risala” on the Arabic keyboard
In Moroccan Darija
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “letter, mail”; “message (text, messaging)”: risala in Moroccan.
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “letter (mail)”; “message”: risela in Tunisian.