rouhi روحي
Algerian Darja · pronoun
“rouhi” (روحي) is a pronoun in Algerian Darja meaning myself, me (reflexive).
Meanings
- myself, me (reflexive)
- my soul, my dear (affectionate)
- go away (feminine imperative)
Usage
In Darja, rouhi is mainly used as a first-person reflexive: "qna3t rouhi" (I convinced myself), "hsabt rouhi" (I thought I was). It is inflected with the other possessives: rouhek (yourself), rouho (himself). The adjective sense "spiritual" belongs to Standard Arabic and does not match everyday usage. As an affectionate term, "ya rouhi" means "my soul, my dear". Rouhi is also the feminine imperative of "rah" (to leave): "rouhi !" (go away!). Context distinguishes these uses.
Example
شفت روحي في المراية
chouft rouhi fel mraya
“I saw myself in the mirror.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “rouhi” but also “rou7i”, “ro7i”, “rohi” and “ro7y”. 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 “rouhi” on the Arabic keyboard
In Moroccan Darija
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “spiritual, relating to the soul”; “my soul (rou7 + -i)”: rou7i in Moroccan.
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “myself (reflexive)”; “my soul, darling (affectionate)”: rou7i in Tunisian.