sahraoui صحراوي
Algerian Darja · adjective
“sahraoui” (صحراوي) is an adjective in Algerian Darja meaning from the Sahara, the Algerian south.
Meanings
- from the Sahara, the Algerian south
- Sahrawi (Western Sahara)
- person from the Algerian south
Usage
Sahraoui describes a person or thing from the Sahara. In Algeria, it is commonly used for an inhabitant of the South or for what comes from there: accent, music, dress, tea. The feminine is sahraouiya and the plural is sahraouiyine or sahara. The word also refers to the Sahrawis of Western Sahara, a frequent meaning in political discussions. It is also a common surname. The tone is generally neutral or affectionate, as in chab sahraoui, "a young man from the South".
Example
صاحبي صحراوي من ورقلة
sahbi sahraoui men Ouargla
“My friend is from the south, from Ouargla.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “sahraoui” but also “sahrawi”, “sahraouia”, “s7raoui”, “sa7rawi” and “s7rawi”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Its Arabic spelling is not fixed either: you will find صحراوي and الصحراوي, all the same word.
Digits stand in for Arabic letters that have no Latin equivalent: 7 is ha (ح), a breathy h from the throat.