y9olo يقولوا

Algerian Darja · verb

“y9olo” (يقولوا) is a verb in Algerian Darja meaning they say.

Meanings

1. they say
2. people say (impersonal)

Usage

Yqoulou is the third person plural form, in the imperfect, of the verb qal (to say). It means "they say". It is very often used as an impersonal construction, like English "people say": « yqoulou belli… » (it is said that…). Depending on the region, the q is pronounced g, hence ygoulou, common in the East and in rural areas. With kanou, it expresses a past habit: « kanou yqoulou » (people used to say). The plural imperative is qoulou (say!).

Example

How to write it in Latin letters

In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “y9olo” but also “yqolo”, “ygoulou”, “y9oulou” and “yqoulou”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.

Digits stand in for Arabic letters that have no Latin equivalent: 9 is qaf (ق), a k pronounced at the back of the throat.

Type “y9olo” on the Arabic keyboard

In Moroccan Darija

Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “they say, let them say”; “people say, it is said”: ygoulou in Moroccan.