zenqa زنقة

Algerian Darja · noun

“zenqa” (زنقة) is a noun in Algerian Darja meaning alley, narrow street.

Meanings

1. alley, narrow street
2. street

Usage

Zenqa means a narrow street or alley, typically in old neighbourhoods like the Casbah. The plural is "znaqi". For an ordinary street, people more often say "triq" or "chari3". The repeated expression "zenqa zenqa" means "alley by alley" and suggests a thorough search or visit. The word is informal but not vulgar. Note that zenqa is not pejorative in itself, but it suggests a working-class, cramped place rather than an avenue.

Example

How to write it in Latin letters

In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “zenqa” but also “zanqa”, “zen9a”, “zan9a” and “zenka”. 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 “zenqa” on the Arabic keyboard

In Moroccan Darija

Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “street, alley”; “the street, outdoors”: zen9a in Moroccan.

In Tunisian Derja

Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “street, lane”; “dead end, narrow passage”: zanga in Tunisian.