3arch عرش

Moroccan Darija · noun

“3arch” (عرش) is a noun in Moroccan Darija meaning throne (of the monarchy).

Meanings

1. throne (of the monarchy)
2. tribe, tribal group

Usage

The word 3rch is mostly heard with the article, l3rch, for the royal throne. It appears in fixed expressions such as 3id l3rch, Throne Day, and in official and media vocabulary. In rural areas and in administrative language, it also means a tribe or tribal subgroup, with its collective lands. In this sense, people speak for example of ard l3rch for the community's lands. This tribal meaning is less familiar in cities. So rely on context: national holiday and monarchy on one hand, rural social organization on the other.

Example

How to write it in Latin letters

In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “3arch” but also “3rch”, “3rsh”, “3orsh”, “aarch” and “3arsh”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.

Digits stand in for Arabic letters that have no Latin equivalent: 3 is ayn (ع), a voiced sound from deep in the throat with no English equivalent.

Type “3arch” on the Arabic keyboard

In Algerian Darja

Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Algerian Darja, where it means “tribe, lineage group”; “throne (classical sense)”: 3erch in Algerian.

In Tunisian Derja

Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “tribe, clan”; “throne”: 3arch in Tunisian.