3omda عمدة

Moroccan Darija · noun

“3omda” (عمدة) is a noun in Moroccan Darija meaning mayor of a big city.

Meanings

1. mayor of a big city

Usage

3omda means the mayor, especially of a big city such as Casablanca, Rabat, Tangier or Marrakech. The word comes from the vocabulary of the media and politics, and is mostly heard when talking about current affairs: l3omda dyal Casa. In administrative usage, people say ra2is jjama3a (president of the communal council) instead. So the word is understood by everyone, but it belongs to a more formal register than everyday conversation. Do not confuse it with 3omda in the sense of village head, which belongs to other Arab countries.

Example

How to write it in Latin letters

In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “3omda” but also “3oumda” and “3omdaa”. 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 “3omda” on the Arabic keyboard

In Tunisian Derja

Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “local sector chief (omda)”: 3omda in Tunisian.