7adana حضانة
Moroccan Darija · noun
“7adana” (حضانة) is a noun in Moroccan Darija meaning nursery, daycare, preschool.
Meanings
- nursery, daycare, preschool
- child custody (divorce)
Usage
7aDana refers to the establishment that takes in young children before school: nursery, daycare or the first year of preschool. In speech, many families also say la crèche or la maternelle in French. In a legal context, especially in a divorce, 7aDana means custody of the child: l-7aDana 3nd l-om ("custody goes to the mother"). This second sense comes from administrative language, but it is very well known and often comes up in family discussions.
Example
كنوصل بنتي للحضانة كل صباح
kanweSSel benti l-l-7aDana kol Sba7
“I take my daughter to nursery every morning.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “7adana” but also “hadana”, “7adaana” and “hadaana”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Digits stand in for Arabic letters that have no Latin equivalent: 7 is ha (ح), a breathy h from the throat.