7enna حنّة
Moroccan Darija · noun
“7enna” (حنّة) is a noun in Moroccan Darija meaning grandmother.
Meanings
- grandmother
- henna
Usage
Hanna (often written 7enna) is a familiar, affectionate term for the grandmother. It is also used to address her directly, and sometimes for an elderly woman one respects. Depending on the family and region, one also hears mi hanna, jedda or l-walida. With the article, l-hanna also means henna, used on the hands and hair at weddings and celebrations. Context tells the two meanings apart. The spelling 3ziza found in the sources corresponds to another affectionate word for grandmother.
Example
مشيت عند حنّة فالعطلة
mchit 3nd 7enna f l3otla
“I went to Grandma's during the holidays.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “7enna” but also “hanna”, “7ena” and “henna”. 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.
Type “7enna” on the Arabic keyboard
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “grandmother”; “henna”: 7enna in Tunisian.