7itach حيتاش
Moroccan Darija · conjunction
“7itach” (حيتاش) is a conjunction in Moroccan Darija meaning because.
Meanings
- because
- since, given that
Usage
7itach is the long variant of 7it and likewise means "because". It goes before a full clause, at the start of a sentence or in the middle. It is particularly common in the North and the Oriental region, but is understood throughout Morocco. At the start of a sentence, it often takes the sense of "since" or "given that": 7itach nta sa7bi… (since you are my friend…). The register is informal to neutral. The variant 7intach is also found.
Example
حيتاش هوما جيعانين
7itach houma ji3anin
“Because they are hungry.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “7itach” but also “7itax”, “hitach” and “7itache”. 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.