ch7al sa3a شحال الساعة
Moroccan Darija · expression
“ch7al sa3a” (شحال الساعة) is an expression in Moroccan Darija meaning what time is it?.
Meanings
- what time is it?
Usage
Ch7al essa3a is the ordinary question for asking the time. Literally it means "how much the hour?". It is also heard as ch7al fessa3a, which is probably the most frequent form, and sometimes shortened to ch7al sa3a in fast speech. To be more polite with a stranger, it is preceded by a formula such as 3afak ("please"). In the answer, the time is given with the article: hadi l-wa7da ("it's one o'clock"), joj u nes ("half past two"). It should not be confused with a question about duration, which is phrased differently.
Example
عافاك، شحال الساعة دابا؟
3afak, ch7al essa3a daba?
“Excuse me, what time is it now?”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “ch7al sa3a” but also “ch7al essa3a”, “ch7al ssa3a” and “che7al sa3a”. 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; 7 is ha (ح), a breathy h from the throat.