fransawi فرانساوي
Moroccan Darija · adjective
“fransawi” (فرانساوي) is an adjective in Moroccan Darija meaning French (from France).
Meanings
- French (from France)
- a Frenchman, a Frenchwoman
Usage
Fransawi means "French" and is also used as a noun for a person: wa7ed fransawi, "a Frenchman". The feminine is fransawiya, the plural fransawiyin. For the language, one rather says l-fransawiya or l-fransiya: kayhder b l-fransawiya, "he speaks French". The word also applies to products, cars or habits considered French. In colloquial speech, it can describe someone who mixes a lot of French into their darija.
Example
صاحبي فرانساوي، ساكن فباريز
sa7bi fransawi, saken f bariz
“My friend is French, he lives in Paris.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “fransawi” but also “fransaoui” and “fransaouiya”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Type “fransawi” on the Arabic keyboard
In Tunisian Derja
The same word also exists in Tunisian Derja, written فرنساوي, where it means “French (adjective)”; “a Frenchman”: fransawi in Tunisian.