handasa هندسة
Moroccan Darija · noun
“handasa” (هندسة) is a noun in Moroccan Darija meaning engineering, engineering studies.
Meanings
- engineering, engineering studies
- geometry (school subject)
- layout, design
Usage
"Lhandasa" is a learned word that entered everyday use through school and university. It refers to the engineering field of study, as in "kayqra lhandasa", "he is studying engineering". At school it also means geometry, as opposed to arithmetic. In colloquial speech it is used for the layout of a house or a well-designed object. The word is feminine and is almost always used with the article "l-". A person who practises this profession is a "mhendis", "engineer". In professional circles, many people also say "l'ingénierie" in French.
Example
ولدها كيقرا الهندسة ف الرباط
weldha kayqra lhandasa f rbat
“Her son is studying engineering in Rabat.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “handasa” but also “8andasa”, “hndasa” and “8ndasa”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Digits stand in for Arabic letters that have no Latin equivalent: 8 is light ha (ه) or ghayn (غ), depending on the writer.
Type “handasa” on the Arabic keyboard
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “engineering, engineering studies”; “geometry”: handsa in Tunisian.