jiran جيران
Moroccan Darija · noun
“jiran” (جيران) is a noun in Moroccan Darija meaning neighbors.
Meanings
- neighbors
- neighborhood, neighbors collectively
Usage
Jiran is the plural of jar, "neighbor" (m.), and of jara, "neighbor" (f.). It is most often used with the article: ljiran or jjiran, as in bent ljiran, "the neighbors' daughter". It combines readily with a possessive: jiranna, "our neighbors". Neighborly relations matter a great deal in Morocco. People visit their neighbors, exchange dishes, and the neighbors' opinion counts in the life of the neighborhood. The preposition 3la is used for going to their door: de99 3la ljiran, "knock on the neighbors' door".
Example
سير دق على جيران
sir de9 3la jiran
“Go knock on the neighbors' door.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “jiran” but also “jirane”, “jjiran”, “jiraan” and “jirani”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Type “jiran” on the Arabic keyboard
In Algerian Darja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Algerian Darja, where it means “neighbors”; “neighboring countries”: jiran in Algerian.
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “neighbors”; “the neighborhood, people next door”: jiran in Tunisian.