nwwar chemch نوار الشمش
Moroccan Darija · noun
“nwwar chemch” (نوار الشمش) is a noun in Moroccan Darija meaning sunflower (plant).
Meanings
- sunflower (plant)
Usage
Nwwar ch-chemch means the sunflower, literally "the flower of the sun". Nwwar means "flowers", and chemch is a pronunciation of chems (sun) common in much of Morocco, with assimilation of the sibilants. The expression is used both for the plant and for the flower itself. For the roasted sunflower seeds that people snack on, one rather says zri3a or "zri3a d nwwar ch-chemch". In online writing, spelling varies a lot: chems or chemch, nwar or nouwar. The word is in common use and belongs to no particular register.
Example
زرعنا نوار الشمش فالجردة
zre3na nwwar chemch f jerda
“We planted sunflowers in the garden.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “nwwar chemch” but also “nouwar chemch” and “nwar chamch”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.