wati9a وثيقة
Moroccan Darija · noun
“wati9a” (وثيقة) is a noun in Moroccan Darija meaning official document, administrative paper.
Meanings
- official document, administrative paper
- certificate, supporting document
Usage
Wati9a means a document, especially an administrative one: a deed, a certificate, a paper you have to supply. It is an official-register word, used in procedures at the town hall or the court. The plural is wata2i9. In everyday conversation, people more readily say lwra9 or kaghit for "papers" in general. Wati9a stays reserved for specific documents, as in wati9at zwaj, "marriage certificate". It often takes the article: lwati9a.
Example
خاصني الوثيقة ديال السكنى باش نكمل الدوسي
khassni lwati9a dyal sokna bach nkemmel dossier
“I need the residence document to complete the file.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “wati9a” but also “watika” and “wathi9a”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Digits stand in for Arabic letters that have no Latin equivalent: 9 is qaf (ق), a k pronounced at the back of the throat.