5ouya خويا
Tunisian Derja · noun
“5ouya” (خويا) is a noun in Tunisian Derja meaning my brother.
Meanings
- my brother
- bro, mate (form of address)
Usage
Khouya is formed from khou, "brother", and the first-person possessive: it means "my brother". The feminine is okhti, "my sister". In the street it is very often used to address a stranger or a friend, like "my brother" or "mate" in casual speech: khouya, win el mahatta?, "hey, where is the station?". This friendly form of address is polite and not vulgar. Ould khouya means "my nephew", that is, my brother's son. For "your brother", say khouk.
Example
خويا يخدم في فرنسا
5ouya ye5dem fi fransa
“My brother works in France.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “5ouya” but also “khouya” and “5ouia”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Digits stand in for Arabic letters that have no Latin equivalent: 5 is kha (خ), like the ch in Scottish loch.
Type “5ouya” on the Arabic keyboard
In Moroccan Darija
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “my brother”; “mate, friend (form of address)”: khouya in Moroccan.
In Algerian Darja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Algerian Darja, where it means “my brother”; “my friend, buddy (address)”: khouya in Algerian.