7aj حج
Tunisian Derja · noun
“7aj” (حج) is a noun in Tunisian Derja meaning pilgrimage to Mecca.
Meanings
- pilgrimage to Mecca
- title for a pilgrim or elderly man
Usage
The word 7aj first means the pilgrimage to Mecca: "mcha lel 7aj" (he left for the pilgrimage). By extension, "el 7aj" is a respectful title for a man who has made the pilgrimage. It is also used affectionately for an elderly man or for one's own father ("el 7aj"). The feminine is el 7ajja. The corresponding verb is 7ajj ("he made the pilgrimage"). The term conveys respect and familiarity, never irony, except in particular contexts.
Example
بابا ماشي للحج العام هذا
baba mechi lel 7aj el 3am hedha
“My father is going on the pilgrimage this year.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “7aj” but also “hajj”, “7ajj” and “haj”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Digits stand in for Arabic letters that have no Latin equivalent: 7 is ha (ح), a breathy h from the throat.
Type “7aj” on the Arabic keyboard
In Moroccan Darija
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “pilgrimage to Mecca”; “(written shorthand) thing, stuff”: hajj in Moroccan.
In Algerian Darja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Algerian Darja, where it means “pilgrimage to Mecca”: hadj in Algerian.