9obba قبة
Tunisian Derja · noun
“9obba” (قبة) is a noun in Tunisian Derja meaning dome, cupola.
Meanings
- dome, cupola
- saint's shrine, koubba
Usage
The word qobba means a dome, and above all the small white domed mausoleum that houses the tomb of a local saint (wali). People go there to pray, make a vow or ask for baraka. The usual plural is qbeb. The proverbial expression ya3mel mel 7abba qobba, literally "to make a dome out of a grain", means to exaggerate, to make a mountain out of nothing. It is the exact equivalent of the French "faire d'une mouche un éléphant" (to make an elephant out of a fly).
Example
فمّة قبّة متاع ولي صالح فوق الجبل.
famma qobba mta3 wali sale7 fou9 el jbel.
“There is a pious saint's shrine up on the mountain.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “9obba” but also “qobba”, “koubba”, “gobba” and “kobba”. 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.