bisslema بالسلامة
Tunisian Derja · expression
“bisslema” (بالسلامة) is an expression in Tunisian Derja meaning goodbye.
Meanings
- goodbye
- safe journey, farewell
Usage
The most common farewell formula in Tunisia, literally meaning "with safety". It suits all registers, between friends as well as with strangers. You hear it when leaving a shop, at the end of a call or when a traveller departs. It is often repeated: "bisslema, bisslema". To the person leaving, the reply is sometimes "allah ysalmek" ("may God keep you safe"). Do not confuse it with "3la slemtek", which is said to someone who is back from a trip or recovering from an illness.
Example
يزي، نمشي توة. بالسلامة!
yezzi, nemchi taw. bisslema!
“Right, I'm off now. Goodbye!”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “bisslema” but also “besslema”, “bslama”, “bislama” and “bslema”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Type “bisslema” on the Arabic keyboard
In Moroccan Darija
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “goodbye”; “safe travels”: bslama in Moroccan.
In Algerian Darja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Algerian Darja, where it means “safe and sound, without incident”; “goodbye”: bessalama in Algerian.