e5wen اخوان
Tunisian Derja · noun
“e5wen” (اخوان) is a noun in Tunisian Derja meaning brothers.
Meanings
- brothers
- close friends, comrades
- Muslim Brotherhood
Usage
Khwèn is the plural of khou ("brother"). It refers to blood brothers, but also, affectionately, to friends and comrades. With a possessive, one says khouti ("my brothers") or khwetkom ("your brothers"). In a political context, el ikhwen refers to the Muslim Brotherhood and political Islam, and the word then becomes polemical. Opponents of this movement also use the derivative khwenji, which is clearly pejorative. So pay attention to context: in a family conversation, khwèn is always neutral and affectionate.
Example
عندي زوز خوان وأخت
3andi zouz khwèn w okht
“I have two brothers and a sister.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “e5wen” but also “khwen”, “5wen”, “ikhwen” and “khouwen”. 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.