fer9a فرقة
Tunisian Derja · noun
“fer9a” (فرقة) is a noun in Tunisian Derja meaning band, orchestra.
Meanings
- band, orchestra
- team (sport)
- squad, unit (police, army)
Usage
Fer9a first means a group of musicians: the fer9a that entertains at a wedding, a mezoued or stambali fer9a. The word is also used for a sports team, although equipe or the club's name is more common. In the media and in administrative language, it names a police or security unit, for example the counter-terrorism fer9a. The usual plural is fira9. To talk about one's friends, fer9a is not used. Say jma3a or s7ab instead.
Example
الفرقة غنّات لين الصباح في العرس
el fer9a ghannet lin sbe7 fil 3ors
“The band sang until morning at the wedding.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “fer9a” but also “far9a”, “ferka”, “farka” and “fer9”. 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.
Type “fer9a” on the Arabic keyboard
In Moroccan Darija
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “team”; “band, troupe”: fer9a in Moroccan.
In Algerian Darja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Algerian Darja, where it means “troupe, musical group”; “team, group of people”: ferqa in Algerian.