hej حاج
Tunisian Derja · noun
“hej” (حاج) is a noun in Tunisian Derja meaning pilgrimage (to Mecca or elsewhere).
Meanings
- pilgrimage (to Mecca or elsewhere)
- pilgrim; man who has made the pilgrimage
- respectful title for an elderly man
Usage
In Tunisia, hej (or haj) first means the pilgrimage, especially the one to Mecca, but also other pilgrimages, such as the Ghriba pilgrimage in Djerba. The word also refers to a person who has made the pilgrimage. Placed before a first name (el hej + first name), it serves as a respectful title for an elderly man, whether or not he has been to Mecca. Within the family, people sometimes refer to their father as el hej. The pronunciation hej, with the Tunisian vowel, is the most common in speech. It is also written haj or hajj.
Example
نهار في حاج اليهود فال غريبة .
nhar fi hej lihoud fel Ghriba .
“The day of the Jewish pilgrimage to the Ghriba.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “hej” but also “haj”, “hajj”, “7aj” and “7ej”. 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.