jbal جبل
Tunisian Derja · noun
“jbal” (جبل) is a noun in Tunisian Derja meaning mountain.
Meanings
- mountain
- hill, massif (in place names)
- mountains
Usage
Jbal (or jbel) is the ordinary word for "mountain". It appears in many Tunisian place names, such as Jbal Chambi, Jbal Boukornine or Jbal Zaghouan, where it can also mean a simple hill. The plural is jbel or jbéla. The word also refers generally to the mountainous hinterland, with no particular pejorative nuance. The Latin spellings jbel and jbal reflect small regional variations in pronunciation. Figuratively, it describes someone solid or an enormous task: kif el jbal, "like a mountain".
Example
طلعنا للجبل نهار الأحد.
tla3na lel jbal nhar el a7ad.
“We went up to the mountain on Sunday.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “jbal” but also “jbel”, “djebel”, “jebel” and “jbeel”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Its Arabic spelling is not fixed either: you will find جبل and جبال, all the same word.
Type “jbal” on the Arabic keyboard
In Moroccan Darija
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “mountain”; “the mountains (region)”: jbel in Moroccan.
In Algerian Darja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Algerian Darja, where it means “mountain”; “mountain range”: djbel in Algerian.