jema3 جامع
Tunisian Derja · noun
“jema3” (جامع) is a noun in Tunisian Derja meaning mosque.
Meanings
- mosque
Usage
Jèma3 is the common word for "mosque", more frequent in speech than masjed, which remains literary. The plural is jwèma3. It is part of the name of major mosques such as Jèma3 ez-Zitouna in Tunis. One says mcha lel-jèma3, "he went to the mosque", and sla fel-jèma3, "he prayed at the mosque". The word also designates the place as a landmark in a neighbourhood: 9odem el-jèma3, "in front of the mosque". It is neutral and used in all registers.
Example
بابا مشى للجامع يصلّي الجمعة
baba mcha lel-jema3 ysalli ej-jom3a
“Dad went to the mosque to pray the Friday prayer.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “jema3” but also “jemaa”, “jéma3”, “jamaa” and “jemé3”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Digits stand in for Arabic letters that have no Latin equivalent: 3 is ayn (ع), a voiced sound from deep in the throat with no English equivalent.
Type “jema3” on the Arabic keyboard
In Moroccan Darija
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “mosque”: jame3 in Moroccan.
In Algerian Darja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Algerian Darja, where it means “mosque”: djama3 in Algerian.