khouya خو
Tunisian Derja · noun
“khouya” (خو) is a noun in Tunisian Derja meaning brother.
Meanings
- brother
- mate, buddy (form of address)
Usage
Khou means brother. It is almost always used with a possessive: khouya (my brother), khouk (your brother), khouh (his brother), khouha (her brother). The usual plural is khwet. One specifies khou es-sghir (the younger brother) or khou el-kbir (the older brother). Khouya is also used to address a stranger in a familiar, friendly way, at the market, in the street or online, like "my brother" or "mate" in English. It is not a sign of kinship. The corresponding feminine is okhti, "my sister".
Example
بقدّاش حقا خويا
b9addech 7a9a 5ouya
“How much is it, brother?”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “khouya” but also “5ouya”, “khou”, “5ou” and “kho”. 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.