le7ya لحية
Tunisian Derja · noun
“le7ya” (لحية) is a noun in Tunisian Derja meaning beard.
Meanings
- beard
Usage
Le7ya means the beard. One says rabba le7ytou for "he grew his beard" and 7assen le7ytou for "he shaved his beard". Before a possessive, the word takes the form le7yet: le7yet bouh, "his father's beard". In Tunisia, a long beard is often associated in conversation with conservative religious circles, and the word can take on that connotation depending on context. The adjective derived from it, mle7i, means "bearded" and, depending on the tone, can refer to an Islamist. The word remains neutral in its primary meaning.
Example
خويا ربّى لحيتو وولّى يشبّه لبوه
khouya rabba le7ytou w walla ychabbah l bouh
“My brother grew his beard and now looks like his father.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “le7ya” but also “l7ya”, “la7ya”, “lehya”, “l7iya” and “le7yet”. 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.
Type “le7ya” on the Arabic keyboard
In Moroccan Darija
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “beard”; “chin (rarer)”: l7ya in Moroccan.