mo3tamdiya معتمدية
Tunisian Derja · noun
“mo3tamdiya” (معتمدية) is a noun in Tunisian Derja meaning delegation, administrative district.
Meanings
- delegation, administrative district
- delegation office
Usage
Mo3tamdiya is the Tunisian administrative district located below the wilaya (governorate) and above the 3imada (sector). It is headed by a mo3tamed (delegate). The word refers both to the territory and to the building where you go to handle paperwork: mchit lel mo3tamdiya (I went to the delegation). It is part of everyday administrative vocabulary and appears in addresses: mo3tamdiyet Dkhila Toujane, wilayet Gabès. In the construct state, it is mo3tamdiyet. The plural is mo3tamdiyet.
Example
لازمك تمشي للمعتمدية باش تخرج الورقة.
Lezmek temchi lel mo3tamdiya bech tkharej el war9a.
“You have to go to the delegation to get the document.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “mo3tamdiya” but also “mo3tamdia”, “mu3tamdiya” and “mo3tamadiya”. 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.