sartan سرطان
Tunisian Derja · noun
“sartan” (سرطان) is a noun in Tunisian Derja meaning cancer (the disease).
Meanings
- cancer (the disease)
Usage
Sartan is the common word for the disease cancer, both spoken and written. One says 3andou sartan, "he has cancer", and the organ is specified with a complement: sartan ed-dem, sartan ethedi. The subject remains delicate and many people avoid naming it. Periphrases are used instead, such as el-mard el-khayeb, "the bad disease", or simply hadhak el-mard. The French word cancer is also heard in conversations, especially in medical settings. The same word also refers to the astrological sign Cancer, but this sense is rare.
Example
ربي يشفيها، عندها سرطان من عام
rabbi ychfiha, 3andha sartan men 3am
“May God heal her, she has had cancer for a year.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “sartan” but also “sarten”, “sarattan” and “srtan”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.