tgharreb تغرب
Tunisian Derja · verb
“tgharreb” (تغرب) is a verb in Tunisian Derja meaning to emigrate, live abroad.
Meanings
- to emigrate, live abroad
- (sun) to set
Usage
The verb tgharreb (or tgharab) means leaving one's country or region to live elsewhere, most often for work. It is very present in emigration vocabulary, with an emotional charge: distance, exile, nostalgia. One says tgharreb fi França, tgharreb 3la bladou. The emigrant is often called mgharreb or mgharba. Note that the same Arabic spelling can also be read tghreb, third person feminine of ghrab, "to set", in the expression tghreb ech-chams, "the sun is setting". Only context distinguishes the two readings.
Example
خويا تغرب في فرانسا من وقت كان صغير
khouya tgharreb fi França mel wa9t kén sghir
“My brother went to live in France when he was young.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “tgharreb” but also “tgharab”, “tghareb”, “tghrab” and “tgharrab”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.