zawya زاوية
Tunisian Derja · noun
“zawya” (زاوية) is a noun in Tunisian Derja meaning zawiya, saint's shrine.
Meanings
- zawiya, saint's shrine
- angle, corner
- point of view
Usage
In Tunisia, zéwya (or zawya) means first of all the zawiya. It is the place dedicated to a saint, with his tomb, where people make visits, vows and hold Sufi ceremonies. It is often linked to a brotherhood. For example, zéwyet sidi flen ("the zawiya of Sidi So-and-so"). The word also means "angle" and "corner", in a more technical or school usage (right angle, wide angle of a lens). The expression men zéwya okhra ("from another point of view") is used figuratively. In everyday conversation, rokna is used instead for the corner of a room.
Example
مشينا للزاوية نهار الجمعة.
mchina lezzéwya nhar ejjom3a.
“We went to the zawiya on Friday.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “zawya” but also “zaouia”, “zéwya”, “zawia” and “zewya”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Type “zawya” on the Arabic keyboard
In Moroccan Darija
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “zawiya, Sufi shrine”; “religious brotherhood”: zawya in Moroccan.
In Algerian Darja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Algerian Darja, where it means “angle, point of view”; “corner”: zawya in Algerian.