LIMBA Palestinian ArabicFree written course · 100 lessons Audio course

A1Unit 2 · People and family · Lesson 20 of 100

Review: the family album

ṣuwar min zamān · hāda sīdik · ʿindik kam ḥafīd?

Goal: Describe a family in a few sentences: who is who, how old they are, what they are like and what they have.

1

Dialogue

Lina visits her grandmother, Sitti Halime, who opens an old photo album. Everything from unit 2 comes back: family words, "my" and "your", "I have", ages, adjectives, "the", two nouns side by side and plurals.

Friday at Sitti Halime's house. She opens an old photo album with Lina.

  1. Sitti Halimehadōl ṣuwar il-ʿēle, ya Līna. ṣuwar min zamān!These are the family photos, Lina. Photos from long ago!
  2. Linamīn hāda, ya sitti? sīdi?Who is this, grandma? My grandfather?
  3. Sitti Halimeaywa, hāda sīdik. hōn huwwe shabb, ʿumro ʿishrīn sane.Yes, that's your grandfather. Here he's a young man, twenty years old.
  4. Linamashalla! ṭawīl w ḥilu! w hādi? inti?How wonderful! Tall and handsome! And this? Is it you?
  5. Sitti Halimeaywa, ana! hōn ʿumri tamantaʿshar sane.Yes, me! Here I'm eighteen.
  6. Linainti ḥilwe ktīr, ya sitti… zayy Rana!You're very pretty, grandma… like Rana!
  7. Sitti Halimew hadōl wlādi: ʿammik, w abūki, w ʿammtik.And these are my children: your uncle, your father and your aunt.
  8. Linaabūy zghīr ktīr hōn! w la-mīn hāda l-bēt?My father is so small here! And whose is this house?
  9. Sitti Halimehāda bētna, ya Līna! bass hōn jdīd.It's our house, Lina! But here it's new.
  10. Linaw hadōl? jīrānkom?And these? Your neighbors?
  11. Sitti Halimeaywa, jīrānna. nās mnāḥ w luṭafa.Yes, our neighbors. Good, kind people.
  12. Linaya sitti, ʿindik kam ḥafīd?Grandma, how many grandchildren do you have?
  13. Sitti Halimeʿindi tamantaʿshar ḥafīd… w inti ḥafīdti l-amērkāniyye!I have eighteen grandchildren… and you are my American granddaughter!
  14. Linaw ana mabsūṭa ktīr hōn, maʿik!And I'm very happy here, with you!
2

New words

Palestinian ArabicEnglish
zamānthe old days, long ago; a long timemin zamān for a long time; ṣuwar min zamān photos from long ago
3

Grammar

What you can now say

  • Name the family: abūy, immi, ukhti, ibn ʿammi, sīdi, sitti.
  • Say my, your, his, her, our, their: bēti, bētak, bētik, bēto, bētha, bētna, bētkom, bēthom.
  • Ask whose something is: la-mīn hāda? — tabaʿi.
  • Say what you have and don't have: ʿindi ukht, ma ʿindi sayyāra, maʿak maṣāri?
  • Ask and give an age: ʾaddēsh ʿumrik? — ʿumri ʿishrīn sane.
  • Describe people and things: ṭawīl, ṭawīle, ḥilwe ktīr, zayy abūha.
  • Say "the", "this" and "X of Y": ish-shams, hal-bēt, bēt sitti.
  • Talk about several people: wlād zghār, nās mnāḥ.

The unit in one table: one house, many ways

Palestinian ArabicEnglish
bēt zghīra small house
il-bēt iz-zghīrthe small house
il-bēt zghīr.The house is small.
hal-bētthis house
bēt sittimy grandmother's house
bētnaour house
byūthouses
ʿindi bēt.I have a house.

Remember: -a and -e words take -t- before -i (sayyārti) and -it before a consonant or another noun (sayyāritna, ōḍit Rana).

4

Practice

1Choose the right words

  1. You describe Rana: "She is tall and pretty."

  2. "the old house"

  3. "my grandmother's house"

  4. "small children"

  5. It is Sitti Halime's birthday. You say:

  6. Someone says ṣabāḥ il-khēr. You answer:

  7. You ask an older woman, a neighbor, where she is from.

  8. You leave Sitti Halime's house. You say:

2Complete the sentence

  1. ʾaddēsh ___, ya sitti? = How old are you, grandma?

  2. hadōl ṣuwar min ___. = These are photos from long ago.

  3. ___ nās mnāḥ. = Our neighbors are good people.

  4. ma ___ sayyāra. = I don't have a car.

  5. ana ___ Shikāgo, bass aṣli min Rāmalla. = I'm from Chicago, but my family is from Ramallah.

3Match the Arabic and the English

  1. sīdi

  2. ḥafīd

  3. ʾarāyeb

  4. zamān

  5. shubbāk

  6. tisʿa

4Put the words in order

  1. These are old photos.

  2. I have one sister.

  3. Good evening! How are you? (to a man)

5Say it in Palestinian Arabic, then check

  1. As Lina, describe Khalil: He is my cousin (on my father's side). He is tall and kind.

  2. Say: The children are very cute.

  3. Introduce Nour to your grandmother: Grandma, this is Nour. She is from Bethlehem.

6True or false?

  1. In the photo, Lina's grandfather is a young man.

  2. The house in the photo is not Sitti Halime's house.

  3. Lina's father is in the album.

Well done — your score: .
5

Summary

  • You can describe a family: who is who, hāda sīdi, hadōl wlādha.
  • You can give ages and describe people: ʿumro ʿishrīn sane, ṭawīl w ḥilu.
  • You can say whose something is and what people have: bēt sitti, ʿindha tamantaʿshar ḥafīd.
  • You can use "the", "this" and plurals: il-bēt il-kbīr, hal-bēt, nās mnāḥ.

Unit 2: People and family

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