A2Unit 6 · Hospitality · Lesson 57 of 100
Feasts and greetings
ʿīd mbārak · alla ybārik fīk · kull sane w inte sālem · ramaḍān mubārak
Goal: Greet people at Ramadan, Eid, Christmas and Easter, and answer their greetings, speaking to a man, a woman or several people.
Dialogue
Lina shows Sam the photos of the feasts she has celebrated since she arrived: Eid with her family and Christmas with Nour in Bethlehem. You will learn the names of the feasts, the wishes people exchange, and the right answer to each.
A break at the language school. Lina shows Sam the photos on her phone.
- Sammīn hadōl kullhom?Who are all these people?
- Linahādi ṣūra min il-ʿīd iz-zghīr. ʿammi w Khalīl ṣallu ṣalāt il-ʿīd, w baʿdēn ʿayyadna ʿind sitti.This is a photo from Eid al-Fitr. My uncle and Khalil prayed the Eid prayer, and then we celebrated at my grandmother's.
- Samw inti ṣumti ramaḍān?And did you fast in Ramadan?
- Linaṣumt kam yōm bass. w il-fṭūr maʿ il-ʿēle kān ḥilu ktīr!Just a few days. And the evening meal with the family was lovely!
- Samw shu hāda ʿaṣ-ṣaḥn?And what's that on the plate?
- Linahāda maʿmūl. Imm Khalīl w Rana ʿimlū ʾabl il-ʿīd.That's maamoul. Imm Khalil and Rana made it before the Eid.
- Samw hādi? knīse?And this one? A church?
- Linaā, fi Bēt Laḥem, fi ʿīd il-mīlād. Nūr ʿazamatni ʿind ahlha.Yes, in Bethlehem, at Christmas. Nour invited me to her parents' home.
- Samṭayyib, shu lāzim aʾūl fil-ʿīd?OK, what should I say at a feast?
- Linaʿīd mbārak! aw kull sane w inte sālem."Blessed feast!" Or "Many happy returns."
- Samʿīd mbārak, ya Līna!Happy Eid, Lina!
- Linail-ʿīd khalaṣ, ya Sām! bass ʿīd il-fiṣḥ jāy. ʾūl la-Nūr: kull sane w inti sālme!(Laughing.) The Eid is over, Sam! But Easter is coming. Say to Nour: "Many happy returns!"
New words
| Palestinian Arabic | English |
|---|---|
| ʿīd | feast, holidayplural: aʿyād |
| ramaḍān | Ramadan (the month of fasting) |
| ramaḍān mubārak | blessed Ramadan (greeting)said at the start of Ramadan and during the month |
| ʿīd mbārak | blessed feast (greeting)reply: alla ybārik fīk / fīki / fīkom |
| il-ʿīd iz-zghīr | Eid al-Fitr (the feast at the end of Ramadan)literally "the small feast"; also ʿīd il-fiṭr |
| il-ʿīd il-kbīr | Eid al-Adha (the feast of the sacrifice)literally "the big feast"; also ʿīd il-aḍḥa |
| ʿīd il-mīlād | Christmasnot ʿīd mīlād "birthday" (lesson 15) |
| ʿīd il-fiṣḥ | Easter |
| kull ʿām w intu bkhēr | happy feast to you all (formal greeting) |
| ʿayyad | to celebrate (a feast); to wish a happy feastʿayyad / yʿayyed, b-present baʿayyed |
| ṣām | to fastṣām / yṣūm, b-present baṣūm; ṣāyem / ṣāyme fasting |
| ṣalla | to prayṣalla / yṣalli, b-present baṣalli |
| ṣalā | prayerplural: ṣalawāt |
| maʿmūl | maamoul (pastry filled with dates or nuts, made for the feasts) |
Grammar
1. The wish and its answer
Each feast wish has its own answer, and the answer changes for a man, a woman or several people.
| Someone says | You answer | When |
|---|---|---|
| ʿīd mbārak! | alla ybārik fīk / fīki / fīkom | either Eid |
| kull sane w inte sālem! (to a man) | w inte sālem | any feast, birthday, New Year |
| kull sane w inti sālme! (to a woman) | w inti sālme | any feast, birthday, New Year |
| kull sane w intu sālmīn! (to several) | w intu sālmīn | any feast, birthday, New Year |
kull ʿām w intu bkhēr is a more formal wish to everybody, for any feast. When Ramadan begins, people say ramaḍān mubārak!, and the other person often says the same words back.
2. The feasts
il-ʿīd iz-zghīr "the small feast" ends Ramadan; il-ʿīd il-kbīr "the big feast" is Eid al-Adha. Christians celebrate ʿīd il-mīlād (Christmas) and ʿīd il-fiṣḥ (Easter). Keep the article: ʿīd il-mīlād is Christmas, ʿīd mīlād is a birthday.
3. Fasting, praying, celebrating
ṣām goes like rāḥ: ṣumt "I fasted", ṣām, ṣāmat; baṣūm "I fast"; ana ṣāyem / ana ṣāyme "I'm fasting". ṣalla goes like ghanna: ṣallēt, ṣalla, ṣallu; biṣalli "he prays".
Practice
1Choose the right words
It is Eid. Your neighbor (a man) says ʿīd mbārak! You answer:
Answer a man: fīk.
Ramadan is starting. You greet Imm Khalil:
The Eid comes at the end of Ramadan, not at the start.
It is Christmas. You wish Nour a happy feast:
Nour is a woman: w inti sālme.
Which feast comes at the end of Ramadan?
ʿīd il-mīlād means:
Without the article, ʿīd mīlād is a birthday.
2Complete the sentence
___ ramaḍān kullo. = I fasted all of Ramadan.
kull sane w intu ___! = Many happy returns! (to several people)
Imm Khalīl ___ maʿmūl ʾabl il-ʿīd. = Imm Khalil made maamoul before the feast.
"She" did it: ʿimlat.
___ ʿind sitti. = We celebrated at my grandmother's.
3Match the Arabic and the English
ʿīd il-fiṣḥ
ʿīd il-mīlād
il-ʿīd il-kbīr
maʿmūl
ṣalā
4Put the words in order
We celebrated the feast at my grandmother's.
5Say it in Palestinian Arabic, then check
Wish a happy feast to a whole family, in the formal way.
kull ʿām w intu bkhēr!
A man says: I'm fasting today.
ana ṣāyem il-yōm.
6True or false?
Lina fasted every day of Ramadan.
She says ṣumt kam yōm bass "just a few days".
Imm Khalil and Rana made the maamoul.
Sam says ʿīd mbārak on the right day.
Lina tells him il-ʿīd khalaṣ "the Eid is over".
Summary
- You can wish a happy Eid and answer: ʿīd mbārak! → alla ybārik fīk.
- You can wish anyone a happy feast or birthday: kull sane w inte sālem, w inti sālme, w intu sālmīn.
- You can greet people at Ramadan: ramaḍān mubārak!
- You can name the feasts: il-ʿīd iz-zghīr, il-ʿīd il-kbīr, ʿīd il-mīlād, ʿīd il-fiṣḥ.
- You can say who fasted, prayed and celebrated: ṣumt, ṣallu, ʿayyadna.