B1Unit 10 · Palestine and the diaspora · Lesson 94 of 100
At a wedding: dos and don'ts
masmūḥ? · mamnūʿ · mish lāzim · il-ʿāde inno …
Goal: Ask what is allowed and explain customs: what you must do, may do, must not do and need not do.
Dialogue
Nour's cousin is getting married in Bethlehem, and Lina and Rana are invited. Lina has never been to a Christian wedding and has many questions. You will learn to talk about rules and customs with masmūḥ, mamnūʿ, mish lāzim and il-ʿāde inno ….
Bethlehem, the afternoon of the wedding. Lina and Rana are getting ready at Nour's house.
- Linaya Nūr, ana ʿumri ma ruḥt ʿala ʿurs masīḥi. shu lāzim aʿmal?Nour, I have never been to a Christian wedding. What do I have to do?
- Nourwala ishi! bass taʿāli w ifraḥi maʿna.Nothing! Just come and be happy with us.
- Ranail-ʿurs fil-knīse?Is the wedding in the church?
- Nourā, il-khūri biṣalli lal-ʿarūs w il-ʿarīs fil-knīse, w baʿdēn fī ḥafle fi ṣāle kbīre.Yes, the priest prays for the bride and groom in the church, and then there's a party in a big hall.
- Linaw mbāreḥ kānat lēlit il-ḥinne, ṣaḥḥ?And yesterday was the henna night, right?
- Nourā. il-ʿarūs libsat tōbe ḥilwe, w il-yōm btilbis fustān il-ʿarūs.Yes. The bride wore a beautiful thobe, and today she is wearing the wedding dress.
- Ranaʿinna kamān, ʿind il-muslimīn, fī lēlit ḥinne.We have it too: Muslims have a henna night as well.
- Nourṭabʿan. ʿind il-masīḥiyyīn w il-muslimīn fī ʿādāt ktīre zayy baʿḍ.Of course. Christians and Muslims share many of the same customs.
- Linamasmūḥ albis abyaḍ?Am I allowed to wear white?
- Nourlaʾ, ʿēb! il-ʿāde inno l-abyaḍ lal-ʿarūs bass.No, that's not done! The custom is that white is for the bride only.
- Ranaw masmūḥ nṣawwer fil-knīse?And are we allowed to take photos in the church?
- Nourā, ʿādi. bass lāzim niḥtrem iṣ-ṣalā w niḥki bi-ṣōt wāṭi.Yes, that's fine. But we have to respect the prayer and speak quietly.
- Linaw lāzim nurʾoṣ dabke? ana ma baʿrafsh!And do we have to dance the dabke? I don't know how!
- Nourmish lāzim, bass il-kull bishārek fid-dabke. ma tistḥīsh!You don't have to, but everyone joins in the dabke. Don't be shy!
- Ranaw shu mamnūʿ?And what is forbidden?
- Nourmamnūʿ tuʾʿodi ʿal-kursi kull il-lēl!It's forbidden to sit on your chair all night!
New words
| Palestinian Arabic | English |
|---|---|
| dabke | dabke (folk line dance)plural dabkāt |
| tōbe | thobe (traditional dress)often embroidered |
| fustān il-ʿarūs | wedding dress |
| ḥinne | hennalēlit il-ḥinne = the henna night (before the wedding) |
| shārak | to take part (in: fi); to shareshārak / yshārek; b-present bashārek; bishārek fid-dabke = he joins in the dabke |
| mamnūʿ | forbidden, not allowedfeminine mamnūʿa |
| masmūḥ | allowed, permittedfeminine masmūḥa |
| iḥtaram | to respectiḥtaram / yiḥtrem; b-present baḥtrem |
| muslim | Muslimfeminine muslime, plural muslimīn |
| masīḥi | Christianfeminine masīḥiyye, plural masīḥiyyīn |
| khūri | priestplural khawārne |
| ḥalāl | allowed (by religion)the opposite of ḥarām |
Grammar
1. Allowed, forbidden, necessary
Four words cover the rules. Like lāzim, masmūḥ and mamnūʿ are followed by the present without b-, and before a verb they do not change: mamnūʿ tuʾʿodi "it is forbidden to sit" (to a woman).
| Palestinian Arabic | English |
|---|---|
| lāzim nrūḥ | we must go |
| mish lāzim nrūḥ | we don't have to go |
| masmūḥ nṣawwer? | are we allowed to take photos? |
| mamnūʿ nṣawwer | we are not allowed to take photos |
mish lāzim means "no need", not "must not". For "must not", use mamnūʿ.
2. Talking about customs
To explain a custom, say il-ʿāde inno … "the custom is that …". ʿinna, literally "at our place", also means "where we live, in our culture". ʿādi says that something is normal or fine; ʿēb says that it is not done.
3. Rules and religion
masmūḥ and mamnūʿ are about rules. ḥalāl "allowed by religion" and ḥarām "forbidden by religion" are about religion; ḥarām! also means "what a shame!" (lesson 55).
Practice
1Complete the sentence
___ albis abyaḍ? = Am I allowed to wear white?
il-ʿāde ___ l-abyaḍ lal-ʿarūs bass. = The custom is that white is for the bride only.
mish ___ turʾoṣi. = You don't have to dance. (to a woman)
mish lāzim = no need; mish masmūḥ would mean "not allowed".
___ tuʾʿodi kull il-lēl! = It's forbidden to sit all night!
2Choose the right answer
Rana says ʿinna kamān fī lēlit ḥinne. Here ʿinna means:
Which word is about religion?
ḥalāl is "allowed by religion"; masmūḥ is "allowed" by a rule.
Nour says mish lāzim. She means:
In the dialogue, who prays for the bride and groom in the church?
3Match the Arabic and the English
dabke
tōbe
ḥinne
fustān il-ʿarūs
khūri
masīḥi
4Put the words in order
Are we allowed to take photos in the church?
The custom is that white is for the bride only.
5Say it in Palestinian Arabic, then check
Everyone joins in the dabke.
il-kull bishārek fid-dabke.
Muslims and Christians have a henna night.
ʿind il-muslimīn w il-masīḥiyyīn fī lēlit ḥinne.
6True or false?
Lina has been to a Christian wedding before.
She says ana ʿumri ma ruḥt ʿala ʿurs masīḥi.
Nour says that guests should not wear white.
Summary
- You can ask what is allowed: masmūḥ …?, and say what is forbidden: mamnūʿ ….
- You know the difference between mish lāzim "no need" and mamnūʿ "must not".
- You can explain a custom: il-ʿāde inno …, ʿinna …, ʿādi, ʿēb.
- You can talk about a wedding: the henna night, the thobe, the wedding dress and the dabke.