Qusai - The Job/قصي - الوظيفة

I don't remember how I came across this song. I think YouTube suggested it to me, but I'm really glad it did. I love it! The singer's name is Qusai and he has lived in both the USA and Saudi Arabia so he knows Arabic and English both very well. This song is like 1/3 English and the rest in Saudi dialect. I'm not going to translate the lyrics it into English because I would make a lot of mistakes since I'm not so great at Gulf Arabic. I understand about 90% of it though. Credit goes to مدرسة المشاغبين for the Arabic lyrics.

اسمع ركز
دور على رزقة مؤمن
المصلحه المعرفه الواسطه
عندي شهاده عساها
عندك خبره اتمناها
انا عارف معليش
كلنا نبغى لقمه العيش
بس لسه بلدي فيها خير
كانت الدنيا عفيفه
والناس قلوبها نظيفه
لو تبغى لقمه شريفه
قوم دور على وظيفه
دورلك على وظيفه
دورلك على وظيفه
كانت الدنيا خفيفه
والناس قلوبها نظيفه
صحيح القعده ظريفه
بس برضو لازم وظيفه
دورلك على وظيفه

دورلك على وظيفه
حاير وعقالي مايل
طاير في الزحمه طاير
عندي انتر فيو
موعد لا ينسو
فهموني علموني
ياترى ح يوظفوني
عاطل يقولو عليا
باطل ولا حسو بيا
كل يوم رايح جاي
لا قهوه ولا شاي
هجولوني بهدلوني
بالظهر ما يرحموني
كانت الدنيا عفيفه
والناس قلوبها نظيفه
لو تبغى لقمه شريفه
قوم دور على وظيفه
دورلك على وظيفه
دورلك على وظيفه
كانت الدنيا خفيفه
والناس قلوبها نظيفه
صحيح القعده ظريفه
بس برضو لازم وظيفه
دورلك على وظيفه
دورلك على وظيفه
ااه من اللي بيصير فينا
رايحين لغيرنا و سيبينا
احنا اولى منهم
بس ما نستغنى عنهم
يا ناس كفايا خلاص
الفاس وقع فلـ
اسمحلي ماهو وقت الاكل
حظر اوراقك واتكل
لازم يكون عندك كل شي
ولا يقولو انت فين جي
ولا تقعد تقول ما فيا
خلي عندك مسؤليه
العيب للاسف مو منك
من ناس قدي و فـ سنك
لو ما تعرف احد ارجع ع البيت
بس لا تندم وتقول ياليت
بدري لا تستسلم
اسعى يا خيل وقدم
ياكبار احنا معاكم
بس تعبنا جري وراكم
ادوالواحد حقه
وادولو هوا في وقتو
واهتموا باولاد البلد
لا تسيبوهم كده فلت
هقلك اخرت الفلم
انو سلاحك العلم
يجي
سافر لا خلوني شويه
قادر افيد البقيه
عندي شهاده وقدرات
استشاره وخبرات
وقفوني شغلوني
من الراتب لا تحرموني
دوراتك دوراتي نفسيه
خبراتك خبره حياتيه
معشم نفسي من امس
والمكتب ورى الشمس
غيروني انقلوني
بس لا لا تسيبوني
كانت الدنيا عفيفه
والناس قلوبها نظيفه
لو تبغى لقمه شريفه
قوم دور على وظيفه
دورلك على وظيفه
دورلك على وظيفه
كانت الدنيا خفيفه
والناس قلوبها نظيفه
صحيح القعده ظريفه
بس برضو لازم وظيفه
دورلك على وظيفه
دورلك على وظيفه
يالله ياسيدي
خذلك كذا واحد فيتامين واو حلو
ومعاه صورتين شمسيه
وملف اخضر علاقي
وامسك الدرب وان شاء الله تتوظف
ما ينفع الا كده اصلا للاسف
ااه طيب
الواسطه تقتل الكفائه يا جماعه
والبطاله بدايه الضياع
والشغل ما هو عيب
والله يوفق الجميع
سلام
من جد شغل

Levantine Dialect: Lesson 3

This clip is from the 2nd episode of the Turkish soap opera (مسلسلة تركية) Aliya (عليا) dubbed in Syrian Arabic. Even though their lips don't match what they're saying, the Arabic is spoken more clearly in these Turkish dubbed shows than in shows like Bal Al Hara (باب الحارة) where it's really hard to understand everything they're saying. To give some context to the clip, Aliya (not shown in the clip) and her husband (the younger man) split up because he was cheating on her. The older man is Aliya's uncle and he is trying to get Aliya's daughter Rama to come and live with him and Aliya.

The best way to benefit from these clips is to first watch them a few times without looking at the transcript. It gives your brain time to try to understand any gibberish you hear before you give it the answer. The next time you're listening to something similar, your brain is more likely to remember since it had to work to try to understand it before. I hope I wrote that in a way that makes sense. It's the method I follow when trying to learn a new language. You have to make your brain try and struggle first before you spoon feed it.




انا مو جايي لهون لحتى ساوي زيارة (Ana moo jaay la hoon la hata saawi ziyara.)

I didn't come here to make a visit.

Comments: Literally says, I am not coming to here in order to do a visit.

أنا إجيت منشان أخذ راما لعند إمها (Ana ijeet minshaan akhudh Rama la and imma.)

I came in order to take Rama to her mother.

Comments: لعند here just means "to". You can say, "We're going لعند my friend." and that means that you're going to your friend's place.

لا, راما ما بتطلع برات هالبيت. هذا بيت أبوها (La, Rama ma btatlaa barraat hal beyt. Hada beyt abooha.)

No, Rama does not go outside this house. This is her father's house.

مدام جيهان (Madaam Jihaan.)

Madam Jihan.

نحنا ناس ما منحب خراب البيوت (Nihna naas ma minheb kharaab libyoot.)

We are people who don't like to destroy houses.

Comments: Literally it says destroying houses, but it means splitting up families.

إمي, رجااً لا تتدخلي (Immi, rajaa'an la tetdakhali.)

Mom, please don't get involved.

شو؟ نسيت إني إمك؟ (Shoo? Inseet inni immak?)

What? Have you forgotten that I'm your mom?

سماع, دكتور فؤاد. قول لعليا تعقّل و ترجع لبيتها. و إذا كانت مو رضيانة انه ترجع (Smaa doktoor Fouad. Ool la Aliya taa'al oo terja la beyta. Oo iza kanit moo radyani anno terja...)

Listen, Dr. Fouad. Tell Aliya to wise up and come back to her house. And if she doesn't want to come back...

Comments: I had to listen to the first part of this several times before I understood what she was saying. Instead of تعقل و I was hearing تعا (come) and then قلو and I kept asking myself, "what the hell does قلو mean??" :) Then after a few listens it finally clicked in my brain. It's always a good feeling when that happens. Also, in the dialects they will often say "oo" instead of "wa".

امي بيكفّي (Immi bikeffi.)

Mom, that's enough.

ميار, ابني. كل مرأة و جوزها بيختلفو و بتصير مشاكل بيناتن. بس لازم الإنسان يخلي طريق للصلح (Mayyar, ibni. Kil mara wa joza byekhtelfu wa bitseer mashakil beynatun bes lazim al insan yekhelli taree' lil sulih.)

Mayyar, my son. Ever woman and her husband have differences and problems come up between them, but a person has to allow a way for reconciliation.

Comments: Notice he says جوز and not زوج. In Levantine and Egyptian they switch the letters around. They also say متجوز instead of متزوج to mean married.

طالما حضرتك تعرف تعطي نصائح ليش ما نصحت حالك يا دكتور؟ (Taalama hadirtak ibtarif taati nsaaih leysh ma nasahit haalak ya doktoor?)

As long as you're giving advice, why don't you advise yourself, Dr. Fouad?

Comments: تعرف can be ignored here in the translation.

لما مرتك تركتك ليش وقتها ما كنت بتعرف طريق الرجع؟ (Limma martek teriktek leysh wa'ita ma kinta btarif taree' al rajaa?)

When your wife left you why, at that time, didn't you know a way to get her to come back?

هذا مو موضوعنا مدام جيهان (Hada moo moudooana madaam Jihaan.)

That's not our subject, Madam Jihan.

إمي خلصنا بقى (Immi khalasna ba'a.)

Mom, stop it already.

ما خلصنا. لازم أحكي (Ma khalasna. Lazim ahki.)

We're not finished. I must talk.

تركينا... إذا بتريدي (Trikeena... iza bitreedi.)

Leave us... if you will.


Vocabulary List:

• لحتى (lahatta) - "in order to". In MSA it's لكي (likay).
• ساوي (saawi) - "doing". شو عم بتساوي means "what are you doing"
  
• منشان (minshaan) - "in order to", "because", "for what". There's a joke about this word:
  

الصيني قال لسوري: شو اسمك؟
قال السوري: من شان شو
قال الصيني: سبحان الله ما توقعته زي اسمي

A Chinese man said to a Syrian: "What's your name?"
The Syrian said: "Min Shan Shoo?" (Meaning, what for.)
The Chinese man said: "My God! I can't believe it's the same as mine!"

• برات (barraat) - "outside". Also the word برا (barra) means the same thing.
• عقّل (aqqal) - "wise up", "become smarter". The world عقل (aql) without a shadda means "mind".
• رضيانة (radyaani) - "satisfied" used for a female
• صلح (sulih) - "reconciliation"
• طالما (taalama) - "as long as", this word is MSA
  
• حضرتك (hadirtak) - formal way of saying "you".
• بقى (ba'a) - this word is used a lot. It adds emphasis to something like the word "already" when you say "come on already"

Levantine Arabic: Lesson 2

This second lesson is from a makeover show called Joelle جويل. That's the name of the host who runs a beauty salon in Dubai and does makeovers on women. It's on MBC and both Joelle and a lot of the women she does the makeovers on speak the Lebanese dialect. Joelle herself speaks very very fast so I didn't think a clip of her talking would be a good idea. The girl in the clip is speaking Lebanese giving a summary of all the things that happened in her makeover.



كان يوم صعب كتير و طويل بس حلو بذات الوقت (Kan youm saab ikteer wa taweel bes helu bee zat al wa'it)

It was a very difficult day and long but nice at the same time.

بصراحة تجربة كتير حلوة. كنت كتير مترددة بس بعدين ماشي الحال (Bee saraaha tujrubi kteer helwi kint ikteer mutredidi bes badeen mashi al haal)

Frankly it was a very nice experience. I was very hesitant (at the beginning) but after that everything went well.

إقتنعت انه لازم جرب لازم عمل نيو لوك (I'tinat inu lazim jarrib lazim amil "new look")

I was convinced that I had to try, had to do a new look.

جيت اليوم الصبح عند جويل و بلشتلي بالكونتوراج لجسمي. كانت كمان اكسبيريينس كتير حلوة (Jeet al youm asubuh and Joelle wa beleshitli bil contourage lijismi. Kanit kaman experience kteer helwi.)

I came this morning to Joelle's and she started me with the contourage (shaping) for my body.

خلصت منها و بلشت بحواجبي بالتاتو مثل ما شايفين أكيد (Khalast mina wa ballasht bee hawajbi bi tattoo mithl ma shayifeen akeed.)

I finished that and started on my eyebrows with the tattoo, as you all see of course.

عملت تاتو كتير غيرني و كتير حبيته و أكيد بيبيّن أحلا بعد اسبوعين (Amilt tattoo kteer gheyarni wa kteer hubeytu wa akeed bibayin ahla baad isbooain)

I got a tattoo that really changed me and I really liked it and it will definitely look better after two weeks.

رجعت و عملتلي تاتو على شفافي أكيد بينو أكبر بشوي كمان كتير حبيت (rijat wa amiltli tattoo ala shifaafi akeed bayyanu akbar bi shway kaman kteer hubeyt)

She went back and gave me a tattoo on my lips and they definitely look a bit bigger. I really liked that too.

بعدين بلشنا بشعري. صراحة كنت كتير مترددة انه شو أعمل بشعري باللون خصوصاً يعني ما كنت أعرف نقي لون و بعدين جويل نقتلي هيدا اللون (Badeen belleshna bishaari saraaha kint kteer mitradidi annu shu amul lishaari biloun khoosoosan yaani ma kint aarif na'iy loun badeen Joelle na'it li haydal loun)

After that we started on my hair. Frankly I was very reluctant, I mean, what can I do with my hair, especially the color. I didn't know what color to choose. After that Joelle chose this color for me.

Vocab List:

• بذات الوقت - "at the same time"; since it's Levantine they pronounce the ذ as ز and the ق as ء
  
• مترددة - "hesitant, reluctant"
• ماشي الحال - "everything is going good"; means the same as على ما يرام (ala ma yuraam)
• بلش - "to begin"
• بيّن - "to appear"; don't confuse with بين with no shadda which means between.
• نقّى - "to choose"; remember the ق is pronounced as ء