4
Sounds that Egyptians say differently
Egyptian Arabic A1 · Unit 1
GoalSay ج, ق, ث, ذ and the heavy letters the Egyptian way.
New words
جَمِيل (gamīl) · beautiful, niceقَهْوَة (ʾahwa) · coffeeقَلَم (ʾalam) · penتَلَاتَة (talāta) · threeدَه (da) · this (for a man or a thing)صَبَاح (ṣabāḥ) · morningطَيِّب (ṭayyib) · good, OK
Explanation
Egyptians say some letters differently from standard Arabic. ج is a hard g, as in “go”: جَمِيل gamīl. ق is not a k: it is a short stop in the throat, ʾ, like the pause in “uh-oh”: قَهْوَة ʾahwa. ث is said s or t, and ذ is said z or d; many words are simply written with ت and د: تَلَاتَة talāta, دَه da. The heavy letters ص ض ط ظ are said deep in the mouth, so nearby vowels sound darker. Rule for this course: a word is written the way Egyptians say it. If you write it as you hear it, you are right.
| Letter | Standard Arabic | Egyptian | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| ج | j | g | جَمِيل gamīl |
| ق | q | ʾ (throat stop) | قَهْوَة ʾahwa |
| ث | th | s or t | تَلَاتَة talāta (written with ت) |
| ذ | dh | z or d | دَه da (written with د) |
| ص ض ط ظ | heavy | heavy s, d, t, z | صَبَاح ṣabāḥ |
Worked examples
The hard g.
The throat stop ʾ.
ص
ض
ط
ظ
Class activity
Say these four words ten times: جَمِيل، قَهْوَة، تَلَاتَة، صَبَاح. For each, say first the letter you see and then the sound you make. Try the throat stop ʾ by saying “uh-oh” slowly and stopping at the break.
Practice
1
How do Egyptians say the letter ج?
As a hard g, as in “go”.
2
Press Listen. Does قَلَم begin with a k or with a short throat stop?
قَلَم
With the throat stop ʾ: ʾalam.
3
Listen. At the start, do you hear g, k or a throat stop?
A throat stop: the word is قُطَّة (ʾuṭṭa), “cat”.
4
تَلَاتَة (three) is written with ت. What is its first sound?
t: talāta.
5
Read this word and give its meaning: جَمِيل.
gamīl, beautiful.