Through the Eyes of a Translator

من زمان وجاي وأنا بسافر هون وهونيك. وقد ما برمت ولفيت فيي أكدّلكن إنو أحلى من العادات الاجتماعية والدينية اللبنانية ما بشوف. يمكن لأنو بتجمع بين الـCoolness والفخفخة الغربية من ميل، وبين الإيمان والدفا الشرقيين من ميل تاني. وإذا بتسألوني إلي، أحلى مناسبة على قلبي، وأكتر وحدي بتزكرني بزغري هي أكيد عيد البربارة. على لحن … More هاشلي بربارة والقمح بالكوارة

If the land of Lebanon could speak, it would tell a lot about its rich civilizational past. And one of the best ways a land can speak to us of its bygone influences is through its toponyms… provided one is curious enough to scrutinize them. When I started to become inquisitive vis-a-vis the real meanings … More Hazzerta, Habboush, Tefehta: The Semitic Apple Connection

In light the perennial upheavals characterizing the Lebanese political landscape, lest you want to get in a brawl with half of your acquaintances over different political views (been there, done that!),  it would be much safer to tackle things from a more innocuous bias, say, Etymology. The word du jour is Tosh, طش: a familiar word … More Etymology du Jour: El Tosh!

After getting into endless brawls, online and offline, with acquaintances and strangers alike over antagonistic political stances, on the backdrop of a perennially tumultuous Lebanese political landscape, I deemed it much safer to start tackling sociopolitical events from a different, more innocuous bias. Such as etymology. An “etymologizing” take on the “Topic du jour”, if … More Etymology du Jour: Baltajeh

After years of being away due to motherhood-induced upheavals and globetrotting, I am finally back, more intent on sharing my translation-relevant insights, experiences and eventual tips. Indeed, the other day as I was using an older version of MS Word, I realized that it only included in its bullet points numbering lists the conventional alphabetical order … More My Downloadable Latin-Arabic Abjad Chart

Whatever staunch puritans of the Arabic language might say, the undeniable fact is that our spoken Lebanese language is rife with non-Arabic words and expressions. After all, this is what being at a crossroad of three continents entails. The ever-evolving fashion and garments lexicon best mirrors this fact, I believe. Fashion is always mutating with … More The Unexpected Origins of Garments Names in Spoken Lebanese (Part 1)