Lesson 69 · B2
The tortoise and the two ducks
Fusha has a form for “two”: battatani, two ducks; qalata, the two of them said. Darija has almost lost it: juj bttat, “two ducks”, just like English. But it keeps it where you'd least expect: yumayn, two days; 3inin, eyes.
- Use the dual that survives in Darija.
- Count two of anything with juj.
- Go from collective to single item: 7mam, 7mama.
- Read a classical fable full of duals.
Twenty-four words
The first two families are live duals in Darija. The third, collectives with their single form. The rest come from the fable.
Time duals
- يُومَايْنْ yumayn two days
- شْهْرَيْنْ shehrayn two months
- عَامَيْنْ 3amayn two years
- سَاعْتَيْنْ sa3tayn two hours
- مْرَّتَيْنْ merrtayn twice
Body pairs
-
عِينِينْ
3inin
eyes
Dual used as plural: 3inih, his eyes.
- رْجْلِينْ rejlin feet; legs
- يْدِّينْ yeddin hands
- وْدْنِينْ wednin ears
Collective → one
- الْحْمَامْ ← حْمَامَة l-7mam → 7mama pigeons → a pigeon
- الْبِيضْ ← بِيضَة l-bid → bida eggs → an egg
- الدّْلَّاحْ ← دْلَّاحَة d-della7 → della7a watermelon → a watermelon
- النّْمْلْ ← نْمْلَة n-nmel → nemla ants → an ant
- الشّْجَرْ ← شْجْرَة sh-shjer → shejra trees → a tree
- الْحُوتْ ← حُوتَة l-7ut → 7uta fish (mass) → a fish
The fable
-
الْفَكْرُونْ
l-fekrun
tortoise
In Fusha, sula7fa.
- الْبْرْكَة l-berka pond; pool
- الْعُودْ l-3ud stick
- طَارْ tar to fly
- وْدّْعْ wedde3 to say goodbye
- نْشْفْ nshef to dry up
The moral
- النَّصِيحَة n-nasi7a advice
- سْكْتْ sket to keep quiet
- الصّْحَابْ s-s7ab friends
Two, and one of many
Four sentences: the fable retold in Darija. Compare it with the original. What happened to the duals?
- كَانُو جُوجْ بْطّْاتْ صْحَابْ الْفَكْرُونْkanu juj bttat s7ab l-fekrun
- قَالُو لِيهْ: غَادِي نْمْشِيوْ، الْبْرْكَة نْشْفَاتْqalu lih: ghadi nmshiw, l-berka nshfat
- هَادِي يُومَايْنْ وْ مَا شْرْبْتْhadi yumayn u ma-shrebt
- شْرِيتْ جُوجْ دْلَّاحَاتْ وْ شِي حْمَامَةshrit juj della7at u shi 7mama
How does Darija say “two ducks”? And “the two of them said”? Which word does keep a dual?
The rule
Fusha has duals in nouns, verbs and pronouns: battatani, qalata, antuma.
Darija has lost almost all of them. For “two” it uses juj + plural: juj bttat. Verbs and pronouns go plural: qalu, ntuma.
Live duals remain in time and measures (yumayn, shehrayn, sa3tayn, merrtayn) and in body pairs, which work as plurals: 3inin, rejlin, yeddin.
Collective and unit: many animals, fruits and mass items have a collective and a single form in -a: 7mam → 7mama, bid → bida. To count units: juj 7mamat.
Fusha to Darija
| Form | Say it | Means |
|---|---|---|
| بَطَّتَانِ ← جُوجْ بْطّْاتْ | battatani → juj bttat | two ducks |
| قَالَتَا ← قَالُو | qalata → qalu | the two said → they said |
| أَنْتُمَا ← نْتُومَا | antuma → ntuma | you two → you (pl.) |
| يَوْمَانِ ← يُومَايْنْ | yawmani → yumayn | two days |
| كْتَابْ ← جُوجْ كْتُوبْ | ktab → juj ktub | book → two books |
| حْمَامْ ← حْمَامَة ← جُوجْ حْمَامَاتْ | 7mam → 7mama → juj 7mamat | pigeons → a pigeon → two pigeons |
| بِيضْ ← بِيضَة ← عْشْرَة دْ الْبِيضَاتْ | bid → bida → 3eshra d l-bidat | eggs → an egg → ten eggs |
| عِينِيهْ ← عِينِيهَا | 3inih → 3iniha | his eyes → her eyes |
Row 4: the dual lives on in time words. Never juj yyam.
What English gives you, and what it costs
Free: “two ducks”, “they said”. Darija counts like English: number + plural.
Free: “fish / a fish”, “cattle / a cow”. English has a few collectives; Darija has hundreds, with a regular -a.
Costly: “two days” as one word. yumayn, not juj yyam.
Your mistake, not someone else's
If you've read Fusha, you apply its dual everywhere. In Darija it sounds bookish.
×بَطّْتَيْنْFusha dual in Darija.
✓جُوجْ بْطّْاتْ“Two ducks”.
And the reverse: never juj yyam. Time takes the dual.
The tortoise and the two ducks
A fable from Kalila wa Dimna, Ibn al-Muqaffa's 8th-century Arabic version of tales of Indian origin. Complete and unadapted. Count the duals: nouns, verbs and pronouns.
زَعَمُوا أَنَّ غَدِيرًا كَانَ عِنْدَهُ عُشْبٌ، وَكَانَ فِيهِ بَطَّتَانِ، وَكَانَ فِي الْغَدِيرِ سُلَحْفَاةٌ، بَيْنَهَا وَبَيْنَ الْبَطَّتَيْنِ مَوَدَّةٌ وَصَدَاقَةٌ.
فَاتَّفَقَ أَنْ غِيضَ ذٰلِكَ الْمَاءُ؛ فَجَاءَتِ الْبَطَّتَانِ لِوَدَاعِ السُّلَحْفَاةِ، وَقَالَتَا: السَّلَامُ عَلَيْكِ، فَإِنَّنَا ذَاهِبَتَانِ عَنْ هٰذَا الْمَكَانِ لِأَجْلِ نُقْصَانِ الْمَاءِ عَنْهُ.
فَقَالَتْ: إِنَّمَا يَبِينُ نُقْصَانُ الْمَاءِ عَلَى مِثْلِي، فَإِنِّي كَالسَّفِينَةِ لَا أَقْدِرُ عَلَى الْعَيْشِ إِلَّا بِالْمَاءِ. فَأَمَّا أَنْتُمَا فَتَقْدِرَانِ عَلَى الْعَيْشِ حَيْثُ كُنْتُمَا. فَاذْهَبَا بِي مَعَكُمَا.
قَالَتَا لَهَا: نَعَمْ. قَالَتْ: كَيْفَ السَّبِيلُ إِلَى حَمْلِي؟ قَالَتَا: نَأْخُذُ بِطَرَفَيْ عُودٍ، وَتَتَعَلَّقِينَ بِوَسَطِهِ، وَنَطِيرُ بِكِ فِي الْجَوِّ. وَإِيَّاكِ، إِذَا سَمِعْتِ النَّاسَ يَتَكَلَّمُونَ، أَنْ تَنْطِقِي.
ثُمَّ أَخَذَتَاهَا فَطَارَتَا بِهَا فِي الْجَوِّ. فَقَالَ النَّاسُ: عَجَبٌ: سُلَحْفَاةٌ بَيْنَ بَطَّتَيْنِ، قَدْ حَمَلَتَاهَا.
فَلَمَّا سَمِعَتْ ذٰلِكَ قَالَتْ: فَقَأَ اللهُ أَعْيُنَكُمْ أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ. فَلَمَّا فَتَحَتْ فَاهَا بِالنُّطْقِ، وَقَعَتْ عَلَى الْأَرْضِ فَمَاتَتْ.
Ibn al-Muqaffaʿ, Kalīla wa-Dimna (s. VIII), «La tortuga y los dos patos», del capítulo del león y el toro. Texto de ar.wikisource.org; vocalización de Learning Darija · dominio público
Did you follow?
Why are the ducks leaving?
Show answers
The water in the pond has gone down.
Why can't the tortoise stay?
Show answers
Like a ship, she can only live in water.
How do they carry her?
Show answers
She holds the middle of a stick; the ducks hold its ends.
What's her undoing?
Show answers
Opening her mouth to answer the people.
Check
Two here, three more in the B2 book.
Exercises 1 and 2 are here, with answers. Exercises 3 to 5 are in the B2 book, the PDF this site lives on: you can see the first item of each below.
1Sort
Darija dual or juj + plural?
يُومَايْنْجُوجْ بْطّْاتْعَامَيْنْجُوجْ كْتُوبْرْجْلِينْجُوجْ دْيُورْعِينِينْجُوجْ طْبْلَاتْ
Dual
juj + plural
2Into Darija
Turn each form into Darija.
- بَطَّتَانِ
- قَالَتَا
- يَوْمَانِ
- حْمَامْ (وَاحْدْ)
3True or false?
According to the fable.
- The tortoise and the ducks were friends.
4Fill the gap
With the dual, juj, or the single form.
ساعتينجوجبيضةعينيها
- تسنيتك ___ فالقهوة
5Tell it yourself
Retell the fable in Darija, in six sentences.
جُوجْيُومَايْنْالْفَكْرُونْسْكْتْالنَّصِيحَة
The rest is in the B2 book
The B2 bookShow answers
| 1. Sort | Dual: يُومَايْنْ · عَامَيْنْ · رْجْلِينْ · عِينِينْ / juj + plural: جُوجْ بْطّْاتْ · جُوجْ كْتُوبْ · جُوجْ دْيُورْ · جُوجْ طْبْلَاتْ |
|---|---|
| 2. Into Darija | جُوجْ بْطّْاتْ · قَالُو · يُومَايْنْ · حْمَامَة |
The B2 book: In preparation
Write and I will tell you the day it is out. One email, no list.
I can now
- Use live duals: yumayn, 3inin.
- Count with juj + plural.
- Go from collective to single form.
- Read a fable from Kalila wa Dimna.