Few people who come to Morocco learn to speak any Arabic, let alone anything of the country’s three Berber languages, but you’ll be treated very differently if you make even a small effort to master basic phrases. If you can speak French, you’ll be able to get by almost anywhere. Spanish is also useful, especially among older people in the former Spanish colonial zones around Tetouan and the Rif, and in Ifni, Tarfaya and the Western Sahara. People who have significant dealings with tourists will know some English, but that is still a minority.
Moroccan Arabic, the country’s official language, is substantially different from classical Arabic, or from the modern Arabic spoken in Egypt or the Gulf. If you speak any form of Arabic, however, you should be able to make yourself understood. Egyptian Arabic, in particular, is familiar to most Moroccans from TV soaps. If you want to learn Arabic in Morocco, ALIF in Fez offer classes.
Arabic/Berber phrasebooks & learning materials
Arabic phrasebooks and dictionaries
Richard S. Harrell, Harvey Sobelman and Thomas Fox, A Dictionary of Moroccan Arabic (Georgetown UP). Two-way Arabic–English dictionary.
Abdellah Chekayri, An Introduction to Moroccan Arabic and Culture (Georgetown UP). A textbook and multimedia DVD which does pretty much what it says on the cover. It teaches you not only to speak, but also to read and write Arabic.
Aaron Sakulich, Moroccan Arabic (Collaborative Media International). Witty and engaging introduction to Moroccan Arabic with an emphasis on making learning fun.
Ernest T. Abdel Massih, A Course in Spoken Tamazight (Michigan UP). A coursebook with seven cassettes, out of print but can be found at a price. The same author’s A Reference Grammar of Tamazight provides backup.
There are no silent letters – you pronounce everything that’s written including double vowels. Letters and syllables in bold should be stressed. Here are some keys to follow:
kh like the “ch” in Scottish loch
gh like the French “r” (a slight gargling sound)
ai as in “eye”
ay as in “say”
ou/oua w/wa (Essaouira is pronounced Essa-weera)
q like “k” but further back in throat
j like “s” in pleasure
English Arabic French
yes eyeh, naam oui
no la non
I ena moi
you (m/f) enta/entee vous
he hoowa lui
she heeya elle
we nehnoo nous
they hoom ils/elles
(very) good mezyen (bzef) (très) bon
big kebeer grand
small segheer petit
old kedeem vieux
new jedeed nouveau
a little shweeya un peu
a lot bzef beaucoup
open mahlul ouvert
closed masdud fermé
hello/how’s it going? le bes? ça va?
good morning sbah l’kheer bonjour
good evening msa l’kheer bon soir
good night leila saeeda bonne nuit
goodbye biselama au revoir
who...? shkoon...? qui...?
when...? imta...? quand...?
why...? alash...? pourquoi...?
how...? kifesh...? comment...?
which/what...? shnoo...? quel...?
is there...? kayn...? est-ce qu’il y a...?
do you have...? andak...?/kayn... avez-vous...?
please afak/minfadlak to a man or afik s’il vous plaît /minfadlik to a woman
thank you shukran merci
ok/agreed wakha d’accord
that’s enough/that’s all safee ça suffit
excuse me ismahlee excusez-moi
sorry/ I’m very sorry ismahlee/ana asif pardon/je suis désolé
let’s go nimsheeyoo on y va
go away imshee va t’en
I (m/f) don’t understand mafahemsh/mafahmash je ne comprends pas
do you (m/f) speak English? takelem/takelmna ingleesi? parlez-vous anglais?
where’s...? fayn...? où est...?
the airport el matar l’aeroport
the train station mahattat el tren la gare de train
bus station mahattat el car la gare routière
the bank el bank le banque
the hospital el mostashfa l’hôpital
near/far (from here) qurayab/baeed (min huna) près/loin (d’ici)
left liseer à gauche
right limeen à droit
straight ahead neeshan tout droit
here hina ici
there hinak là
hotel funduq hôtel
do you have a room? kayn beet? avez-vous une chambre?
two beds jooj tlik deux lits
one big bed wahad tlik kebir un grand lit
shower doosh douche
hot water maa skhoona eau chaud
can I see? Mumkin ashoofha? je peux le voir?
key sarut clé
I (don’t) want... ena (mish) bgheet... je (ne) veux (pas)...
how much (money)? shahal (flooss)? combien (d’argent)?
(that’s) expensive (hada) ghalee (c’est) cher
0 sifr zéro
1 wahad un
2 jooj deux
3 tlata trois
4 arbaa quatre
5 khamsa cinq
6 sitta six
7 sebaa sept
8 temanya huit
9 tisaoud neuf
10 ashra dix
11 hadashar onze
12 etnashar douze
13 talatashar treize
14 arbatashar quatorze
15 khamstashar quinze
16 sittashar seize
17 sebatashar dix-sept
18 tamantashar dix-huit
19 tisatashar dix-neuf
20 ashreen vingt
21 wahad wa ashreen vingt-et-un
22 jooj wa ashreen vingt-deux
30 talateen trente
40 arbaeen quarante
50 khamseen cinqante
60 sitteen soixante
70 abaeen soixante-dix
80 tamaneen quatre vingts
90 tisaeen quatre-vingt-dix
100 mia cent
121 mia wa wahad wa ashreen cent vingt-et-un
200 miateen deux cents
300 tolta mia trois cents
1000 alf mille
a half nuss demi
a quarter roba quart
Monday nahar el it neen lundi
Tuesday nahar et telat mardi
Wednesday nahar el arbaa mercredi
Thursday nahar el khemis jeudi
Friday nahar el jemaa vendredi
Saturday nahar es sabt samedi
Sunday nahar el had dimanche
yesterday imbarih hier
today el yoom aujourd’hui
tomorrow gheda demain
what time is it? shahal fisa’a? quelle heure est-il?
one o’clock sa’a wahda une heure
2.15 jooj wa roba deux heures et quart
3.30 tlata wa nuss trois heures et demi
4.45 arbaa ila roba cinq heures moins quart
restaurant mataam restaurant
breakfast iftar petit déjeuner
egg beyd ouef
butter zibda beurre
jam marmalad confiture
cheese jibna fromage
yoghurt rayeb yaourt
salad salata salade
olives zitoun olives
oil zit huile
bread khobz pain
salt melha sel
pepper haroor piment
without bilesh sans
sugar sukkar sucre
the bill el hisaab l’addition
fork forshaat fourchette
knife mooss couteau
spoon malka cuillère
plate tabseel assiete
glass kess verre
What do you have … Ashnoo kane… Qu’est ce que vous avez…
…to eat? …f’l-makla? …pour manger?
…to drink? …f’l-mucharoubat? …pour boire?
What is this? Shnoo hada? Qu’est ce que c’est?
I (m/f) am a vegetarian ana nabati/nabatiya wa la Je suis vegetarien/ akulu lehoum wala hout vegetarienne
This is not what I asked for! Hedee meshee heea li tlubt! Ceci n’est pas ce que j’ai demandé
The bill, please. El hisaab, minfadlik L’addition s’il vous plaît
Please write it down. Minfadlik, k’tib’h Est-ce que vous pouvez l’écrite s’il vous plaît?
meat lahem viande
beef baqri boeuf
chicken jaj poulet
lamb houli mouton
liver kibda foie
pigeon hamam pigeon
fish hout poisson
prawns qambri crevettes
vegetables khadrawat légumes
artichoke qoq artichaut
aubergine badinjan aubergine
beans loobia haricots
onion basal oignon
potato batata patate
tomato mateesha tomate
almond looz amande
apple tufah pomme
banana banan banane
date tmer datte
fig kermooss figue
grape ainab raisin
lemon limoon limon
melon battikh melon
orange limoon orange
pomegranate rooman granade
prickly pear (cactus fruit) hendiya figue de Barbarie
strawberry frowla fraise
watermelon dellah pastèque
water lmaa de l’eau
mineral water Sidi Ali/Sidi Harazem (brand names) eau minérale
ice jeleedi glace
ice cream glace glace
milk haleeb lait
coffee qahwa café
coffee with a little milk nuss nuss café cassé
coffee with plenty of milk qahwa bi haleeb café au lait/café crème
tea (with mint/with wormwood) atay (bi nana bi sheeba) thé (à la menthe/à l’absinthe)
juice aseer jus
beer birra bière
wine sharab vin
almond milk aseer looz jus d’amande
apple milk shake aseer tufah jus de pomme
banana milk shake aseer banan jus des bananes
orange juice aseer limoon jus d’orange
mixed fruit milk shake jus panaché
bisara thick pea soup, usually served with olive oil and cumin
chakchouka a vegetable stew not unlike ratatouille, though sometimes containing meat or eggs
couscous aux sept seven-vegetable légumes couscous (sometimes vegetarian, though often made with meat stock)
harira bean soup, usually also containing pasta and meat
kefta minced meat (usually lamb)
loobia bean stew
mechoui roast lamb
merguez small, spicy dark red sausages – typically lamb, though sometimes beef – usually grilled over charcoal
pastilla sweet pigeon or chicken pie with cinnamon and filo pastry; a speciality of Fez
(pommes) frites French fries
salade Marocaine salad of tomato and cucumber, finely chopped
tajine a Moroccan casserole cooked over charcoal in a thick ceramic bowl (which is what the word really refers to) with a conical lid
tajine aux olives et citron tajine of chicken with olive and preserved lemon
tanjia a Marrakshi speciality, jugged beef – the term in fact refers to the jug
briouats/doits sweet filo pastry with a de Fatima savoury filling, a bit like a miniature pastilla
briouats au miel sweet filo pastry envelopes filed with nuts and honey
cornes de gazelles marzipan-filled, banana-(Fr.)/ kab l-ghazl (Ar.) shaped pastry horns
harsha flat, leavened griddle bread with a gritty crust, served at cafés for breakast
m’hencha almond-filled pastry coils, often covered in honey or syrup
millefeuille custard slice
msimmen flat griddle bread made from dough sprinkled with oil, rolled out and folded over several times, rather like an Indian paratha
Berber words and phrases in Tashelhaït
There are three Moroccan Berber languages, based on geographical areas, and to a certain extent mutually intelligible. They are known by several names, of which these are the most common:
Tarfit, Riffi – The Rif mountains (Northern Morocco)
Tamazight, Zaian – The Middle and High Atlas (Central Morocco)
Tashelhaït, Soussi, Chleuh – The Anti-Atlas and Souss Valley (southern Morocco)
A standard written version of Berber, equivalent to Modern Standard Arabic, has now been introduced and is used for official purposes. The following is a very brief guide to Tashelhaït words and phrases.
Yes, no Eyeh, oho
Thank you, please Barakalaufik
Good Eefulkee/Eeshwa
Bad Khaib
Today Ghasad
Tomorrow Sbah
Yesterday Eegdam
Excuse me Semhee
Berbers Shleuh
Greetings and farewells (All Arabic greetings understood)
Hello La bes darik (man); La bes darim (woman) (response – la bes)
How are you? Meneek antgeet? (response – la bes lmamdulah)
See you later Akrawes dah inshallah
Goodbye Akayaoon Arbee
Say hello to your family Sellum flfamilenik
Where is…? Mani heela…?
…the road to… …aghares s…
…the village… …doowar…
…the river… …aseet…
…the mountain… …adrar…
…the pass… …tizee…
…your house …teegimeenik
Is it far/close? Ees yagoog/eeqareb?
Straight Neeshan
To the right/left Fofaseenik/fozelmad
Where are you going? Manee treet? (s.)/Manee drem? (pl.)
I want to go to… Reeh…(literally, “I want”)
On survey maps you’ll find these names:
Mountain Adrar, Jebel
River Assif, Oued
Pass (of) Tizi (n.)
Shepherd’s hut Azib
Hill, small mountain Aourir
Ravine Talat
Rock Azrou
(“n” between words indicates the possessive, “of”)
1 yen
2 seen
3 krad
4 koz
5 smoos
6 sddes
7 sa
8 tem
9 tza
10 mrawet
11 yen d mrawet
12 seen d mrawet
20 ashreent
21 ashreent d yen d mrawet
22 ashreent d seen d mrawet
30 ashreent d mrawet
40 snet id ashreent
50 snet id ashreent d mrawet
100 smoost id ashreent/ meeya
How much is it? Minshk aysker?
No good Oor eefulkee
Too expensive Eeghula bzef
Come down a Nuqs emeeklittle (in price)
Give me… Feeyee…
I want … Reeh…
Big/Small Mqorn/Eemzee
A lot/little Bzef/eemeek
Do you have…? Ees daroon…?
Is there…? Ees eela…?
…food …teeremt
…a mule …aserdon
…a place to sleep …kra lblast mahengwen
…water …amen
Gawer, Skoos Sit
Soo Drink
Shta Eat
Rede (when handing something to someone) Here