Saudi dialects: اِنثِبِر

Discussion in 'العربية (Arabic)' started by Tracer, Jan 4, 2013.

  1. Tracer

    Tracer Senior Member

    Wadi Jinn
    American English
    اِنْـــثِــبِـر = sit down

    I just ran into this most peculiar word pronounced ('nthibr). It also means SIT DOWN though in a rather rude way.

    It appears there's a whole sub-class of verbs in SA/GA beginning with اِ ن that are specific to the SA dialect area.

    Any other dialect familiar with these?
  2. Wadi Hanifa

    Wadi Hanifa Senior Member

    These are all based on Classical roots, including انثبر, whose root ثبر means to imprison or keep in check. I don't think انثبر (which typically means "stay put" rather than "sit down") is known, however, outside of Saudi Arabia and the Gulf.

    There's انقلع, meaning "get lost", which is understood in most eastern dialects (including Syria, etc.). There's انجبّ (the ج is a 'ch' here rather than a 'j'), used on the Gulf coast, which means "shut up" and is probably a loan word.
  3. Tracer

    Tracer Senior Member

    Wadi Jinn
    American English
    Fascinating verbs and background. Many thanks, Wadi Hanifa. I don't think this kind of information would be available anyplace else.
  4. aisha93

    aisha93 Senior Member

    This word is possibly coming from the Persian word (چَپ Chap) which literally means (left). And it can also mean (to divert/deviate from/stray/get lost...etc.) when it is attached with (شُدن=to be) i.e. چپ شدن

    So it can mean "shut up and get lost" (after changing its meaning a bit or misusing it by us "Arabs"), and it might have gradually become in the sense of only "shut up".

    This word is not used among the Persians themselves to insult or scold someone, but this does not mean that my assumption is incorrect since there are many similar words which have come from Persian into our colloquial Arabic with a little change in meaning or usage, and the opposite is also true (for Arabic words in Persian slang).
    Last edited: Jan 5, 2013
  5. Tracer

    Tracer Senior Member

    Wadi Jinn
    American English
    In Urdu, it's چپ رہو or چپ کرو (choop raho OR choop karo). Must be originally Persian, then.

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