Arabic language question

topic posted Mon, April 16, 2007 - 2:26 PM by  Mirah
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I'm recently returned from Egypt and while my Arabic is improved/expanded on from what it was before I left, it's still awfully pathetic, and there are some things that are just hard to find answers for definitively inthe books/dictionaries I have..

So...I have two questions that I'm hoping someone with better language can help me answer:
* What is the plural of "almas" (as in, the word for diamond)
* I've seen the woman's name Bahira described as meaning "dazzling or sparkling"...but what would "al bahira" (pronounced Ba hEE rah, I think) mean? Is it the one/the thing that dazzles and sparkles...or is it something all together different when presented as a noun like that?

Thanks!
posted by:
Mirah
Minneapolis
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  • Re: Arabic language question

    Tue, April 17, 2007 - 4:47 PM

    Almaz is the plural of the word meaning diamonds. The singular is almaza, which is feminine in form and means one piece of diamond. The colloquial is with a "z," as in almaz, but the classical, written form is with an "s," as in almas

    Bahira is the feminine form of bahir, which means bright or dazzling, but could also mean clever or accomplished. It is not pronounced bahEEra, but bahIra, with a short "i." There is no word such as bahEEra that comes to mind.

    I hope this helps.

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