A is for.... Ahlan wa sahlan fi A-Z Challenge 2017!!

is for

Ahlan wa sahlan to the A-Z Challenge 2017 – welcome to the A-Z Challenge. Ahlan wa sahlan is a contraction of ‘you are among your own people here and may your time/journeys be easy.’ It’s a common expression of welcome here. 

Assalaamu aleikum wa barakatu wa rahmatullah

The formal greeting in Arabic  – literally ‘Peace be upon you, and the blessings and mercy of God.’ The rejoinder is 'Waaleikum assalaam,' - ‘and upon you peace also.’

  

Joseph Attieh, a musician from Lebanon, with Rouh (Soul), take a listen to him as you read the rest -

Arabic retains an old-world lyrical charm and the Arabs are very polished indeed, famed for their hospitality, and a rich culture, wholly apart from being oil-rich.  

Arabic is also the liturgical language of Islam, and their faith is a central marker of identity for most Arabs - religion plays a key part in Arablands. However, not all Arabs follow Islam - though the vast majority do.   

A small but significant minority are Christians, Druze, and Jews, though the term Arab is not always accepted by them for their own identities.  I like things simple, and anyone whose mother-tongue is Arabic is an Arab for me! Within each of the faiths are further subdivisions of sects, for both Muslims and Christians, fragmenting the picture even more.  


In short, Arabs are not equal to Muslim, it is far more complex than that. Allah is the word for 'God' in Arabic, and all Arabs use the word regardless of their faith.  (The Arab diva, Fairouz, a Christian, sings this hymn - 'O Mother of God - Ya Oum Allah)

Ablaq, piebald or particoloured, is an architectural technique where tone-on-tone or different coloured bands of materials are used.  This technique originated from the ancient Byzantine tradition of utilising alternating courses of contrasting white ashlar stone and terracotta bricks.

Mahmoudiya Mosque, 16th century, Cairo, Egypt.

Abu Darwish Mosque, Amman, Jordan. 20th century.

Ablaq in the Mosque-Cathedral of Cordoba, 8th century.

So…A for Arabs, who are an Amazingly talented and creative bunch with a very unique brand of joie de vivre and for living life to the full.

Did you know Arabic has so many dialects and different Accents that a guy from Morocco may not be able to speak freely with say, an Iraqi one. (Incidentally, this is also partly true for Bengali, my mother tongue :) In linguistic terms, this phenomenon, where the spoken language is different from the written one, is known as diglossia.







Posted for the A-Z Challenge 2017