Have you been MENA-ized by your SO?

[zaytoona 8]

I'm sooooooooooooooooooooo (insert sarcasm here) annoyyyyyyyyyyyyyed.... ..... ok, not really....

You know, it happens ALL the time.

Zaytoona

Edited September 23, 2010 by zaytoona

[Staashi 371]

I guess that one depends on whether or not one is Muslim....I try and use the English equivalent of those terms esp in non-Muslim company.

Exactly! Most of Americans (Muslim, Christian even Jewish) use those terms on an everyday basis - well at least here in the South we do. I can tell you of countless times each day that we say: "God willing" = Insh'allah; "Thy Will be Done" = Mash'allah; "Praise be to God" or "Thank God" = Alhamdulillah. I just don't understand why those women who used to say these terms previously in English, act like God/Allah will not be able to appreciate them if they do not say them in Arabic. I say these same phrases in Spanish all the time...but it's when I'm having a conversation in Spanish with my MIL. One amazing thing about the phrase Inshallah is that in Spanish, we use a phrase "Ojala" - which is the Spanish derivative of Inshallah. The phrase stayed with the Spaniards since the Moors occupied Spain.

[amal 4]

You know, it sort of drives me bonkers too. I often wonder why it is that just by being muslim, one can only communicate about God by using Arabic. It depends on whom I'm talking to, as to which version I use. My hubster, his family, his friends, I use Arabic. Most of the time I use English when around Americans. It just depends on what kind of mood I'm in when in mixed company. There's nothing wrong with using the Arabic terms though. I used to use the Arabic terms all the time (in chatting online) coz they're a little bit shorter lol! Yes, I'm a lazy typer ...

[maherforever 8]

Exactly! Most of Americans (Muslim, Christian even Jewish) use those terms on an everyday basis - well at least here in the South we do. I can tell you of countless times each day that we say: "God willing" = Insh'allah; "Thy Will be Done" = Mash'allah; "Praise be to God" or "Thank God" = Alhamdulillah. I just don't understand why those women who used to say these terms previously in English, act like God/Allah will not be able to appreciate them if they do not say them in Arabic. I say these same phrases in Spanish all the time...but it's when I'm having a conversation in Spanish with my MIL. One amazing thing about the phrase Inshallah is that in Spanish, we use a phrase "Ojala" - which is the Spanish derivative of Inshallah. The phrase stayed with the Spaniards since the Moors occupied Spain.

One amazing thing about the phrase Inshallah is that in Spanish, we use a phrase "Ojala" -

Stashi, I'm Spanish,if Inshallah means God willing, ojala has no religion meaning whatsoever , is related to a wishfiul thought, We say it like " SI DIOS QUIERE" , I'm sure Argentinians use that term as well.

[caybee 21]

NM...didn't read back to Staashi's post :-)

I just recently told my husband, when he asked, that "goodbye" is a shortened form of "God be with you," and he was surprised to learn this.

Edited September 23, 2010 by caybee

[UmmSqueakster 54]

Meh, I'm one who uses certain arabic phrases in english conversation, usually around other muslims. It's just what AbuS and I have always done, so now it's second nature. They're phrases that carry a certain amount of deeper meaning in arabic that an english translation just can't capture in full.

Certain religious phrases span the muslim world. You'll find muslims in indonesia, india, nigeria and everywhere else saying things like Assalamu Alaikum, Alhamdulilah, SubhanAllah and Allahu Akbar, so it's not unusual for english speaking muslims to do so as well.

[Staashi 371]

One amazing thing about the phrase Inshallah is that in Spanish, we use a phrase "Ojala" -

Stashi, I'm Spanish,if Inshallah means God willing, ojala has no religion meaning whatsoever , is related to a wishfiul thought, We say it like " SI DIOS QUIERE" , I'm sure Argentinians use that term as well.

That is exactly what it means! Si Dios Quiere...If God deems it so. If you didn't know this already, the language you speak has some major commonalities with the language your man speaks...read on and be AMAZED!!!! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arabic_influence_on_the_Spanish_language I have known for about 20 years from studying linguistics that the two languages were intertwined.

[Anna and Ali 13]

i wasn't referring to you. i already made that clear. it was a comment based off of reading what you said that reminded me of something i see all the time in the united states and morocco. its just a question directed at everyone! i'm not accusing you or judging your religious beliefs. that is none of my business.

i was in morocco less than a week ago and saw many women wearing tight jeans and tight shirts with a scarf. i was simply asking what the purpose of this was. i am trying to get it clear to give me futher knowledge of islam and their traditions. i was under the impression (this impression given to me by muslim people) that the scarf and djellaba are worn so that men won't be tempted when they look at you. for modesty. but just because you cover your skin but wear tight clothes, is that still modest? i really am asking and don't mean to offend. if what i was told is correct, then wearing tight jeans and a scarf don't make sense to me. if i'm wrong, then please explain. i just want to be educated futher.

Sometimes when you see the tight=clothes hijab combo its being worn more out of a cultural instinct rather than a religious one. the girls might not even have been practicing muslims. Just like sometimes you see women drape a pretty scarf over their hair as a fashion statement not a religious practice. I'm not making excuses or anything just saying its always a possibility. now if they were in bikinis and hijab that might be a different story there's no excuse for that haha

[Anna and Ali 13]

I read a lot of topics on these boards and it seems like people get annoyed too easily-so much that a friendly thread turns into a nasty cat fight. People take things too seriously. Many people want to argue and this is why most feel discouraged to post. So bitter. I guess it's easy to do so behind a computer.

I bet I just annoyed a few of you....

Zaytoona

Ha I agree. I would like to completely unsarcastically and in all seriousness apologize to those I gave cavities. I guess after all the crankiness on some of the threads you can't relate to being in the throes of love I'm not really a bubbly person either, I tend to just overdo it in type so that people don't misconstrue my meaning and think I'm being a jerk.

If we were searching for a meaningless internet feud, we could always just head on over to youtube where people are absolutely absurd in the comments as though writing curse words to strangers validates them.

[Mithra 1,185]

It's not that no one can relate to being in love. It's just that many of us are jaded. We've been there and done that and over it. We're busy dealing with bills, houses, kids, jobs, husbands who can be total azzhats at inopportune times, etc. And before anyone waves around the word "bitter" think again. Many of us are perfectly content and happy and feel love most of the time but we don't feel the need to plaster our information or feelings of love for our SOs all over an internet forum. Sorry I sometimes have low patience for naive kids.

[chaishai 1]

Sometimes when you see the tight=clothes hijab combo its being worn more out of a cultural instinct rather than a religious one. the girls might not even have been practicing muslims. Just like sometimes you see women drape a pretty scarf over their hair as a fashion statement not a religious practice. I'm not making excuses or anything just saying its always a possibility. now if they were in bikinis and hijab that might be a different story there's no excuse for that haha

I actually disagree that the girls in morocco with tight jeans and head scarfs are likely wearing it for cultural reasons vs. religious. They were likely raised wearing scarves, want to be fashionable and they could be very religious in their hearts.

In israel you will see young orthodox girls/women who cover their elbows and wear skirts but all of it is very fashionable and tight, and consider themselves very orthodox but they just push the envelope and try to keep up with modern fashion.