In 1935, Lebanese poet Bechara El Khoury wrote the poem Youth and Beauty in homage to Jamila Al Khalil, the first Lebanese beauty queen crowned.
“Envious of you, the flower killed itself, spraying its blood across your cheeks,” one of the lines of the poem says, connecting the beauty of nature to Al Khalil.
The poem was then turned into a song by the renowned Egyptian composer, singer, and actor Mohamed Abdel Wahab, in 1939. It was featured in his film Youm Saeed (Happy Day) in 1940.
Beneath the shock of its imagery, the line in particular is powerful because of the concept of the flower, renowned for its beauty, being envious of a human being.
This week’s word of the week, warda, which colloquially means a single flower, is the subject of many works of art or is used as a motif in literature.
Whether it’s their variety in colour and shape, their healing properties, their intoxicating scents or the fact that they bloom for only a short while, flowers have become a symbol of love and appreciation.
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Hob is the Arabic word for love, but can be used in many contexts -
The Arabic word helu translates, in English, to sweet -
Nashef is the Arabic word for dry, but has many connotations, depending on the context in which you use it -
The Arabic word hurriyeh translates to freedom in English -
The Arabic word tayeb can mean delicious or good, depending on the context -
The Arabic word mustaqbal is best expressed as future in English -
Waqaa, the Arabic word for fall, can signify a loss of power, stature, health or grace -
Hudood means borders in English -
The Arabic word rooh translates to spirit or soul in English -
The Arabic word ain means eye in English -
Waraq, the Arabic word of the week means paper in English -
Bahr, the Arabic for sea, has a poetic lilt -
Kareem means generous in English -
Bab means door in English -
Eid means holiday or festival -
Najm means star for the night sky and cosmos, but also has plenty of other meanings, including ambition or fame -
Alwan, the Arabic word for colours, has many shades of meaning -
Akel can refer to home-cooked meals, embezzlement, fire and rust -
Jamal is the Arabic word for beauty, be it literal or figurative -
Herfe translates to profession or craft -
Tabiaa translates to nature and can frame landscapes and portraits -
Sehha is the Arabic word for health -
Ijaza is Arabic for holiday and shines in summer but is not stress-free -
Aamal is the Arabic word for work -
Al dahr translates to time -
Qalb is a word for heart, with poetic roots -
Lugha in Arabic translates to language in English -
Insaan means human being -
Na'eeman is an idiomatic expression used when someone has had a shower or bath, a haircut or had their beard trimmed -
The Arabic word for life touches on eternity, death and accomplishment -
Qamar is the Arabic for moon -
The Arabic word for strength or power is quwwa -
Burj is Arabic for tower -
The Arabic word for sun is shams -
Sabr in English can translate to patience -
Hayba is the Arabic word for prestige -
The Arabic term al shay'e translates as 'the thing' in English -
The Arabic word for road is tareeq -
The Arabic word for read has mystical and scholarly connotations -
Istikan is the Arabic word for a type of tea cup -
The Arabic word hanan means affection in English -
The Arabic word atlal means ruins in English -
Kura is the Arabic word for ball, in all its forms -
Janaah in Arabic means wing in English -
The Arabic word sana translates to year in English -
Qasida is the Arabic for poem, not poetry -
Ameer, the Arabic word for prince, which influenced another English title -
Nakhla translates to palm tree in English -
Al samt is the Arabic for silence -
Kalimaat translates to words in English -
Markaz is Arabic for centre -
Beshara is the Arabic word for good news -
Bayt is the Arabic for house or home -
Fann is the Arabic word for art, and can be either a verb or an adjective -
Isim, which means name, is made up of three letters, alif, seen and meem -
Dunya is the Arabic word for world -
Nazaafah translates to cleanliness in English -
Many traditions revolve around drinking coffee, including weddings, funerals and business meetings -
Fajr is the Arabic word for dawn -
Maghrib is the Arabic word for sunset -
The Arabic language is filled with idioms, quotes and colloquial quips involving the mirror -
Raei is the Arabic word for opinion -
Wa'ed is a multifaceted word for 'promise', as well as a female name -
Qussa is the Arabic word for story -
Sadaaka is the Arabic word for friendship -
Akhbaar is the Arabic word for news -
Rasem is made up of the three Arabic letters Rah, Seen and Meem. While it can simply mean a drawing or a sketch it’s also a malleable word whose definition can change depending on context and dialect – particularly between colloquial and classical Arabic. -
As well as finishing a task, khatem denotes a deeper sense of finality -
Commonly translated to blessed, mubarak is used as a popular greeting on auspicious days -
The Arabic word for lighthouse is also a term that has become closely associated with Islam -
Siyaam, the Arabic word for fasting is also connected to silence -
Tawbah, the Arabic word for repentance, is also connected to Ramadan -
Safar, the Arabic Word for travel can also refer to sunny days, a brighter-blazing fire or exile. The National
The word warda is a noun made up of the four Arabic letters, waw, rah, dal and tah.
It’s derived from the word warouda, a verb which signifies when something turns red. While usually referring to flowers turning red, it can also be used in other contexts in classical Arabic, as when someone blushes.
While warda means a single flower, it can also refer to a rose specifically and sometimes a design resembling roses. There is another word that also means flower in Arabic, zahra.
While zahra is considered a more botanical word, referring to the species of plant known as flowers, warda and zahra are used interchangeably to mean flowers or roses in most colloquial dialects.
Warda can also mean when something or someone arrives or is mentioned in a conversation or record. While there is no official confirmation as to how warda can mean both those things, one can make an assumption based on another Arabic word derived from the same origin.
Warrada refers to something that blooms – a plant, tree or flower. With that in mind, warda can refer to a flower or someone arriving or appearing, since flowers “arrive” when they bloom.
Wourood or ward is the plural of warda. Interestingly, warda is also the feminine version of the word flower and ward, which also acts as the plural of the word, is the masculine version.
Ward has other meanings associated with flowers.
It describes a specific colour, red with a hint of yellow, seen in the spice saffron or in the sheen on a dark chestnut horse. Used as a verb, it describes the process of the reddening horizon during a sunset.
Warda is also a term of endearment used in some Arabic dialects, in both a romantic and platonic context on both men and women despite the word being feminine. Used in this context, it means someone who is either beautiful physically or in their nature. Warda also has associations to someone being at the hight of their youth and beauty.
Warda is also a name used for women. The most famous Warda was the Algerian singer renowned for her Arabic and Egyptian songs. While known simply as Warda she was also known as Warda Al-Jazairia, which translates to the Rose of Algeria.
