Fairy Tale 1 : Beauty and the Beast – الجميله والوحش

Fairy Tale 2 : The Wolf and the Seven Young Kids – الأرنب و الثعلب

Fairy Tale 1 : Beauty and the Beast – الجميله والوحش

Beauty and the Beast (French: La Belle et la Bête) is a traditional fairy tale. (Wikipedia)
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Fairy Tale 2 : The Wolf and the Seven Young Kids – الأرنب و الثعلب

(Original: Der Wolf und die sieben Geißlein) is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm, tale number 5

A mother goat warns her kids to be wary of the wolf and goes off. The wolf comes and claims to be their mother. They tell him his voice is harsh, while hers is soft. He goes and eats a chunk of chalk to make it soft. They tell him his paws are black, while hers are white. He goes to the miller and gets flour on his paws. They let him in, and he, tearing apart the house to find them, eats them all except the youngest, who hid in the clock.

The mother returns to the damage and the youngest emerges. She steps outside, and they find the wolf sleeping, and something struggling in his stomach. They cut him open, and the other six emerge alive. She puts in stones instead. When he wakes, he goes to a well to drink, and the stones drag him in, so he drowns.

More fairy tales stories will be available soon

Source of Realia

YouTube

Recently, students of Edinburgh University were asked to vote for and support the Right to Education Campaign at Birzeit University in the Palestinian Territories.

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About the Campaign

The systematic obstruction of Palestinian education in the West Bank and Gaza Strip by the illegal Israeli occupation not only violates the human rights of individuals, it is an attack on the development of Palestinian society as a whole.

Frequent closures of cities, hundreds of military roadblocks and the construction of the illegal Wall prevent thousands of students and teachers from reaching their schools and universities.

Students are regularly subjected to intimidation, assault and arbitrary arrest by Israeli soldiers. Universities and schools have been closed down, raided and attacked by military order.

Read more

Story of student from Gaza (Arabic video with English subtitles)

This short film reveals the struggle for Gazans to attend universities inside their own country, Palestine (oPts). Israel does not give permits for ANY Gazan to study in the West Bank. This is the story of one ‘lucky’ student who is still in the WB, and he tells us how he feels. ‘LUCKY AHMAD’ is a project by the Right to Education Campaign, Birzeit University.

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Download the poster (2MB)

Right to Education Campaign Poster

“Students Under Occupation – Take a Stand”

Source of Realia

Right to Education Campaign – Birzeit University

The following is a collection of miscellaneous Realia items (with English translation) which reflect the topic of Human Rights in the Arab world.

These realia items were carefully selected to include a wide range of the most commonly used law and human rights vocabulary.

In the events and demonstrations banners/posters realia, they are particularly used in the context of increasing awareness about the situation of Human Rights concerns in the Arab world.

The realia types available in this post are:

1. Organisations logos
2. Book covers
3. News Video Report Realia
4. Events and demonstrations banners/posters

Links to relevant vocabulary learning resources are listed at the end of this post.

V-tivity

Translate the text/meaning of the following realia items:

• Book/Journal Cover No. 4
  • What are the main front cover articles?
• Events and demonstrations banners/posters

Organisations Logos

PCHR – Palestinian Centre for Human Rights

Palestinian Human Rights Foundation

Syrian Human Rights Organisation

Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights -

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The International Declaration of Human Rights – Dignity and Justice for All

Book Covers

Human Rights Competition/Quiz for university and school students

Women’s Rights (International Documents)

Human Rights Constitutionality

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Going to extremes in Human Rights - A brief general encyclopedia

The Right to Health is a Human Right

A Directory/Guide for Human Rights Education

Human Rights, Essential Concepts – Why, How and When?

حقوق الإنسان.. بين النظرية والتطبيق في مجال إستراتيجيات حماية الطفل

Human Rights between Theory and Practice in the field of Child Protection Strategies

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News Video Report Realia

استمرار التعذيب في سجون مصر

Watch video

Events and Demonstrations Banners/Posters

Translate the following banners/posters?

Poster 1:

Poster 2:

المؤتمر العالمي حول اننتهاكات حقوق الإنسان تحت الغزو والإحتلال العراقي

Poster 3 :

حقوق المرأة – حقائق و أباطيل

Poster 4 :

Poster 5 :

Poster 6 :

Poster 7 :

سلب طفولتهم … جريمة

اليوم العالمي لمكافحة عمالة الأطفال

Poster 8 :

Poster 9 :

التعذيب جريمة نظام – مصريين ضد التعذيب

Poster 10 :

Poster 11 :

بالأرقام : 42% من الشباب هاجروا

Poster 12 :

ثلاثة أشهر بدون رواتب

بدنا (نريد) خبز للأولاد – يكفي ذل و استعباد

Poster 13 :

لن أبقى لاجئ – سأعود|

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Poster 14

Newspaper article / Poster 15

click to enlarge

Source of Realia

• Achr.nu
• a-tarakji.maktoobblog.com
• frontlinedefenders.org
• Libya-today.com
• Idsc.gov.eg
• cihrs.org
• bettna.com
• geelsa7wa.blogspot.com
• zamakan.gharbeia.org
• www.almaghar.net
• 20at.com
• saleem55.maktoobblog.com
• egwriters.com/admin

Vocabulary learning resources (Human Rights)

• Human Rights Vocabulary
• Human Rights Abuse Vocabulary

Just recently, a political campaign took over most of the Lebanese billboards with the message (I love Life) and other messages in three languages : Arabic, English and French.

The key voabulary you may learn from these realia are:

• Life : الحياة
• Debts: ديون
• Colours: ألوان
• to live : عاش / يعيس
• Country/nation : وطن

This is the Campaign’s mission:

One simple question: Is our future destined to be victim to cynicism and apathy, or should broad participation at the grassroots determine our fate?

The I Love Life campaign is challenging citizens in communities across the country to answer this question with every day constructive actions and activities.

We believe that Lebanon stood up to all angst because it has always embraced the Culture of Life. Deprecation is an offense to the civic heritage upon which Lebanon’s democratic republic is based. Indifference cannot solve our common problems; it only demonstrates our disability to function in the public arena, where political speech surpasses the limits of democratic opposition.

The Culture of Life is shorthand for a concept that human life, through all its stages, has to be respected above all.

We understand the Culture of Life, as opposed to the Culture of Death, as a deep, well-developed sense capable of discerning true values and interpreting authentic needs in our communities and society.

We want to take a stand of empowerment and embrace the change towards a new life, towards a fresh perspective that would entail new social and economic norms.

For more information about the campaign visit www.lebanon-ilovelife.com

More realia images :

Download the Arabic wallpaper (PDF)

These two signs are not part of the (I Love Life) Campaign.

Source : iheartcapitalism.wordpress.com

Source of Realia:

• I love life Campaig
• Arabictype.com
• Yalibnan.com
• iheartcapitalism.wordpress.com/

BBC Arabic (Learning English) has a dedicated bilingual radio programme aimed at teaching English to native Arab speakers.

As an Arabic learner yourself, you may benefit hugely from listening to this interactive programme where the host (an Arabic speaker) interviews a guest (an English speaker) in English about a particular news item. The interview is then interpreted in Arabic immediately by the host.

Read the following article before listening to the podcast:

رواتب ربات البيوت – BBC Arabic – Learning English

Today Louay and Cath talk about housewives. According to a new survey in the UK, housewives would be paid more than the average worker, if they received the going rate for their household chores.
The average annual salary in the UK is £23,700.
An average mum apparently works for nearly nine hours a day, every day, which would mean that housewives could earn almost £30,000 a year.
4,000 housewives were involved in the survey and most of them agreed that successfully running the family home was a full-time job.
The way they worked this out was by comparing the various chores with actual jobs. So for child care they would look at what a nanny would earn; cleaning and tidying would be compared to what a cleaner would get. Other jobs in the calculation included being an accountant and a taxi driver.

Do you think housewives should be paid?

هل تعتقد انه يجب دفع رواتب لربات البيوت مقابل مجهوداتهم لقضاء في الاعمال المنزلية؟

Listen to the programme :

Key Vocabulary:

• housewives : ربات البيوت
• the going rate : المعدل السائر – المعدل السائد
•  household chores : الواجبات المنزلية
•  salary : راتب
•  full-time job : وظيفة بدوام كامل
•  child care: رعاية الطفل – العناية بالطفل
•  nanny :مربية اطفال
•  cleaning and tidying :التنظيف و الترتيب
•  accountant : محاسب
• taxi driver :سائق تاكسي – سائق سيارة أجرة

Further reading

Housewife ‘would be paid £30,000′ – BBC News

Source of Realia:

BBC Arabic – Learn English – تعليم الإنجليزية

The following is a selection of caricature that address the topic of the Economic situation of the Arab World. It’s a good revision for your Economic vocabulary.

These caricatures are either insulting or complimentary, can serve a political purpose or be drawn solely for entertainment.

What message is being communicated with these caricatures?

Discuss and share your thoughts for every caricature in the comments section

Caricature 1:

Caricature 2:

More caricatures

Caricature 3:

Caricature 4:

Caricature 5:

Caricature 6:

Caricature 7:

Caricature 8:

Caricature 9:

Caricature 10:

Caricature 11:

Caricature 12:

Caricature 13:

Caricature 14:

Screenshot of the newspaper zoomed in with the hand function/button

The Newspaper Sections

Find out more:

An-Nahar النهار
An-Nahar النهار - Wikipedia

Find out more / Source of Realia

Zawya.com

Eid mubarak ( عيد مبارك) is a traditional Muslim greeting reserved for use on the festivals of Eid ul-Adha and Eid ul-Fitr.

The phrase translates into English as “blessed festival“, and can be paraphrased as “may you enjoy a blessed festival”.

Muslims wish each other Eid Mubarak after performing the Eid prayer.

This celebration continues till the end of the day. It is notable that saying these exact words is a cultural tradition influenced by deep roots of religion in it; however, it is not part of any religious obligations.

Eid refers to the occasion itself, and Mubarak is roughly ‘may it become good for you’, but the phrase is used in the same context that “Merry Christmas” would be.

Throughout the Muslim world there are numerous other ways of greeting for Eid ul-Adha and Eid ul-Fitr.

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“This (butcher) is trying to kill me!”

Eid al-Adha (Arabic: عيد الأضحى ‘Īd ul-’Aḍḥā) is a religious festival celebrated by Muslims and Druze worldwide as a commemoration of Ibrahim’s (Abraham’s) willingness to sacrifice his son, as commanded by Allah. (Muslim tradition names Ishmael as the son who was to be sacrificed, whereas the Judeo-Christian tradition names Isaac.)

It is one of two Eid festivals celebrated by Muslims, whose basis comes from the Quran.[1] (Muslims in Iran celebrate a third, non-denominational Eid.)

Like Eid el-Fitr, Eid ul-Adha begins with a shortprayer followed by a sermon (khuṭba).

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Eid ul-Fitr ( عيد الفطر ), often abbreviated to Eid, is a Muslim holiday that marks the end of Ramadan, the Islamic holy month of fasting. Eid is an Arabic word meaning “festivity”, while Fiṭr means “to break the fast” (and can also mean “nature”, from the word “fitrah”) and so symbolizes the breaking of the fasting period.

Eid ul-Fitr starts the day after Ramadan ends, and is verified by the sighting of the new moon. Muslims give money to the poor and wear their best clothes.

Eid ul-Fitr lasts three days and is called “The Lesser Eid” ( العيد الصغير al-‘īdu ṣ-ṣaghīr) compared with the Eid ul-Adha that lasts four days and is called “The Greater Eid” ( العيد الكبير al-‘īdu l-kabīr).

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Calligraphic signs of Eid Greetings

Best greetings and wishes for the blessed (happy) Eid

More greetings signs

Happy Eid

More signs of Eid Mubarak (blessed festival)

Happy new year

May you enjoy a blessed festival (Eid-Kum means your (plural) Eid)

Find out more
Eid Mubarak (Wikipedia)

Eid_ul-Adha (Wikipedia)

Eid_ul-Fitr (Wikipedia)

Free Arabic greeting Cards (by occasion)

Source of realia:

Sakkal

Awangpurba.blogspot.com

Majalisna

Adhan (Azaan) (آذان ) is the Islamic call to prayer, recited by the muezzin (المؤذن).

The root of the word is ( أذن – adhana) i.e. “to permit”, and another derivative of this word is أذن (uḏun), meaning “ear.”

Adhan is called out by the muezzin from a minaret of a mosque five times a day summoning Muslims for fard (mandatory) salah (prayers).

There is a second call known as إقامة iqama that summons Muslims to line up for the beginning of the prayers.

Text of the Adhan

Video clip of the Adhan

Watch this video clip of the Adhan from Makkah (this is one of the most-known Adhan among Muslims in the Muslim world)

Adhan from Tureky

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This video clip shows the transliteration and meaning of the Adhan

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Amzing facts about the Adhan

• Wherever there are Muslims around the world, the Adhan is recited 5 times a day in the following times :
  • ِdawn الفجر
  • noon, الظهر
  • mid-afternoon, العصر
  • sunset, المغرب
  • night العشاء
• So, if you happen to travel to the Arab world, you will defenitely hear the Adhan throughout the day.
• One of the amazing facts that has been establised is that there is not even a single moment when hundreds of thousands of Muazzins (callers to prayer) around the world are not calling the Adhan on the surface of this earth. Even as you read this material right now, you can be sure there are at least thousands of people who are hearing and reciting the Adhan! Read more

This video illustrates the continuity of the Adhan around the earth

Poster of the Adhan & Iqama transcript

The Adhan at the Dawn prayer is slightly different from the other Adhan.

What line is added to the Adhan at dawn time? (Look at the red arrow above)

What happens when the Adhan is announced?

• What do you understand from this TV advert?

Screenshot of an electronic Adhan software

The software allows you to hear automatic Athan at the right time five times a day. The most popular religious software according to download.com

Many Muslims (Arabs and non-Arabs) who live outside the Muslim world rely on electronic tools to remind them of the exact prayer times.

As a language learning exercise, compare the following screenshots:

Notice the prayer times, different types of Adhan, volume controls etc…

What new words did you learn?

Source of screenshot: IslamicFinder.org

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Where is the Adhan called out from?

Minarets (manara (lighthouse) منارة, but more usually مئذنة) are distinctive architectural features of Islamic mosques. Minarets are generally tall spires with onion-shaped crowns, usually either free standing or much taller than any surrounding support structure.

As well as providing a visual cue demarcating a Muslim community center and territory, the call to prayer is traditionally given from the top of the minaret.

In some of the oldest mosques, such as the Great Mosque of Damascus, minarets originally served as watchtowers illuminated by torches (hence the derivation of the word from the Arabic nur, meaning “light”).

In more recent times, the main function of the minaret was to provide a vantage point from which the muezzin can call out the adhan, calling the faithful to prayer.

In most modern Mosques, the adhan is called not in the minaret, but in the musallah, or prayer hall, via a microphone and speaker system.

In a practical sense, these are also used for natural air conditioning.

As the sun heats the dome, air is drawn in through open windows and up and out of the shaft, thereby causing a natural ventilation.

Minarets have been described as the “gate from heaven and earth”, and as the Arabic language letter alif (which is a straight vertical line).

The world’s tallest minaret (at 210 meters) is located at the Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca, Morocco.

The world’s tallest brick minaret is Qutub Minar located in Delhi, India.

There are two 230 meter tall minarets under construction in Tehran, Iran.

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Find out more

Adhan – Wikipedia