Spoken Lebanese

233 Pages·2003·10.32 MB·English

by  Maksoud N. Feghali

SPOKEN
LEBANESE
MP3 files ofdialogs inthebook, Spoken Lebanese,
maybe downloaded from:
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www.parkwaypublishers.com/spokenlebanese
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SPOKEN
LEBANESE
Maksoud N. f'€qhali Ph. D.
l
ParkwayPublishers,Inc.
Box 3678, Boone,NC 28607
Copyright © 1998 by Maksoud N. Feghali, Ph. D.
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced
in any form without written permission
from the publisher and author.
Published in the United States.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Feghali, Maksoud Nayef.
Spoken Lebanese / Maksoud N. Feghali. -1st ed.
p. cm.
ISBN 1-887905-14-6
1. Arabic language--Dialects--Lebanon. 2. Arabic
language--Conversation and phrase books--English.
1. Title.
PJ6810.3.F44 1999
492.7'7--dc21 99-10479
CIP
First Edition
Book Design by Christopher Frisco
Cover Design by Christopher Frisco & Beth Jacquot
The pictures used to introduce chapters 3, & 6 through
15 were used with permission of the Lebanon Ministry
of Tourism.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
To my mother Camilia, and the blessed soul
of my father Nayef for their inspiration;
To my wife Maguy, and my children Andrew,
Mario and Peter for being proud of our
heritage, and for their love, advice, and sacrifice;
To my dear colleague Dr. William Hutchins
for his sensitive and experienced
reading of this manuscript;
To my brother Elie, for his trust and
continuous encouragement;
To all my immediate family, brothers, sisters,
nephews, nieces, sisters-in-law, and their
families, for their support and feedback;
I am more grateful than I could ever say.

Spoken Lebanese
CONTENTS
Introduction
Phonetic System iv
Greetings & Formalities
Socializing & Family Members 7
Dates & Numbers 18
Post Office & Telephone 30
Biographical Information & Transportation 44
Directions & Road Conditions 57
Food & Nutrition 70
Clothing 84
Health & Medical Problems 96
Professions & Careers 108
Housing & Living Conditions 118
Hobbies & Leisure Activities 132
Mishaps & Offenses 142
Nature & Climate 152
Courtesy Expressions & Interjections 163
Appenda 168
Index 208

Introduction
INTRODUCTION
During the past century, many Lebanese emigrants
have left home and sailed overseas looking for prosper
ity and better life conditions.
In recent years, the emigration wave has reached the
point that more Lebanese are living abroad than in Leba
non. They have integrated fully in their host countries
and played key roles in their new societies. Lebanon, de
spite its small area and population, has become very well
known in the world. There is hardly any city that does
not have a Lebanese restaurant or a small Lebanese com
munity. Many Lebanese have married outside their cul
ture and adapted to a new life style, but others have dif
ficulties integrating their spouses into their own culture
because of the language barrier. Many of us have experi
enced the unpleasant handicap of being around people
who do not speak our language. In my immediate family,
my three foreign born sisters-in-law often felt alienated
when the conversation has shifted spontaneously into
Lebanese.
Therefore, I decided to put my many years of expe
rience as a professor of foreign languages to the service
of my immediate family and my extended Lebanese fam
ily by authoring a simple conversational book. My goal
is to help all those interested in learning the Lebanese
dialect reach a comfortable level of proficiency that will
provide them with basic survival skills and encourage
them to become active speakers rather than passive lis
teners.
To reach this goal Irely on the following instructional
tools: