Arabic-L:LING:Tooth Expression responses

Thu Apr 7 17:05:02 UTC 2005

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Arabic-L: Thu 07 Apr  2005
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1) Subject:Tooth Expression responses

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1)
Date: 07 Apr  2005
From:Dil Parkinson <dil at byu.edu>
Subject:Tooth Expression responses

Thanks for the many responses to the request about the tooth  
expression.  I have sent them on to the requester, and now I know  
exactly what to do when my teeth start falling out from old age.  Here  
are the responses for those who are interested:

> ya shams ya shamosa khodi senet elgamosa we hati senet alarees

> Dear all,
the correct text of this children`s rhyme should be:  ya shams ya  
shammuusa, xudi sinnit iggamuusa wi haati sinnit ilCaruusa "Sun, dear  
sun, take the tooth of the buffalo, and give me the tooth of the  
bride". This is the Lower Egyptian variant of this rhyme which children  
recite when they loose their milk teeth and get adult teeth. I.e., they  
take the tooth they lost and throw it into the direction of the sun  
quoting this verse (I have been told that they try to throw it over the  
house). The procedure is mentioned briefly in H. Ammar, Growing up in  
an Egyptian village, London 1954, p.104 below.
The Upper Egyptian variant would be:  xudi sinnit ilHumaar wi haati  
sinnit ilghazaal "take the tooth of the donkey and give me the tooth of  
the gazelle". In Dakhla oasis (ilBashandi) I noted: ya shmeesa ya  
shmeesa, xudiilik danshit ilHeema, wu hatiili danshit CiDeema "Sun,  
dear sun, take a piece of meat/flesh and give a piece of bone". Other  
variants and more information can be found in Hans Alexander Winkler,  
Ägyptische Volkskunde, Stuttgart 1936, p.196-201, and Hans Alexander  
Winkler, Bauern zwischen Wasser und Wüste. Stuttgart 1934, p.153-155.
Best regards
Manfred Woidich
University of Amsterdam

_____

Growing up in Cairo (more than half a century ago) I heard this  
expression
in the following context. When a boy or a girl looses one of the baby  
teeth,
s/he takes it outdoor and throws it as high and as far as possible while
singing or reciting that expression (ya shams ya shammosa khodi sinnet
elgamosa we hati sinnet [al-arousa]alarees). Of course this happens in  
the
day time while the sun is brightly shining. The hope is to invoke a  
request
to the tooth fairy (or angel) to intercede with God to replace the  
fallen
tooth with a better one. The implication here is that "sinnet  
algamousa" is
the ugly fallen one and "sinnet alarousa/alarees is the requested  
bueatiful
one. Don't we all like to have beautiful teeth like those of arousa or
arees. [no hidden agenda is contemplated to undermine the cosmetic  
dental
business]
Salaam
Muhammad S. Eissa, Ph. D.
President, EISSA & ASSOCIATES, Inc.
Arabic and Islamic Consulting & Education
2020 Orrington Ave., Evanston, IL 60201
Ph. (847) 869-4775
Fax. (847) 869-4773
E.MAIL: eissa at comcast.net

______

I am told by a native Egyptian that this is sung to children when they  
lose a tooth (i.e. to the Tooth Fairy ); it sounds much better in  
Arabic to be sure; but the last bit is probably to the effect of "take  
this cow's tooth and send one from a bridegroom".

Perhaps someone can offer a clearer explanation as to its origins. It's  
funny anyway...
hth,
william.
-- 
William J. Kopycki
Middle East Studies Librarian
Van Pelt-Dietrich Library Center
University of Pennsylvania
3420 Walnut Street
Philadelphia, PA 19104-6206
tel 215.898.2196
fax 215.898.0559
kopycki at pobox.upenn.edu

______

This expression is said as a wish or (a prayer, if will) when a child  
loses
his/her tooth. Addressing the sun (Shams) he/she wishes that it takes  
the lost
tooth (referred to her as that of Water Buffalo's) and replaces it with  
the
beautiful tooth of a Bride. Notice here that last word should be Arusa
(Bride)and not Arees (Groom),to maintain the balance of the rhyme. Of  
course,
this could be a boy, not a girl.
Ahmed A Kraima

______

that seems to be the phrase they say when a kid looses a baby
tooth. (equivalent to tooth fairy folklore here).

so, the sun is supposed to take the baby tooth and give an
nice adult tooth instead. (a groom's tooth)
Hala Jawlakh

______

I think, we say this phrase when, as a child, one loses the milk teeth  
(sinnat al-gamusa)and we make this "prayer" in the hope that our new  
teeth will be nice and straight and that it will bring a "arees"!  
meaning a husband. I think our grand mothers used to make us i.e  
(moslty girls) say this. There are many versions of this saying: there  
is no 'arees mentioned in the Tunisian version for example.

I hope this helps,
Ikram

______

This is the standard phrase used in Egypt when a child looses a milk  
tooth,  while throwing the milk tooth towards the sun.
Frédéric Lagrange

______

The expression means the following : Bright Sun, please take the tooth  
of
the buffalo and get me the tooth of the bride. This expression is almost
exclusively used when a child (particularly a gir) loses a milk tooth.  
The
child is invariably asked to throw away the tooth in the sunshine and  
say
these words.

Amira Nowaira
Department of English
Alexandria University

______

This is a part of an Egyptian children rhyme, which is said in case of
loosing a baby tooth. While saying the rhyme, the child throws his or  
her
tooth up in the air thinking that the sun will catch it and replace it
eventually with a good adult tooth. The literal translation means "Oh,  
sunny
sun take the buffalo tooth and give me a bride's tooth ('arousa, in the
original, never heard it with 'arees).

Omima El Araby

______

The Libyan version goes approximately like this:  ya shams ya shamusa  
ya ?awaynat al-?arusa -- khudhii sin hmaar -- wa -?aTiinii sin  
ghazaal. 

Oh sun, oh brilliant sun, like the eyes of the bride, take this  
donkey's tooth and give me the tooth of a deer. 

A Libyan child who loses a tooth will go out and throw the baby tooth  
as far as he can towards the sun, asking the sun to take the ugly (like  
a donkey) old tooth and replace it with a permanent tooth as beautiful  
as a deer (traditional symbol of beauty).   In the Egyptian version  
quoted, the reference is to the ugly water buffalo (gamusa or jamusa)  
and the handsome groom (?ariis).

Hussein M. Elkhafaifi
Assistant Professor of Arabic
Department of Near Eastern Languages & Civilization
229 Denny Hall Box 353120
University of Washington
Seattle, WA 98195-3120

______

The translation of this phrase: "Sun, take the tooth of the cow and get  
me a
new tooth of the bride". It is a phrase that usually most of kids say it
when they start changing their "milky teeth". Kids stand by the window  
in
the morning and throw their milky teeth and say: "ya shams ya shamosa  
khodi
senet elgamosa we hati senet alarees" Most of the parent tell their  
kids "if
you do so, the sun will get you a new one soon". And by the way it is  
also a
phrase in a song for kids.

Regards ,
Shereen Salah

______

Hi Dil
This basically is like talking to the tooth fairy. The saying is used  
basically to tell the sun to take the tooth of the bull and give us  
back the tooth of the groom. Take an ugly tooth and give us a beautiful  
tooth. I guess it would be used by/ for children. The saying sounds  
Egyptian.

take care
Bushra

______

This is said when children are in the age of changing teeth, whenever  
one tooth falls they say this.
so they loose a bad tooth(the cow's/water buffalo  tooth) and ask for a  
better one(the Arousa which means the pretty girl). This is equivalent  
to putting the tooth under the pillow.
Zeinab Ibrahim
______

The expression we used to say when we were kids when loosing a tooth,  
it means that hay sunny sun take the buffalo's tooth and give me a new  
strong one of a beautiful girl.  But now kids are using another  
expression which is ya shams ya shamousa khodi senet el nanousa wa  
idiha senna gedida takul biha elbassbousa.
Saharag

______

As far as I know, it is said when children change their teeth and they  
should throw it facing the sun.thus the sun will respond replacing the  
old teeth with a new and healthy one.

jehan elhakim

______

hello,
this sentence is usually used when small kids strat lose their (milk )
teeth and when ever a kid lose a tooth he would face the sun and
make an offrand in saying this sentence. which is simply a prayer (plea)
made to the sun askin her (sun is feminin in arabic) to give him/her a  
new
tooth prettier than the one he had.
in some dialects the formula is :
ya shams ya shamousa xodi sinn al himar we a3tini sinn al ghazal
which means
oh sun take the tooth of the donky (or the cattle tooth) and give me the
tooth of the deer.
something like this
menna048 at uottawa.ca

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End of Arabic-L:  07 Apr  2005