Arabic-L:LING:Proverb explanations

[Dilworth Parkinson]

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Arabic-L: Wed 26 Feb 2014
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-------------------------Directory------------------------------------

1) Subject: Proverb explanation
2) Subject: Proverb explanation
3) Subject: Proverb explanation
4) Subject: Proverb explanation
5) Subject: Proverb explanation
6) Subject: Proverb explanation

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1)
Date: 26 Feb 2014
From: Mohammed <fekrah at gmail.com>
Subject: Proverb explanation

It's about someone whose camels were stolen from him in the desert and when
he came to his tribe, he was proud about talking trash to the thieves. His
stance was: don't worry I didn't let them go easy.

It's used when someone does nothing against his enemies oppressing him
while feeling proud about his attitude.

Mohammed.
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2)
Date: 26 Feb 2014
From:  uri.horesh at NORTHWESTERN.EDU
Subject: Proverb explanation

Response from Enam Al-Wer at the University of Essex — sociolinguist and
native speaker of Jordanian Arabic:

On 2/21/14, 6:07 PM, "Al-Wer, Enam" <enama at essex.ac.uk<mailto:
enama at essex.ac.uk>> wrote:

It is rather:
اشبعتهم شتما وفازوا بالابل

It has nothing to do with Jordan of course (used by Arabs generally), it
refers to a famous Arabic saying based on this story:

قصة المثل أن أعرابيا تعرض للسطو من مجموعة من اللصوص الذين سلبوه إبلا كان
يرعاها. لما عاد الى قبيلته روى القصة يتفاصيلها و أنهاها بقوله أشبعتهم شتما
و فازوا بالإبل. و هو هنا يحاول أن يوحي بنوع من التعادل في النتيجة بينه و
بين اللصوص.

The proverb is used in contexts where a loser twists a story, presents it
in such a way to give the impression that he hasn't lost (despite the
futile actions he performed). So, in the story above, the 'a3rabi is
attacked by thieves who stole the camels under his guardianship; when he
returned to his tribe, without the camels, he told the story of how they
were stolen and finished it by saying, “I gave the thieves what they
deserved of scolding … and they won the camels”;  thus giving the
impression that it was ‘fair play’, he was not useless.

If more clarification needed let me know.

Dr Enam Al-Wer
Senior Lecturer
Department of Language and Linguistics
University of Essex
Wivenhoe Park
Colchester
Essex CO4 3SQ
Tel: +44 (0)1206 872240

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3)
Date: 26 Feb 2014
From: md ta <mdta-2004 at hotmail.com>
Subject: Proverb explanation

لقد أشبعتم شتماً وفازوا بالإبل
They insult you then they got the camels.

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4)
Date: 26 Feb 2014
From: laila lamani <lamanilaila at hotmail.com>
Subject: Proverb explanation

It is a very old Arabic proverb used everywhere (fusha not aamiya). There
is a story behind it.  The proverb is used when somebody looses everything
but still pretends to have won out of ego.

Also, the original version of the proverb is أوسعتهم شتما و فازوا بالابل (I
used many words to insult them but they won the camels).

Laila lamani

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5)
Date: 26 Feb 2014
From: vt <samilati at yahoo.com>
Subject: Proverb explanation

Hi All,

The proverb is widely used and in Iraq they say: أشبعتهم شتماوذهبوا بالإبل

In all
cases, the proverb means that "you won in the cursing game but you lost
the real material asset, your camels, which your enemies have taken away
from
you (while you were busy cursing).”

Best
regards,

Samir
Amin Abdellatif, PhD
Cairo
University
samilati at yahoo.com

الزملاء الاعزاء

المثل يستخدم في العراق
ولكن في صياغة مختلفة وربما تكون الاصح وهي

أشبعتهم شتماوذهبوا بالإبل

وسواء في
الصيغتين الاردنية اوالعراقية فالمعنى هو انك فزت في السباب على كثرته ولكنهم
فازوا بالغنيمة الكبرى. فالسباب لا يضر ولكن عدوك فاز بالابل وذهب بها

تحياتي

دكتور سميرمحمد
امين عبداللطيف
 جامعة القاهرة كلية الآداب samilati at yahoo.com

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6)
Date: 26 Feb 2014
From: Nesreen Morris <nesreenmorris at yahoo.com>
Subject: Proverb explanation

The proverb is:

"لقد اشبعتهم شتما وفازوا بالإبل"

It is used to imply that all what someone did is cursed and created a fuss
about the issue, but the ones been attacked did not get impacted; they won
and took away the spoils.  The literal transition is : You saturated them
with your curses, but they won the camels.

~Nesreen


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