Glossary entry (derived from question below)
Arabic term or phrase:
أخلع سوادي
English translation:
take off my black clothes
Added to glossary by
Abd Alrahman Almidani
Oct 30, 2021 20:18
2 yrs ago
19 viewers *
Arabic term
أخلع سوادي
Arabic to English
Art/Literary
Poetry & Literature
Hi everyone,
I'm working on a Syrian text, and I know this usually means 'blackness'. But I wasn't sure if it makes sense here.
It looks like the protagonist is afraid of being similar to another woman who is black. (it seems like the protagonist herself is also black)
مؤكّد أنّني لن أخلع سوادي لأفرّ من تشابه هيئاتنا الذي لفتت انتباهي إليه في آخر مرة لمحتها فيها ...
Thank you
I'm working on a Syrian text, and I know this usually means 'blackness'. But I wasn't sure if it makes sense here.
It looks like the protagonist is afraid of being similar to another woman who is black. (it seems like the protagonist herself is also black)
مؤكّد أنّني لن أخلع سوادي لأفرّ من تشابه هيئاتنا الذي لفتت انتباهي إليه في آخر مرة لمحتها فيها ...
Thank you
Proposed translations
(English)
| 4 +1 | take off my black clothes |
Abd Alrahman Almidani
|
| 4 | take off my black gown/outfit |
Saeed Najmi
|
| 4 | take off my Black color/get rid of… |
Youssef Chabat
|
Change log
Nov 1, 2021 18:19: Abd Alrahman Almidani Created KOG entry
Proposed translations
+1
6 mins
Abd Alrahman Almidani
Native in Arabic
Works in field
Sworn translator, MA in translation
Native in: Arabic (Variants: Syrian, Lebanese, Iraqi, UAE, Standard-Arabian (MSA), Palestinian, Sudanese, Egyptian, Jordanian, Saudi ) 
Works in: English to Arabic, Arabic to English
Related KudoZ points
:
145
Selected
take off my black clothes
Women in Syria who try to look pious usually wear black clothes. I believe she is speaking about her clothes.
3 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
Comment: "Thanks!"
21 mins
Saeed Najmi
Morocco
Morocco
Native in Arabic
Morocco
Juggling languages: a science and an art
Native in: Arabic (Variants: Moroccan, Standard-Arabian (MSA)) 
, French
Works in: English to Arabic, French to Arabic, Arabic to English, and 3 more.
Related KudoZ points
:
146
take off my black gown/outfit
The black color refers to the black gown عباية, a common attire in a lot of arab countries.
7 mins
Youssef Chabat
Morocco
Morocco
Native in Arabic
Morocco
A wordsmith at your disposal
Native in: Arabic (Variant: Standard-Arabian (MSA)) , French (Variant: Standard-France)
Works in: French to Arabic, English to Arabic, Arabic to French, and 6 more.
Related KudoZ points
:
94
take off my Black color/get rid of…
Blackness my suggest the meaning of being bad. Whereas we are talking about the look here.
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Note added at 23 mins (2021-10-30 20:41:32 GMT)
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لدينا هنا التاكيد على أنها لن تخلع سوادها، اي ان الامر لا يتعلق بالملابس بل بلون بشرتها كما اشارت اليه صالحة. كما انها تتحدث عن شبهها بشخص واحد لا بنساء تعودن لبس الاسود كوجه ثقافي للبلد.
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Note added at 26 mins (2021-10-30 20:44:31 GMT)
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I would suggest, if you’re not sure whether it’s about body color or clothing, to use the expression « take off/get rid of my black LOOK ». Look can be both about physical traits and clothing.
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Note added at 23 mins (2021-10-30 20:41:32 GMT)
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لدينا هنا التاكيد على أنها لن تخلع سوادها، اي ان الامر لا يتعلق بالملابس بل بلون بشرتها كما اشارت اليه صالحة. كما انها تتحدث عن شبهها بشخص واحد لا بنساء تعودن لبس الاسود كوجه ثقافي للبلد.
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Note added at 26 mins (2021-10-30 20:44:31 GMT)
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I would suggest, if you’re not sure whether it’s about body color or clothing, to use the expression « take off/get rid of my black LOOK ». Look can be both about physical traits and clothing.
Peer comment(s):
| neutral |
Milena Atanasova
: Unfortunately, "a black look" is an idiom meaning an expression full of anger or hate.
17 hrs
|
Discussion
Just a thought that occurs to me, and I'd like to share. To what extent, given your context, could the term سوادي be used for what it denotes rather than its referent? Sorry, but it is just bugging me.