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Kohl-lined eyes
This post is part of the A to Z Challenge. My theme for the month is A to Z of words in English with an Arabic origin. Way before MAC and Maybelline were in trend in the West, Eastern women used to line their shapely beautiful eyes with black Kohl. To this day, Kohl remains a cosmetic necessity in many Eastern cultures. Kohl is usually applied with the help of a stick and requires practice. What is your favourite part of eye-make up?
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Jasmine and South Indian weddings
This post is part of the A to Z Challenge. My theme for the month is A to Z of words in English with an Arabic origin. Another post about unique aspects of wedding in my culture (Kerala, South India) is the jasmine garland and jasmine braids on hair worn by the bride. Little girls await eagerly for weddings so that they too can wear the “poovu – mala” (flower chain). Fun fact : Another word with ‘J’ with an Arabic origin is “Jinn”. Thought I will mention this due to the recent release of the movie by the same name.
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I is for Imam
This post is part of the A to Z Challenge. My theme for the month is A to Z of words in English with an Arabic origin. You might have most often come across titles such as Imam and Shaykh when referring to Muslim Scholars. An Imam is a Muslim spiritual leader or the person who leads the prayer in congregation in a mosque or an honorific title applied to eminent doctors of Islam, such as the founders of the orthodox schools. One of the unique aspects about Arabic is it’s well-ordered grammatical system and derivation based morphology of words. Read more here.
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Henna and weddings !
This post is part of the A to Z Challenge. My theme for the month is A to Z of words in English with an Arabic origin. In Desi and Arab cultures, before the wedding, the bride’s hands and feet are often coloured and beautifully decorated with exquisite Henna designs. Children and ladies adorn their hands during festivals and other celebrations too. What is unique about wedding celebrations in your culture/country?
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G is for Giraffe
This post is part of the A to Z Challenge. My theme for the month is A to Z of words in English with an Arabic origin. It looks like it’s an animal week for me. The long-necked Giraffe is always a favourite for the children while at the zoo. How has the A to Z Challenge been so far?
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Fox, firefox and fennec
This post is part of the A to Z Challenge. My theme for the month is A to Z of words in English with an Arabic origin. I begin this week by introducing a cute furry fox, commonly called as the fennec – a nocturnal fox found in the deserts of Sahara. Or better still, we would know ‘fennec’ as the code name of the Mozilla Firefox for Mobile web browser !
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Elixir of life
This post is part of the A to Z Challenge. My theme for the month is A to Z of words in English with an Arabic origin. Paulo Coelho is one of the contemporary writers who has introduced Arabic words like Maktoob and Zahir to the mainstream English readers. Yet, there is a common English word, used in the book ‘The Alchemist’ which too has an Arabic origin. Any guesses? Opinions on the book ‘The Alchemist’?
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Arabic and Anatomy – Dura mater
This post is part of the A to Z Challenge. My theme for the month is A to Z of words in English with an Arabic origin. I loved memorizing the names of different parts of brain during my first year Anatomy class in college. Cerebrum, cerebellum and Medulla Oblongata. Or the three layers of meninges – Dura mater, Pia mater and Arachnoid. I felt they had a musical twist to it while reading it loudly, in an effort to memorize all these new words for the first time ! Guess which of those names have an Arabic connection to them? Any interesting first day of Anatomy-dissection-class stories ?
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Coffee in a nutshell
This post is part of the A to Z Challenge. My theme for the month is A to Z of words in English with an Arabic origin Only in the Arab world can you see a Starbucks Coffee and a Qahwa joint in the same street. Rarely, do we realize the underlying connection between both the Eastern and Western word and worlds. What is your morning drink? Tea, Coffee or none? I leave you with this still from Gilmore Girls. Lorelai Gilmore and her famous love for coffee ! (This month will fly. I am sure. Already the third day of the A to Z Challenge. How are you people…
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Bezoar of Harry Potter fame
This post is part of the A to Z Challenge. My theme for the month is A to Z of words in English with an Arabic origin Along with Harry, Hermione and Ron, every Harry Potter fan too would have learnt about the “Bezoar” in the first year Potion’s class. Did you know the word ‘Bezoar’ had an Arabic connection to it? We should learn the concept of coexistence from languages – Every language is influenced by other languages across borders, culture and centuries. Did the Harry Potter books inspire you to get into the habit of reading as a teenager/young adult?
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The wor(l)d of Algebra
This post is part of the A to Z Challenge. My theme for the month is A to Z of words in English with an Arabic origin As a high schooler, what was your reaction on seeing (a+b)2 = a2+b2+2ab ? Algebra… some people love it, others detest it and yet others wonder about the connection between x, y and the real world. Let us look in to the origin of this word which denotes a fascinating branch of mathematics. What was your high school math experience like? Number freak or x, y hater? (The first post in the A to Z Challenge. Excited )
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A to Z Challenge – Theme Reveal
Somewhere in January, I signed up for A to Z Challenge in a heightened blogging frenzy. Now, I am in a tight spot if I should do this challenge or not. I am not a quitter so I want to stay true to my word, but at the same time I have my own qualms regarding the challenge. I am a typical introvert online and offline. Which means I find it hard to socialise/network with many people on a long basis. Since networking happens to be one of the aims of the A to Z challenge, I donot know how far I will actually keep up with that. At the…
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Calls Answered
I have never tossed a coin in a fountain and wished. I have never crossed my fingers and wished. I have never looked on a shooting star and wished. …..but, I have prayed to my Lord, with my eyes closed, and tears springing, in the wee hours of dawn to protect me from sadness and grief. I have prayed to my Rabb in the green carpeted Rawdah to remove the difficulties of my family and friends. I have prayed in front of the Kaabah for all my affairs to be set right and bless me with tranquility. I have prayed standing on the mount Safa to bless me with professional…