Describing Yourself

Lesson objective

By the end of this lesson, you will be able to:

• ask and answer questions about nationality
• say where you come from
• talk about cities and states
• ask and answer questions about age
• talk about marital status
• say whether someone is a tourist
• use simple personal information in a conversation

Cultural points

Some personal questions can be sensitive in Morocco. Avoid asking people directly about their salary. Questions about age can also be sensitive, especially when speaking with women.

Men should avoid asking another person about his wife or other female family members — this could be understood as showing inappropriate interest. People may not always talk about their work or private concerns unless they are asked, and religion can also be a sensitive subject that some people prefer not to discuss.

Asking where someone comes from

Saying where you come from

Talking about nationality

The ending -iya is used for the feminine form.

Asking “Are you…?”

Asking about a city or place

Place vocabulary

The words mdina and wilaya are feminine, so the feminine adjective forms kbira and ṣġira are used with them.

Useful personal expressions

Marital status

Tourist and work

Dialogue

English meaning: Fatima and Tom greet each other, and Fatima asks if Tom is French. He explains he’s American, from Seattle, Washington, while Fatima is from Rabat. They exchange ages, ask about marital status, and Tom explains he works with Darija Academy rather than being a tourist, before saying goodbye.

Dialogue exercise

Complete the missing parts of a conversation by using the expressions from this lesson. The conversation should include:

• a greeting
• asking someone’s name
• asking whether the person is American
• asking where the person comes from
• saying goodbye