Indulgences

1. شيشة

   Shīsha

   Shisha (waterpipe)

   Usage

   A pipe that draws smoke from charcoal-heated flavoured tobacco through water. شيشة is the usual word in Egypt and the Gulf; you rent a pipe at a café (مقهى maqhā). ⚠ Indoor smoking rules vary by country and city — in Dubai and Riyadh it is often restricted to designated areas.

2. أرجيلة

   Arjīla

   Argileh (waterpipe, Levantine term)

   Usage

   In Lebanon, Syria, Jordan and Palestine the same waterpipe is called أرجيلة (also spelled أركيلة). In standard Arabic it is نارجيلة (nārjīla, from Persian nārgīl, "coconut"). شيشة is understood in the Levant, but shop signs normally read أرجيلة.

3. معسل

   Muʿassal

   Muassel (flavoured shisha tobacco)

   Usage

   Cut tobacco leaf worked with glycerine, molasses and flavourings, packed into the shisha bowl. At a café you order by flavour: تفاح (apple), نعناع (mint), عنب (grape), ليمون (lemon), فراولة (strawberry).

   Grammar Note

   معسل is a passive participle built on عسل (ʿasal, "honey") — literally "honeyed".

4. سيجارة

   Sījāra

   Cigarette

   Usage

   One is سيجارة, the plural is سجائر (sajāʾir), and a pack is علبة سجائر (ʿulbat sajāʾir). Egyptian dialect pronounces it سجارة (sigāra). Sold at kiosks (كشك kushk) and grocery shops.

5. تمر

   Tamr

   Dates

   Usage

   The most common gift and souvenir across the Arab world, sold by weight at specialist shops where you choose the variety: عجوة (ʿajwa, from Medina), خلاص (khalāṣ), صقعي (ṣuqʿī), مجدول (majdūl, Medjool). Always served alongside Arabic coffee.

   Grammar Note

   تمر is a collective noun for dates in general; a single date is تمرة (tamra) and several are تمرات (tamarāt). Fresh, unripened dates have their own word, رطب (ruṭab).

6. بخور

   Bakhūr

   Bakhoor (incense)

   Usage

   Aromatic material burned on charcoal or in an electric burner (مبخرة mibkhara). In the Gulf it is customary to perfume a room and one's clothes with it when receiving guests. Sold by weight at souq perfume shops.

7. عود

   ʿŪd

   Oud (agarwood)

   Usage

   Resin-saturated heartwood of Aquilaria trees — the most prized fragrance material in the Gulf. Burned as chips (عود) or sold as the oil دهن العود (duhn al-ʿūd). It is very expensive; a tola (about 12 ml) can run to hundreds of dollars.

   Grammar Note

   ⚠ عود is spelled identically to the lute of the same name. In a perfume shop it means agarwood; in a music shop or a musical context it means the instrument. The base meaning is simply "wood, stick".

8. ماء ورد

   Māʾ Ward

   Rose water

   Usage

   A by-product of distilling rose petals for perfume oil. Used to scent sweets (kunafa, baklava) and drinks, and sold as a cosmetic. Taif in Saudi Arabia and Kelaat M'Gouna in Morocco are the best-known sources.

9. دلة

   Dalla

   Dallah (Arabic coffee pot)

   Usage

   The long-spouted metal pot used to brew and pour Arabic coffee — a cultural emblem of the Arabian Peninsula, appearing on Saudi currency and insignia. Sold as a souvenir in souq copperware shops. The plural is دلال (dilāl).

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