Rabat - It looks normal to hear Moroccans speak standard Arabic, French English or other foreign language because most of these languages are being taught in Moroccan schools.
Rabat – It looks normal to hear Moroccans speak standard Arabic, French English or other foreign language because most of these languages are being taught in Moroccan schools.
Yet, to hear a foreigner speaks Moroccan Darija, a Moroccan Arabic dialect, is somehow funny and challenging at the same time for the sole reason that the only way to learn Moroccan Darija is through the integration into the Moroccan society.
The following video shows a conversation in Moroccan Darija between a Moroccan and an American, who used to live in Morocco.
Here is the English transcript of the conversation.
American man: “I was in the camp and I did not do anything. I was just sitting with nothing to do”
Moroccan interviewer: What city in Morocco have you been to?
American man: “I was in a countryside near Khenifra [a town] called Moulay Bou Azza, and I worked there in Dar Shabab, a youth center.”
Moroccan interviewer: Good, were you helping youth and working with them?
American man: “Yes, I was teaching them, and I helped them create clubs…. I did all.”
Moroccan interviewer: Were you good at cooking? Did you learn how to cook?
American man: “I learned a little but not in the Moroccan way”
Moroccan interviewer: Now that you are here in USA, what do you miss more from Morocco?
American man: “Food. Also fruits. Moroccan fruits are very delicious. Here in USA, we have bad quality fruits.”
Moroccan interviewer: Now what do you do for a living?
American man: “I am working with a company that operates in countries’ development”
Moroccan interviewer: Did you learn from your experience in Morocco?
American man: “Of course, I learned to do many methods of development that I learned there in Morocco. Now that I am here, I am able to work well.”
