Levantine Arabic Pronouns: I, You, He, She, We, They

Levantine Arabic has eight personal pronouns. English "you" splits into three: one for a man, one for a woman and one for a group.

The pronouns

You'll hear some regional variation: i7na for "we" in Palestine and Jordan, humme or hum for "they", and huwwa / hiyya in Syria. All are understood everywhere.

No verb "to be" in the present

Put the pronoun next to the description. Nothing goes in between.

• أنا من الشامana min ish-shaamI'm from Damascus.
• إنتِ تعبانة؟inti ta3baane?Are you (f) tired?
• هنّي بالبيتhinne bil-beitThey're at home.

You can usually drop the pronoun

The verb already shows who is doing it, so the pronoun is optional. Adding it gives emphasis.

• بحب القهوةb7ebb il-2ahweI love coffee.
• أنا بحب القهوة، هوّي بيحب الشايana b7ebb il-2ahwe, huwwe bi7ebb ish-shaayI love coffee; he loves tea.