شلونك؟
shlōnak?to a man, Kuwait
In Kuwaiti Arabic, ask a man شلونك؟ (shlōnak?) and a woman شلونج؟ (shlōnich?). Both mean "how are you?" شخبارك؟ (shakhbārak?), "what is your news?", is another common Gulf question.
Meaning: question asking about well-being (phrase)
Ways to say it
| Arabic | Romanization | Note |
|---|---|---|
| شلونك؟ | shlōnak? | to a man, Kuwait |
| شلونج؟ | shlōnich? | to a woman, Kuwait |
| شخبارك؟ | shakhbārak? | to a man, Gulf |
The common answer is الحمد لله، تمام (al-ḥamdu lillāh, tamām), "fine, thank God", or بخير (bi-khayr), "well".
Is it said differently in some regions?
The woman's ending -ج (-ich) is typical of Kuwaiti and Gulf speech, where standard Arabic would say -كِ (-ki).
Did you know?
- شلون (shlōn) comes from older أي شيء لون (ay shay lawn), roughly "what kind of", and is used across Kuwait, Iraq and the Gulf.
Examples in context
- شلونك يا خالد؟shlōnak yā Khālid?How are you, Khaled?
- شلونج اليوم؟shlōnich al-yawm?How are you today? (to a woman)
Example conversation
Dalal meets her friend Hessa at the cooperative market in Kuwait City.
- Dalalهلا حصة، شلونج؟Hala Ḥiṣṣa, shlōnich?Hi Hessa, how are you?
- Hessaالحمد لله، شلونج إنتي؟Al-ḥamdu lillāh, shlōnich inti?Fine, thank God, how are you?
- Dalalبخير، شكراً.Bi-khayr, shukran.Well, thanks.
