اهل کجایی؟
ahle kojaee?
In Persian, "where are you from?" is expressed as اهل کجایی؟ (ahle kojaee?).
This phrase is used to ask a person about their nationality or their place of origin.
Which one should you use?
You should use اهل کجایید؟ instead if you want to be more polite or if you are addressing more than one person.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
اهل کجایی؟ is an informal version suitable for use with friends or people of a similar age or status. For a polite or formal tone, use اهل کجایید؟. Alternatively, a very formal way to express this is Man mikhwaham bedanam az kodam mamlakat hastid, which means "I would like to know which country you are from."
How does it change in a sentence?
In the form اهل کجایی؟, the suffix -ی (-ee) at the end of کجایی is the second-person singular informal verb ending for "to be".
How do you pronounce it?
ahle kojaee?
Did you know?
- The word اهل is used not only for nationality but also to describe a person's expertise or habits. For example, saying someone is اهل of a certain activity means they are 'fond of' or 'into' that thing.
- The word اهل is borrowed from the Arabic word for 'family' or 'people of a house'.
- When answering اهل کجایی؟, Iranians may use اصالتاً (originally) to distinguish between where their ancestors are from and where they currently live, as internal migration is common.
Examples in context
- راستی، تو اهل کجایی؟rāsti, to ahl-e kojāyi?By the way, where are you from?
- می‌خواستم بپرسم اهل کجایی؟mikhāstam beporsam ahl-e kojāyi?I wanted to ask where you are from.
Example conversation
Two people meet for the first time at a party.
- محمد Mohammadسلام زهرا، من محمد هستم. اهل کجایی؟Salam Zahra, man Mohammad hastam. Ahle kojayi?Hello Zahra, I am Mohammad. Where are you from?
- زهرا Zahraسلام محمد. من اهل شیراز هستم.Salam Mohammad. Man ahle Shiraz hastam.Hello Mohammad. I am from Shiraz.
- محمد Mohammadچه جالب! من هم از آنجا هستم.Che jaleb! Man ham az anja hastam.How interesting! I am from there too.
- زهرا Zahraواقعاً؟ خیلی خوشحالم!Vaghean? Kheyli khoshhalam!Really? I am very happy!
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries اهل, CC BY-SA 4.0.
