# Translation, please! (Arabic)

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/translation-please-arabic/30541>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [August 24, 2000, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/translation-please-arabic/30541 "2000-08-24T02:19:24Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\
**Post date:** [August 24, 2000, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/translation-please-arabic/30541/1 "2000-08-24T02:19:24Z")

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What does the word ‘Mujahidin’ mean? Is it a word, or just a name? (I used the AP spelling. I hope that’s pretty standard.)

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**Author:** ![2sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/2/e47774/32.png) [@2sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/2sense)\
**Post date:** [August 24, 2000, 6:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/translation-please-arabic/30541/2 "2000-08-24T06:02:03Z")

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_Mujahidin_ means “people of the jihad” or “crusaders”.  
Note that the Arabic _In_ ( pronounced and sometimes spelled in English as _een_ ) is a plural noun meaning “people”.  
_Bedouin_ ( people of the desert ) was assimilated incorrectly into English as singular.  
I am not sure if Mujahidin is also (mis)used in English to refer to a single crusader.

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**Author:** ![Jorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9fc29f/32.png) [@Jorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jorge)\
**Post date:** [August 24, 2000, 8:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/translation-please-arabic/30541/3 "2000-08-24T08:08:18Z")

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Correct, but the bit about Bedouin being mis-translated ? I thought _Bedouin_ wasn’t really singular, but represented the collective, as in He is [a] Bedouin, or Nez  
Perce, etc… I’ve never seen anyone refer to Bedouins.

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**Author:** ![bibliophage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bibliophage/32/7615_2.png) [@bibliophage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bibliophage)\
**Post date:** [August 24, 2000, 10:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/translation-please-arabic/30541/4 "2000-08-24T10:36:59Z")

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From the **New Shorter Oxford English Dictionary**

> [@](#):
>
> **mujahidin** _n. pl._ Also **-hedin, -deen**. [Pers., Arab. \*mujahidin \* colloq. pl. of _mujahid_ a person who fights a jihad.] Guerilla fighters in an Islamic country, esp. as supporting the cause of Islam.

This is the word that Ronald Reagan used to refer to the guerillas who fought against Soviet forces in Afghanistan in the 1980s.

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**Author:** ![2sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/2/e47774/32.png) [@2sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/2sense)\
**Post date:** [August 24, 2000, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/translation-please-arabic/30541/5 "2000-08-24T22:06:51Z")

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I was surprised that I got to answer. My knowledge of Arabic is nonexistent.  
I do know that “He is a bedouin” would be improper in that language, unlike in English.  
I do not know if “He is Bedouin” would be proper in Arabic. To use the example of the OP:  
The plural is “mujahidin” (_mujAhidIn_) and the singular is “mujahid” (_mujAhid_).