More Than One Way to Say 'I love You' in Arabic

posted on: Feb 10, 2010

With Valentine’s Day in the loom, people all over the country are looking for ways to show their love, perhaps with a beautiful bouquet of roses or a box of assorted chocolates. While in the Middle East no such holiday or tradition exists, for centuries Arabs have expressed their love through poetry, music, and oratory–finding more than one way to say ‘I Love You’ in Arabic.

Themes of love in Arabic literature date all the way back to the 6th century. Due to both a vast history and rich vocabulary, the Arabic language allowed for a wide variety of expressions, dense with similes and metaphors. And as a result, poetry became a very emotional pastime for Arabs— often communicating an intensely passionate account of the poet.

Dr. Khaled Mattawa, Professor of Creative Writing at the University of Michigan, notes that “All early Arabic poetry made mention of love. If fact, as a poet, you could not begin a poem without referencing love. Without showing that you have experienced love’s joys and pains” he says “you had no credibility as a poet in that time.”

Stemming from poetry is its informal counterpart, Arabic music—a conduit which is responsible for encouraging the equally deep reflection and vocalization of love in modern day. “Arabs are very expressive, very affectionate people, especially in music; yet, they are traditional in that they always place that rhetoric in the framework of marriage,” says Dr. Mattawa.

Due to the Middle East’s generally conservative nature, Arabs used affectionate phrases to communicate love, as the culture never permitted modernized dating behavior. “They have always strongly believed in ‘love at first sight’. A man could go crazy upon first glance of seeing a particular woman, but he could only use his words to win her heart” says Medical graduate, Nancy Daoud.

It is this strong emphasis on rhetoric during courtship that helps maintain the female’s standing as a valuable part of the family. “When a guy opens his heart to a female, he is reminded of the importance of his mother and his sister. He knows he must love and respect her as he has seen his father do over the years and as he wishes for his sister” says Daoud.

While there is no designated Valentine’s holiday in the Middle East, Arabs have continued to convey and declare their love with each phrase, each poem, and each song that best describes their sentiments. Indeed, love is shared most powerfully through language, however no one has complained if that profession of love comes with a side of chocolates.

————
How to Say ‘I love you’ in Arabic- Use these Arabic expressions to let that someone special know you care this Valentine’s Day.

* All characters in parenthesis are used if speaking to a female

I love you- Ana bahibak(ik)

You are my life- Intee omoree

You are my soul- Intee rohee

You are my heart- Intee albee

You are the hope of my life- Intee amal hayatee

You are prettier than the moon- Intee ahla min el amar

You are the light of my eyes- Intee noor ainee

You are the love of my heart- Intee Habib(t) albee

I’m crazy about you- Ana ba jin alaik(ee)

I love you more than the stars in the sky-Bahibak(ik) aktar min injoom il sama