Haram: Not permitted, not allowed, sinful…
In Saudi a lot of things are haram. Alcohol is haram. Pork is haram. Being alone with a member of the opposite sex who is not a relative is haram. Some people say smoking is also haram.
In Riyadh they actually have a chain of superstores called “Al Haram”. I drove past one the other night and it was absolutely packed. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that it’s the store where I can pick up some beer and bacon, but somehow I doubt it….
Dear Margrave,
ReplyDeleteI doubt that the usage of Al- Haram in this case applies to the meaning haram = forbidden. The word in Arabic might actually be Al Haram = The Pyramids or Al Haram = The holy mosque in Mecca (all of them have different spelling in Arabic). Your point is well taken though, after all, we have many harams in Saudi!
Nice blog btw! Best of luck.
Aya, thanks for visiting the blog and thanks for clearing up my dodgy Arabic!
ReplyDeleteI guess I am allowed to have some wishful thinking.
Enjoy the US!
Actually, it's 'Al-Haram' meaning 'The Pyramid'. It's the equivalent of Walmart...wiat, your English, not American.
ReplyDeleteForbidden is 'Haraam' with out the 'Al-'.
Thanks for letting me know AlMadi. I just hope that "The Pyramid" doesn't screw its suppliers and employees as much as Walmart does (allegedly!)
ReplyDeletei agree with aya.
ReplyDelete