阿拉

More information I, me, plural marker ...

Etymology 1

Originally Ningbonese. Due to an influx of migrants from Ningbo to Shanghai, this has supplanted the original Shanghainese 我伲 or 伲.

阿 is from 我 (MC ngaX, “I; me”). 拉 is a plural marker, also seen in 伊拉 (“they; them”).

Pronunciation

Mandarin
(Pinyin): ālā

(Zhuyin): ㄚㄌㄚ
Cantonese (Jyutping): aa³ laa¹
Wu (Northern, Wugniu): ⁷aq-laq₈; ⁷aq-la₆ / ⁷aq-⁰laq₈

Mandarin
- (Standard Chinese)⁺
  - Hanyu Pinyin: ālā
  - Zhuyin: ㄚㄌㄚ
  - Tongyong Pinyin: ala
  - Wade–Giles: a¹-la¹
  - Yale: ā-lā
  - Gwoyeu Romatzyh: alha
  - Palladius: ала (ala)
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /ˀä⁵⁵ lä⁵⁵/
Cantonese
- (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
  - Jyutping: aa³ laa¹
  - Yale: a lā
  - Cantonese Pinyin: aa³ laa¹
  - Guangdong Romanization: a³ la¹
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /aː³³ laː⁵⁵/
Wu
- (Northern: Shanghai)
  - Wugniu: ⁷aq-laq₈; ⁷aq-la₆
  - MiniDict: ah^入 lah^入; ah^入 la^去
  - Wiktionary Romanisation (Shanghai): ⁴aq-laq₅; ⁴aq-la₃
  - Sinological IPA (Shanghai): /aʔ³³ laʔ⁴⁴/, /aʔ³³ la⁴⁴/
- (Northern: Ningbo)
  - Wugniu: ⁷aq-⁰laq₈
  - MiniDict: ah^入 lah^入
  - Sinological IPA (Ningbo): /ɐʔ³³ lɐʔ³⁴/

Pronoun

阿拉 (chiefly Wu, including Ningbonese and Shanghainese)

we; us
阿拉上海人是吃咖啡長大個。 [Shanghainese, trad.]
阿拉上海人是吃咖啡长大个。 [Shanghainese, simp.]
⁷aq-la ⁶zaon-he-gnin ⁶zy ⁷chiq ¹kha-fi ⁵tsan ⁶du ⁰gheq [Wugniu]
We Shanghainese grew up drinking coffee.

阿拉兩個人是好朋友。 [Shanghainese, trad.]
阿拉两个人是好朋友。 [Shanghainese, simp.]
⁷aq-la ⁶lian-gheq ⁶gnin ⁶zy ⁵hau-ban-yeu [Wugniu]
The two of us are good friends.
I; me
儂勿講道理，阿拉勿睬儂！ [Shanghainese, trad.]
侬勿讲道理，阿拉勿睬侬！ [Shanghainese, simp.]
⁶non ⁶veq₈-kaon ⁶dau-li ⁷aq-la ⁶veq₈-tshe ⁶non [Wugniu]
You are being unreasonable; I’m not talking to you anymore. [cute-sounding]
- 1976, “追求三部曲”, in 半斤八兩 (“The Private Eyes”), performed by 許冠傑 [Sam Hui]:
  
  實在阿拉面懵兼心精 [Cantonese, trad.]
  实在阿拉面懵兼心精 [Cantonese, simp.]
  sat⁶ zoi⁶ aa³ laa¹ min⁶ mung² gim¹ sam¹ zeng¹ [Jyutping]
  Frankly I was playing the fool
- 2022 April 25, ““阿拉是上海女儿！”来自邵阿姨的守护”, in 人民网 [People's Daily]‎:
  
  「阿拉是上海女兒！我要展示真實的上海」 [MSC, trad.]
  「阿拉是上海女儿！我要展示真实的上海」 [MSC, simp.]
  “Ālā shì Shànghǎi nǚ'ér! Wǒ yào zhǎnshì zhēnshí de Shànghǎi” [Pinyin]
  "I'm a Shanghainese woman! I want to display the true Shanghai"
  
  「阿拉從小生在上海，後來移居澳門，在外住了四十年。[…]」 [MSC, trad.]
  「阿拉从小生在上海，后来移居澳门，在外住了四十年。[…]」 [MSC, simp.]
  “Ālā cóngxiǎo shēng zài Shànghǎi, hòulái yíjū Àomén, zàiwài zhù le sìshí nián. [... ]” [Pinyin]
  "From youth I was born in Shanghai. Later I moved to Macau, and lived there for 40 years. […] "

Synonyms

Dialectal synonyms of 我們 (“we; us (exclusive or no distinction of clusivity)”) [map]

More information Variety, Location ...

Dialectal synonyms of 我 (“I”) [map]

More information Variety, Location ...

Etymology 2

More information phonetic ...

Borrowed from Arabic اللّٰه (allāh).

Pronunciation

Mandarin
(Pinyin): Ālā

(Zhuyin): ㄚㄌㄚ
Cantonese (Jyutping): aa³ laa¹
Hakka (Sixian, PFS): Â-lâ / A-la
Southern Min (Hokkien, POJ): A-la / A-la̍h

Mandarin
- (Standard Chinese)⁺
  - Hanyu Pinyin: Ālā
  - Zhuyin: ㄚㄌㄚ
  - Tongyong Pinyin: Ala
  - Wade–Giles: A¹-la¹
  - Yale: Ā-lā
  - Gwoyeu Romatzyh: Alha
  - Palladius: Ала (Ala)
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /ˀä⁵⁵ lä⁵⁵/
Cantonese
- (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
  - Jyutping: aa³ laa¹
  - Yale: a lā
  - Cantonese Pinyin: aa³ laa¹
  - Guangdong Romanization: a³ la¹
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /aː³³ laː⁵⁵/
Hakka
- (Sixian, incl. Miaoli and Neipu)
  - Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: Â-lâ / A-la
  - Hakka Romanization System: a^ˊ la^ˊ / a la
  - Hagfa Pinyim: a¹ la¹ / a⁴ la⁴
  - Sinological IPA: /a²⁴⁻¹¹ la²⁴/, /a⁵⁵ la⁵⁵/
Southern Min
- (Hokkien: General Taiwanese)
  - Pe̍h-ōe-jī: A-la
  - Tâi-lô: A-la
  - Phofsit Daibuun: alaf
  - IPA (Taipei, Kaohsiung): /a⁴⁴⁻³³ la⁴⁴/
- (Hokkien: General Taiwanese)
  - Pe̍h-ōe-jī: A-la̍h
  - Tâi-lô: A-la̍h
  - Phofsit Daibuun: alah
  - IPA (Taipei, Kaohsiung): /a⁴⁴⁻³³ laʔ⁴/

Proper noun

阿拉

Allah

Synonyms

Dialectal synonyms of 安拉 (“Allah”) [map]

More information Variety, Location ...

References

漢語多功能字庫 (Multi-function Chinese Character Database)‎, 香港中文大學 (the Chinese University of Hong Kong), 2014–

Variety	Location	Words edit
Formal (Written Standard Chinese)		真主
Northeastern Mandarin	Taiwan	阿拉, 真主
	Malaysia	真主, 阿拉
	Singapore	真主, 阿拉
Central Plains Mandarin	Xining	胡達
Central Plains Mandarin	Sokuluk (Gansu Dungan)	胡達, 真主, 安拉, 安拉訇
Lanyin Mandarin	Yinchuan	安拉, 真主, 為主的, 胡達
Lanyin Mandarin	Ürümqi	胡達
Cantonese	Hong Kong	阿拉, 真主
Hakka	Miaoli (N. Sixian)	阿拉, 真主
	Pingtung (Neipu; S. Sixian)	阿拉, 真主
	Hsinchu County (Zhudong; Hailu)	阿拉, 真主
	Taichung (Dongshi; Dabu)	阿拉, 真主
	Hsinchu County (Qionglin; Raoping)	阿拉, 真主
	Yunlin (Lunbei; Zhao'an)	阿拉, 真主
Southern Min	Xiamen	真主

Chinese

Etymology 1

Pronunciation

Pronoun

Synonyms

Etymology 2

Pronunciation

Proper noun

Synonyms

References