The Word Khawega  (خواجة) in Egyptian Arabic : How To Use It

Today we are talking about the word khawega  (خواجة) in Egyptian Arabic.

This word is an awesome word to know, and if you’re learning Egyptian Arabic, you’ve likely heard it a few times yourself!

Let’s get started!

The Word Khawega  (خواجة ): Where It Comes From and What It Means

The word Khawega  ( خواجة ) is a unique Egyptian Arabic word that has similar variations in other Arabic dialects.

While people use the word widely in the Middle East, it originally comes from the Persian word khawaja. The word originally meant “master” or “lord: in New Persian, but it somehow got altered to mean a foreigner.  

Back in the early and mid 1900s, people use the word khawega to refer to a white businessman coming to the country to invest and settle in the country. The locals would call that person elkhawega, followed by his name. An example would be Elkhawaga Groppi (the Swiss guy who built Groppi Coffee-shops in downtown back in the late 1800’s).

Today it basically means any foreigner or expat (usually used to refer to male Europeans or Americans, and is not commonly used to refer to women or people of African/Asian descent). Check out our “cultural insight” at the end of the post for our own interpretations of what the word actually means.

The Word Khawega (خواجة ): Different Ways to Use It

While the word khawega has one basic meaning, there are a few different ways to use it. 13

They are:

1. Referring to any actual foreigner (might be more used by older people)
2. Referring to an Egyptian who looks or acts like Europeans (jokingly)
3. Referring to your foreigner friend who blends perfectly in the Egyptian Culture.

The Word Khawega: Example Phrases

Here are a few examples of the word khawega in action.

Some of them have more than one line so you can see the context, while some stand on their own.

1) Dude, you are such a khawega!: ya m3alem enta khawaga awy!

!يا معلم..انت خواجة قوي

2) You are learning Arabic? What a khawega! : enta btet3lm 3arabi? danta khawaga awy.

.انت بتتعلم عربي؟ انت خواجة قوي

Speak other languages too?

Here’s how you talk about languages in Egyptian Arabic.

3) People say I am a khawega because my Arabic is good with a noticeable accent. : elnas bt2ol 3alia khawaga 3lshan el3arabi bta3i kwaiss awy w blakna wa7da.

.الناس بتقول عليا خواجة علشان العربي بتاعي كويس وبلكنة واضحة

4) A khawega is a foreigner that acts like he is Egyptian. : elkhwaga hwa agnabi bytsraf 3ala eno masri.

.الخواجة هو اجنبي بيتصرف على انه مصري

Here is an interesting article about “dealing with Egyptians.”

Good information if you are a khawega.

5) Have you ever been called a khawega (Lit. Your life somebody told to you khawega)? : 3omrak 7ad 2alk 3alek khawaga?

عمرك حد قال عليك خواجة؟ 

Yes of course! : aywa tab3an!

.ايوه طبعا

6) What does a khawega do? : elkhwaga by3ml eh?

.الخواجة بيعمل ايه

He does things like the Egyptians, but is a foreigner (Lit. He does like Egyptians but foreigner). : by3ml zai elmasryeen bas agnabi.

.بيعمل زي المصريين بس اجنبي

And what are some of the most important things you need to know how to do as a khawega?

• How to Order Ahwa in Egyptian Arabic
• How to Smoke Shisha in Egyptian Arabic
• How to Order Koshary in Egyptian Arabic 

7) Do you know any khawega in your life? : te3raf ay khawaga f 7yatak?

تعرف اي خواجة في حياتك؟

Eric the khawaga. : elkhawaga Eric.

.الخواجة ايريك

Humble brag.

8) Do you know if Omar got married or not? : te3raf omar etgawez wala la2?

تعرف عمر اتجوز ولا لا؟

Yes he got married to a (female) khawaga from Russia when he was in Sharm (El-Sheikh). : ah etgawez, etgawez hetet khawagaia mn rosiya lama kan f sharm.

.اه اتجوز حتة خواجاية من روسيا لما كان في شرم

Check out our post on using the word “7etta” (حتة) in Egyptian Arabic.

It’s a weird word, that’s for sure!

Cultural Insight

Our thoughts on the word khawega:

Tarek: As an Egyptian, I think the word khawega is not commonly used any more, it has a complicated history and background as Egyptians used it to refer to “The European wealthy white man”, and knowing the original meaning of the word “Master or Lord”, it tells you a lot about how Egyptians back in the days perceived the European culture.

Nowadays its used more to compliment your foreigner friends.

Eric: As a foreigner who learned Egyptian Arabic, being called khawega was always a source of pride for me. And the better my Egyptian Arabic got and the more I integrated into Egyptian culture, the more I got called it.

I really like the word, and I think you should usually be proud of yourself if an Egyptian uses the word to describe you.

You’ve probably worked hard to get to that point!

…

Happy learning,

Cleo Lingo