‘Hafla’: the Arabic word for party also means to care

There are usually two reason to throw a party – to have fun and to celebrate an achievement. Hafla, this week’s Arabic Word of the Week, encompasses those two reasons into its meaning and so much more.

Hafla is a noun that colloquially means party and has two official plural variations, hafalat and haflat, which are each used depending on the grammatical context of the sentence. In classical Arabic, hafla’s main definition is a celebration but it also refers to decorations one would use at a party.

Derived from the three Arabic letters hah, fah, and lam, hafla roots originates from the verb hafala. Interestingly, hafala has several meanings that are linked to the idea of a party. The first meaning is the act of considering or caring for a person, cause, or an anniversary of any form.

The second meaning is the coming together of, or the combination of different elements or materials. For example, mixing flour and water when baking, when clouds join together before it rains, or when people gather in one place.

Hafla combines those two reasons in a particular way. It is the celebration of someone or something that is deserving of care and attention, while gathering a group of people together. It’s important to note that the particular element of caring is an important thread within the word hafla. One wouldn’t have a party unless they truly cared about the reason behind the celebration.

The word hafla is also often used to describe various types of parties. Hafla tarheebeyya is a welcoming party for any guest, haflat ta'abeen is a memorial party, hafla khayriyya is a charity party, hafla deeniyya is party within the context of faith and hafla cinema’eyya is a film premier or festival.

There are other words associated with hafla that describe a facet of a gathering or a celebration. There is al muh'tafeloun which refers to a group of people meeting or marching for a specific reason. Ihtifal is a noun that means celebration, while mahfal describes any place where the celebration is occurring.