Dala’ona
(Dala'ona)

This page contains a translation into English of the lyrics to the popular song "Dal'ona", which was sung by the Lebanese vocalist Nawal el-Zoughbi. Also included is a transliteration of the Arabic lyrics into the Roman alphabet so you can sing along if you like.

The vocalist's name is sometimes spelled as "Nawal Elzoghbi", "Nawal Alzoughbi", "Nawal el-Zoughby" or "Nawal al Zoghbi".

Nawal al-Zoughbi was born in Beirut, Lebanon. Despite the civil war that erupted in Lebanon during her teen-age years, she dreamed of a career as a singer. At first her family was skeptical about her chosen vocation, but once it became clear how serious she was about it, they supported her in pursuing the dream. She released her debut album Wehyat Andak in 1992 upon her return to Lebanon following a 2-year stint working as a singer in the Gulf.

Lyrics: Marwan Khouri
Music: Marwan Khouri

About Dalona

Dalona is a popular style of song found in Syria, Lebanon, and Palestine. It has four verses of poetry in which the first three have similar endings and the fourth usually ends with a sound, such as "oana".

Listen to MP3 Clips of this Song

Sung by Nawal al-Zoughbi

Lyrics

Arabic Lyrics	English Translation
Ma maa, mayy, mayy, ma ma ma	Ma maa, mayy, mayy, ma ma ma
Ma maa, mayy, mayy, ma ma ma	Ma maa, mayy, mayy, ma ma ma
Ma maa, mayy, mayy, ma ma ma	Ma maa, mayy, mayy, ma ma ma
Ma maa, mayy, mayy, ma ma ma	Ma maa, mayy, mayy, ma ma ma

A’ala dala’ona ghannili ishwayyaih, baa’dak ya rouhi bitfakair fiyyi	To the tune of Dala’ona, sing a little to me. You, my soul, are still thinking of me.
A’ala dala’ona ghannili ishwayyaih, baa’dak ya rouhi bitfakair fiyyi	To the tune of Dala’ona, sing a little to me. You, my soul, are still thinking of me.

Sawa shoo irkasna a’a hal-ghinniyyaih, iw-shoo kanait hilwaih elsahra iw-majnoonah.	To the tune of Dala’ona, sing a little to me. You, my soul, are still thinking of me.
Dala’ain, dala’ain a’ala dala’ona, hawaahom ghayyari illoana. Ma baddi eiy wallah, eiy wallah, habeebi asmari el-loana.	Dance, dance to the song Dala’ona. Their love changed the color. I don’t want, yes! Oh God, Yes! Oh God, my tanned darling.
Dala’ain, dala’ain a’ala dala’ona, hawaahom ghayyari illoana. Ma baddi eiy wallah, eiy wallah, habeebi asmari el-loana.	Dance, dance to the song Dala’ona. Their love changed the color. I don’t want, yes! Oh God, Yes! Oh God, my tanned darling.

Ma maa, mayy, mayy, ma ma ma	Ma maa, mayy, mayy, ma ma ma
Ma maa, mayy, mayy, ma ma ma	Ma maa, mayy, mayy, ma ma ma
Ma maa, mayy, mayy, ma ma ma	Ma maa, mayy, mayy, ma ma ma
Ma maa, mayy, mayy, ma ma ma	Ma maa, mayy, mayy, ma ma ma

A’ala dala’ona ya dill i-a’naadii. Baa’dak ya hawa bita’azaib fiyyi.	To the tunes of the Dala’ona, Oh my stubborness, you are still torturing me.
A’ala dala’ona ya dill i-a’naadii. Baa’dak ya hawa bita’azaib fiyyi.	To the tunes of the Dala’ona, Oh my stubborness, you are still torturing me.

Laou ma habbeiyna haak el-sayfiyaih, wala jabait a’aini ib-nazrah hanoona.	If we did not fall in love that summer and my eyes did not see a sincere glance.
Dala’ain, dala’ain a’ala dala’ona, hawaahom ghayyari illoana. Ma baddi eiy wallah, eiy wallah, habeebi asmari el-loana.	Dance, dance to the song Dala’ona. Their love changed the color. I don’t want, yes! Oh God, Yes! Oh God, my tanned darling.
Dala’ain, dala’ain a’ala dala’ona, hawaahom ghayyari illoana. Ma baddi eiy wallah, eiy wallah, habeebi asmari el-loana.	Dance, dance to the song Dala’ona. Their love changed the color. I don’t want, yes! Oh God, Yes! Oh God, my tanned darling.

Ma maa, mayy, mayy, ma ma ma	Ma maa, mayy, mayy, ma ma ma
Ma maa, mayy, mayy, ma ma ma	Ma maa, mayy, mayy, ma ma ma
Ma maa, mayy, mayy, ma ma ma	Ma maa, mayy, mayy, ma ma ma
Ma maa, mayy, mayy, ma ma ma	Ma maa, mayy, mayy, ma ma ma

A’ala dala’ona yaa a’ayni a’alayhom, rahoo iw-ya roe-hi, iw-ishtikna layhoum.	To the tune of the Dala’ona, how great they are. They went, Oh my soul and we miss them.
A’ala dala’ona yaa a’ayni a’alayhom, rahoo iw-ya roe-hi, iw-ishtikna layhoum.	To the tune of the Dala’ona, how great they are. They went, Oh my soul and we miss them.

Lamma a’a eddabkaih, ishbakna eydaihom, kanoo bilhawa hinnaih shabakoona.	When in the debke we crossed their hands, they had already netted us with their love.
Dala’ain, dala’ain a’ala dala’ona, hawaahom ghayyari illoana. Ma baddi eiy wallah, eiy wallah, habeebi asmari el-loana.	Dance, dance to the song Dala’ona. Their love changed the color. I don’t want, yes! Oh God, Yes! Oh God, my tanned darling.
Dala’ain, dala’ain a’ala dala’ona, hawaahom ghayyari illoana. Ma baddi eiy wallah, eiy wallah, habeebi asmari el-loana.	Dance, dance to the song Dala’ona. Their love changed the color. I don’t want, yes! Oh God, Yes! Oh God, my tanned darling.

Habeebi asmari el-loana.	My darling with the tanned skin.

Where to Get Recordings of this Song

Listen to Clip

Artist: Nawal el-Zoghbi
CD Title: Greatest Hits

Amazon Store:

Translations of
Nawal al-Zoughbi's Songs on This Site

About the Translator

More than 80 song translations that appear on this web site, including this one, were created by Tahseen Alkoudsi. Together with his wife Kathe, Tahseen owned an import business in Lawrence, Kansas known as Cartouche.

Sadly, Tahseen died on Sunday, October 15, 2006. See this link for his obituary.

To me, Tahseen was so much more than a contributor to my web site. Even though we lived far apart, I saw Tahseen and Kathe several times over the years. I always appreciated their warmth and generosity. I first "met" Tahseen online back in 1997 on the med-dance list on the Internet, where he periodically posted messages. I knew he was in Lawrence, Kansas, so when a business trip arose requiring me to travel to the Kansas City area, I emailed him to say I'd be in the neighborhood. He and Kathe came to Kansas City for an evening get-together at Tasso's restaurant, and they invited several local dancers to join us. I saw them on follow-up visits to Kansas City. They vended at Rakkasah for several years, and it was always a pleasure to greet them there in the anteroom off to the left of the main stage. I also enjoyed encountering them in Egypt at the Ahlan wa Sahlan festival.

Tahseen will be missed by many.

Dala’ona (Dala'ona)