Aziza is a Saharawi from Western Sahara, born in a refugee camp in Algeria.… Read Full Bio ↴Aziza is a Saharawi from Western Sahara, born in a refugee camp in Algeria. At the age of 11 Aziza received a schoolarship to study in Cuba where she spent seven years, before abandoning her studies in order to dedicate herself to music. She won the first prize in a national song competition in a cultural festival of the Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic - the self-proclaimed Saharawi state, exiled in the refugee camps and recognized by over 80 countries. Aziza did her first recordings for the Saharawi National Radio in the refugee camps and from there came her first tour outside the camps in Mauritania and Algeria as part of the National Saharawi Music Group. In 1998 the spanish record company Nubenegra publish the trilogy "Saharauis", including two songs from her. After that she made several tours with the National Saharawi Music Group "Leyuad" in Europe from 1998 to 2004. In 2005 she made her first experience mixing the traditional music from Western Sahara with another musics, with the Latin Jazz music group Yayabo. Now she's working with her new group, Gulili Mankoo (a mix of Western Sahara music, rythms from Senegal and Blues music) in her new forthcoming record.
Aziza's family come from El Aaiun, the capital of the former Spanish colony of Western Sahara. Aziza's mother fled the Moroccan invasion in 1975 and survived the 1976 Moroccan bombardments of napalm against the Saharawi civilians who had sought refugee deep in the eastern desert of Western Sahara. Aziza never met her father who stayed behind the occupied Western Sahara and went on to remarry and have children... brothers and sisters that Aziza has never met, due to the 2500 km long wall in the Western Sahara, that divides every Saharawi family and was built by the Moroccans to defend their occupation.

http://aziza-brahim.blogspot.com/

EL WAD
Aziza Brahim Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

شفت الواد اخضار زين و زاهي لي
و ملان من الاصدار و الم الاصيلي

شفت الواد اخضار زين و زاهي لي
و ملان من الاصدار و الم الاصيلي

شفت الواد اخضار زين و زاهي لي
و ملان من الاصدار و الم الاصيلي

اطلب الجواد الاله المنان
و انستفو عادي دهرا ما تنهان

اطلب الجواد الاله المنان
و انستفو عادي دهرا ما تنهان

اطلب الجواد الاله المنان
و انستفو عادي دهرا ما تنهان

شفت الواد اخضار زين و زاهي لي
و ملان من الاصدار و الم الاصيلي

شفت الواد اخضار زين و زاهي لي
و ملان من الاصدار و الم الاصيلي

شفت الواد اخضار زين و زاهي لي
و ملان من الاصدار و الم الاصيلي

Overall Meaning

The song "El Wad" by Aziza Brahim is sung in the Hassaniya dialect of Arabic and is about seeing a beautiful and lush oasis in the middle of the desert. The lyrics describe the oasis as "green, beautiful, and full of hope and heritage," which is a stark contrast to the harsh desert surroundings. The repetition of the chorus emphasizes the singer's awe and admiration for the oasis.

The second half of the song shifts to a spiritual plea to Allah for guidance and protection, reflecting the importance of faith and spirituality in the region. The repetition of the phrase "ask the generous God" underscores the significance of prayer in the daily lives of those living in the desert.

The song evokes a sense of love and longing for a place of beauty and hope in an otherwise harsh and unforgiving environment. It also highlights the significance of spirituality and faith as sources of comfort and guidance in times of struggle.

Line by Line Meaning

شفت الواد اخضار زين و زاهي لي
I saw the valley green and bright, adorned with genuine beauty.

و ملان من الاصدار و الم الاصيلي
It is full of originality and timeless pain.

اطلب الجواد الاله المنان
I call upon God, the beneficent, the merciful.

و انستفو عادي دهرا ما تنهان
And we persevere, always moving forward, undeterred by the world's hardships.

Contributed by Sadie T. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

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