What does “بقالي” (baʔāli) mean in Egyptian Arabic?

بقالي (baʔāli) is how Egyptians say how long something has been going on. بقالي فترة بدوّر على شنطة means “I’ve been looking for a bag for a while.” It joins بقى (baʔa), “to remain,” with لي, “to me.” Change the ending for other people: بقالك (you), بقاله (him), بقالها (her), بقالنا (us).

Put the time straight after it: بقالي ساعة مستني (“I’ve been waiting for an hour”), بقالنا سنتين هنا (“we’ve been here two years”). In this scene one woman stops another over her bag, which لفتت انتباهي (“caught my eye”), and explains she’s been hunting for one like it for a while. The chat ends in introductions: أنا اسمي منة, وانتي؟, مريم, أهلاً بيكي.