I find both Raf` al-Isar and Daf` al-Isar. The latter might be a typo in The Cambridge History of Egypt. I also find Raf` al-Isar`an and Raf al-isr `an. I have no idea which is correct. The unsourced translation at Egyptian Arabic is "lifting of the burden on the language of the population of Egypt" (Daf` al-'iṣr`an kalām 'ahl Miṣr). kalām 'ahl miṣr is correctly rendered as "the speech of the population of Egypt". Raf` means "lifting" while daf` means "pushing". 'iṣr means burden and `an means "from". It would then seem to depend on whether the expression is to "lift" or to "push" a burden from the thing it is burdening.
ok, googling around, it appears that raf` al-isr is a legal term meaning "exculpating" or similar. It seems virtually certain that the daf` in The Cambridge History of Egypt is a typo as I surmised. The title would then mean as much as "apology of the Egyptian vernacular". --dab (𒁳) 09:07, 21 August 2008 (UTC)Reply
