“Playing dominos gets you quick with Arabic numbers” | Andrew Cunningham | 9273 Roots #39
Banking expert Andrew Cunningham shares how playing dominos with native Egyptians helped him master Arabic numbers. He discusses his love for the Egyptian dialect, the elegant “Sisters of Kana,” and weaving the language into his global career.
What connects a 30-year career in global banking and corporate governance with a passion for 17th-century Cypriot literature and the Arabic language?
For Andrew Cunningham, founder of Darien Analytics, the thread is a lifelong dedication to understanding the world. From learning Arabic at Exeter University in the early 1980s and playing dominos in Upper Egypt to practice his numbers to advising Middle Eastern financial institutions on Islamic finance, he has seamlessly woven his linguistic skills into a highly specialized profession.
In this episode of 9273 Roots, Andrew shares his love for the Egyptian dialect, his admiration for the elegant “Sisters of Kฤna,” and why he believes the differences between Arabic dialects are often overstated.
Andrew Cunningham
ุฃูุฏุฑู ูุงูููุฌูุงู
The London-based banking expert balancing Middle Eastern finance with Byzantine studies.
Andrew Cunningham, founder of Darien Analytics and expert in global banking, financial regulation, and corporate governance. Image Credit: Andrew Cunningham
Year of birth: 14th July, 1961 (The French always hold a military parade on my birthday, which is nice of them.)
Place of birth: London.
Place of residence: London.
Education: Arabic at Exeter University. Masters in Byzantine Studies.
About Andrew Cunningham, founder of Darien Analytics (a name derived from the Persian Dฤrayauลก, meaning “holding fast to what is good”), is a London-based expert with over 30 years of global experience in banking, regulation, and corporate governance. He advises financial entities and regulators on risk, governance, and Islamic and digital finance. Recent highlights include a book on Egyptโs Commercial International Bank, policy guidance for Islamic banks, a Middle East finance column, and advisory work for Mauritania’s national zakat program.
How would you introduce yourself to someone who doesn’t know you?
I learnt Arabic at Exeter University in the early 1980s and have been able to use it throughout most of my career. After starting out in journalism, my work has primarily entailed analyzing banks and advising Middle Eastern financial institutions and companies on governance and risk. While my written and spoken Arabic is a bit rusty now, I can still use it professionally.
Recently, I’ve revived the Greek that I learnt while living in Cyprus in the 1990s and now have a master’s degree in Byzantine Studies. I hope to start a PhD on seventeenth-century Cypriot literature next year. When not working or studying, I row with Molesey Boat Club, in southwest London.
What was your first Arabic grammar book?
David Cowan’s Modern Literary Arabic. One of our lecturers was such a fan of this book that once, when Cowan’s name was mentioned in class, I couldn’t resist adding ุนููู ุงูุณูุงู which is a bit heretical, but got a laugh.
Though a bit dated, Cowan is short, and takes the learner quickly through all the key points. For syntax, Modern Written Arabic by Badawi, Carter and Gully is superb. Adrian Gully was in the year above me at Exeter, by the way โ I’m not surprised he’s become an authority on Arabic.
The lessons are clear, in non-technical language, and have generous examples, with plenty of exercises for translation from Arabic to English and from English to Arabic.
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Modern Written Arabic: A Comprehensive Grammar is a complete reference guide to Arabic grammar. The Grammar presents a fresh and accessible description of the language, concentrating on the real patterns of use in contemporary written Arabic.
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What is your favorite Arabic book (novel, etc.)?
The novel ุดููุฉ ุงูุญุฑููุฉ (English title: An Apartment Called Freedom) by Ghazi Algosaibi (ุบุงุฒู ุนุจุฏุงูุฑุญู ู ุงููุตูุจู), which was first published in 1994.
It follows a group of young men from the Gulf living in Cairo during the late 1950s, and evokes that heady and optimistic period of nationalism in the Middle East. I read it when living in New York in the 2000s.
I would read it on the subway on the way to work โ and often got some strange looks from other passengers! The Arabic isn’t hard, and the plot trips along.
I would also mention Miramar (ู ูุฑุงู ุงุฑ) by Naguib Mahfouz (ูุฌูุจ ู ุญููุธ), which I read when I arrived in Egypt for my “year abroad” in September 1983. I remember reading it in a small, rather run-down hotel in Alexandria.
Shaqqat al-Hurriya is about a group of young men from the Arabian Peninsula living in Cairo during the 1950s and 1960s.
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About Ghazi Algosaibi (ุบุงุฒู ุนุจุฏุงูุฑุญู ู ุงููุตูุจู)
Ghazi Abdul Rahman Al-Gosaibi (ุบุงุฒู ุจู ุนุจุฏุงูุฑุญู ู ุงููุตูุจู), who lived from 1940 until his passing from colon cancer at age 70 in 2010, was a distinguished Saudi technocrat, diplomat, poet, novelist, and essayist. Born in al-Hofuf (ุงููููู) within the al-Ahsa (ุงูุฃุญุณุงุก) region of Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province, he spent his school years in Manama (ุงูู ูุงู ุฉ), Bahrain (ุงูุจุญุฑูู).
He maintained deep, lifelong ties to the island nation alongside his German wife, Sigrid. His extensive public career included roles as the Saudi ambassador to Bahrain and the United Kingdom, as well as holding ministerial portfolios for industry and electricity, health, water and electricity, and labor. Al-Gosaibi actively tackled domestic unemployment during his labor-ministry years while publicly condemning extremist indoctrination. His most famous books include the novel An Apartment Called Freedom (ุดูุฉ ุงูุญุฑูุฉ – Shuqqat al-Hurriyyah) and his definitive public service memoir, Yes (Saudi) Minister! (ุญูุงุฉ ูู ุงูุฅุฏุงุฑุฉ – Hayat fi al-Idarah).
English translation of Shqat al-Hurriya – a novel about a group of young men from the Arabian Peninsula living in Cairo during the 1950s and 1960s.
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About the novel Miramar (ู ูุฑุงู ุงุฑ)
The story unfolds inside an Alexandria boarding house, throwing together people who usually would never mix. The story revolves around ุฒูุฑุฉ (Zahra), who ran away from her village because she refused to marry an older man for his money. As the housemates argue and clash, Mahfouz uses their daily drama to capture the real struggles dividing Egyptian society – highlighting fights over money, politics, and changing traditions.
Even the city of Alexandria acts as more than just a setting; it breathes life into the story, representing the characters’ push for freedom and their fears about what comes next.
The Miramar Pension in Alexandria brings together a diverse cast of characters: Mariana, the elderly Greek owner; Amer Wagdy, the retired journalist; Talba Marzouk, the landlord under house arrest; Hosni Allam, the wealthy and irresponsible man; Mansour Bahi, the media personality on the run from prosecution; and Sarhan El-Beheiry, the opportunistic young university student from the countryside.
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What does Miramar mean?
The name Miramar isnโt actually Arabic; instead, itโs a foreign, Mediterranean-sounding term commonly understood as a Spanish-style formation from mirar (“to look”) and mar (“sea”), essentially meaning “sea view” .
In modern Alexandria, the name leads you straight to the Miramar Bar & Restaurant, tucked inside the San Giovanni Hotel (ููุฏู ุณุงู ุฌูููุงูู) in the Stanley (ุณุชุงููู) neighborhood at 205 El-Gaish Road (ุทุฑูู ุงูุฌูุด). The hotelโs own records date the establishment back to 1938, and for over 80 years, it has served as a landmark of the city’s coastal social life. According to current hotel management, the venue was a favored spot for President Anwar el-Sadat (ุฃููุฑ ุงูุณุงุฏุงุช), whose preferred order was famously grilled bouri mullet (ุณู ู ุงูุจูุฑู) .
The physical building most often linked to the setting of Naguib Mahfouzโs novel is located several kilometers away in the Mahattet el-Raml (ู ุญุทุฉ ุงูุฑู ู) district, at 1 Digla Street (ุดุงุฑุน ุฏุฌูุฉ) on the Corniche.
It was designed in 1926 by the architect Giacomo Alessandro Loria and opened in 1928 under the name “Little Venice” (ููููุณูุง ุงูุตุบูุฑุฉ). In those days, the lodging inside was known as Pension Fouad (ุจูุณููู ูุคุงุฏ), named after the Egyptian King. While the public now widely calls it the “Miramar Building” (ุนู ุงุฑุฉ ู ูุฑุงู ุงุฑ) because of the novelโs fame, the Pension Fouad still operates on the second floor today. According to the current ownerโs account, the business has remained in the same family since 1956, when her grandmother bought it from a Greek woman named Clara .
Good to know The “Miramar Pension” in Alexandria is situated just steps from Raml Station (ู ุญุทุฉ ุงูุฑู ู).
How much time does a native speaker of English need to master Arabic?
Two or three years, but you have to live in an Arabic-speaking country if you are going to master the language.
Get the fundamentals of the written language and then learn one dialect well. There’s a lot of nonsense talked about how Arabic dialects are completely different from each other. They are different โ but if you speak one well, and have a good grounding in grammar, you can quickly engage with other dialects when you need to.
During my year abroad in Egypt, I used to travel a lot to the towns between Luxor and Aswan โ fewer people spoke English there, so it was easier to practice. I also used to go to cafes and play dominos and backgammon. Everyone was friendly, and playing dominos is a really good way to get quick with your Arabic numbers!
What is your favorite Arabic word?
Can I nominate the Sisters ofูุงู? They are so elegant and express linguistic ideas that we have in English (and other languages) but in a different way.
Which Arabic word do you like least?
All forms of the root ุญ-ู-ู!
After all these years, I still have trouble translating them precisely, and of course it’s a very common root!
Note What Andrew likely meant is that the root ุญ-ู-ู can be frustrating for translators because it forces constant shifts between related but quite different semantic fields.
The same root underlies ุญูููู, which can mean truth, right, or due, and ุงูุณูุชูุญูููุงูู, which can mean entitlement, deservingness, or even financial maturity. It also appears in ุงููุญุงูุฉู, a Qurโanic name for the Day of Resurrection, understood as the inevitable reality in which recompense becomes due. Even more unexpectedly, the same root family includes ุญููููุฉู, a word for a vessel or casket that lies behind the English hookah via Urdu/Hindustani.
When he isn’t advising on global banking and corporate governance, Andrew Cunningham is a dedicated linguist. Building on his Arabic expertise, he’s been busy dusting off his Latin and Greek. Judging by this heavy stack of Liddell & Scott dictionaries and Greek diaries, he is fully committed to the task. Photo courtesy of Andrew Cunningham.
Which Arabic dialect do you like best?
Egyptian Arabic! It’s the dialect I learnt as a student, and it’s so distinctive. If I’m in central London and I hear Arabic, I can identify Egyptian dialect after just one or two words.
What is your favorite Arabic colloquial word or expression?
Given my enthusiasm for Egypt, I have to say ู ุตุฑ ุงู ู ุงูุฏููุง – Egypt is the mother of the world.
I use it as an icebreaker in conversations if I am speaking to an Egyptians โ they are proud of their country, and I have many happy memories of times spent in Egypt, so it’s not an empty compliment when I say it.
What is your favorite Arabic quote or proverb?
ูุง ุดูุฑ ุนูู ูุงุฌุจู.
No thanks are due โ I’m just doing my duty. I learnt this very early in my career, from a diplomat who had served in Beirut during the Lebanese civil war. After thanking the local militia for checking on him after the latest bombardment, they would reply just ูุงุฌุจ.
The expression has more force than “Donโt mention it” in English and I use it a lot.
What is the best thing that was ever said about the Arabic language?
I think it was Tim Mackintosh-Smith (who has said so many wise things about Arabic) who pointed out in Yemen: Travels in Dictionary Land that many Arabic words are able to mean two things at the same time, which contradict each other!
Tim Mackintosh-Smith writes with an intimacy and depth of knowledge gained through over twenty years among the Yemenis.
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About the authorTim Mackintosh-Smith (born July 17, 1961) studied Classics and Arabic at Oxford University and moved to Yemen in 1982. He lived in Sanaสฟa for nearly forty years, learned the language, and embraced the culture.
He researches history, translates, and writes books, publishing Yemen: Travels in Dictionary Land in 1997, three books tracking Ibn Battutah’s journeys, and Arabs in 2019. When war made Yemen dangerous, he left in 2019. He relocated to Malaysia to support two young men from his Yemeni host family and pay for their university education. Today, he lives there and works as a Visiting Professor of Practice of Arab Crossroads Studies for NYU Abu Dhabi.
What is the best piece of advice you were ever given?
Of course this advice has not been given to me personally โ it was written at the entrance to the Oracle at Delphi. But if we don’t know who we are, or are not comfortable in our own skinsโฆthen many problems will arise, for ourselves and for those with whom we come into contact.
Which three people would you like to invite for dinner?
Assuming that they did not boycott the dinner, when they heard who their fellow guests would be, I would like to know more about the visions that they had for the Middle East โ not just Egypt; and I would like to know how each would view the achievements of the others and the contributions that each was able to make at the particular moment when they had the power to influence their country and the wider region.
Khedive Ismail / Ismail Pasha (ุงูุฎุฏููู ุฅุณู ุงุนูู / ุฅุณู ุงุนูู ุจุงุดุง): Ruling from 1863 to 1879, Ismail pursued a sweeping modernization program highlighted by the 1869 opening of the Suez Canal. Driven by a vision of aligning Egypt more closely with Europe, he fundamentally reshaped the capital through the creation of the European-inspired boulevards and urban fabric of Khedivial Cairo.
Gamal Abdel Nasser (ุฌู ุงู ุนุจุฏ ุงููุงุตุฑ): Egyptโs second president (1956โ1970) and a key Free Officer of the 1952 Revolution, Nasser is best remembered for his decisive nationalization of the Suez Canal. He also emerged on the global stage as the defining political champion of Pan-Arabism.
Saad Zaghloul (ุณุนุฏ ุฒุบููู): As the central nationalist figure of the early twentieth century and the leading figure of the Wafd (ุงูููุฏ) movement, Zaghloul spearheaded the 1919 Revolution against British rule. He briefly served as prime minister in 1924 and is revered in Egyptian history as Zaสฟฤซm al-Umma (ุฒุนูู ุงูุฃู ุฉ โ Leader of the Nation).
“Can I nominate the Sisters of ูุงู? They are so elegant and express linguistic ideas that we have in English (and other languages) but in a different way.”
Andrew Cunningham
What was the last great meal you had?
Last week, pizza, with friends, discussing Ancient Greek and Medieval Greek manuscripts. That’s it. I’m not a great foodie, but I like hanging out with kindred souls.
What is your favorite city?
In addition to Cairo (of course!), I like Sanaa (ุตูููุนุงุกู) in Yemen.
I was fortunate to go there many times in the late 1980s, and then again several times in the 2000s. I loved wandering, without an agenda, in the old city, admiring the architecture and the qamariyya (ููู ูุฑูููุฉ) coloured windows that one saw everywhere, not just on prominent buildings.
โSanaโa from the roofโ by ai@ce, via Wikimedia Commons / Flickr, licensed under CC BY 2.0.
A qamariyya (ููู ูุฑูููุฉ) is a traditional semi-circular window found on buildings across Yemen. Usually made of gypsum or marble latticework, it sits above the main windows and brings soft light into the room. Its name comes from the Arabic word for moon, qamar, because the light that passes through it is said to resemble moonlight.
Which book would you give to a dear friend?
Middlemarch by George Eliot.
Probably the greatest novel in the English language (with the possible exception of Joseph Conradโs Nostromo). It’s a daunting novel โ very long โ but if the “dear friend” received it from me personally, I hope they would persevere and discover its richness.
A triumph of realist fiction, George Eliotโs Middlemarch: A Study of Provincial Life explores a fictional nineteenth-century Midlands town in the midst of sweeping change.
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What is your all-time favorite movie?
The Deer Hunter, about the American War in Vietnam.
It came out quite soon after the American defeat, when psychological wounds were still raw. The film captured how the Vietnam War โ so significant geopolitically โ affected small communities and everyday lives.
The Deer Hunter won 5 Academy Awards, including Best Picture. It stars Robert De Niro, Christopher Walken, Meryl Streep, John Cazale, and John Savage. The film follows a group of steelworkers from Pennsylvania whose lives are changed by the Vietnam War.
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What music do you listen to?
Classical music: the Bachs, Haydn, Beethoven, Mendelssohn.
I joke that I don’t like any music later than the 50’s โ the 1850s.
When were you happiest?
Right here, right now.
What is your greatest fear?
Losing my memory. I’m 64, and I think fear of dementia and related diseases is common in my generation โ we’ve often seen our parents go down that road.
But I tell myself that, from an early age, the way our minds work changes, as do the things that our memories want to retain. I may not be able to learn โ and retain โ 20 new pieces of vocabulary in the same way that I did when I was younger, but that may be because there are just other things that are more important now.
What is your life motto?
I don’t have one, but I think I should adopt “Carpe Diem” – Seize the Day. It’s a line from Horace’s first book of Odes. Many of us spend too much time thinking about the future, or ruminating on the past, rather than living in the present.
Driรner, G. (2026, May 16). “Playing dominos gets you quick with Arabic numbers” | Andrew Cunningham | 9273 Roots #39. Arabic for Nerds. https://arabic-for-nerds.com/interviews/9273-roots/interview-andrew-cunningham/
Published: May 16, 2026
Please check the citation before use, especially if your style guide has local requirements.
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Loved the interview. Lots of new things I didn’t know about Andrew.