"Hello, Rawad."

Translation: أَهْلاً يا رَواد.

[AAA786786AAA]

Is the يا always necessary?

[tsuj1g1r1]

Not really, no. But we do use it very often, so it's a good idea to get into the habit of using it.

[gavi]

So it shouldn't be marked as "incorrect". I know DuoLingo has options to say "close" and still mark it as not incorrect.

[yomna4927]

I am a native speaker so I know what I am saying...

it's not wrong to forget to say it, but it's kind of important in the sentence but the sentence is not wrong without it, and actually, every native speaker always says it, but foreign people forget sometimes.

plus: sometimes it changes the meaning of the sentence.

[AAA786786AAA]

Thank you!

[NordicEstonia]

شكراً!

[seanLMN]

Not really

[chesspresso]

What is the significance of ya

[Ace836172]

Remember to go through the Tips and Notes of this skill (on the website, won't be available for Arabic on the app), its explained there.

In short, it is a respectful (yet can be informal) and a common way to address people before mentioning their name. It can be said to grabs the person's attention.

You can directly translate "ya" as "O" in English - "O Lord, bless...." or something similar.

[Hypnotoad]

I really hope that they incorporate the Tips and Notes into the app - I never use the website.