ʿAlma (pl. ʿawālim , from standard Arabic ʿālima , "learned woman," also ʿālma, ʿalma , ʿalme ) was the standard designation for female singers in Egypt from at least the eighteenth century until the mid-nineteenth century. Subsequently, it was used to denote mid-level and popular chanteuses until the first half of the twentieth century and and does not appear to have been used outside of Egypt. a) Eighteenth and nineteenth centuries The ʿawālim formed a class of singers, organized in a guild, who performed mainly for female guests in women's apartments