The ladies behind Leghetna

We’re Marie and Heba, two Lebanese moms who live in Montreal and who dreamed of creating something that would help preserve the beauty of the Lebanese Arabic language for our children and future generations. This vision became the foundation of Leghetna and that’s where our journey began. As we brainstormed ways to make learning Lebanese Arabic fun and accessible for families, we knew it had to be more than just words: it needed to be an experience.

Together, we create fun, accessible educational content in text-style Lebanese Arabic (Arabizi) for families looking to introduce or strengthen the Lebanese Arabic language at home. Our flagship product is a collection of seven children’s stories, designed for parents who don't read traditional Arabic, and we're excited to expand into vocabulary cards, games, and more!

Marie Kozhaya

She holds a degree in communications and has a deep understanding of phonetics through her experience in translating Arabic songs for choirs. She also brings years of experience working in student integration and educational tutoring, giving her unique insight into the challenges Lebanese children face in learning Arabic as a heritage language. Her keen sense of language and communication helps adapt our materials for the modern, multicultural family with engaging, easy-to-use content that parents can read effortlessly.

Heba Kalakeche

She is a speech therapist with over 12 years of experience working with bilingual and multilingual preschoolers. As the mind behind the platform Les Kids Kalam, Heba regularly shares tips with parents on how to support & manage bilingual and multilingual language development at home. Her expertise in language acquisition and multilingualism plays a vital role in shaping Leghetna’s educational resources, ensuring they are child-friendly, pedagogically sound, and effective in promoting language learning.

Sara Haidar

She is our talented illustrator! Born in Lebanon and living in Montreal for over 30 years, Sarah has a background in English literature and teaching English as a second language, but art has always been her guiding passion. To her, stories and art are a source of hope and happiness, capable of transporting people, young and old, into a world of poetry, storytelling, and color. She believes art and literature are not only gateways to the future but to joy in a sometimes difficult world. Through her illustrations, she is thrilled to bring our stories to life at Leghetna!