digg

Join DiggAbout

Discover the best of the web!
Learn more about Digg by taking the tour.

The Yiddish Handbook: 40 Words You Should Know

dailywritingtips.com — The Yiddish language is a wonderful source of rich expressions, especially terms of endearment (and of course, complaints and insults). Jewish scriptwriters introduced many Yiddish words into popular culture, which often changed the original meanings drastically. You might be surprised to learn how much Yiddish you already speak.

Bury
show profanity settings
expand all
  • pogle, on 01/16/2008, -9/+7The only words I know I think Digg might get mad at me posting
  • coltrane68, on 01/16/2008, -5/+20Do yourself a favor. Don't use Yiddish if you can't pronounce it. Yiddish sounds great when it flows freely in conversation, but it sounds stilted when it is forced.
    • chownrus, on 01/17/2008, -0/+3In other words, calling someone a "smuck" makes you sound like a schmuck.
  • theholotrope, on 01/16/2008, -5/+11Personal Favorites:
    Oy vey and Shmuck.
  • busch30pack, on 01/16/2008, -3/+27Since we all obviously have English pretty well mastered....
  • slimjim5811, on 01/16/2008, -3/+14Missing from the list...
    "Give me a schtickle of flouride."
    ~ Tim Whatley: Jerry Seinfeld's Dentist
    • davidlow, on 01/16/2008, -0/+3Also missing:

      Nebbish [neb ish] -noun
      A person who, upon entering a room, gives the impression that someone has just left.
    • billygotee, on 01/16/2008, -0/+3David Levinson: Must go faster.
      Julius Levinson: If I had known I was gonna meet the president I would've worn a tie. Look at me, I look like a schlemiel.
      -Independence Day, Jeff Goldblum and Judd Hirsch
  • lnf69, on 01/16/2008, -4/+14A more thorough explanation of Schmuck and Putz:
    The PUTZ is the part of the SCHMUCK that gets thrown away after (male) circumcision.

    So, remember, being a schmuck is pretty bad, but being a putz.... even worse.
  • scottsolo, on 01/16/2008, -5/+2schtickle - small amount.
    made famous by seinfeld. ha
  • misteral, on 01/16/2008, -2/+19Mazel Tov and shalom are a hebrew words, not a Yiddish words.

    And in years of listening to my grandparents talk yiddish, I can understand anything they say - but I have NEVER heard anyone say baleboste.
    • Punjabi4Lyfe, on 01/16/2008, -21/+2Jew.
      • ChzPlz, on 01/16/2008, -3/+4Hmm... I am torn as to whether this is abusive or not. It's pretty likely that MisterAl *is* a Jew. But without knowing intent, is the word "Jew" derogatory?
        Al - we'll let you decide.
        • lnf69, on 01/16/2008, -0/+5If you read the rest of his comments (PunjabiSchmuck) you will see that he is a flaming antisemitic. Please "untear" yourself and know that he is being as abusive as he can to Jews in these comments.
    • modestmelody, on 01/16/2008, -0/+4You're pronouncing it wrong than. Baleboste is pretty common.
    • sovereign3, on 01/16/2008, -1/+3Pardon my ignorance, but for a long time I was under the impression that Hebrew and Yiddish were the same. Now I know otherwise.
  • alanr19, on 01/16/2008, -54/+16Here's a few English words they should know:

    "Give. Palestine. Back. To. The. Palestinians"
    • protogenxl, on 01/16/2008, -10/+4No, no, zayt nisht meshuge!
    • eviscero, on 01/16/2008, -13/+18I got some English words too

      "You should have never tried to fight Israel in the first place cause they ended up kicking your dumb asses and taking your land."

      What was it: 6 v 1 and the Arabs lost? HAHA -



      Good Job Nubs

      But nice selective history to support your political agenda....or did you fail history class?
      • jj2me, on 01/16/2008, -4/+2Did they really have to take the land? The Allies didn't, and they weren't hated for WW II.

        And do they really have to continue taking the land, via "settlements?" Every Jew I know argues the same as you, saying "They lost the war, the winner can take their land," missing the point that individuals, as well as countries, continue to hate whomever took their land. You would too.
    • bobbob1016, on 01/16/2008, -12/+8Way to go off topic to start a flame war.
      How about "Give. Palestine, To. Nobody." It's like kids with toys, you can't share, so no one gets it.
    • donmanguno, on 01/16/2008, -14/+9I completely agree with you, but I guess most diggers support Israel. Could any of you explain why?
    • heatman, on 01/16/2008, -3/+23Hey douche, this article is about Yiddish, a 10th C. originating language spoken primarily in Eastern Europe that is a combination of Hebrew and German.
      I has ***** nothing to do with Israel or Palestine or that entire millennia old conflict you so daftly dumbed down to typical flaming asshattery
      RTFA & STFU
      • csw1342, on 01/17/2008, -0/+0Damn thats funny, "typical flaming asshattery"
    • DarkSamus, on 01/16/2008, -20/+2jews, muslims and christians piss me off, stfu
      this neverending battle has ***** us enough
    • Yallaa, on 01/16/2008, -17/+2Although this thread was not the right place to post such unrelated comment. The comment is correct and true. Wrong thread - understandable comment. FREE PALESTINE!
    • raitchison, on 01/16/2008, -1/+7Wrong place for your comment, buried.
    • SRSco, on 01/16/2008, -1/+3Speaking of learning english, where did you learn to throw periods after every word?
  • aflaks, on 01/16/2008, -10/+5I didnt know those were real words...

    I always thought that a woody allen type figure just made them up
  • disabled4diggin, on 01/16/2008, -18/+8Title incorrect. I don't know anyone that speaks Yiddish. I don't need to know any of these words.
    • consoneo, on 01/16/2008, -1/+10Schmuck
    • jsmu, on 01/16/2008, -0/+4Oh, since you don't know anyone who speaks LATIN, you don't need to know any words of that either?
      Putz.
  • gobala, on 01/16/2008, -7/+2Thats cool, maybe I should add a post on Tamil words, although its a horrible language. Hmm, maybe not..
  • kayfouroh, on 01/16/2008, -14/+6Who cares?
  • JasonCox, on 01/16/2008, -4/+10Dugg for Glitch and Shmuck, I never knew they were Yiddish.
    • petebot, on 01/16/2008, -1/+1Must be some kinda glitch in the converter valve.
  • bobbob1016, on 01/16/2008, -3/+4What about "kourva" or "kurva" as I've been told is another pronunciation, it means "lady of the night/streets". My grandmother said there were no curse words in Yiddish (her first language) google proved her wrong. "ku drek" literally means bull ****, although it isn't a phrase in Yiddish, "drek cup" literally means **** head, it isn't a phrase either. "momzer" means bastard.
    • briarmoss, on 01/16/2008, -0/+4You're wrong. None of those are swear words. "drek" just means worthless crap and is nowhere near as strong as "*****". Mamzer does indeed mean bastard, but not in the derogatory sense at all. A better translation would be "illegitimate child". The source for it is Aramaic and it is used in the talmud (Jewish oral law) as a halachic (law) definition of someone. so calling someone a mamzer really isn't that big a deal, and ku drek and drek cup just mean bull crap or crap head.
    • petebot, on 01/16/2008, -0/+2I know that “kurva” means “bitch” or “slut” in Polish...
      • vkorobkax, on 01/16/2008, -0/+0and "Kurwa mać" (pronounced kurva mach) means "for *****'s sake" in Polish,
  • ingenium21, on 01/16/2008, -5/+2"they are the brain balls, they have a lot of brains and they have a lot of chutzpah"
    -zap branigan
  • Jagged68, on 01/16/2008, -3/+2I thought Nebish (nerdy) was Yiddish as well
  • Lanefair, on 01/16/2008, -12/+1What about ba-da-bing? And *****-knocker?
  • mogebier, on 01/16/2008, -8/+2I use "schmutz" a lot. Is that Yiddish?? Do I really care??
  • sequethin, on 01/16/2008, -2/+14as a citizen of new york city these words have been incorporated into my vocabulary from birth. And no one in my family is jewish either... ;)
  • gullevek, on 01/16/2008, -2/+3Funny to see all the words that are quite commen in Viennese dialekt.
  • allisonrose870, on 01/16/2008, -2/+19I always loved hearing my parents and grandparents speak Yiddish. I only wish I could speak it fluently as they all did. One of my favorite Yiddish words - Nebbish - however didn't make the list. Oh well ...

    "In the 1930s, Yiddish was spoken by more than 10 million people, but by 1945, 75% of them were gone"

    On a little history side note there, Yiddish exploded among Eastern European Jews - especially during the 1930's, because of the rise of Hitler. Jews were hiding their Jewish identities. One way was to combine German and Hebrew to form Yiddish so their language didn't give them up (more or less). It waned significantly by 1945 due to the Holocaust and those that survived the Holocaust brought Yiddish to America, where bits and pieces somehow slipped into the popular culture.
    • Punjabi4Lyfe, on 01/16/2008, -16/+4LOL...Allison ROSE.

      Rose, Rosenberg, Silverstein, Adam, Allen, David, Evan, Blitzer, Goldhagen, Wolfowitz.

      You know what they do? They translate their German surnames to English to trick people. Like they alter the pronunciation. For example, in the movie 'My Cousin Vinny,' that frickin Jew kid was like 'it pronounced "steeen," NOT "stein." When in reality it IS STEIN! What a Jew!
      • petebot, on 01/16/2008, -1/+10This was pretty common for all nationalities when immigrating to America in the early 20th Century. For instance, my Ancestors changed their original Swedish name to Young. Other times, if the person checking you in to America couldn't pronounce your name, it was changed. Sad but true. Anyway, your implication that "the Jews" are trying to hide their true identity is completely false.

      • sovereign3, on 01/16/2008, -1/+9And if you're the descendant of American slaves, you just borrowed your surname from your former master's family.
      • allisonrose870, on 01/16/2008, -1/+3Ironic how I got this forwarded email just recently. Just in time to rebutt your comment. Enjoy and be schooled ... My father's surname is Gross. It's on the list close to the top.

        Subject: Fw: what’s in a name if you are Jewish

        IN CASE YOU HAVE NOT SEEN THIS. I THOUGHT IT WAS WORTH ANOTHER ROUND OF EMAILS. RUBY

        WHAT'S IN A NAME (IF YOU'RE JEWISH)
        (Be sure to read the poem at the end.)

        This is very interesting. I knew some of it, but not all, and I knew most of the Jewish celebrities but was so surprised to see the others.

        Other than aristocrats and wealthy people, Jews did not get surnames in Eastern Europe until the Napoleon years of the early 19th century. Most of the Jews from countries captured by Napoleon, Russia, Poland , and Germany were ordered to get surnames for tax purposes. After Napoleon's defeat, many Jews dropped these names and returned to "son of" names such as: Mendelsohn, Jacobson, Levinson, etc.

        During the so called Emancipation, Jews were once more ordered to take surnames. In Austria, the Emperor Joseph made Jews take last names in the late 1700s, Poland in 1821 and Russia in 1844. It's probable that some of our families have had last names for 175 years or less.

        In France and the Anglo Saxon countries, surnames went back to the 16th century. Sephardic Jews had surnames stretching back centuries.

        Spain, prior to Ferdinand and Isabella, was a golden spot for Jews. They were expelled by Isabella in the same year that Columbus left for America .

        Most of the earliest American Jews were Sephardic, of Spanish derivation.


        In general, there were five types of names. People had to pay for their choice of names; the poor had assigned names:


        1-- Names that were descriptive of the head of household:
        Examples:
        HOCH (tall) ,
        KLEIN (small),
        COHEN (rabbi ),
        BURGER (village dweller),
        SHEIN (good looking), < /STRONG>
        LEVI (temple singer),
        GROSS (large),
        SCHWARTZ (dark or black),
        WEISS (white),
        KURTZ (short)


        2 -- Names describing occupations:
        Examples:
        HOLTZ (wood)
        HOLTZKNOCKER (wood chopper),
        GELTSCHMIDT (goldsmith ),
        SCHNEIDER (tailor),
        KREIGSMAN (warrior),
        EISEN (iron),
        FISCHER (fish)
        STARK (strong)


        3-- Names from city of residence:
        Examples:
        BERLIN,
        FRANKFURTER,
        DANZIGER,
        OPPENHEIMER,
        DEUTSCH (German)
        POLLACK (Polish),
        BRESLAU ,
        MANNHEIM ,
        CRACOW,
        WARSHAW
        VAN PRAAG ( Prague)
        NEDERLANDER ( Holland)


        4 -- Miscellaneous names:
        Examples:
        GLUCK (luck),
        ROSEN (roses),
        ROSENBLATT (rose paper or leaf),
        ROSENBERG (rosehill),
        ROTH (red),
        DIAMOND,
        KOENIG (king),
        KOENIGSBERG (king's mountain),
        SPIELMAN (player),
        LIEBER (dear),
        BERG (hill or mountain),
        WASSER ( water),
        KIRSCH (church),
        SHULL (synagogue)
        STEIN (stone).


        5-- Descriptive names:
        Examples:
        PLOTZ (burst),
        KLUTZ (clumsy),
        BILLIG (cheap)
        GRUB (fat)
        DREYFUS (crippled)
        < SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">STARK (strong)


        Jewish Birth Names of some famous Performers:
        Woody Allen --- Alan Stewart Koenigsberg
        June Allyson --- Ella Geisman
        Lauren Bacall --- Betty Joan Perske
        Jack Benny --- Benjamin Kubelsky
        Irving Berlin --- Israel Baline
        Milton Berle --- Milton Berlinger
        Joey Bishop ---Joseph Gottlieb
        Karen Black --- Karen Blanche Ziegler
        Victor Borge --- Borge Rosenbaum
        Fanny Brice --- Fanny Borach
        Mel Brooks --- Melvin Kaminsky
        George Burns --- Nathan Birnbaum
        Eddie Cantor --- Edward Israel Iskowitz
        Jeff Chandler --- Ira Grossel
        Lee J. Cobb --- Amos Jacob
        Tony Curtis --- Bernard Schwartz
        Rodney Dangerfield --- Jacob Cohen
        Kirk Douglas --- Issur Danielovich Demsky
        Melvyn Douglas --- Melvyn Hesselberg
        Bob Dylan --- Bobby Zimmerman
        Paulette Goddard --- Pauline Levy
        Lee Grant --- Lyova Geisman
        Elliot Gould --- Elliot Goldstein
        Judy Holliday --- Judith Tuvim
        Al Jolson --- Asa Yoelson
        Danny Kaye --- David Daniel Kaminsky
        Michael Landon --- Michael Orowitz
        Steve Lawrence --- Sidney Leibowitz
        Jerry Lewis --- Joseph Levitch
        Peter Lorre --- Lazlo Lowenstein
        Elaine May --- Elaine Berlin
        Yves Montand --- Ivo Levy
        Mike Nichols --- Michael Peschkowsky
        Joan Rivers --- Joan Molinsky
        Edward G. Robinson --- Emanuel Goldenberg
        Jane Seymour --- Joyce Penelope Frankenburg
        Simone Signoret --- Simone-Henriette Kaminker
        Beverly Sills --- Belle Silverman
        Sophie Tucker --- Sophia Kalish
        Jean Pierre Aumont --- J. P. Goldberg
        Gene Wilder --- Gerald Silberman
        Sam Waterston --- Sam Wasserstein
        Douglas Fairbanks --- Douglas Ulman
        Lainie Kazan --- Elaine Levine
        Lenny Bruce --- Leonard Schneider


        ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


        Yiddish was the secret code, therefore I don't farshstaist,
        A bisseleh maybe here and there, the rest has gone to waste.
        Sadly when I hear it now, I only get the gist.
        My Bubbeh spoke it beautifully; but me, I am tsimisht.


        So och un vai as I should say, or even oy vai iz mir,
        Though my pisk is lacking Yiddish, it's familiar to my ear.
        And I'm no Chaim Yonkel , in fact I was shtick naches,
        But, when it comes to Yiddish though, I'm talking with my tuchas.


        Es iz a shandeh far di kinder that I don't know it better
        (Though it's really nishtkefelecht when one needs to write a letter)
        But, when it comes to characters, there's really no contention,
        No other linguist can compete with honorable mentshen:


        They have nebbishes and nebechels and others without mazel,
        Then, too, schmendriks and schlemiels, and let's not forget schlemazel.
        These words are so precise and descriptive to the listener,
        So much better than "a pill" is to call someone 'farbissener'.


        Or - that a brazen woman would be better called chaleria,
        And you'll agree farklempt says more than does hysteria.
        I'm not haken dir a tsheinik and I hope I'm not a kvetch,
        But isn't mieskeit kinder, than to call someone a wretch?


        Mitten derinnen, I hear Bubbeh say, "It's nechtiker tog, don't fear,
        To me you're still a maven, zol zein shah, don't fill my ear.
        A leben ahf dein keppele, I don't mean to interrupt,
        But you are speaking narishkeit.....And a gezunt auf dein kup!"
  • DarkSamus, on 01/16/2008, -10/+1what, no circumcision?
  • Picer, on 01/16/2008, -5/+2I have only heard of glitch the rest sound german which seems to corroborate with what heatman has been saying.
    • beadgc23, on 01/16/2008, -1/+4You're not wrong - and I'm not trying to be contentious! When I moved to NYC after seven years in Germany and Switzerland I was amazed at how many Yiddish words I could recognize.
  • Punjabi4Lyfe, on 01/16/2008, -26/+7Omfg. Yiddish is a poor man's version of German. It is complete ***** and is known as the Jew's weapon of deception. What is this country coming to? First the Jews takeover the government, then the media and entertainment industry, then our food (bagels), then send us to a war in Iraq, and now we have to learn their language!? And imagine, it all happened in only about 50 years (since around 1950).

    I really have become sickened by this article. I can't believe it.
    • SIBerger, on 01/16/2008, -5/+8Jews have been in this country for only 50 years?
      That's so funny. I was under the impression that many 18th century American colonies had large Jewish populations... Philadelphia, Charleston, Savannah was 30% populated by Jews early on in its existence.

      But you're right, we probably all landed here on one big boat during WWII.
      • Punjabi4Lyfe, on 01/16/2008, -13/+3WHEN did I EVER say or even IMPLY that 'Jews have been in this country for only 50 years?' Stop twisting my words around like a Jew, lol. Fact is that their take over began in the late 40s/early 50s, when they basically made the British gov't illegally declare the state of Israel.

        No ***** they have been in the country long before that. Was that my point? The point was their power, influence, numbers, etc etc.

        Don't try to put words into my mouth.
    • jaythree9, on 01/16/2008, -4/+7your comment sickens me.
    • jsmu, on 01/16/2008, -1/+4Your xenophobic, hate-filled screeds belong in some fanatic forum, not here.
      Please take yourself away. LOL
    • absurdist, on 01/16/2008, -3/+4Oh yeah, the Jews suck almost as bad as the wogs, eh, punjabi?
      /sarcasm
    • yflicker, on 01/16/2008, -3/+2you are a ***** loser
    • appletoapple, on 01/17/2008, -2/+3I can't believe you. You sicken me. You ignorant, racist *****.
    • SirWells, on 01/16/2008, -1/+2I knew it was only time for some racist (fill in with an expletive of your choice) to post a "lovely" comment like our "good friend" posted above. It is just plain jealousy, although they'd never admit to this.
    • ingenium21, on 01/16/2008, -2/+2I believe it was the neocons that sent us to Iraq in search for control over Iraqi oil.
  • jeuhrn, on 01/16/2008, -6/+3Some of these words sound, ironically, like German.
    • lnf69, on 01/16/2008, -1/+8Yiddish is a combination of an old German dialect and Hebrew. Nothing ironic about that. It's like saying Spanish or Italian sound like Latin. DUH!
      • jeuhrn, on 01/16/2008, -1/+3I did not know that, we don't have many jews in Norway.
        Also I don't see the point in making a list of Yiddish words and including "mentsh" when it's just the german Mensch with a bit of creative spelling.
        • lnf69, on 01/16/2008, -0/+6I can see what you are saying. But please remember that Yiddish is a complete culture onto itself. There are hundreds of years of rich history and art and music and drama, literature, all in Yiddish.
          In English we have many words that are originally from other languages. For example facade, sauté, and many many more. They are now recognized as official members of the English language.
          Many, if not all, languages can be traced to pre-existing languages, because of common or similar words.
          • jeuhrn, on 01/16/2008, -0/+3That's a truth for all culture and languages.
            Ombudsman is the only word (to my knowledge), you've borrowed from modern Norwegian, I'd say the rate of other languages borrowing from English is far greater than vice-versa, mostly because of technology.
            But because you are so removed from your Germanic language-roots I'd see why you'd feel the need to explain this to me, but remember that today is Wednesday/Wodans day or Odins day, tomorrow will be Thors day, and the day after that will be Freyas day.

            I don't see a Yiddish Appreciation Society popping up outside of New York City anytime soon though. :P
    • Punjabi4Lyfe, on 01/16/2008, -12/+3If that is not sarcasm that is possibly one of the most ignorant and naive comments I have ever seen on Digg.com.

      You do realize that they were in Germany for well over 1,000 years, and Germany was the place in Europe where they eventually developed a stronghold, being a replication of the same ***** they are doing in modern day USA?
      • lnf69, on 01/16/2008, -0/+3Your antisemitism is showing you for the stinking pig that you are!
      • york07, on 01/16/2008, -0/+1I guarantee you there's not one xenophobic bone in my body. I don't have any genetic tendencies to set up "strongholds" or be greedy. In fact, I would say it's the opposite. I've always felt shame my entire life for any wrongs I've committed against anyone. My family and extended family is very enlightened. In fact, my parents adopted a non-Jewish half-black child two years before I was born. Ask me who's truely disgusting and I'll paint you a portrait of a sad and twisted individual who likes to spread baseless hate on the internet.

        No one in my family or extended family has ever thought of taking over the world. We laugh together at what you're suggesting, although we secretly feel like ***** because we know what it lead to last time. My grandparents are still alive now and they went through it 60 years ago. People like you suggest so many wild things about us. They are outrageous things like the Holocaust didn't happen or that it wasn't terrible. We know personally how blatant these lies are! It makes us uneasy. It would be comical how wrong you are, if it weren't so awful.

        It's true we have an academic culture and so there are a disproportionate amount of Jewish intellectuals, but theres nothing dark in us. There is a strong sense of community but that's based on a strong sense of identity and not hatred for other nations. "Goy" is used as a term to refer to things that are foreign or not traditional. As we were living as a distinct community in larger communities for thousands of years, it's not surprising such a word evolved. It's not at the root a hateful word, I assure you.

        I promise you I try to be as altruistic as I can to all people. So, since there's at least one Jew who's not out to get you, maybe you'll feel less right in slandering a whole group of people.
    • SIBerger, on 01/16/2008, -1/+9Why is that ironic? Most of the Jews on the planet lived in Eastern Europe for the last two or three centuries before the Holocaust.
  • cogitocogito, on 01/16/2008, -3/+1"Schmuck" roughly corresponds to idiot, and "putz" roughly corresponds to *****.

    "That schmuck who rear-ended me has a real putz for a lawyer!"
  • saturnx8, on 01/16/2008, -16/+5f*ck yiddish, stupid language.
    Better yet lets make it so popular that it gets old and no one wants to say any of it EVER AGAIN.
  • modestmelody, on 01/16/2008, -4/+10These forty were just a lame, small sampling of the awesomeness that is Yiddush.

    No other language is as fun, honestly. With phrases that tell people to "grow like an onion" and "don't bang me a tea kettle" (literal translation of hock demisch da chinik, when put together it means "Don't bother me,"), and with an entire subset of words useful solely in the context of complaining, there could not be a more hilarious language.

    This barely scratches the surface of Yiddushims that put a huge smile on my face.


    And of course it sounds German-- German and Hebrew make up the base of the language as Spanish and Hebrew lay at the foundation of Ladino, or the Creole languages with their base...
    • Punjabi4Lyfe, on 01/16/2008, -13/+1There is a reason why such phrases exist in the poor man's version of German. And it certainly makes me sick to see you excusing off the very phrases used by the same Jews who illegally occupied and nearly took over Germany as humor.
    • liquidjamm, on 01/16/2008, -0/+4What a great comment. That tea-kettle phrase you mentioned reminded my of my birthplace http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Odessa and made me proud that I spent there 16 years of my life.

      Kudos!
  • gfunk842, on 01/16/2008, -2/+0whoever made this list is a real shver arbeter
  • ycohain, on 01/16/2008, -1/+6Putting mayonnaise on a pastrami sandwich is goyish. Putting mayonnaise on a pastrami sandwich on white bread is even more goyish.
    LOL
    • simmonsdd, on 01/16/2008, -0/+2So. What if you're goyim?
    • york07, on 01/16/2008, -0/+1Goyim is plural :)
    • chownrus, on 01/17/2008, -0/+2Correction: Putting mayo on a pastrami sandwich is goyish.
      Putting mayonnaise on a pastrami sandwich on white bread is fakakta!
  • Punjabi4Lyfe, on 01/16/2008, -24/+3If the world does not change dramatically in 2012, it'd probably be safe to say that IF (believe me, this IS hypothetical) my kids are born/raised in America, they would practically grow up in Israel.

    I mean even myself, who is part of Generation 'Y,' has put up with significant Jewish influence in my life. Imagine my kids. Thank God I am leaving America *cough* Israel before it is too late.
    • raitchison, on 01/16/2008, -2/+5You may dislike that different cultures are starting to become intertwined, but so do some Jews, who view the same trend as secularization. In any case, it's extremely unlikely that life in the U.S. will ever become remotely like life in Israel, it's FAR more likely that Judaism will become assimilated into American secular/Christian society and essentially cease to exist.
    • absurdist, on 01/16/2008, -0/+15Please, go. Don't let the door hit you in the tuchis on the way out. And take your racist scum ilk with you.
    • petebot, on 01/16/2008, -0/+4What Jewish influence are you talking about? Where do you live? Little Israel?
  • raitchison, on 01/16/2008, -10/+3Look I'm Jewish but this is ridiculous, Yiddish is slang plain and simple, it's the middle ages version of ebonics, it shouldn't be celebrated it should be abolished.
    • jsmu, on 01/16/2008, -2/+3How stupid are you?
      Yiddish is a LANGUAGE, even if a dialect/slang type of language.
      "Ebonics", which DOES NOT EXIST, by the way, is a degenerate patois containing nothing but synonyms for money and sex. Oh, and sexist, racist, homophobic slurs.
      DUHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
    • cheesejaguar, on 01/16/2008, -1/+4Look, I'm Jewish and I want everyone to acknowledge that raitchison doesn't know what he is talking about.
    • singebkdrft, on 01/16/2008, -1/+3Go take a linguistics class, or read a book. It's a language.
  • BillyDuvic, on 01/16/2008, -9/+2How do you say "rear" in Yiddish?... as in "pass me some more UN resolutions obliging me to abandon Palestine so that I might wipe my 'rear' with them."
  • xuanyan, on 01/16/2008, -5/+3So some things I might do are goyish huh? I will no longer feel any guilt for saying something is 'jewish'.
    • cogitocogito, on 01/16/2008, -1/+5If you want to call things like eating pastrami with mustard on rye bread "Jewish", go ahead. Somehow, I don't think that's what you had in mind though.
      (By the way, the word 'goy' is direct from Hebrew and just means 'non-Jew'. It's not at all pejorative (there are different slang pejorative words in Yiddish, just as there are in all languages).
      • xuanyan, on 01/16/2008, -1/+3No, I think we're on the same page. 'Goyish' refers to something a non-jew would do. 'Jewish' refers to something a Jew would do. :D (...all in good fun, no real offense intended)
      • jsmu, on 01/16/2008, -1/+3Can't have it both ways, Buckwheat. you want to call someone 'goyish', they can call you 'Jewish'. Exactly the same thing, in case you cannot see that. Nothing is intrinsically pejorative in either--but actually they ARE BOTH used pejoratively most of the time. That's called connotation. it is not a part of either word. Think 'white' or 'black' are intrinsically pejorative? PLEASE.
      • ubuwalker31, on 01/16/2008, -1/+2When someone who is Jewish calls something "goyish" pejoratively, it is usually in reference to something regarding a cultural taboo or nuance - such as eating pork, or white bread with pastrami. When someone says "jewish" pejoratively, it is being used as a racist slur, usually. At least in my experience, although, I've heard the term "goy" used very nastily before as well.
  • sigginike90, on 01/16/2008, -10/+6Why is everyone being dugg down??? Maybe because the JEWS CONTROL THE MEDIA?!?!?!?!
    • Character0, on 01/16/2008, -1/+5Maybe it is because certain people are just being offensive.
  • Blades1, on 01/16/2008, -0/+4That post missed "nebbish": (n) An innocuous, ineffectual, weak, helpless or hapless unfortunate."
  • quietbob, on 01/16/2008, -7/+3Sarah Silverman is hot
    • BeyondGoodNEvil, on 01/16/2008, -8/+1Cause she just escaped from the oven.
  • firewens, on 01/16/2008, -1/+4This was a great article! I am really surprised at how many words I already knew!
  • s4g4n, on 01/16/2008, -2/+035. *****
    Something you’re known for doing, an entertainer’s routine, an actor’s bit, stage business; a gimmick often done to draw attention to yourself.
    • lnf69, on 01/16/2008, -0/+2the word is SHTICK not *****
      • s4g4n, on 01/16/2008, -2/+0SHTICK is Yiddish but I translated it to English so people can understand.
    • absurdist, on 01/16/2008, -1/+2Oy. What a putz.
  • mikehill33, on 01/16/2008, -2/+5valuable stuff as I date a Jewish woman!
  • lnf69, on 01/16/2008, -1/+5Yiddish is a complete culture onto itself. There are hundreds of years of rich history and art and music and drama, literature, all in Yiddish.
  • falafelkiosken, on 01/16/2008, -0/+4I've always found Yiddish interesting. Because it's similiar with German I can get a clue about texts written in it
    • scroobyrooberoo, on 01/16/2008, -3/+1It's not similar to German. Yiddish is just German misspelled and then sometimes mixed with Hebrew. Call it "Pig German" or "The language of people who won't eat Pigs for some ***** up reason-German." That would be a more accurate description.
  • cuttlyhoo, on 01/16/2008, -0/+1di article iz nishkoshe ober yiddishkite gut.
    y'all should read up on yiddishisms:
    http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9B0 ...
  • Nis42, on 01/16/2008, -0/+2Ga fair leck (Not sure of spelling but that's the pronunciation of the yiddish word) roughly translated:

    Shove an umbrella up your ass and open it.
  • dstywho, on 01/16/2008, -1/+3i'm pretty sure noob is yiddish
  • caponumen, on 01/17/2008, -0/+2Dangerous ground this, playing with old tribal derived words, where if the original meaning is known only ferments more hate.
    I suspect many Jews are unaware of the basis of some of these in the Talmudic tradition, you should educate yourselves.
    "Schmuck", "goyim", "gentile" are extremely offensive when the true roots of the words are understood.
    • lnf69, on 01/17/2008, -0/+1I can agree that it is important to remember the negative parts of one's past/ancestry as well as the pleasant stuff.
      Although I've yet to encounter any one who claims that Jews or any other group of ppl are exempt from doing ANY bad things to others.
  • wetmetalthong, on 01/18/2008, -0/+1"yiddisher kop - Smart person. Literally means 'Jewish head.' I don’t want to know what goyisher kop means."
    I'm sure it means exactly what you would guess: animal head. But it's not racist. They aren't trying to say you're a lesser creature when they refer to you with the same term they use for livestock. They are just saying that *you* are the "they", and not one of the chosen "us". And to imply anything else is racist anti-semitism.
  • kusir, on 01/19/2008, -0/+0the translation of guy is nation. the meaning of yiddisher kop is only regarding to those who study the talmud which sharpins the mind
  • godofblog, on 06/24/2008, -0/+0Water boiled in this tasted and smelt of plastic. I boiled and rinsed out the kettle numerous times. I brought it back after a week. I couldn't stop thinking about my health and yes I tend to drink a lot of tea, so I do notice it. more info http://astore.amazon.com/proctor.silex.kettle-20
  •  

    Login or register to add a comment

    Create a new account or login to join in the conversation on Digg. You'll also be able to Digg stories to help promote things you like.


© Digg Inc. 2008 — Content posted by Digg users is dedicated to the public domain.
DIGG, DIGG IT, DUGG, DIGG THIS, Digg graphics, logos, designs, page headers, button icons, scripts, and other service names are the trademarks of Digg Inc.