The Gospel According to Wanda B. Lazarus by Lynn Joffe
Glossary aka Shiksanary
A
abba – father
Adon Olam – Jewish liturgical hymn, ‘Sovereign of the Universe’
Afikomen – a morsel of matzoh hidden during the Passover Seder, sought after by children after the meal for a small reward
aleph bet – Hebrew alphabet, containing 22 letters, each of numerical value
amidah – the main section of morning, afternoon, and evening Jewish prayers
Ashkenazi – Eastern European Jews
B
B’not Mitzvah – Jewish girls’ coming of age ceremonies (plural)
b’va’ka’sha – please
Bar Mitzvah – Jewish boy’s coming of age ceremony
Bat Mitzvah – Jewish girl’s coming of age ceremony pl. B’not Mitzvoth
beitzim – literally, eggs; slangily, testicles
bimah – a raised platform in a synagogue, from which readings take place
blintz – thin pancake folded around a filling, often cream cheese, pl. blintzes
bobba – grandmother
bobbemeise – old wives’ tales
bris (Yiddish) – circumcision of boy children at the age of 7 days in accordance with the covenant with the Jewish God, Yahweh
brit milah (Hebrew) – circumcision of boy children at the age of 7 days in accordance with the covenant with the Jewish God, Yahweh
brocha – blessing
bubkes – nothing
C
chag – religious festival, pl. chaggim
chai – ‘alive’, or ‘living’. The word is made up of two letters of the Hebrew alphabet, chet and yud. Numerologically, the letters add up to 18 (8+10)
Chametz – foods with leavening agents, such as bread, that are forbidden on the Pesach/Passover
charoset – a sweet paste made of fruits and nuts eaten at the Passover Seder, symbolic of the mortar used by Israelite slaves in Egypt for the bricks in the construction of Pharaoh’s monuments
chatzilim – Middle Eastern eggplant
chazzan – cantor, Jewish liturgical singer (traditionally male), who leads a congregation in prayer
chazzer – pig, or pork
chazzerai – things/stuff
chet – 8th letter of the Hebrew alphabet
chevras – friends
chrein – grated horseradish
chutzpah – cheek/sass
Converso – a Jew who converted to Catholicism in Spain or Portugal, particularly during the 14th and 15th centuries, to avoid anti-Semitic persecution
D
daven – pray, past tense: davened. Jews are obligated to recite prayers thrice daily. Women, less frequently, if at all
dayeinu – ‘it would have been enough’. Also a song that is sung at the Passover Seder (meal)
Dreidel – spinning top
Dybbuk – a malicious possessing spirit in Jewish mythology
E
Eretz – Iudaea, the Land of Israel
F
faribel – a grudge
fleishedik – meat category (according to kosher law)
G
gatkes – long johns
gefilte fish – minced fish balls, usually sweet
gezundt – healthy, euphemistically used to describe obesity
glezzele – a small glass
golem – in Jewish folklore, a demonic archetype endowed with life
gonif – a thief
H
habibi – my love, my buddy
hamantaschen – a triangular pastry eaten on the Jewish festival of Purim, to symbolise the defeated enemy of the Jewish people, Haman, who plotted to kill the Jews of Persia under King Ahasuerus
HaShem – God (literally: The Name). Used by religious Jews to refer to their deity, Yahweh
havdalah – a Jewish religious ceremony that marks the symbolic end of the Sabbath and ushers in the new week
huk/hukking/hukked – nag/nagging/nagged
K
Kabbalism – Jewish mysticism
Kaddish – Jewish memorial prayer for the dead
Kashrut – ‘kosherness’; a set of dietary laws dealing with the foods that Jews are permitted to eat and how those foods must be prepared according to Jewish law
keffiyeh – Middle Eastern head scarf
keppie – (diminutive of kep) head
kethoneth – a long shirt-like garment – robe, cloak or tunic – usually of linen, worn by both males and females in biblical times
kinderlach – children
kippah – skullcap worn by Jewish men
kishkes – guts
kneidlach – matzoh balls
knish – small, filled dumplings
kugel – literally, a kind of savoury pudding of potatoes or other vegetables; slangily: a young Jewish woman from a wealthy background who is seen as being excessively materialistic
kukele – love, darling
kvetch – complain
L
l’chayim – a toast, meaning ‘to life!’
Ladino – Judaeo-Spanish language, spoken for centuries by Sephardic Jews throughout the world
lashon hora – literally, evil tongue; gossip or slander
latke – a fried potato pancake; slangily: coin or money
M
ma’ariv – Jewish evening prayer service
Magen David – Star of David
mamzer – bastard
matzoh – unleavened bread, eaten during Passover
mazel – luck
mechitzah – a partition used to separate men and women in prayer
megayer – convert to Judaism
Megillah – a Jewish religious text read on the festival of Purim
meidele – young girls
menorah – candelabra with seven lamps
meshuga – crazy
metzizah bel peh – part of the ritual of orthodox male circumcision; the wound is sucked by the mohel to prevent excessive bleeding
mezuzah – a piece of parchment with verses from the Torah contained in a decorative case and affixed to the doorpost of a Jewish home
mikvah – a bath used for the purpose of ritual immersion in Judaism to achieve ritual purity. Used by women at the end of their monthly menstrual cycle
milchedik – milk category (according to kosher law)
minhag – custom or ritual practice
minyan – a quorum of ten men over the age of 13 required for traditional Jewish public worship.
mishpocha – family
mitzvah – a good deed, pl. mitzvot
Mizrahi – Middle Eastern and North African Jews
Mohel – a person who performs a bris/circumcision
N
’Nard – abbreviation for Spikenard, a costly perfumed ointment, derived from the rhizome of the valerian family.
Ner Tamid – literally, eternal flame: a lamp that is kept burning for its religious symbolism
nochschleppers – taggers on
O
opshearing – a ritual haircutting ceremony observed when an orthodox Jewish boy turns three years old. The forelocks remain uncut and dangling, forming the basis of the payos which Jewish males are commanded to wear
oy chaleria – exclamation: literally, oh cholera
oy gevalt – exclamation: literally, oh violence
oy vey – exclamation of dismay or grief, oh woe
oy-va-voy – exclamation, oh woe, woe is me
P
payos – sidelocks or sideburns grown by observant Jewish boys and men
Pesach – Jewish festival of Passover
pish – to urinate
Purim – Jewish festival commemorating the saving of the Jewish people from Haman, a Persian official and royal vizier to King Ahasuerus of the Persian Empire, who plotted to kill all the Jews in the empire. A Jewess, Esther, came to the rescue of her people and the evil Haman was vanquished
putzkered – tinkered
R
Rebbe (Yiddish)– Rabbi, teacher
Rov (Hebrew)– Rabbi, teacher
rozhinkes mit mandelen – raisins and almonds; the name of a traditional Yiddish lullaby
rugelach – a traditional Jewish pastry
S
Sanhedrin – the supreme council and tribunal of the Jews before the destruction of the Second Temple
schlenter – to fake or deceive
schlep – v. haul or carry; n. a tedious or difficult journey
schloff – sleep
schmaltzy – overly ornate, kitsch
schmekel – small penis, from schmuk, penis, slang: idiotic or disliked person
schmooze – talk with someone in a way that is intended to impress or manipulate them
schmutz – filth
schmutzik – filthy
schnozz – nose
schnozzel – nose
schtupp – literally, to push; slangily, an act of sexual intercourse
schtuppery – fuckery
schvitz – sweat
schvitzing – sweating
Seder – traditional Passover/Pesach meal
seichel – common sense
Sephardic – members or descendants of the Jews who lived in Spain and Portugal from the time of the Roman Empire until their persecution and mass expulsion in the last decades of the 15th century
Shabbos – sabbath. Seventh day of the week, symbolising God’s rest having created the universe in six days. Traditionally, all Jews are commanded to refrain from work on this day
Shalom aleichem – greeting, peace be upon you
shamus – assistant to the cantor or chazzan in a Jewish synagogue
sheine – fine, beautiful
sheitel – wig worn by a Jewish woman after marriage as an act of modesty
shemzach – shame
Sheol – the abode of the dead in Jewish religious mythology
shiddach – a system of matchmaking in which Jewish singles are introduced to one another, usually by a matchmaker, for the purpose of marriage; v. shiddached
shiksa – from Hebrew sheqes, blemish, abomination, Non-Jewish woman
shin – 21st letter of the Hebrew alphabet
shmatte – an old rag; tattered clothing. Often used ironically to underplay garments of great value
shofar – ram’s horn, blown as a type of trumpet. Used on Jewish religious holidays to call on the name of God
shtetl – small Jewish town or village
simlah – a biblical garment, cloak or mantle in wool or linen
slicha – sorry
Sukkoth – Jewish festival of tabernacles
T
tachlis – practical details of a matter; purpose, aim
tallis – fringed prayer shawl worn by Jewish men
Talmud – Jewish ancient teachings
Tanakh – the entire body of Jewish scripture
teigel – sticky confectionery; pl. teiglach
tekiyah – long note sounded by a shofar
teraphim – family gods or idols
teruah – nine short blasts sounded by a shofar
tichel – headscarf worn by a married Orthodox Jewish woman as an act of modesty
Torah – Old Testament, Pentateuch, first five books of the Jewish bible
treif – something non-kosher
tsoriss – trouble and suffering
tuchus – backside, buttocks, arse
tzatzke – a trinket, ornament, often used as a euphemism for something more valuable
tzedoka – charity
tzehitzt – emotionally heated
tzimbel – strum, improvise musically
tzimbeller – musical player
tzimmes – a sweet, traditional dish made of root vegetables and dried fruits
V
verpackt – packed
verschtunkende – stinking
Y
yarmulke – skull cap worn by Jewish men
Yom Kippur – Jewish Day of Atonement
yoren – years
yud – the 10th letter of the Hebrew alphabet. Also has numerical value 10
Z
zaida – grandfather
zietsfleisch – literally, sitting flesh, buttocks, endurance
© Modjajibooks 2021 © Lynn Joffe 2021. To order the book in print or EPub with interactive glossary, go to www.modjajibooks.co.za/the-