Yinglish
Encyclopedia
Yinglish words are neologisms created by speakers of Yiddish in English
-speaking countries, sometimes to describe things that were uncommon in the old country. This is the meaning of the term used by Leo Rosten
in The Joys of Yiddish
.
Leo Rosten
's The Joys of Yiddish
uses the words Yinglish and Ameridish to describe new words, or new meanings of existing Yiddish words, created by English-speaking persons with some knowledge of Yiddish. (The fact that donstairsiker is listed as Ameridish and its opposite opstairsiker is listed as Yinglish, coupled with the fact that no Yinglish word is suggested in The Joys of Yiddish to have arisen outside the United States of America
, suggests that Ameridish and Yinglish are synonyms.)
Leo Rosten defines "Yinglish" as "Yiddish words that are used in colloquial English" (such as kibitzer) and Ameridish as words coined by Jews in the United States. Following this definitions, this article is about Ameridish, and Yiddish words used by English-speaking Jews
is about what Rosten defines as Yinglish; his use, however, is inconsistent with his own definitions.
The Joys of Yiddish describes the following words as Yinglish except where noted as Ameridish:
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
-speaking countries, sometimes to describe things that were uncommon in the old country. This is the meaning of the term used by Leo Rosten
Leo Rosten
Leo Calvin Rosten was born in Łódź, Russian Empire and died in New York City. He was a teacher and academic, but is best known as a humorist in the fields of scriptwriting, storywriting, journalism and Yiddish lexicography.-Early life:Rosten was born into a Yiddish-speaking family in what is now...
in The Joys of Yiddish
The Joys of Yiddish
The Joys of Yiddish is a book containing the lexicon of common words and phrases in the Yiddish language, primarily focusing on those words that had become known to speakers of American English due to the influence of American Ashkenazi Jews...
.
Leo Rosten
Leo Rosten
Leo Calvin Rosten was born in Łódź, Russian Empire and died in New York City. He was a teacher and academic, but is best known as a humorist in the fields of scriptwriting, storywriting, journalism and Yiddish lexicography.-Early life:Rosten was born into a Yiddish-speaking family in what is now...
's The Joys of Yiddish
The Joys of Yiddish
The Joys of Yiddish is a book containing the lexicon of common words and phrases in the Yiddish language, primarily focusing on those words that had become known to speakers of American English due to the influence of American Ashkenazi Jews...
uses the words Yinglish and Ameridish to describe new words, or new meanings of existing Yiddish words, created by English-speaking persons with some knowledge of Yiddish. (The fact that donstairsiker is listed as Ameridish and its opposite opstairsiker is listed as Yinglish, coupled with the fact that no Yinglish word is suggested in The Joys of Yiddish to have arisen outside the United States of America
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, suggests that Ameridish and Yinglish are synonyms.)
Leo Rosten defines "Yinglish" as "Yiddish words that are used in colloquial English" (such as kibitzer) and Ameridish as words coined by Jews in the United States. Following this definitions, this article is about Ameridish, and Yiddish words used by English-speaking Jews
Yiddish words used by English-speaking Jews
Yiddish words may be used in a primarily English language context. An English sentence that uses these words sometimes is said to be in Yinglish, however the primary meaning of Yinglish is an anglicism used in Yiddish....
is about what Rosten defines as Yinglish; his use, however, is inconsistent with his own definitions.
The Joys of Yiddish describes the following words as Yinglish except where noted as Ameridish:
- alrightnik, alrightnikeh, alrightnitseh – male, female, female individual who has been successful; nouveau riche
- blintzBlintzA blin, blintze, or blintz is a thin pancake. It is somewhat similar to a crêpe with the main difference being that yeast may be used in blini, but not in crêpes.-Etymology, origins, culture :...
(Yinglish because the true Yiddish is blintzeh) - bleib shver – from German bleibt schwer, meaning remains difficult - unresolved problem, especially in Talmud learning
- bluffer, blufferkeh – male, female person who bluffs
- boarderkeh, bordekeh – (Ameridish) female paying boarder
- boychick, boychikel, boychiklekh - young boy, kiddo, handsome
- bulbenik (Ameridish) – an actor who muffs his lines, from bilbul - mixup (alternative theory - bulba, literally potato, figuratively error))
- bummerkeh (Ameridish) – a female bum
- cockamamy false, ersatz, crazy (of an idea), artificial, jury-rigged (prob. from Eng. "decalcomania," a "decal," a sticker, a cheap process for transferring images from paper to glass.) In the Bronx, 1st half 20th century, a "cockamamie" was a washable temporary "tattoo" distributed in bubblegum packets.
- donstairsikeh, donstairsiker – female, male living downstairs
- dresske – bargain-basement dress
- finUnited States five-dollar billThe United States five-dollar bill or fiver is a denomination of United States currency. The $5 bill currently features U.S. President Abraham Lincoln's portrait on the front and the Lincoln Memorial on the back. All $5 bills issued today are Federal Reserve Notes...
– five, or five-dollar bill, shortened form of Yiddish finif (five) - kosher – Yinglish, not in its religious or Yiddish meanings, but only in five slang senses: authentic, trustworthy, legitimate, fair, and approved by a higher source. Its pronunciation, as "kōsher", is another distinguishing factor, as in true Yiddish it is pronounced "kūsher" or "kösher"
- mensch - a person of uncommon maturity and decency
- nextdoorekeh, nextdooreker – female, male living next door
- opstairsikeh, opstairsiker (Ameridish) – female, male living upstairs
- pisha paysha – corruption of English card game Pitch and Patience
- sharopnikel (Ameridish) – a small object that causes quieting, such as a pacifierPacifierA pacifier is a rubber, plastic, or silicone nipple given to an infant or other young child to suck upon. In its standard appearance it has a teat, mouth shield, and handle...
, teething ring - shmegegge (Ameridish) – an unadmirable or untalented person
- shnuk (Ameridish) - an idiotic person
- singlemon – single man
- shmo - shortened version of 'shmock' or 'shmearal', see 'shnuk'
- T.L. – tuches lecker or ass-kisser (literally, one who licks buttocks)
- tararam - a big tummel
See also
- Scots-Yiddish
- DenglischDenglischDenglisch or Denglish is a portmanteau of the German words Deutsch and Englisch. Used in all German-speaking and Dutch-speaking countries, it describes an influx of English, or pseudo-English, vocabulary into the German or Dutch language through travel and the widespread usage of English in...
- Ashkenazi HebrewAshkenazi HebrewAshkenazi Hebrew , is the pronunciation system for Biblical and Mishnaic Hebrew favored for liturgical use by Ashkenazi Jewish practice. Its phonology was influenced by languages with which it came into contact, such as Yiddish, German, and various Slavic languages...
- The Joys of YiddishThe Joys of YiddishThe Joys of Yiddish is a book containing the lexicon of common words and phrases in the Yiddish language, primarily focusing on those words that had become known to speakers of American English due to the influence of American Ashkenazi Jews...
- Coffee TalkCoffee TalkCoffee Talk with Linda Richman was a sketch performed by Mike Myers on the sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live. It ran from October 12, 1991, until October 15, 1994, although Myers reprised the role once more on March 22, 1997.In the sketch, Myers plays a stereotypical Jewish middle-aged woman...
External links
- A nice list of choice Yiddish/Ameridish words,
- Yiddishpeda - A wiki based website which aims to become a Yiddish/Yinglish word and phrase directory.