March 9th, 2007
Most people have heard a Yiddish word here or there, but few actually know the origins of the language. Here I will take a minute to honor my roots and teach you all a few of the most commonly used phrases so that you can be the most popular kid at the next Bar Mitzvah you attend. Besides the casual “Jewspeak” use of terms, Yiddish is its own unique language, stemming from German and written in Hebrew. There are two main backgrounds that Jewish people come from and these are: Ashkenazi (those originating from Eastern European countries) and Sephardic (those originating from Middle Eastern countries). Yiddish is a language of the Ashkenazi people such as myself (my background is Russian, Polish and German). My favorite part about the Yiddish language is that the words are all onomatopoeia, in that they sound just like the meaning they convey. I think you will be surprised how many commonly used slang terms actually come from Yiddish. Perhaps you have heard these at some point in your life and wondered what they meant Well fret not! Here are all the answers…
Shlep-to carry a burden or a weight as in:
“I can’t believe I have to pick up the kids at Sarah, Rebecca, and Zachary’s houses and then go to the grocery store. I really don’t feel like shlepping them all over town.”
Oy vey- Another cry of complaint because of a pending burden as in:
“Oy vey I can’t believe I have to pick up the kids at Sarah, Rebecca, and Zachary’s houses and then go to the grocery store. I really don’t feel like shlepping them all over town.”
Kvetch- To complain, as in:
“Oy vey, I don’t want to kvetch, but I can’t believe I have to pick the kids up at Sarah, Rebecca, and Zachary’s houses and then go to the grocery store. I don’t feel like shlepping them all over town.”
Meeskite- An incredibly unattractive person, as in:
“Oy vey, I don’t want to kvetch, but I can’t believe I have to pick up the kids at Sarah, Rebecca, and Zachary’s houses and then go to the grocery store. I’ll probably see that horrible Brian Goldberg there. He is such a meeskite.”
Punim- A term used to describe a very cute face, as in:
“Oy vey, I don’t want to kvetch, but I can’t believe I have to pick up the kids at Sarah, Rebecca, and Zachary’s houses and then go to the grocery store. I’ll probably see that horrible Brian Goldberg there too. He is such a meeskite. Oh but when I squeeze my kids’ punims, it’s all OK.”
Meshugana- a term used to describe a crazy person, as in:
“Oy vey, I don’t want to kvetch, but I can’t believe I have to pick up the kids at Sarah, Rebecca, and Zachary’s houses and then go to the grocery store. Do they think I am some kind of meshugana? I’ll probably see that horrible Brian Goldberg there too. He is such a meeskite. Oh but when I squeeze my kids’ punims, it’s all OK.”
Chutzpah- having a lot of nerve, ballsy as in:
“Oy vey, I don’t want to kvetch, but I can’t believe I have to pick up the kids at Sarah, Rebecca, and Zachary’s houses and then go to the grocery store. Do they think I am some kind of meshugana? I’ll probably see that horrible Brian Goldberg there too. He is such a meeskite. I can’t believe the chutzpah he had to try and ask out Lauren Goldfarb. Oh but when I squeeze my kids’ punims, it’s all OK.”
Bupkis- having little or no meaning:
“Oy vey, I don’t want to kvetch, but I can’t believe I have to pick up the kids at Sarah, Rebecca, and Zachary’s houses and then go to the grocery store. Do they think I am some kind of meshugana? I’ll probably see that horrible Brian Goldberg there too. He is such a meeskite. I can’t believe the chutzpah he had to try and ask out Lauren Goldfarb. Oh but when I squeeze my kids’ punims, it’s really just bupkis.”
Fakakta- unpleasant, not nice as in:
“Oy vey, I don’t want to kvetch, but I can’t believe I have to pick up the kids at Sarah, Rebecca, and Zachary’s houses and then go to the grocery store in that fakakta part of town. Do they think I am some kind of meshugana? I’ll probably see that horrible Brian Goldberg there too. He is such a meeskite. I can’t believe the chutzpah he had to try and ask out Lauren Goldfarb. Oh but when I squeeze my kids’ punims, it’s really just bupkis.”
Goyim- a Non-Jew as in:
“Oy vey, I don’t want to kvetch, but I can’t believe I have to pick up the kids at Sarah, Rebecca, and Zachary’s houses and then go to the grocery store in that fakakta part of town. Do they think I am some kind of meshugana? I’ll probably see that horrible Brian Goldberg there too. He is such a meeskite. I can’t believe the chutzpah he had to try and ask out Lauren Goldfarb. If he were goyim he wouldn’t have had a chance. Oh but when I squeeze my kids’ punims, it’s really just bupkis.”
Tuchas- butt, as in:
“Oy vey, I don’t want to kvetch, but I can’t believe I have to pick up the kids at Sarah, Rebecca, and Zachary’s houses and then go to the grocery store in that fakakta part of town. Do they think I am some kind of meshugana? They get to sit on their tuchases all day while I’m driving around. I’ll probably see that horrible Brian Goldberg there too. He is such a meeskite. I can’t believe the chutzpah he had to try and ask out Lauren Goldfarb. If he were goyim he wouldn’t have had a chance. Oh but when I squeeze my kids’ punims, it’s really just bupkis.”
Mensch- a nice, giving person as in:
“Oy vey, I don’t want to kvetch, but I can’t believe I have to pick up the kids at Sarah, Rebecca, and Zachary’s houses and then go to the grocery store in that fakakta part of town. Do they think I am some kind of meshugana? They get to sit on their tuchases all day while I’m driving around. I’ll probably see that horrible Brian Goldberg there too. He is such a meeskite. I can’t believe the chutzpah he had to try and ask out Lauren Goldfarb. If he were goyim he wouldn’t have had a chance. Oh but when I squeeze my kids’ punims, it’s really just bupkis. I’m such a mensch.”
Schmuck- a prick or a jerk, basically same as Putz as in:
“Oy vey, I don’t want to kvetch, but I can’t believe I have to pick up the kids at Sarah, Rebecca, and Zachary’s houses and then go to the grocery store in that fakakta part of town. Do they think I am some kind of meshugana? They get to sit on their tuchases all day while I’m driving around. I’ll probably see that horrible Brian Goldberg there too. He is such a meeskite. I can’t believe the chutzpah he had to try and ask out Lauren Goldfarb. He really is a schmucky putz. If he were goyim he wouldn’t have had a chance. Oh but when I squeeze my kids’ punims, it’s really just bupkis. I’m such a mensch.”
Surprised? Now you can speak Yiddish too! Try it out 
Filed under Culture, Self Absorption |
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Do you know the difference between a “Schlameal and a Schlamazel”?
The Schlameal is the is the one who spills the soup and the schlamazel is the guy who has the soup spilled on him.
Please put this to memory as it will serve you well as you face lifes trials and tribulations.
Dad
Did you know that fakakta literally means poopy but you use it to describe something unpleasant, like you said. My grandpa used to joke with me and call me fakakta punim when I was being a brat (poopy face).
I like the culture. My mom (not knowing yiddish at the time)actually answered a job ad with the contact person as Mr.(something) Tuchas. Turns out that someone there got fired and posted this ad on the company’s behalf out of anger. She might have been the only one who actually responded to it though
Lobas!
does Borat use any of these in the movie?
did i mention that this post has prompted katie to start calling me “schmucky putz”?
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