hamentaschen

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Pronunciations

hamentaschen (HUH-men-TOSH-en) listen

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Definitions

  • n. "Small, triangular-shaped cookies filled with fruit or jam that are eaten on Purim." (JPS)

Example Sentences

  • "We are going to bake hamentaschen for the Purim carnival."

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Languages of Origin

  • Yiddish

Etymology

  • המן־טאַשן homentashn (singular המן־טאַש homentash) 'lit. Haman pockets; triangular jam- or poppy-seed-filled cookies'

      • Who Uses This

      • Religious: Jews who are engaged in religious observance and have some Jewish education
      • Jews: Jews of diverse religious backgrounds and organizational involvements
      • Ashkenazim: Jews with Ashkenazi heritage

      Regions

      • North America
      • Great Britain
      • South Africa
      • Australia / New Zealand
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      Dictionaries

      • The New Joys of Yiddish, by Leo Rosten and Lawrence Bush (New York, 2003[1968]).
      • The JPS Dictionary of Jewish Words, by Joyce Eisenberg and Ellen Scolnic, (Philadelphia, 2001).
      • Dictionary of Jewish Usage: A Popular Guide to the Use of Jewish Terms, by Sol Steinmetz (Lanham, MD, 2005).

      Alternative Spellings

      hamentaschn, hamantaschn, homentashn, hamentashn, homantashn, hamantashn, homentaschen, hamantashen, homantaschen, hamantaschen, homentashen, homantashen, hamentashen, homantaschn, homentaschn

Notes

  • The traditional filling is מאָן mon 'poppy seeds', which may have contributed to the association of the cookies (montashn) with the name Homen (Haman) and ultimately with Purim.

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