Ashkenazic

Alternative Spellings

Ashkenazi

Definitions

• Adjectival form for 'Ashkenazim', "The name given to the group of Jews who were originally from Germany and France, and their descendants" (JPS)

Example Sentences

• "My family is Ashkenazi, we come from Poland. "

Languages of Origin

Textual Hebrew, Yiddish, English

Etymology

Heb אשכנזי ashkenazí, from אשכנז ashkenaz '(Jewish) medieval Germany'; Yiddish אַשכּנזיש ashkenázish

Who Uses This

Jews: Jews of diverse religious backgrounds and organizational involvements

Regions

North America

Dictionaries

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

Notes

In the Bible, Ashkenaz was the first son of Gomer and great-grandson of Noah. "Ashkenazic" has also become a description of all Central and Eastern Eurpoean Jews and their descendants.