mizrach

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Pronunciations

mizrach (meez-RAHKH) listen

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Definitions

  • n. The direction east.

Example Sentences

  • "If we stand over there by the window, we'll be facing mizrach." (Glinert)

  • "A Mizrach Sign has always been found in almost any traditional Jewish home fixed on the eastern wall as a reminder of the direction of Jerusalem." (source)

  • "It's a chashivus to sit by the mizrach-vant.” (Weiser)

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Languages of Origin

  • Textual Hebrew
  • Yiddish

Etymology

  • TH מזרח > Y מיזרח mizrekh

      • Who Uses This

      • Religious: Jews who are engaged in religious observance and have some Jewish education

      Regions

      • North America

      Dictionaries

      • The JPS Dictionary of Jewish Words, by Joyce Eisenberg and Ellen Scolnic, (Philadelphia, 2001).
      • The Joys of Hebrew, by Lewis Glinert (New York, 1992).

      Alternative Spellings

      mizrakh, mizrah

Notes

  • 'East' is significant in Judaism because those in the Western hemisphere must face eastwards in order to face Jerusalem, the sight of Solomon's Temple. Traditionally, the Holy Ark is situated on an eastern wall of synagogues. Likewise, in homes, signs are often hung on the Eastern wall with the word 'mizrach' written on them.

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