mishpacha

Alternative Spellings

mishpocheh, mushpuche, mishpokhe

Definitions

• "Literally, "family". ...The word conveys a warm feeling of friendship." (JPS)

Example Sentences

• On a wedding celebration invitation: "Come celebrate with us as we welcome a new branch of our Mishpacha"

Languages of Origin

Textual Hebrew, Yiddish

Etymology

Heb משפּחה mishpakhá, Yiddish mishpókhe

Who Uses This

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

Regions

North America

Dictionaries

The New Joys of Yiddish, by Leo Rosten and Lawrence Bush (New York, 2003[1968]).
Yiddish and English: A Century of Yiddish in America, by Sol Steinmetz (Tuscaloosa, 1986).
The JPS Dictionary of Jewish Words, by Joyce Eisenberg and Ellen Scolnic, (Philadelphia, 2001).
The Joys of Hebrew, by Lewis Glinert (New York, 1992).