Semite

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Pronunciations

Semite (SEM-eyet) listen

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Definitions

  • n. A member of any group of people that speak (or spoke) Semitic languages including the Akkadians, Canaanites, Phoenicians, Hebrews, and Arabs.

Example Sentences

  • "While Shem and his sons are of biblical antiquity, the Semite is of much more recent origin, dating from 18th-century Europe." (source)

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Languages of Origin

  • Textual Hebrew
  • English

Etymology

  • ultimately from שֵׁם shem, the eldest of the three sons of Noah. 

      • Who Uses This

      • Jews: Jews of diverse religious backgrounds and organizational involvements
      • Non-Jews: (words that have spread outside of Jewish networks)

      Regions

      • North America

      Dictionaries

      • The JPS Dictionary of Jewish Words, by Joyce Eisenberg and Ellen Scolnic, (Philadelphia, 2001).

Notes

  • "Today, Semite often refers to persons of Jewish heritage and is used as part of the word 'anti-Semite' to refer to someone prejudiced against Jews." (JPS)

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