sheitel

Alternative Spellings

shaytl, sheytl, shaytel, sheytel

Definitions

• wig; worn by some observant jewish women after marriage. "A wig worn by strictly Orthodox...women as a [hair] covering." (Steinberg)

Example Sentences

• "My friend Miriam didn't want to wear a sheitel, but her mother-in-law won her over."

Languages of Origin

Yiddish

Etymology

שײטל sheytl

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]).
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).