zichrono livracha

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Pronunciations

zichrono livracha (zeech-roh-NOH liv-vrah-CHAH) listen

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Definitions

  • interj. May his memory be for a blessing (appended to the name of a dead person).

Example Sentences

  • "My grandfather, zikhrono levrakha, said tehillim every day."

  • "It does help me make a transition to the rest of the year of mourning for my mother, zichrona livracha, may her memory be for a blessing." (source)

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Languages of Origin

  • Textual Hebrew
  • Yiddish

Etymology

  • זכרונו לברכה Heb. zichrono livracha (fem. זכרונה לברכה, pl. זכרונם לברכה), Yid. zikhroyne livrokhe

      • Who Uses This

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

      Regions

      • North America
      • Great Britain
      • South Africa
      • Australia / New Zealand

      Dictionaries

      • 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).

      Alternative Spellings

      zikhrono livrakha, zichrono l'vracha, zichrono livrachah, zichrono livracha

Notes

  • Feminine zichrona livracha. Plural (masculine or mixed masculine and feminine) zichronam livracha. All three forms are often abbreviated as z"l, and that acronym is pronounced zal.

    Sometimes said in English calque translation: "May his memory be for a blessing."

    See also OB"M, zatsal, ziya, and olav ha-sholom.

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