challah

Alternative Spellings

khale, challa, chala, hallah

Definitions

• "The braided egg bread that traditionally is eaten on almost every Jewish holiday and [the Sabbath]" (JPS)

Example Sentences

• "We need two challahs for Friday night."

Languages of Origin

Textual Hebrew, Yiddish

Etymology

Heb חלה khalá, Yiddish/Ashkenazi Hebrew חלה khále

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 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).

Notes

Jewish law requires that a festive meal include bread. Challah is often egg bread and is traditionally braided, except around the New Year, when it is round.