Yid
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2008-07-14T06:31:11Z
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"borsht belt" -> "Borscht Belt"
{{wiktionary}}
The word '''Yid''' ({{lang-yi|ייד}}, {{pronounced|jid}}) is a [[slang]] [[Jewish ethnonym]]. Its usage may be controversial in modern [[English language]]. It is not offensive when {{pronEng|ˈjiːd}} (rhyming with ''deed''), the way Yiddish-speakers say it. When pronounced {{IPA|/ˈjɪd/}} (rhyming with ''did''), it can generally be perceived as a [[pejorative]]—and is used as a derogatory [[epithet]] by [[antisemitism|antisemites]].<ref name=kpearson>[http://kpearson.faculty.tcnj.edu/Dictionary/yid.htm Kim Pearson's ''Rhetoric of Race''] by Eric Wolarsky. [[The College of New Jersey]].</ref>
Supporters of [[Tottenham Hotspur F.C.]] adopted a [[nickname]] "Yid" (or "Yiddo") and often identify as "Yid Army". Used as a badge of pride, such usage is not without a controversy
==Etymology==
[[Image:Page from Yiddish-Hebrew-Latin-German dictionary by Elijah Levita.jpg|thumb|250px|A page from [[Elia Levita]]'s [[Yiddish language|Yiddish]]-[[Hebrew language|Hebrew]]-[[Latin language|Latin]]-[[German language|German]] dictionary (16th century) contains a list of nations, including an entry for Jew: {{lang-he|יְהוּדִי}} {{lang-yi|יוּד}} {{lang-de|Iud}} {{lang-la|Iudaeus}}]]
The term ''Yid'' has its origins in the [[Middle High German]] word ''{{lang|de|Jüde}}'' (the contemporary [[German language|German]] word is ''{{lang|de|Jude}}'').
[[Leo Rosten]] provides the following [[etymology]]:
<blockquote>From the [[German language|German]]: Jude: 'Jew.' And 'Jude' is a truncated form of [[Yehuda]], which was the name given to the [[Israelite|Jewish Commonwealth]] in the period of the [[Second Temple]]. That name, in turn, was derived from the name of one of [[Jacob]]'s sons, Yehuda ([[Judah]], in [[English language|English]]), whose descendants constituted one of the [[tribes of Israel]] and who settled in that portion of [[Canaan]] from [[Jerusalem]] south to [[Kadesh-Barnea]] (50 miles south of [[Beersheba]]) and from [[Jericho]] westwards to the [[Mediterranean]].<ref>[[Leo Rosten]]: ''[[The Joys of Yiddish]]'', 1968. Cited in [http://kpearson.faculty.tcnj.edu/Dictionary/yid.htm Kim Pearson's ''Rhetoric of Race''] by Eric Wolarsky. [[The College of New Jersey]].</ref>
</blockquote>
{{Seealso|Jew#Etymology|Jew (word)}}
==History==
The earliest mention of the word ''Yid'' in print was in ''The Slang Dictionary'' published by [[John Camden Hotten]] in [[1874]]. Hotten noted that "The Jews use these terms very frequently."<ref name=kpearson/>
After [[World War II]], most examples of the word ''Yid'' are found in the writing of Jewish authors. These occurrences are usually either attempts to accurately portray antisemitic speech, or [[self-deprecation|self-deprecating]] [[Jewish humor]]. In his 1968 bestseller ''[[The Joys of Yiddish]]'', Leo Rosten offers a number of anecdotes from the "[[Borscht Belt]]" to illustrate such usage.<ref name=kpearson/>
Today, the word is often used by Jews in praise, to describe an upstanding religiously observant Jew (e.g., "He's such a ''Yid'', giving up his time like that") or to distinguish upstanding religiously observant Jews from non-observant.
==Usage in Yiddish==
In Yiddish, the word {{lang-yi|ייד}} is neutral, and in [[Ashkenazi]] Yiddish-speaking circles it is frequently used to mean simply "fellow," "chap," "buddy," "mate," etc., with no expressed emphasis on Jewishness (although this may be implied by the intra-Jewish context). Plural is {{lang|yi|יידן}} {{IPA|[jidn]}}.
In Yiddish, a polite way to address a fellow Jew whose name one does not know is ''Reb Yid,'' meaning "Sir." The Yiddish words ''yidish'' or ''yiddisher'' (from Middle High German ''jüdisch'') is an adjective derived from the noun ''Yid,'' and thus means "[[Jewish]]."
==Usage in European football==
{{main|Tottenham Hotspur F.C.#"Yid Army"}}
Fans of [[Tottenham Hotspur F.C.]] adopted "Yid" (or "Yiddo") as a [[nickname]] and "Yiddo, Yiddo!" as a [[battle cry]] and often identify themselves as "Yid Army". While such usage remains controversial, for the overwhelming majority of Tottenham supporters, it is used with pride. Some Tottenham supporters use it with a political consciousness of the club as a bastion against racism and antisemitism. Others use it simply due to the fact that many of the fans and owners of the club are Jews. However, the name was first given to the supporters as an insult, due to the large Jewish following at the club. The racist chant "Yiddo" is used to taunt the club when playing as well.<ref name=kpearson/>
{{Seealso|AFC Ajax#References to Judaism}}
==References==
{{Reflist}}
[[Category:Yiddish words and phrases]]
[[Category:Jewish culture]]