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Have you ever used the name "Goy" or "Goyim" to describe a person who is a Gentile?
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Anonymous
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shiksa shikse, is a Yiddish and Polish word that has moved into English usage, mostly in North American Jewish culture, where it may be used as a pejorative term for a non-Jewish woman, but is now often used satirically. Not The word shiksa is etymologically partly derived from the Hebrew term ???, ??? sheketz, which means "abomination", "impure," or "object of loathing", depending on the translator.[1] Despite its etymology, the term shiksa is widely used and accepted [citation needed] in the United States, where it is often used in a humorous way. However, several dictionaries define "shiksa" as a disparaging and offensive term applied to a non-Jewish girl or woman.[2] The word (written "siksa", pronounced "shiksa") in Polish Gentile culture is a popular pejorative (but often teasing or affectionate) word for an immature young girl or teenager. It means "pisspants" and is roughly equivalent to the English terms "snot-nosed brat", "young squirt", "young breasts" or "young goat" ("kid").[3] It is a conflation between the Hebrew term and usage of the Polish word "sika?" ("to urinate"). |
Anonymous
| I try not to use either, but shiksa is definitely meant to be more insulting than goy. Neither of the words come anywhere close to the N word or anything on that level of insult. |
Anonymous
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Goy and Goyim aren't generally used in a nasty way, although they are sometimes used that way and I would say some people don't use it around Non-Jews. I would agree with the poster that said that it's not necessarily used to put people down, but it is probably used to exclude more often.....naming Non-Jews as a group something different than Jews. It really depends on who you're talking to and what these words mean to them, as you can tell from the posts.
Also "Goysha" is used to describe something that's not "Jewish." I think most people use it for things that they wouldn't expect Jews to do, but these are usually things that are more "American." Like, Wonder Bread may be called "Goysha" but it's not that Jews won't eat it or something. Or, I've heard that Colonial looking furniture, which many Jews have in their homes, may be called "Goysha." Shiksa and Shaigitz (the male version of Shiksa) are never meant in a nasty way, as far as I can tell. Although for the PP it must be used that way among their friends, that surprises me because I don't hear it that way. I would say that in my world Goy is more obnoxious to use than Shiksa. My Mother's first language is Yiddish, so I may have a different perspective, but I grew up in a very Jewish area and I think that some of these terms get tossed around Jewish communities without much thought and people do use them both in a derogatory way and without meaning anything negative. You can generally tell by tone if they're being nasty. For example, the term "JAP" (Jewish American Princess) is derogatory, but everyone uses it and I'm not offended when a Non-Jew uses it unless I believe they have a nasty intent.....and I don't think they normally do. Shvartzah is derogatory, even though I don't think the actual "meaning" is any more than "black person" and some older Jews will use it in a non-derogatory way. I don't ever use it and I find it very offensive. |
Anonymous
I don't think that this post had some kind of anti-semetic intent. This is a legitimate question. If you don't believe that Jews, like every other ethnic group on the entire planet, have terms to exclude people, you're just being naive. There's a woman I know who's Hawaiin and she is always calling people "Howli" and I always wonder if she's saying some racist term to everyone and getting away with it because it's Hawaiian. That said, I don't think she means something mean by it. I would never go around work calling people Goyim, even though I personally don't think of it as a nasty term. I'm aware others do and that makes it inappropriate. |
Anonymous
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It sounds very similar to discussion about the nature of the term "gaijin". Many people would take offense, but some argue that it is neutral.
My guess is that much depends on how it is intended when said, just like we might say "foreigner" in a way that is either neutral or pejorative depending on context. |
Anonymous
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I'm a Gentile married to a Jew, and I'm very, very Goy. (grew up on a farmette with pigs in South Dakota, for starters. Played college volleyball, can drive a tractor, you get the idea).
My UWS Dh and his family of intellectuals-educators don't use the word 'goy' either inside or outside the home. Here is what I always wonder: why is there a need for such a word in 2010, in the United States? I cannot imagine sitting around with my family of origin in S.D. and saying, "OMGawd, that seems so Jewish!" or "We eat London broil, not brisket, because brisket is just so Jewish." Like ... why? I have asked my DH this same question and he just doesn't know. |
Anonymous
I'm the PP married to a Jewish man (I'm Christian), and this is a very good question. Can you imagine the reaction if I said, "oh, that is so Jewish"? There would be a riot. On a related note, I've never understood what the issue is with the statement, "you don't look Jewish." SIL repeated this (it was said to her) with horror and insult in her voice. How is it different from "you don't look Irish" or "you don't look Italian"? |
Anonymous
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I say it to my Jewish friends only. No point in using it with my non- Jewish friends.
I'm Gentile. |
Anonymous
I knew someone who lived in Guam and I'm pretty sure she said 'howli' is a derogatory term for white people. It's funny to me b/c the word itself sounds funny, and I'm hard to offend. Howli = gringo, imo. Both of which I'm not offended by. |
Anonymous
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It is never a nice term, and never used in formal conversation or circumstances, but in some contexts, it is totally harmless.
Sometimes, the context is really about laughing at ourselves, and not "the goyim." |
Anonymous
| I cringe whenever I hear a family member say it. I think it comes from a place of Jews feeling like they are better than other people. |
Anonymous
| So easy: I just call all non-chosen people goyisha-hicks. |
Anonymous
This made me laugh because I have heard people say this.....I'm assuming this poster is making a joke, but I guess you never know! It's obviously being pretty obviously derogatory. I guess adding the word "hick" lets everyone know your intent. Just in case you didn't think they were being derogatory, they want to make absolutely sure. |
Anonymous
Of course no one knows. People don't make up these terms now. I mean, anyway, the terms already exist, so why make them up now? Haha. BTW, many people say things are "Jewish." I've heard them say it to me even. Anyway, I don't think any of us can honestly say we don't hear people believing things to be "Jewish." Maybe in S.D. there just aren't that many Jews so the subject doesn't come up (correct me if I'm wrong, of course, I'm making a broad assumption about S.D. and actually have no idea). A friend of mine who's Jewish and lived in Kansas said that there it wasn't an issue because no one knew any Jews, so no one had any thoughts about them. In many places you certainly will meet people that will use the word "Jewish" as an insult and who avoid things that seem too "Jewish." |
Anonymous
| Frankly, referring to someone as being NOT Jewish is a bigger insult the calling someone goy or goyim. Jews don't do as much recruiting as other religions do so we kind of feel, well, if you aren't Jewish, it's really not your fault. Some people are chosen to be doctors and lawyers, some people are chosen to live in trailers and have misspelled tatoos. It is what it is. |