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{{Short description|Word meaning 'non-Jew | {{Short description|Word meaning 'non-Jew'}} | ||
{{About|the | {{About|the origin, meaning and use in English of the word "goy"}} | ||
{{pp-vandalism|small=yes}} | |||
{{Italic title}} | {{Italic title}} | ||
{{ | {{Judaism}} | ||
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2025}} | |||
'''''Goy''''' (pl: '''goyim''' or '''goys''') is a term for a [[gentile]], a non-[[Jew]], sometimes in a pejorative sense.<ref name="ReferenceA" /><ref name="Oxford" /><ref name = "mw" /> The word, of [[Hebrew]] origin, was adopted into English from [[Yiddish]].<ref name="Wolfthal" /> It carries a similar meaning in [[Modern Hebrew]].<ref name="HebDict" /> | |||
The [[Biblical Hebrew]] word ''goy'' has been commonly translated into English as ''[[nation]]'',<ref name = "ISB" /><ref name=wiseman /> meaning a group of persons of the same ethnic family who speak the same language (rather than the more common modern meaning of a political unit).<ref name=NationEty /> In the Bible, ''goy'' is used to describe both the [[Israelites|Nation of Israel]] and other nations.<ref>{{cite web |title=Gentile |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Gentile |website=Encyclopaedia Britannica |publisher=Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. | The [[Biblical Hebrew]] word ''goy'' has been commonly translated into English as ''[[nation]]'',<ref name = "ISB" /><ref name=wiseman /> meaning a group of persons of the same ethnic family who speak the same language (rather than the more common modern meaning of a political unit).<ref name=NationEty /> In the Bible, ''goy'' is used to describe both the [[Israelites|Nation of Israel]] and other nations.<ref>{{cite web |title=Gentile |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Gentile |access-date=2 December 2024 |website=Encyclopaedia Britannica |publisher=Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.}}</ref><ref name = "ISB" /><ref name=wiseman /> | ||
The meaning of the word ''goy'' in Hebrew evolved to mean "non-Jew" in the [[Hellenistic period|Hellenistic]] (300 BCE to 30 BCE) and [[Roman Empire|Roman periods]], as both Rabbinical texts and then Christian theology placed increasing emphasis on a binary division between Jews and non-Jews. | The meaning of the word ''goy'' in Hebrew evolved to mean "non-Jew" in the [[Hellenistic period|Hellenistic]] (300 BCE to 30 BCE) and [[Roman Empire|Roman periods]], as both Rabbinical texts and then Christian theology placed increasing emphasis on a binary division between Jews and non-Jews. | ||
In modern usage in English, the extent to which ''goy'' is derogatory is a point of discussion in the Jewish community. | As a word principally used by Jews to describe non-Jews,<ref name="Oxford" /> it is a term for the [[List of terms for ethnic out-groups|ethnic out-group]].<ref name="Magid">It is sometimes compared to similar terms in other cultures such as the Japanese word ''[[Gaijin]]'' or the Arabic ''[[Ajam]]''. {{cite web |last=Magid |first=Shaul |date=7 December 2019 |title=Theorizing 'Jew" 'Judaism' and 'Jewishness': Final Reflections", The Journal of Jewish Identities 11:1 (January 2018): 205–215 |url=https://www.academia.edu/41218495 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230701104948/https://www.academia.edu/41218495 |archive-date=1 July 2023 |access-date=29 December 2022 |website=Academia.edu}}</ref> In modern usage in English, the extent to which ''goy'' is derogatory is a point of discussion in the Jewish community. | ||
The word "goy" is sometimes used by [[white supremacist]]s to refer to themselves when signaling a belief in [[conspiracy theories]] about Jews.<ref name=SPLC /> | The word "goy" is sometimes used by [[white supremacist]]s to refer to themselves when signaling a belief in [[conspiracy theories]] about Jews.<ref name=SPLC /> | ||
== Hebrew Bible== | == Hebrew Bible == | ||
[[File:Page from Yiddish-Hebrew-Latin-German dictionary by Elijah Levita.jpg|thumb|A page from [[Elia Levita]]'s [[Yiddish language|Yiddish]]-[[Hebrew language|Hebrew]]-[[Latin language|Latin]]-[[German language|German]] dictionary (16th century) including the word ''goy'' (גוי), translated to Latin as ''ethnicus'', meaning heathen or pagan.<ref name="ethnicus" />]] | |||
The word {{lang|he-Latn|goy}} means "nation" in [[Biblical Hebrew]].<ref name=Rosen-Zvi /><ref name=Persico /> In the [[Torah]], {{lang|he-Latn|goy}} and its variants appear 560 times in reference to both the [[Israelite]]s and the non-Israelite nations.<ref name=BrookeL /> | The word {{lang|he-Latn|goy}} means "nation" in [[Biblical Hebrew]].<ref name=Rosen-Zvi /><ref name=Persico /> In the [[Torah]], {{lang|he-Latn|goy}} and its variants appear 560 times in reference to both the [[Israelite]]s and the non-Israelite nations.<ref name=BrookeL /> | ||
The first recorded usage of ''goyim'' occurs in {{bibleverse|Genesis||10:5|HE}} and applies to non-Israelite nations. The first mention of ''goy'' in relation to the Israelites comes in {{bibleverse|Genesis||12:2|HE}}, when God promises [[Abraham]] that his descendants will form a {{lang|he-Latn|goy gadol}} ("great nation").<ref name=Lazarus /> | The first recorded usage of ''goyim'' occurs in {{bibleverse|Genesis||10:5|HE}} and applies to non-Israelite nations. The first mention of ''goy'' in relation to the Israelites comes in {{bibleverse|Genesis||12:2|HE}}, when God promises [[Abraham]] that his descendants will form a {{lang|he-Latn|goy gadol}} ("great nation").<ref name=Lazarus /> | ||
There are two exceptions where a | There are two exceptions where a "Kingdom of Goyim" is mentioned. One is in {{bibleverse|Genesis||14:1|HE}}, where it states that the "King of Goyim" was [[Tidal (Bible King)|Tidal]]. Bible commentaries suggest that the term may refer to [[Gutium]]. The other is in {{bibleverse|Joshua|12:23|NIV}}, where a "King of Goyim in [[Gilgal]]" is included in the list of kings slain by [[Joshua]]. In all other cases the meaning of {{lang|he-Latn|goyim}} is 'nations.'<ref name=MooreColby /><ref name = "ISB" /> | ||
In {{bibleverse|Exodus||19:6|HE}}, the Israelites are referred to as a {{lang|he-Latn|goy kadosh}}, a "holy nation".<ref name=Rosen-Zvi /><ref name="RoseKlein2009" /> One of the more poetic descriptions of the [[chosen people]] in the Hebrew Bible, and popular among Jewish scholars is {{lang|he-Latn|goy ehad b'aretz}}, or "a unique nation upon the earth" ({{bibleverse|2 Samuel|7:23}} and {{bibleverse|1 Chronicles|17:21}})<ref name=Maroof /> | In {{bibleverse|Exodus||19:6|HE}}, the Israelites are referred to as a {{lang|he-Latn|goy kadosh}}, a "holy nation".<ref name=Rosen-Zvi /><ref name="RoseKlein2009" /> One of the more poetic descriptions of the [[chosen people]] in the Hebrew Bible, and popular among Jewish scholars is {{lang|he-Latn|goy ehad b'aretz}}, or "a unique nation upon the earth" ({{bibleverse|2 Samuel|7:23}} and {{bibleverse|1 Chronicles|17:21}})<ref name=Maroof /> | ||
===Translations of 'goy' in English-language Christian Bibles=== | === Translations of 'goy' in English-language Christian Bibles === | ||
In English language Christian bibles, ''nation'' has been used as the principal translation for ''goy'' in the [[Hebrew Bible]], from the earliest English language bibles such as the 1530 [[Tyndale Bible]] and the 1611 [[King James Version]].<ref name="KJVLexicon" /><ref>[[s:Bible (Tyndale)/Genesis#Chapter 10|Tyndale Gen 10]]</ref> | In English language Christian bibles, ''nation'' has been used as the principal translation for ''goy'' in the [[Hebrew Bible]], from the earliest English language bibles such as the 1530 [[Tyndale Bible]] and the 1611 [[King James Version]].<ref name="KJVLexicon" /><ref>[[s:Bible (Tyndale)/Genesis#Chapter 10|Tyndale Gen 10]]</ref> | ||
The [[King James Version]] of the Bible translates the word {{lang|he-Latn|goy}}/{{lang|he-Latn|goyim}} as "nation" 374 times, "heathen" 143 times, "Gentile" 30 times (see ''Evolution of the Term'' below) and "people" 11 times.<ref name =KJVLexicon /> The [[New American Standard Bible]] translation uses the following words: "every nation" (2 times) Gentiles (1) Goiim (1), Harosheth-hagoyim* (3), herds (1), nation (120), nations (425), people (4).<ref name=NASLexicon>{{cite web | last1=Baker | first1=Lisa Loraine | last2=Leake | first2=Mike | title=Gowy Meaning in Bible | The [[King James Version]] of the Bible translates the word {{lang|he-Latn|goy}}/{{lang|he-Latn|goyim}} as "nation" 374 times, "heathen" 143 times, "Gentile" 30 times (see ''Evolution of the Term'' below) and "people" 11 times.<ref name =KJVLexicon /> The [[New American Standard Bible]] translation uses the following words: "every nation" (2 times) Gentiles (1) Goiim (1), Harosheth-hagoyim* (3), herds (1), nation (120), nations (425), people (4).<ref name="NASLexicon">{{cite web |last1=Baker |first1=Lisa Loraine |last2=Leake |first2=Mike |date=18 October 2022 |title=Gowy Meaning in Bible – Old Testament Hebrew Lexicon |url=https://www.biblestudytools.com/lexicons/hebrew/nas/gowy.html |access-date=12 November 2022 |website=biblestudytools.com}}</ref> | ||
== Evolution of the term == | == Evolution of the term == | ||
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While the books of the [[Hebrew Bible]] often use {{lang|he-Latn|goy}} to describe the Israelites, the later Jewish writings of the [[Hellenistic Period]] (from approximately 300 BCE to 30 BCE) tended to apply the term to other nations.<ref name=Rosen-Zvi /> | While the books of the [[Hebrew Bible]] often use {{lang|he-Latn|goy}} to describe the Israelites, the later Jewish writings of the [[Hellenistic Period]] (from approximately 300 BCE to 30 BCE) tended to apply the term to other nations.<ref name=Rosen-Zvi /> | ||
Goy acquired the meaning of someone who is not Jewish in the first and second century CE. Before that time, academics | Goy acquired the meaning of someone who is not Jewish in the first and second century CE. Before that time, academics Adi Ophir and Ishay Rosen-Zvi have argued, no crystallized dichotomy between Jew and non-Jew existed in Judaism.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Rosen-Zvi |first=Ishay |date=10 June 2016 |title=What if We Got Rid of the Goy? Rereading Ancient Jewish Distinctions |journal=Journal for the Study of Judaism |publisher=Brill |volume=47 |issue=2 |pages=149–182 |doi=10.1163/15700631-12340458 |issn=0047-2212 |s2cid=163738717}}</ref> Ophir and Rosen-Zvi state that the early Jewish convert to Christianity, [[Saint Paul|Paul]], was key in developing the concept of "goy" to mean non-Jew: | ||
Adi Ophir and Ishay Rosen-Zvi have argued, no crystallized dichotomy between Jew and non-Jew existed in Judaism.<ref>{{cite journal | last=Rosen-Zvi | first=Ishay | title=What if We Got Rid of the Goy? Rereading Ancient Jewish Distinctions | journal=Journal for the Study of Judaism | publisher=Brill | volume=47 | issue=2 | | |||
{{ | {{quote|This brilliant Hellenist Jew [Paul] considered himself the apostle of the Christian gospel "to the gentiles," and precisely because of this he needed to define that category more thoroughly and carefully than his predecessors. Paul made the conception that "goyim" are not "peoples," but rather a general category of human beings, into a central element of his thought [...] In the centuries that followed, both the Church and the Jewish sages evoked Paul's binary dichotomy. |author=Haaretz journalist Tomer Persico discussing views of Ophir and Rosen-Zvi<ref name=Persico />}} | ||
| | |||
The Latin words gentes/gentilis – which also referred to peoples or nations – began to be used to describe non-Jews in parallel with the evolution of the word {{lang|he-Latn|goy}} in Hebrew. Based on the Latin model, the English word "gentile" came to mean non-Jew from the time of the first English-language Bible translations in the 1500s (see [[Gentile]]). | The Latin words gentes/gentilis – which also referred to peoples or nations – began to be used to describe non-Jews in parallel with the evolution of the word {{lang|he-Latn|goy}} in Hebrew. Based on the Latin model, the English word "gentile" came to mean non-Jew from the time of the first English-language Bible translations in the 1500s (see [[Gentile]]). | ||
The twelfth century Jewish scholar [[Maimonides]] defines ''goy'' in his [[Mishneh Torah]] as a worshipper of idolatry, as he explains, "Whenever we refer to a gentile [goy] without any further description, we mean one who worships false deities".<ref>{{cite book |last=Maimonides | The twelfth century Jewish scholar [[Maimonides]] defines ''goy'' in his [[Mishneh Torah]] as a worshipper of idolatry, as he explains, "Whenever we refer to a gentile [goy] without any further description, we mean one who worships false deities".<ref>{{cite book |last=Maimonides |url=https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/968267/jewish/Maachalot-Assurot-Chapter-11.htm |title=Ma'achalot Assurot |at=chapter 11 verse 8 |translator-last1=Touger |translator-first1=Eliyahu |access-date=12 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221112205412/https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/968267/jewish/Maachalot-Assurot-Chapter-11.htm |archive-date=12 November 2022 |url-status=live}}</ref> Maimonides saw Christians as idolators (because of concepts like the [[Trinity]]) but not Muslims who he saw as more strictly monotheistic.<ref name=Yanover /> | ||
== As a pejorative == | == As a pejorative == | ||
Goy can be used in a derogatory manner. The [[Yiddish]] lexicographer [[Leo Rosten]] in ''The New Joys of Yiddish'' defines goy as someone who is non-Jewish or someone who is dull, insensitive, or heartless.<ref name="Rosten2010">{{cite book |author=Leo Rosten |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=V04IRE3SwmgC&pg=PA132 |title=The New Joys of Yiddish: Completely Updated |date=14 April 2010 |publisher=Potter/Ten Speed/Harmony/Rodale |isbn=978-0-307-56604-1 |pages=131–3}}</ref> Goy also occurs in many pejorative Yiddish expressions: | |||
Goy can be used in a derogatory manner. The [[Yiddish]] lexicographer [[Leo Rosten]] in ''The New Joys of Yiddish'' defines goy as someone who is non-Jewish or someone who is dull, insensitive, or heartless.<ref name="Rosten2010">{{cite book|author=Leo Rosten | |||
* {{Transliteration|yi|Dos ken nor a goy}} ({{lang|yi| | * {{Transliteration|yi|Dos ken nor a goy}} ({{lang|yi| | ||
דאָס קען נאָר אַ גױ}}){{snd}}Something only a goy would do or is capable of doing.<ref name="Rosten2010"/> | דאָס קען נאָר אַ גױ}}){{snd}}Something only a goy would do or is capable of doing.<ref name="Rosten2010"/> | ||
* {{Transliteration|yi|A goy blabt a goy}} ({{lang|yi|אַ גױ בלאַבט אַ גױ}}){{snd}}"A goy stays a goy | * {{Transliteration|yi|A goy blabt a goy}} ({{lang|yi|אַ גױ בלאַבט אַ גױ}}){{snd}}"A goy stays a goy" | ||
* {{Transliteration|yi|Goyisher kop}} ({{lang|yi|גױישער קאָפּ}}){{snd}}"Gentile head," someone who doesn't think ahead, an idiot.<ref name="Rosten2010"/><ref name="Schorr2017">{{cite web | last=Schorr | first=Rebecca Einstein | title=Goy: Origin, Usage, and Empowering White Supremacists | * {{Transliteration|yi|Goyisher kop}} ({{lang|yi|גױישער קאָפּ}}){{snd}}"Gentile head," someone who doesn't think ahead, an idiot.<ref name="Rosten2010"/><ref name="Schorr2017">{{cite web |last=Schorr |first=Rebecca Einstein |date=21 August 2017 |title=Goy: Origin, Usage, and Empowering White Supremacists |url=https://forward.com/life/faith/380684/goyim-origin-goy-usage/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201224200819/https://forward.com/life/faith/380684/goyim-origin-goy-usage/ |archive-date=24 December 2020 |access-date=6 December 2020 |website=The Forward}}</ref> | ||
* {{Transliteration|yi|Goyishe naches}} ({{lang|yi|גױישע נחת}}){{snd}}Pleasures or pursuits only a gentile would enjoy.<ref name="Silow-Carroll2019">{{cite web | last=Silow-Carroll | first=Andrew | title=Is 'goy' a slur? | * {{Transliteration|yi|Goyishe naches}} ({{lang|yi|גױישע נחת}}){{snd}}Pleasures or pursuits only a gentile would enjoy.<ref name="Silow-Carroll2019">{{cite web |last=Silow-Carroll |first=Andrew |date=22 April 2019 |title=Is 'goy' a slur? |url=https://www.jta.org/2019/04/22/culture/is-goy-a-slur |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201124162238/https://www.jta.org/2019/04/22/culture/is-goy-a-slur |archive-date=24 November 2020 |access-date=6 December 2020 |website=Jewish Telegraphic Agency}}</ref> | ||
* {{Transliteration|yi|A goy!}} ({{lang|yi|!אַ גױ}}){{snd}}Exclamation of exasperation used "when endurance is exhausted, kindliness depleted, the effort to understand useless".<ref name="Cole1988">{{cite book|author=Johnnetta B. Cole | * {{Transliteration|yi|A goy!}} ({{lang|yi|!אַ גױ}}){{snd}}Exclamation of exasperation used "when endurance is exhausted, kindliness depleted, the effort to understand useless".<ref name="Cole1988">{{cite book |author=Johnnetta B. Cole |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sFCMaloGSTIC&pg=PA62 |title=Anthropology for the Nineties: Introductory Readings |publisher=Simon and Schuster |year=1988 |isbn=978-0-02-906441-2 |pages=62–}}</ref> | ||
Several authors have opined on whether the word is derogatory. Dan Friedman, executive director of ''[[The Forward]]'' in "What 'Goy' Means, And Why I Keep Using It" writes that it can be used as an insult but that the word is not offensive.<ref name="TheForward2017">{{cite web | title=What 'Goy' Means, And Why I Keep Using It | Several authors have opined on whether the word is derogatory. Dan Friedman, executive director of ''[[The Forward]]'' in "What 'Goy' Means, And Why I Keep Using It" writes that it can be used as an insult but that the word is not offensive.<ref name="TheForward2017">{{cite web |date=25 August 2017 |title=What 'Goy' Means, And Why I Keep Using It |url=https://forward.com/life/381035/why-i-wont-stop-using-the-term-goy/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201223071941/https://forward.com/life/381035/why-i-wont-stop-using-the-term-goy/ |archive-date=23 December 2020 |access-date=6 December 2020 |website=The Forward}}</ref> He compares it to the word "foreigners" which Americans can use dismissively but which isn't a derogatory word.<ref name="TheForward2017"/> Similarly, [[Jews for Racial and Economic Justice]] (JFREJ) has stated that "goy" is "Not an insult, just kinda sounds like it."<ref>{{cite web |title=Understanding Antisemitism: An Offering to our Movement |url=https://www.jfrej.org/assets/uploads/JFREJ-Understanding-Antisemitism-November-2017-v1-3-2.pdf |access-date=4 June 2022 |publisher=Jews for Racial and Economic Justice}}</ref> | ||
Rebecca Einstein Schorr argues that the word has an established pejorative overtone. She refers to the observation "the ''goyishe'' groomsmen were all drunk and bawdy; of course, you'd never see that at a Jewish wedding" and "goyishe kop" where the word is used in a pejorative sense. She admits that the word can have non-pejorative uses, such as "goyishe restaurant" | Rebecca Einstein Schorr argues that the word has an established pejorative overtone. She refers to the observation "the ''goyishe'' groomsmen were all drunk and bawdy; of course, you'd never see that at a Jewish wedding" and "goyishe kop" where the word is used in a pejorative sense. She admits that the word can have non-pejorative uses, such as "goyishe restaurant" – one that doesn't serve kosher food – but contends that the word is "neutral, at best, and extremely offensive, at worst." She advocates that the Jewish community stop using the word "goy."<ref name="Schorr2017"/> Andrew Silow Carroll writes:<ref name="Silow-Carroll2019"/> | ||
{{ | {{quote|But the word "goy" has too much historical and linguistic baggage to be used as casually as "non-Jew" or "gentile." It starts with the obvious slurs – like "goyishe kopf," or gentile brains, which suggests (generously) a dullard, or "shikker iz a goy," a gentile is a drunkard. "Goyishe naches" describes the kinds of things that a Jew mockingly presumes only a gentile would enjoy, like hunting, sailing and eating white bread.}} | ||
Nahma Nadich, deputy director of the Jewish Community Relations of Greater Boston writes: | Nahma Nadich, deputy director of the Jewish Community Relations of Greater Boston writes: | ||
{{ | {{quote|I definitely see goy as a slur — seldom used as a compliment, and never used in the presence of a non-Jew.}} | ||
adding<ref name="Silow-Carroll2019"/> | adding<ref name="Silow-Carroll2019"/> | ||
{{ | {{quote|That's a good litmus test: if you wouldn't use a word in the presence of someone you're describing, [there is a] good chance it's offensive.}} | ||
== In antisemitism == | == In antisemitism == | ||
According to the [[Southern Poverty Law Center]], [[White supremacy|white supremacists]] have ironically used the term "goy" in reference to themselves as a signal of their belief in [[conspiracy theories about Jews]].<ref name=SPLC /> For example, a [[Antisemitism in contemporary Hungary|Hungarian antisemitic]] motorcycle association refers to themselves as the [[Goyim riders]],<ref name=Molnar /> and in 2020 [[Kyle Chapman (American activist)|Kyle Chapman]] tried to rename the far-right group the [[Proud Boys]] to the [[Kyle Chapman (American activist)#Attempted takeover of the Proud Boys|Proud Goys]].<ref name=JPost1 /> | According to the [[Southern Poverty Law Center]], [[White supremacy|white supremacists]] have ironically used the term "goy" in reference to themselves as a signal of their belief in [[conspiracy theories about Jews]].<ref name=SPLC /> For example, a [[Antisemitism in contemporary Hungary|Hungarian antisemitic]] motorcycle association refers to themselves as the [[Goyim riders]],<ref name=Molnar /> and in 2020 [[Kyle Chapman (American activist)|Kyle Chapman]] tried to rename the far-right group the [[Proud Boys]] to the [[Kyle Chapman (American activist)#Attempted takeover of the Proud Boys|Proud Goys]].<ref name=JPost1 /> | ||
In a similar vein, the [[far-right]] American [[Traditionalist Worker Party]], in 2017, created the [[crowdfunding]] platform called GoyFundMe, a [[wordplay]] on the popular crowdfunding platform [[GoFundMe]].<ref>{{cite web | title=Nazi sympathizer profiled by NYT loses job, asks for donations on racist fundraising site | In a similar vein, the [[far-right]] American [[Traditionalist Worker Party]], in 2017, created the [[crowdfunding]] platform called GoyFundMe, a [[wordplay]] on the popular crowdfunding platform [[GoFundMe]].<ref>{{cite web |date=29 November 2017 |title=Nazi sympathizer profiled by NYT loses job, asks for donations on racist fundraising site |url=https://archive.thinkprogress.org/nazis-are-raising-funds-401a474ab37b/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210116212058/https://archive.thinkprogress.org/nazis-are-raising-funds-401a474ab37b/ |archive-date=16 January 2021 |access-date=12 December 2020 |website=ThinkProgress}}</ref> | ||
The [[Goyim Defense League]] (GDL) and its website, GoyimTV, are another example.<ref>{{cite web| | The [[Goyim Defense League]] (GDL) and its website, GoyimTV, are another example.<ref>{{cite web |title=Goyim Defense League |url=https://www.adl.org/resources/backgrounder/goyim-defense-league |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230131000430/https://www.adl.org/resources/backgrounder/goyim-defense-league |archive-date=31 January 2023 |access-date=23 September 2024 |website=[[Anti-Defamation League]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Nashville struggles to respond as Neo-Nazi groups turn focus on to city |url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/jul/23/nashville-neo-nazi-white-supremacists |work=[[The Guardian]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Inside GoyimTV, an underbelly of antisemitic neo-Nazi hate |url=https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/antisemitism/article-747331 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240923015040/https://www.jpost.com//diaspora/antisemitism/article-747331 |archive-date=23 September 2024 |access-date=23 September 2024 |work=[[The Jerusalem Post]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=White supremacists, seizing on Israel-Hamas war, have accelerated their antisemitism since Oct. 7 |url=https://www.jta.org/2024/03/08/united-states/white-supremacists-seizing-on-israel-hamas-war-have-accelerated-their-antisemitism-since-oct-7 |work=[[Jewish Telegraphic Agency]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Goyim Defense League founder sentenced to 30 days for antisemitic littering |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/goyim-defense-league-founder-sentenced-to-30-days-for-antisemitic-littering |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240729091722/https://www.timesofisrael.com/goyim-defense-league-founder-sentenced-to-30-days-for-antisemitic-littering/ |archive-date=29 July 2024 |access-date=23 September 2024 |work=[[The Times of Israel]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |date=21 May 2024 |title=Antisemitic, White Supremacist Propaganda Litters Collingswood Lawns |url=https://www.njpen.com/antisemitic-white-supremacist-propaganda-litters-collingswood-lawns |website=NJ PEN}}</ref> | ||
[[Europol]]'s 2021 report on ''Terrorism Situations and Trends'' discusses the German ''Goyim Partei Deutschland'' ('Goyim Party Germany'), "a [[right-wing extremism|right-wing extremist]] organisation" founded in 2016 which "used its website to publish antisemitic and [[racism|racist]] texts, pictures and videos."<ref name=Europol>{{cite web |title=Terrorism Situations and Trends | [[Europol]]'s 2021 report on ''Terrorism Situations and Trends'' discusses the German ''Goyim Partei Deutschland'' ('Goyim Party Germany'), "a [[right-wing extremism|right-wing extremist]] organisation" founded in 2016 which "used its website to publish antisemitic and [[racism|racist]] texts, pictures and videos."<ref name="Europol">{{cite web |date=2021 |title=Terrorism Situations and Trends |url=https://www.europol.europa.eu/cms/sites/default/files/documents/tesat_2021_0.pdf |website=Europol |page=83}}</ref> | ||
The slur is also featured in the far-right [[catchphrase]] or [[meme]] '''The Goyim Know, Shut It Down''' associated with [[Neo-Nazism in the United States|Neo-Nazis]] on online forums like the [[4chan]] and [[8chan]]. In this context, the "speaker" assumes the role of a "panicking [[Jew]]" who reacts to an event that would reveal Jewish "manipulations" or Jewish "deceitfulness".<ref name=ADL1 /> | The slur is also featured in the far-right [[catchphrase]] or [[meme]] '''The Goyim Know, Shut It Down''' associated with [[Neo-Nazism in the United States|Neo-Nazis]] on online forums like the [[4chan]] and [[8chan]]. In this context, the "speaker" assumes the role of a "panicking [[Jew]]" who reacts to an event that would reveal Jewish "manipulations" or Jewish "deceitfulness".<ref name=ADL1 /> | ||
According to the [[Anti-Defamation League]], the antisemitic meme first appeared on 4chan in 2013.<ref name= ADL1>{{cite web | title=The Goyim Know/Shut It Down | According to the [[Anti-Defamation League]], the antisemitic meme first appeared on 4chan in 2013.<ref name="ADL1">{{cite web |title=The Goyim Know/Shut It Down |url=https://www.adl.org/education/references/hate-symbols/the-goyim-knowshut-it-down |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201121074425/https://www.adl.org/education/references/hate-symbols/the-goyim-knowshut-it-down |archive-date=21 November 2020 |access-date=6 December 2020 |website=Anti-Defamation League}}</ref> Einstein Schorr called the meme an instance of "[[cultural appropriation|linguistic appropriation]]" whereby Neo-Nazis cynically incorporated "pseudo-[[Yiddish]] phrases" into their vocabulary to ridicule [[Jews]]. Schorr describes that as a way to propagate the "anti-Semitic myth that we are a cabal with our own secret language and agenda."<ref name="Schorr2017"/><ref>{{cite web |title=AJC's glossary of antisemitic terms, phrases, conspiracies, cartoons, themes, and memes. |url=https://www.ajc.org/sites/default/files/pdf/2021-02/AJC_Translate-Hate-Glossary-2021.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221211071245/http://www.ajc.org/sites/default/files/pdf/2021-02/AJC_Translate-Hate-Glossary-2021.pdf |archive-date=11 December 2022 |access-date=23 September 2024 |website=[[American Jewish Committee]]}}</ref> | ||
The Anti-Defamation League further deciphers the catchphrase,<ref>{{cite web| | The Anti-Defamation League further deciphers the catchphrase,<ref>{{cite web |title=The Goyim Know/Shut It Down |url=https://www.adl.org/resources/hate-symbol/goyim-knowshut-it-down |website=[[Anti-Defamation League]]}}</ref> | ||
{{ | {{quote|The language is typically used in references to antisemitic conspiracy theories depicting Jews as malevolent puppet-masters, manipulating [[antisemitic trope#Controlling the media|the media]], banks, and even entire governments to the benefit of themselves but to the detriment of other peoples.}} | ||
== See also == | == See also == | ||
* [[Gadjo]], a non-[[Romani]] person | |||
* [[Gentile]] | * [[Gentile]] | ||
* [[Ger toshav]] | * [[Ger toshav]] | ||
| Line 93: | Line 93: | ||
== References == | == References == | ||
<references> | |||
<ref name=BrookeL>{{cite web | title=Frequency Lists for NT Greek and Biblical Hebrew | <ref name="BrookeL">{{cite web |date=10 March 2011 |title=Frequency Lists for NT Greek and Biblical Hebrew |url=http://www.brookelester.net/blog/2011/3/10/frequency-lists-for-nt-greek-and-biblical-hebrew.html |access-date=7 November 2022 |website=Brooke Lester}}</ref> | ||
<ref name="ethnicus">{{cite web | title=Meaning of ethnicus (ethnici, ethnica, ethnicae, ethnicam, ethnicarum, ethnicas, ethnici, ethnicior, ethniciora, ethniciore) in Latin-English dictionary | <ref name="ethnicus">{{cite web |date=16 November 2020 |title=Meaning of ethnicus (ethnici, ethnica, ethnicae, ethnicam, ethnicarum, ethnicas, ethnici, ethnicior, ethniciora, ethniciore) in Latin-English dictionary |url=https://worldofdictionary.com/dict/latin-english/meaning/ethnicus |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170923042254/http://worldofdictionary.com/dict/latin-english/meaning/ethnicus |archive-date=23 September 2017 |access-date=6 December 2020 |website=World of Dictionary |language=la}}</ref> | ||
<ref name="HebDict">{{Cite web |script-title=he:גוי |url=https://www.morfix.co.il/%d7%92%d7%95%d7%99 | | <ref name="HebDict">{{Cite web |script-title=he:גוי |url=https://www.morfix.co.il/%d7%92%d7%95%d7%99 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121122012513/https://www.morfix.co.il/%d7%92%d7%95%d7%99 |archive-date=22 November 2012 |access-date=15 August 2020 |website=Morfix |language=he |script-website=he:מילון מורפיקס}}</ref> | ||
<ref name = "ISB">{{cite encyclopedia | | <ref name="ISB">{{cite encyclopedia |year=1939 |title=Goiim |encyclopedia=[[International Standard Bible Encyclopedia]] |publisher=[[William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company]] |location=[[Grand Rapids, Michigan|Grand Rapids]] |url=http://www.internationalstandardbible.com/G/goiim.html |access-date=13 January 2012 |orig-date=1915 |editor=James Orr |editor-link=James Orr (theologian) |volume=2 |oclc=819295 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180823105525/https://www.internationalstandardbible.com/G/goiim.html |archive-date=23 August 2018}}</ref> | ||
<ref name=JPost1>{{cite web| | <ref name="JPost1">{{cite web |date=12 November 2020 |title=Proud Boys leader trying to rebrand the group as explicitly antisemitic |url=https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/antisemitism/proud-boys-leader-trying-to-rebrand-the-group-as-explicitly-antisemitic-648831 |access-date=12 November 2020 |website=JPost.com |publisher=The Jerusalem Post}}</ref> | ||
<ref name=KJVLexicon>{{cite web | last1=Henderson | first1=Melissa | last2=Baker | first2=Lisa Loraine | last3=Verrett | first3=Bethany | last4=Brodie | first4=Jessica | last5=Haynes | first5=Clarence L. Jr. | last6=Dunn | first6=Betty | title=Gowy Meaning in Bible | <ref name="KJVLexicon">{{cite web |last1=Henderson |first1=Melissa |last2=Baker |first2=Lisa Loraine |last3=Verrett |first3=Bethany |last4=Brodie |first4=Jessica |last5=Haynes |first5=Clarence L. Jr. |last6=Dunn |first6=Betty |date=8 November 2022 |title=Gowy Meaning in Bible – Old Testament Hebrew Lexicon – King James Version |url=https://www.biblestudytools.com/lexicons/hebrew/kjv/gowy.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221109085818/https://www.biblestudytools.com/lexicons/hebrew/kjv/gowy.html |archive-date=9 November 2022 |access-date=9 November 2022 |website=biblestudytools.com}}</ref> | ||
<ref name=Lazarus>{{cite web | last=Lazarus | first=David | title=When Did "Goy" Become a Dirty Word? | | <ref name="Lazarus">{{cite web |last=Lazarus |first=David |date=20 March 2022 |title=When Did "Goy" Become a Dirty Word? |url=https://www.israeltoday.co.il/read/when-did-goy-become-a-dirty-word/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221107175716/https://www.israeltoday.co.il/read/when-did-goy-become-a-dirty-word/ |archive-date=7 November 2022 |access-date=7 November 2022 |website=Israel Today}}</ref> | ||
<ref name=Maroof>See, for instance: {{cite web | last=Maroof | first=Rabbi Joshua | title=Pittsburgh Reflections | <ref name="Maroof">See, for instance: {{cite web |last=Maroof |first=Rabbi Joshua |date=9 November 2018 |title=Pittsburgh Reflections – OU Life |url=https://www.ou.org/life/inspiration/pittsburgh-reflections/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221107174111/https://www.ou.org/life/inspiration/pittsburgh-reflections/ |archive-date=7 November 2022 |access-date=7 November 2022 |website=OU Life}}</ref> | ||
<ref name=Molnar>{{cite journal | last=Molnár | first=Virág | title=Civil society, radicalism and the rediscovery of mythic nationalism | journal=Nations and Nationalism | publisher=Wiley | volume=22 | issue=1 | | <ref name="Molnar">{{cite journal |last=Molnár |first=Virág |date=30 October 2015 |title=Civil society, radicalism and the rediscovery of mythic nationalism |journal=Nations and Nationalism |publisher=Wiley |volume=22 |issue=1 |pages=165–185 |doi=10.1111/nana.12126 |issn=1354-5078 |doi-access=free}}</ref> | ||
<ref name=MooreColby>{{cite book|author1=Frank Moore Colby | <ref name="MooreColby">{{cite book |author1=Frank Moore Colby |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HYxIAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA264 |title=The New International Encyclopædia |author2=Talcott Williams |publisher=Dodd, Mead and Company |year=1917 |page=264}}</ref> | ||
<ref name = "mw">{{Cite web|title=Definition of GOY|url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/goy|access-date=2020 | <ref name="mw">{{Cite web |title=Definition of GOY |url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/goy |access-date=15 August 2020 |website=www.merriam-webster.com |language=en}}</ref> | ||
<ref name=NationEty>{{cite web |url=https://www.etymonline.com/word/nation | <ref name="NationEty">{{cite web |title=Nation |url=https://www.etymonline.com/word/nation |website=Etymoline}}</ref> | ||
<ref name="Oxford">{{Cite web |title=goy ''noun'' | <ref name="Oxford">{{Cite web |title=goy ''noun'' |url=https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/american_english/goy?q=goy |access-date=15 August 2020 |website=Oxford Learner's Dictionaries}}</ref> | ||
<ref name=Persico>{{cite web | last=Persico | first=Tomer | title=How the Jews Invented the Goy | | <ref name="Persico">{{cite web |last=Persico |first=Tomer |date=9 November 2019 |title=How the Jews Invented the Goy |url=https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2019-11-09/ty-article-magazine/.premium/how-the-jews-invented-the-goy/0000017f-dc77-d3a5-af7f-feff061b0000 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221107092255/https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2019-11-09/ty-article-magazine/.premium/how-the-jews-invented-the-goy/0000017f-dc77-d3a5-af7f-feff061b0000 |archive-date=7 November 2022 |access-date=7 November 2022 |website=Haaretz.com}}</ref> | ||
<ref name="ReferenceA">{{cite web |title=Definition of Goy | | <ref name="ReferenceA">{{cite web |title=Definition of Goy |url=https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/goy |access-date=21 September 2021 |website=Collins Dictionary Online}}</ref> | ||
<ref name="RoseKlein2009">{{cite book|author1=Or N. Rose| | <ref name="RoseKlein2009">{{cite book |author1=Or N. Rose |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DNbvH10-jLoC&pg=PA4 |title=Righteous Indignation: A Jewish Call for Justice |author2=Margie Klein |author3=Jo Ellen Green Kaiser |author4=David Ellenson |publisher=Jewish Lights Publishing |year=2009 |isbn=978-1-58023-414-6 |page=4 |access-date=18 November 2010}}</ref> | ||
<ref name=Rosen-Zvi>{{cite journal | last1=Rosen-Zvi | first1=Ishay | last2=Ophir | first2=Adi | title=Paul and the Invention of the Gentiles | journal=The Jewish Quarterly Review | volume=105 | issue=1 | <ref name="Rosen-Zvi">{{cite journal |last1=Rosen-Zvi |first1=Ishay |last2=Ophir |first2=Adi |year=2015 |title=Paul and the Invention of the Gentiles |journal=The Jewish Quarterly Review |volume=105 |issue=1 |pages=1–41 |doi=10.1353/jqr.2015.0001 |jstor=43298709 |s2cid=143788215 |quote="In the Hebrew Bible, goy simply means "nation," with Israel too being a goy, a "holy goy" indeed but still a nation among nations".."During the Hellenistic period, however, a semantic differentiation takes place, and goyim begins to be used mostly for foreign nations." |quote-pages=3–4}}</ref> | ||
<ref name=SPLC>{{Cite web|last=Hayden|first=Michael Edison|date=August | <ref name="SPLC">{{Cite web |last=Hayden |first=Michael Edison |date=30 August 2020 |title=Wisconsin Man Who Says He Marched With Rittenhouse in Kenosha Was Immersed in White Supremacist Propaganda |url=https://www.splcenter.org/hatewatch/2020/08/30/wisconsin-man-who-says-he-marched-rittenhouse-kenosha-was-immersed-white-supremacist |access-date=30 August 2020 |website=Hatewatch |publisher=[[Southern Poverty Law Center]] |language=en}}</ref> | ||
<ref name=wiseman>Wiseman, D. J. "[http://www.biblicalstudies.org.uk/pdf/jtvi/wiseman_genesis-10.pdf Genesis 10: Some Archaeological Considerations] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230727181345/https://www.biblicalstudies.org.uk/pdf/jtvi/wiseman_genesis-10.pdf |date=2023-07-27 }}." ''Journal of the Transactions of the Victoria Institute'' (1955).</ref> | <ref name="wiseman">Wiseman, D. J. "[http://www.biblicalstudies.org.uk/pdf/jtvi/wiseman_genesis-10.pdf Genesis 10: Some Archaeological Considerations] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230727181345/https://www.biblicalstudies.org.uk/pdf/jtvi/wiseman_genesis-10.pdf |date=2023-07-27 }}." ''Journal of the Transactions of the Victoria Institute'' (1955).</ref> | ||
<ref name="Wolfthal">{{cite book|last=Wolfthal|first=Diane|title=Picturing Yiddish: gender, identity, and memory in the illustrated Yiddish books of Renaissance Italy|publisher=[[Brill Publishers]]|year=2004|isbn=978-90-04-13905-3|at=p. 59 footnote 60|chapter=III - Representing Jewish Ritual and Identity |access-date=January | <ref name="Wolfthal">{{cite book |last=Wolfthal |first=Diane |title=Picturing Yiddish: gender, identity, and memory in the illustrated Yiddish books of Renaissance Italy |publisher=[[Brill Publishers]] |year=2004 |isbn=978-90-04-13905-3 |at=p. 59 footnote 60 |chapter=III - Representing Jewish Ritual and Identity |access-date=13 January 2012 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2hKI1Q3Qd1cC&q=Shabbos+goy+candle&pg=PA204 |chapter-format=[[Google Books]]}}</ref> | ||
<ref name=Yanover>{{cite web | last=Yanover | first=Yori | title=Maimonides: Islam Good, Christianity Bad, Muslims Bad, Christians Good | | <ref name="Yanover">{{cite web |last=Yanover |first=Yori |date=15 November 2013 |title=Maimonides: Islam Good, Christianity Bad, Muslims Bad, Christians Good |url=https://www.jewishpress.com/indepth/opinions/maimonides-islam-good-christianity-bad-muslims-bad-christians-good/2013/11/15/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221108093637/https://www.jewishpress.com/indepth/opinions/maimonides-islam-good-christianity-bad-muslims-bad-christians-good/2013/11/15/ |archive-date=8 November 2022 |access-date=8 November 2022 |website=JewishPress.com}}</ref> | ||
</references> | |||
== External links == | == External links == | ||
Latest revision as of 15:45, 18 November 2025
Template:Short description Script error: No such module "about". Template:Pp-vandalism Template:Italic title Template:Sidebar with collapsible lists Template:Use dmy dates
Goy (pl: goyim or goys) is a term for a gentile, a non-Jew, sometimes in a pejorative sense.[1][2][3] The word, of Hebrew origin, was adopted into English from Yiddish.[4] It carries a similar meaning in Modern Hebrew.[5]
The Biblical Hebrew word goy has been commonly translated into English as nation,[6][7] meaning a group of persons of the same ethnic family who speak the same language (rather than the more common modern meaning of a political unit).[8] In the Bible, goy is used to describe both the Nation of Israel and other nations.[9][6][7]
The meaning of the word goy in Hebrew evolved to mean "non-Jew" in the Hellenistic (300 BCE to 30 BCE) and Roman periods, as both Rabbinical texts and then Christian theology placed increasing emphasis on a binary division between Jews and non-Jews.
As a word principally used by Jews to describe non-Jews,[2] it is a term for the ethnic out-group.[10] In modern usage in English, the extent to which goy is derogatory is a point of discussion in the Jewish community.
The word "goy" is sometimes used by white supremacists to refer to themselves when signaling a belief in conspiracy theories about Jews.[11]
Hebrew Bible
The word Script error: No such module "Lang". means "nation" in Biblical Hebrew.[13][14] In the Torah, Script error: No such module "Lang". and its variants appear 560 times in reference to both the Israelites and the non-Israelite nations.[15]
The first recorded usage of goyim occurs in Script error: No such module "Bibleverse". and applies to non-Israelite nations. The first mention of goy in relation to the Israelites comes in Script error: No such module "Bibleverse"., when God promises Abraham that his descendants will form a Script error: No such module "Lang". ("great nation").[16]
There are two exceptions where a "Kingdom of Goyim" is mentioned. One is in Script error: No such module "Bibleverse"., where it states that the "King of Goyim" was Tidal. Bible commentaries suggest that the term may refer to Gutium. The other is in Script error: No such module "Bibleverse"., where a "King of Goyim in Gilgal" is included in the list of kings slain by Joshua. In all other cases the meaning of Script error: No such module "Lang". is 'nations.'[17][6]
In Script error: No such module "Bibleverse"., the Israelites are referred to as a Script error: No such module "Lang"., a "holy nation".[13][18] One of the more poetic descriptions of the chosen people in the Hebrew Bible, and popular among Jewish scholars is Script error: No such module "Lang"., or "a unique nation upon the earth" (Script error: No such module "Bibleverse". and Script error: No such module "Bibleverse".)[19]
Translations of 'goy' in English-language Christian Bibles
In English language Christian bibles, nation has been used as the principal translation for goy in the Hebrew Bible, from the earliest English language bibles such as the 1530 Tyndale Bible and the 1611 King James Version.[20][21]
The King James Version of the Bible translates the word Script error: No such module "Lang"./Script error: No such module "Lang". as "nation" 374 times, "heathen" 143 times, "Gentile" 30 times (see Evolution of the Term below) and "people" 11 times.[20] The New American Standard Bible translation uses the following words: "every nation" (2 times) Gentiles (1) Goiim (1), Harosheth-hagoyim* (3), herds (1), nation (120), nations (425), people (4).[22]
Evolution of the term
Script error: No such module "Labelled list hatnote".
While the books of the Hebrew Bible often use Script error: No such module "Lang". to describe the Israelites, the later Jewish writings of the Hellenistic Period (from approximately 300 BCE to 30 BCE) tended to apply the term to other nations.[13]
Goy acquired the meaning of someone who is not Jewish in the first and second century CE. Before that time, academics Adi Ophir and Ishay Rosen-Zvi have argued, no crystallized dichotomy between Jew and non-Jew existed in Judaism.[23] Ophir and Rosen-Zvi state that the early Jewish convert to Christianity, Paul, was key in developing the concept of "goy" to mean non-Jew:
The Latin words gentes/gentilis – which also referred to peoples or nations – began to be used to describe non-Jews in parallel with the evolution of the word Script error: No such module "Lang". in Hebrew. Based on the Latin model, the English word "gentile" came to mean non-Jew from the time of the first English-language Bible translations in the 1500s (see Gentile).
The twelfth century Jewish scholar Maimonides defines goy in his Mishneh Torah as a worshipper of idolatry, as he explains, "Whenever we refer to a gentile [goy] without any further description, we mean one who worships false deities".[24] Maimonides saw Christians as idolators (because of concepts like the Trinity) but not Muslims who he saw as more strictly monotheistic.[25]
As a pejorative
Goy can be used in a derogatory manner. The Yiddish lexicographer Leo Rosten in The New Joys of Yiddish defines goy as someone who is non-Jewish or someone who is dull, insensitive, or heartless.[26] Goy also occurs in many pejorative Yiddish expressions:
- Template:Transliteration (Script error: No such module "Lang".)Template:SndSomething only a goy would do or is capable of doing.[26]
- Template:Transliteration (Script error: No such module "Lang".)Template:Snd"A goy stays a goy"
- Template:Transliteration (Script error: No such module "Lang".)Template:Snd"Gentile head," someone who doesn't think ahead, an idiot.[26][27]
- Template:Transliteration (Script error: No such module "Lang".)Template:SndPleasures or pursuits only a gentile would enjoy.[28]
- Template:Transliteration (Script error: No such module "Lang".)Template:SndExclamation of exasperation used "when endurance is exhausted, kindliness depleted, the effort to understand useless".[29]
Several authors have opined on whether the word is derogatory. Dan Friedman, executive director of The Forward in "What 'Goy' Means, And Why I Keep Using It" writes that it can be used as an insult but that the word is not offensive.[30] He compares it to the word "foreigners" which Americans can use dismissively but which isn't a derogatory word.[30] Similarly, Jews for Racial and Economic Justice (JFREJ) has stated that "goy" is "Not an insult, just kinda sounds like it."[31]
Rebecca Einstein Schorr argues that the word has an established pejorative overtone. She refers to the observation "the goyishe groomsmen were all drunk and bawdy; of course, you'd never see that at a Jewish wedding" and "goyishe kop" where the word is used in a pejorative sense. She admits that the word can have non-pejorative uses, such as "goyishe restaurant" – one that doesn't serve kosher food – but contends that the word is "neutral, at best, and extremely offensive, at worst." She advocates that the Jewish community stop using the word "goy."[27] Andrew Silow Carroll writes:[28]
Nahma Nadich, deputy director of the Jewish Community Relations of Greater Boston writes:
adding[28]
In antisemitism
According to the Southern Poverty Law Center, white supremacists have ironically used the term "goy" in reference to themselves as a signal of their belief in conspiracy theories about Jews.[11] For example, a Hungarian antisemitic motorcycle association refers to themselves as the Goyim riders,[32] and in 2020 Kyle Chapman tried to rename the far-right group the Proud Boys to the Proud Goys.[33]
In a similar vein, the far-right American Traditionalist Worker Party, in 2017, created the crowdfunding platform called GoyFundMe, a wordplay on the popular crowdfunding platform GoFundMe.[34]
The Goyim Defense League (GDL) and its website, GoyimTV, are another example.[35][36][37][38][39][40]
Europol's 2021 report on Terrorism Situations and Trends discusses the German Goyim Partei Deutschland ('Goyim Party Germany'), "a right-wing extremist organisation" founded in 2016 which "used its website to publish antisemitic and racist texts, pictures and videos."[41]
The slur is also featured in the far-right catchphrase or meme The Goyim Know, Shut It Down associated with Neo-Nazis on online forums like the 4chan and 8chan. In this context, the "speaker" assumes the role of a "panicking Jew" who reacts to an event that would reveal Jewish "manipulations" or Jewish "deceitfulness".[42]
According to the Anti-Defamation League, the antisemitic meme first appeared on 4chan in 2013.[42] Einstein Schorr called the meme an instance of "linguistic appropriation" whereby Neo-Nazis cynically incorporated "pseudo-Yiddish phrases" into their vocabulary to ridicule Jews. Schorr describes that as a way to propagate the "anti-Semitic myth that we are a cabal with our own secret language and agenda."[27][43]
The Anti-Defamation League further deciphers the catchphrase,[44]
See also
References
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- ↑ a b c Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ a b Wiseman, D. J. "Genesis 10: Some Archaeological Considerations Template:Webarchive." Journal of the Transactions of the Victoria Institute (1955).
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
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- ↑ It is sometimes compared to similar terms in other cultures such as the Japanese word Gaijin or the Arabic Ajam. Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
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- ↑ See, for instance: Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Tyndale Gen 10
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- ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
External links
Categories:
- Pages with script errors
- Pages with broken file links
- Ethno-cultural designations
- Exonyms
- Hebrew words and phrases in the Hebrew Bible
- Jewish culture
- Judaism terminology
- Yiddish words and phrases
- Religious slurs for people
- Linguistic controversies
- Antisemitic tropes
- Pejorative terms for strangers and foreigners
- Judaism-related controversies