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"MAY THE LORD GIVE STRENGTH TO HIS PEOPLE

MAY THE LORD BLESS HIS PEOPLE WITH SHALOM!"
PSALM 29:11
 

Gila's Tips for Tours

Hebrew for Pilgrims: 10 Handy Phrases

Here are some handy Hebrew phrases which will help you connect with people you’ll be meeting:
1.  Shalom       

Shalom is probably the most well-known word in Hebrew. It means hello, good-bye and peace.   If you don’t know whether you are coming or going, shalom (once) is hello and shalom, shalom is goodbye.  In the Hebrew Bible, shalom is used more than 217 times, mostly meaning peace.  Shalom Aleichem means peace be with you!
2.  Ma Shalom-cha
    H
ow are you?

If you’d like to ask someone how s/he is, you literally ask, “How is your peace.”  Say Ma Shalom-cha? (that’s a guttural h, not ch as in church) to a male and Ma Shalom-aych? (also guttural) to a female.  Every noun in Hebrew is either masculine or feminine.  Radio, for example, is masculine and television is feminine.  Go figure!

A good way to reply to this greeting is, "Baruch HaShem" which means Praise be the Name (of the Almighty).  All Orthodox Jewish people use this expression.  Sometimes even in every third sentence!

3.  Boker Tov
   
Good Morning

Boker tov means good morning.  Boker rhymes (almost) with poker and tov rhymes with stove.  I always tell my groups that if you can’t remember boker tov, just sort of mumble broken toe and they’ll probably guess what you’re trying to say.  Or, on the other hand, they might send you to the infirmary!  “Boker tov” is also a breakfast cereal – the Israeli version of Cheerios.  Erev tov means good evening.
4.  Bi-va-ka-shah / Toe-dah
   
Please / Thank you

Mind your manners:  Please is Bi-va-ka-shah.  It also means you’re welcome. Toe-dah means thank you. Toe-dah Rabah means thank you very much.  No thank you is, Lo, Toe-dah.  B'Toe-dah means with thanksgiving.
5.  Kamah zeh oleh?
   
How much does it cost?

Kamah zeh oleh is “how much does it cost?”  It’s always handy to know how to say in response, “that’s too much.”  Zeh yo-tear Me Die.  Don’t forget to stick on, Lo, Toe-dah.  Then the real bargaining starts!

6.  Mazal Tov!
   
Congratulations!

Mazal tov means congratulations.  It works for all occasions.  It’s most handy to know when you encounter a bride and groom on their pre-wedding photo shoot.  It could be at the Western Wall in Jerusalem, in old Jaffa near the home of Simon the Tanner, or at the picturesque ruins of Caesarea, where Cornelius the Centurion was stationed.

At the wedding ceremony itself, right after the groom smashes the glass (in memory of the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem), the guests shout out mazal tov. That’s why when a waiter drops a glass in a restaurant or dining room, Jewish guests automatically respond with “mazal tov.”

7.  Shalom Chaverim!
   
Good-bye my friends

Shalom Haverim

Chaver means friend and Chaverim means friends. Shalom Chaverim is a popular and easy-to-learn Hebrew song.
Shalom Chaver was a popular bumper sticker after US President Bill Clinton eulogized assassinated Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin in 1995.

Shalom Haver bumper sticker

8.  Ay-foe
   
Where is...?

Ay-foe (rhymes with play-dough) means where is/are.  Looking for the restrooms?  Ay-foe Ha-she-rue-team.  You could also look for a sign saying W.C. which stands for water closet.  Sometimes you’ll see signs saying OO.  This is a remnant of the British colonial period.  OO stands for Officers Only.

Where’s the bus is Ay-foe Ha Aw-toe-boose (The last syllable rhymes with goose.)
9.  Eh-chodd - Shneye-yeam
   
One -- Two

Eh-chodd: one   Shneye – yeam: two   Sha-losh: three   Arba: four  Chamaysh:  five

Instead of saying one-two-three-go, we say in Hebrew, shalosh-arBA!!

Oops!  There's a mistake here -- I used masculine, but I should have used feminine!  Hebrew numbers take the feminine gender.  If you want to speak correctly, then you should say Eh-chott - Sh-tie-yim!

10.  HaShana Ha Baa Bi Yerushalayim
      Next Year in Jerusalem!

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Colorful Colloquialisms and Slang

Sabbaba is local Jerusalem slang which means cool or groovy.  (High five!)

Achla is awesome like in "that was an achla performance."

Belagan is a big mess.  That's the normal situation here!

Yalla means "Let's go".  But be careful whom you say this to, for it's what you say to a donkey when you slap it.  (Meaning only use this with a peer!)

Kadahat means malaria and today an older person will still use it as slang for something you sweat over

Sof HaDerech is literally "end of the road", but it means outtasight, terrific.

Choleh Cholera literally translates sick with cholera, actually means you are out of your mind.

Kukureeku means cock-a-doodle-doo.  Apparently roosters crow differently in the holy land!
 

Copyright 2006, 2015 Gila Yudkin.  Permission needed for any reuse.

 

Coming to Jerusalem soon?  Would you like to find the venues where you can quietly be transported back in your imagination to the time of Jesus?  To David?  To Abraham?  Would you like to ride the local buses and try out your newly learned Hebrew phrases?  Are you eager to eat hummus, kubbeh or Esau's lentil soup elbow-to-elbow with the locals?

Make every minute matter while you "Explore Jerusalem's Soul" with Gila's unorthodox guide.  The up-to-date PDF (Adobe Acrobat) 46-page guide gives you the Top Ten places to meditate on the Bible, the Top Ten lesser-known churches worth visiting, the Top Ten most rewarding roof-top views and the Top Ten places for Middle Eastern soul food.  More...

Hebrew signs:
 
Jaffa Gate street sign crafted by Armenians

Via Dolorosa or Stations of the Cross

     


GILA YUDKIN TCHERNIKOVSKI 64A JERUSALEM ISRAEL
gila@itsgila.com

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Holy Land Photography by Gila Yudkin