Oy vey
Added the (optional) vowel markings
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[[Image:Oy Vey vc (cropped).jpg|thumb|right|Sign on the [[Williamsburg Bridge]] leaving [[Brooklyn]]]] |
[[Image:Oy Vey vc (cropped).jpg|thumb|right|Sign on the [[Williamsburg Bridge]] leaving [[Brooklyn]]]] |
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'''''Oy vey''''' ({{langx|yi|אױ װײ|links=no}}) is a [[Yiddish]] phrase expressing dismay or exasperation. Also spelled '''''oy vay''''', '''''oy veh''''', or '''''oi vey''''', and often abbreviated to '''''oy''''', the expression may be translated as "oh, woe!" or "woe is me!" Its [[Modern Hebrew|Hebrew]] equivalent is '''''oy vavoy''''' ({{Lang|he| |
'''''Oy vey''''' ({{langx|yi|אױ װײ|links=no}}) is a [[Yiddish]] phrase expressing dismay or exasperation. Also spelled '''''oy vay''''', '''''oy veh''''', or '''''oi vey''''', and often abbreviated to '''''oy''''', the expression may be translated as "oh, woe!" or "woe is me!" Its [[Modern Hebrew|Hebrew]] equivalent is '''''oy vavoy''''' ({{Lang|he|אוֹי וַאֲבוֹי}}, {{Transliteration|he|óy va'avóy}}).See Proverbs 23:29, where King Solomon asks, "To whom is ''oy'' and to whom is ''avoy''?" Sometimes the phrase is elongated to '''''oi yoi yoi''''' (with the '''''yoi''''' being repeated as many times as desired).{{Cite web |last=Goren |first=Biranit |date=2013-05-29 |title=An Ode to 'Oy' |url=https://www.atlantajewishtimes.com/an-ode-to-oy/ |access-date=2024-01-02 |website=Atlanta Jewish Times |language=en-US}} |
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==Derivation== |
==Derivation== |
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According to [[Chabad.org]],{{Unreliable source?|reason=chabad.org site staff are not a reliable source in the field of linguistics ([[Talk:Oy vey#Chabad as a source in the field of linguistics|talk page]]) |date=January 2022}} an alternative theory for the origin of the Yiddish expression is that "oy" stems from Biblical Hebrew, and that "vey" is its [[Aramaic]] equivalent.{{cite web |url=http://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/699508/jewish/What-Does-Oy-Vey-Mean.htm |title=What Does Oy Vey Mean? |website=Chabad.org |access-date=2013-04-19}} It is alternatively spelled אוי, הוי, or הו in Biblical Hebrew |
According to [[Chabad.org]],{{Unreliable source?|reason=chabad.org site staff are not a reliable source in the field of linguistics ([[Talk:Oy vey#Chabad as a source in the field of linguistics|talk page]]) |date=January 2022}} an alternative theory for the origin of the Yiddish expression is that "oy" stems from Biblical Hebrew, and that "vey" is its [[Aramaic]] equivalent.{{cite web |url=http://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/699508/jewish/What-Does-Oy-Vey-Mean.htm |title=What Does Oy Vey Mean? |website=Chabad.org |access-date=2013-04-19}} It is alternatively spelled אוי, הוי, or הו in Biblical Hebrew |
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Brown-Driver-Briggs>{{cite web |url=http://www.ericlevy.com/revel/bdb/bdb/5/he-Index.html |title=Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew and English Lexicon |access-date=2020-12-08}} and ווי, וי, ואי, and ויא in Aramaic.{{cite web |url=http://www.tyndalearchive.com/TABS/Jastrow/index.htm |title=A Dictionary of the Targumim, the Talmud Bavli and Yerushalmi, and the Midrashic Literature |access-date=2020-12-08}} The term is occasionally doubled, as |
Brown-Driver-Briggs>{{cite web |url=http://www.ericlevy.com/revel/bdb/bdb/5/he-Index.html |title=Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew and English Lexicon |access-date=2020-12-08}} and ווי, וי, ואי, and ויא in Aramaic.{{cite web |url=http://www.tyndalearchive.com/TABS/Jastrow/index.htm |title=A Dictionary of the Targumim, the Talmud Bavli and Yerushalmi, and the Midrashic Literature |access-date=2020-12-08}} The term is occasionally doubled, as הוֹ־הוֹ in [[Amos 5|Amos 5:16]] and וי וי in [[Targum Pseudo-Jonathan]] on that verse, but two versions were never combined classically. |
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==Significance== |
==Significance== |
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