# Is "Jew" considered derogatory in some places? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 24, 2011, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669 "2011-10-24T19:42:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Enola\_Gay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/3ab097/32.png) [@Enola\_Gay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enola_Gay)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2011, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669/21 "2011-10-24T21:18:04Z")
> [@Gary\_T](#): > > Shoulda said “some of the Dope’s Jews” or “ **some of the Jewish Dopers**.” (See third sentence in Wikipedia quote in post #2.) I didn’t want to sound precious, like I’m trying harder than I need to. (See post #10, paragraph 2.) ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_T](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Gary\_T](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_T)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2011, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669/22 "2011-10-24T21:21:23Z")
> [@Enola\_Gay](#): > > I didn’t want to sound precious, like I’m trying harder than I need to. (See post #10, paragraph 2.) Yeah, but now you’re trying too hard to not sound precious. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2011, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669/23 "2011-10-24T21:26:28Z")
In Poland, Hungary, and sundry other nations, calling someone “a Jew,”–particularly when directed at a Jew–is in itself a distinct insult/curse. ---
**Author:** ![Cartooniverse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cartooniverse/32/3084_2.png) [@Cartooniverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartooniverse)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2011, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669/24 "2011-10-25T00:28:58Z")
> [@The\_Hamster\_King](#): > > I’m not actually Jewish. Just Jew-adjacent. Brilliant… ---
**Author:** ![Farmer\_Jane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Farmer\_Jane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Farmer_Jane)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2011, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669/25 "2011-10-25T00:37:58Z")
“Jewish” = adjective. “Jew”= noun. He is a Jew. (As in, not one of us?) He is Jewish. (As in, a characteristic.) Depends on how you do it. “Is he a Jew?” amongst Jews is matter-of-fact, but '“Is he a\* Jew\*?” amongst non-Jews may raise an eyebrow. in short: The answer is yes, it can be. ---
**Author:** ![Gbro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Gbro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gbro)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2011, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669/26 "2011-10-25T00:55:03Z")
> [@](#): > > Is “Jew” considered derogatory in some places? Romans 1:16 …First for the Jew, then for the Gentile. I pray for the Jew’s often!😉 ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2011, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669/27 "2011-10-25T01:06:53Z")
“Jew” is a valid Scrabble word, because while proper nouns are excluded, the verb _jew_ means to haggle. However, some Scrabble tournaments use an expurgated word list, which removes “jew” because the verb usage is quite offensive. Keep this in mind if you ever have an opportunity for a double-triple letter score on a J. Especially if you’re playing against a Jew. ---
**Author:** ![Crazyhorse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crazyhorse/32/31_2.png) [@Crazyhorse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crazyhorse)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2011, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669/28 "2011-10-25T01:20:06Z")
Google still keeps an [explanation](http://www.google.com/explanation.html) online about why, at one time, searching for “Jew” resulted in antisemitic websites as the top-ranking results. The explanation was that antisemitic writing frequently uses “Jew” but rarely “Jewish” or “Judaism”, while authentic web sites about the Jewish faith were less likely to use “Jew”. Their search results reflect what appears to be relevant and current. In most cases someone searching for the word “Jew” by itself was more likely trying to find antisemitic websites. > [@](#): > > If you recently used Google to search for the word “Jew,” you may have seen results that were very disturbing. We assure you that the views expressed by the sites in your results are not in any way endorsed by Google. We’d like to explain why you’re seeing these results when you conduct this search. > > A site’s ranking in Google’s search results relies heavily on computer algorithms using thousands of factors to calculate a page’s relevance to a given query. Sometimes subtleties of language cause anomalies to appear that cannot be predicted. A search for “Jew” brings up one such unexpected result. > > If you use Google to search for “Judaism,” “Jewish” or “Jewish people,” the results are informative and relevant. So why is a search for “Jew” different? One reason is that the word “Jew” is often used in an anti-Semitic context. Jewish organizations are more likely to use the word "Jewish: when talking about members of their faith. ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2011, 1:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669/29 "2011-10-25T01:23:41Z")
> [@friedo](#): > > “Jew” is a valid Scrabble word, because while proper nouns are excluded, the verb _jew_ means to haggle. However, some Scrabble tournaments use an expurgated word list, which removes “jew” because the verb usage is quite offensive. > > Keep this in mind if you ever have an opportunity for a double-triple letter score on a J. Especially if you’re playing against a Jew. Do such tournaments exclude slang words? Just wondering. **twix** and I love the word _ofay_. ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2011, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669/30 "2011-10-25T01:44:31Z")
> [@samclem](#): > > Do such tournaments exclude slang words? Just wondering. **twix** and I love the word _ofay_. If it’s in the dictionary, it’s included. The official word lists like the OWL are basically assembled by taking the union of the sets of words in a shelf of dictionaries, and inflecting them in all forms up to nine letters. (Tournaments will designate an official dictionary to be the arbiter of words longer than that, if a challenge should arise.) Then those word lists are expurgated to make the current edition of the OSPD (Official Scrabble Players’ Dictionary). The former unexpurgated list is used in official NSA tournaments (except when it’s [not](http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/3542570.stm)), but less formal games may use the OSPD or even a different word list altogether. Here’s a [list](http://www.seattlescrabble.org/expurg.php) of words deleted from from the latest OWL. /scrabble nerd ---
**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2011, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669/31 "2011-10-25T01:49:14Z")
It’s not even always completely accurate. My step-Grandmother was ‘a Jew’ to the Nazis, so she had to leave Germany; she lived in England from her teens but stopped practicing the religion almost entirely (she still had a London Jewish accent in her eighties and never ate bacon, and that was about it). Calling her a ‘a Jew’ would have reminded her of bad things and also sounded like it was summing up everything about her, whereas saying she was _Jewish_ would leave more flexibility. > [@Crazyhorse](#): > > Google still keeps an [explanation](http://www.google.com/explanation.html) online about why, at one time, searching for “Jew” resulted in antisemitic websites as the top-ranking results. The explanation was that antisemitic writing frequently uses “Jew” but rarely “Jewish” or “Judaism”, while authentic web sites about the Jewish faith were less likely to use “Jew”. Their search results reflect what appears to be relevant and current. In most cases someone searching for the word “Jew” by itself was more likely trying to find antisemitic websites. That’s fascinating - the way a search algorithm can show up something like that without even trying to. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2011, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669/32 "2011-10-25T01:58:05Z")
> [@Cartooniverse](#): > > Precious is having to drive from Encino to Melrose and Fairfax for edible Deli !!! [hijack] I should say so, traffic conditions being as grossly congested as they are in those parts. Ventura Blvd traffic! \ 101 not much better either! L’Chaim! [/hijack] ---
**Author:** ![Anamorphic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/anamorphic/32/3057_2.png) [@Anamorphic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anamorphic)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2011, 3:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669/33 "2011-10-25T03:04:40Z")
> [@Musicat](#): > > Whatsamatta, Art’s or Weby’s on Ventura Blvd aren’t there anymore, or not good enuf fer you? Brent’s in Northridge is also perfectly acceptable! ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2011, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669/34 "2011-10-25T15:56:08Z")
> [@friedo](#): > > “Jew” is a valid Scrabble word, because while proper nouns are excluded, the verb _jew_ means to haggle. However, some Scrabble tournaments use an expurgated word list, which removes “jew” because the verb usage is quite offensive. hijack: So any noun which in English usage would be capitalized is considered a proper noun, such as, for example, “English”? I would never have thought of an ethnicity’s name or a language’s name as being a “proper noun” (in Spanish _nombres propios_ apply only to physical or legal persons), but then I was never taught English grammar in English. /hijack ---
**Author:** ![Svejk\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea666f/32.png) [@Svejk\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Svejk_1)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2011, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669/35 "2011-10-25T16:07:25Z")
Reminds me of the time in The Office when Michael asks Oscar if there’s a term other than ‘Mexican’ that Oscar would prefer, since ‘Mexican’ sounds so offensive. On topic - I’ve always prefered to refer to people as ‘an X person’ or ‘X people’, as opposed to just ‘X’. ---
**Author:** ![taffygirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b5a626/32.png) [@taffygirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/taffygirl)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2011, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669/36 "2011-10-25T16:20:49Z")
Either term could be considered derogatory if it’s said in a derogatory way. A few years back, some of my more ignorant students were using “Jewish” as in insult, similar in meaning to “stupid.” It infuriated me, and I called them on it every time. The answer was always, “It means _stupid_; it doesn’t really have anything to do with Jewish people,” (I told you they were ignorant.),to which I’d reply, “Oh, yeah? So why aren’t you saying, ‘That’s so Baptist!’ or ‘That’s really Methodist?’ And who do you think started that particular slang term?” Fortunately, I haven’t heard that usage in four or five years. Just when I think we’re making some progress as a species…:mad: ---
**Author:** ![Scandalous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f19dbf/32.png) [@Scandalous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scandalous)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2011, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669/37 "2011-10-25T17:19:28Z")
Wasn’t there one occasion when Michael Jackson called himself a “Jew” in one song as to express his feeling of solidarity with opressed minorities in general? This may be a bit off-topic, but it just popped into my head and I remember people being offended by that back then. Well I guess you can use anything as an insult just as you can try to normalize the use of certain words in a non-derogatory context - which is a lot more difficult once the insulting association has been established, by the way. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2011, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669/38 "2011-10-25T17:23:59Z")
> [@Scandalous](#): > > Wasn’t there one occasion when Michael Jackson called himself a “Jew” in one song as to express his feeling of solidarity with opressed minorities in general? This may be a bit off-topic, but it just popped into my head and I remember people being offended by that back then. What offended people was that he said _“Jew me, sue me”_ as the lead-in to _“kick me, Kike me.”_ ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2011, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669/39 "2011-10-25T18:02:19Z")
> [@Nava](#): > > hijack: So any noun which in English usage would be capitalized is considered a proper noun, such as, for example, “English”? > /hijack Yes, they’re all proper nouns. (However, “english” is also a common noun, and therefore Scrabbleable.. Ask a pool player.) ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2011, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669/40 "2011-10-25T18:27:24Z")
You could say, as many do many hip Jews confirming what is clearly the case, that he’s a MOT, or Member of the Tribe. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-jew-considered-derogatory-in-some-places/600669.md?page=3)