# Why is "Jew" not a slur? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 17, 2014, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-jew-not-a-slur/695782 "2014-08-17T21:40:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![NeonMadman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/58f4c7/32.png) [@NeonMadman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NeonMadman)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2014, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-jew-not-a-slur/695782/21 "2014-08-18T01:16:31Z")
Wasn’t “Jew” originally short for “Judean?” ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2014, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-jew-not-a-slur/695782/22 "2014-08-18T01:35:25Z")
It’s probably meant to be offensive when someone says “Hey, Jew!”. On the other hand, “Heb” [is not derogatory at all](http://lumbertonoutpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/h-e-b.jpg). ---
**Author:** ![JEngelman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e79b87/32.png) [@JEngelman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JEngelman)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2014, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-jew-not-a-slur/695782/23 "2014-08-18T01:36:28Z")
> [@NeonMadman](#): > > Wasn’t “Jew” originally short for “Judean?” Yes. It first appears in II Kings 16:6 At that time Rezin king of Syria recovered Elath to Syria, and drave the Jews from Elath: and the Syrians came to Elath, and dwelt there unto this day. In the King James Version “Jews” appears 244 times. “Jew” appears 32 times. That is why “Jew” is not a slur. ---
**Author:** ![UDS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecae2f/32.png) [@UDS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UDS)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2014, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-jew-not-a-slur/695782/24 "2014-08-18T02:06:31Z")
> [@NeonMadman](#): > > Wasn’t “Jew” originally short for “Judean?” No. Judea was the romanised version Judah, the name of the Jewish kingdom which (long) preceded the Roman province. And the Kingdom took its name from the tribe of Judah, one of the twelve tribes into which Israel was divided. The tribe in turn was supposedly named after Judah, one of the twelve sons of the patriarch Joseph. King David is said to have been of the tribe of Judah, and when the Davidic kingom split the southern part, centred on Jerusalem, became known as the Kingdom of Judah, pointing to the dominance of that tribe. Furthermore, the Kingdom of Judah survived a great deal longer than the _other_ Jewish state, the Kingdom of Israel, which lay to the north and was conquered by the Assyrians, and its population scattered and/or absorbed. Once Judah became the sole Jewish polity, the dominance of the tribe of Judah was intensified still further, and the name of the tribe eventually came to be used for the whole nation. ---
**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:** [August 18, 2014, 7:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-jew-not-a-slur/695782/25 "2014-08-18T07:17:37Z")
> [@UDS](#): > > And the Kingdom took its name from the tribe of Judah, one of the twelve tribes into which Israel was divided. The tribe in turn was supposedly named after **Judah, one of the twelve sons of the patriarch Joseph**. Close. Judah and Joseph were brothers (or half-brothers). They were both sons of the patriarch Jacob, a.k.a. Israel. ---
**Author:** ![UDS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecae2f/32.png) [@UDS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UDS)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2014, 7:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-jew-not-a-slur/695782/26 "2014-08-18T07:24:06Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > Close. Judah and Joseph were brothers (or half-brothers). They were both sons of the patriarch Jacob, a.k.a. Israel. D’oh! :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2014, 7:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-jew-not-a-slur/695782/27 "2014-08-18T07:45:22Z")
> [@Revtim](#): > > Of course it takes more than shortening the word to make it a slur. Unless “Swede” is a slur now too, which wouldn’t surprise me actually. Well, calling someone a vegetable seems a little harsh. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2014, 8:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-jew-not-a-slur/695782/28 "2014-08-18T08:10:10Z")
What would be the alternative? “Jewish person?” People would quickly become weary of the three extra syllables. ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2014, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-jew-not-a-slur/695782/29 "2014-08-18T13:29:12Z")
I thought it was “Hebe” rather than “Heb”. ---
**Author:** ![dougie\_monty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/439d5e/32.png) [@dougie\_monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dougie_monty)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2014, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-jew-not-a-slur/695782/30 "2014-08-18T14:18:17Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > It’s probably meant to be offensive when someone says “Hey, Jew!”. > > […] Somehow this reminds me of a Beatles song… My sincere apologies if \* that \* offends anyone. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2014, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-jew-not-a-slur/695782/31 "2014-08-18T14:37:10Z")
SOMETIMES, “Jew” can be used as a slur, and it’s easy enough to tell (from context and tone of voice) when that is the case. But “Jew” is not a word that Gentiles made up, nor is it a word that Jews themselves have been asking us not to use. If Jews were in the habit of saying “Jew is an offensive term- we prefer to be called Such-and-Such,” then I’d be a jerk to keep using the word Jew. But that’s not the case. Jon Stewart or Michael Bloomberg Allen would tell you forthrightly “I’m a Jew.” So, how could it be offensive for ME to say, “Jon Stewart is a Jew”? ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2014, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-jew-not-a-slur/695782/32 "2014-08-18T15:00:03Z")
> [@Ranger\_Jeff](#): > > **Ramira** , just to make sure I have this straight, Islam is the name of the religion and Muslim is the name for the people who follow Islam? That’s how I’ve always understood it (not a Muslim though), and “islamic” is the term to describe non-person things like institutions. So you’d have Islam, Muslims and Islamic law, and that would be the proper usage. Quick question- is the term Moslem just another way to transcribe the same word as Muslim from the Arabic original, or is it actually something different? ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2014, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-jew-not-a-slur/695782/33 "2014-08-18T15:59:46Z")
> [@kaltkalt](#): > > I was thinking that Christians wouldn’t like to be called “Christs” and Muslims wouldn’t like to be called “Muzzes”. I believe Christian was originally a derogatory term, used first at Antioch, and was then adopted widely as a mere descriptive. > [@](#): > > Could jewish people insist on being called “Israelites” or something like that? I think this would be problematic, since it implies not only Jewishness but residence in the modern state of Israel. Not that I expect usage to make sense - it just reflects what people say, not what they should say if usage made sense. Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2014, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-jew-not-a-slur/695782/34 "2014-08-18T16:36:11Z")
Dumb follow up: what is the Hebrew word for Jew? Or, put differently, what do Jews call themselves in their own tongue? ---
**Author:** ![Giles](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giles/32/60_2.png) [@Giles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giles)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2014, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-jew-not-a-slur/695782/35 "2014-08-18T16:50:51Z")
I think the Hebrew word is “Yehudi”. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2014, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-jew-not-a-slur/695782/36 "2014-08-18T17:04:42Z")
I saw a stand-up routine once, where the guy (it may have been Billy Crystal) was saying ‘Jew’ sounds like a bad word. He scrunched up his face and pronounced it disparagingly. '_Jew!_ :mad: ’ IIRC, he compared it to how names for other peoples sounded much better. I wish I could find a clip of it to show you. ---
**Author:** ![md2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/73ab20/32.png) [@md2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md2000)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2014, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-jew-not-a-slur/695782/37 "2014-08-18T17:10:41Z")
I think the offensiveness in saying something like “He’s a Jew lawyer” (other than role stereotyping) is that it is deliberate bad English, since the proper adjective is “Jewish”. When someone goes out of their way to speak like a red-neck, the entire baggage comes as context. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2014, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-jew-not-a-slur/695782/38 "2014-08-18T17:23:07Z")
> [@md2000](#): > > I think the offensiveness in saying something like “He’s a Jew lawyer” (other than role stereotyping) is that it is deliberate bad English, since the proper adjective is “Jewish”. When someone goes out of their way to speak like a red-neck, the entire baggage comes as context. Exactly. There a huge difference between “He’s a Jew.” and “He’s a fucking Jew.” ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2014, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-jew-not-a-slur/695782/39 "2014-08-18T17:40:27Z")
> [@Giles](#): > > I think the Hebrew word is “Yehudi”. Note that that also means “Jewish” - it’s both a noun and an adjective. ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2014, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-jew-not-a-slur/695782/40 "2014-08-18T17:59:08Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > Calling Jews “Israelite” would be a problem because, first of all, not all Jews are Israelis and not even all Jews view modern Israel in a positive light. It’s less accurate than “Jew”. It’s also a problem, because in the synagogue Torah service, Kohanim are called for the first aliyah, Leviim for the second, and people who are not Kohanim or Leviim are just “Yisrael.” Leviim or Levites, are members of the tribe of Levi, and did not have a portion of land in Erets Yisrael, but were assigned to take care of the temple. Kohanim are Levites who are specifically descendents of Aaron, the first high priest. Yisrael is all the other tribes, or, since ten tribes are considered lost, essentially, Judah and Benjamin, the two that were not lost (one assumes there were a few members of other tribes living in the south as well). Converts are also Yisrael. I’m pretty sure that some Kohanim of my acquaintance would get their feathers ruffled at the idea of all Jews being called Israelites, because that would not acknowledge their special status as Kohanim. There are probably some non-Kohanim who would object on the same grounds. FWIW, I don’t know a single Jew who finds the term objectionable, other than a couple of atheists who don’t personally want to be referred to as Jews, even though that is their ethnicity, because they are atheists, but they don’t have an objection to the word in general. If you want the Jewish version of the n-word, it’s “Yid.” That’s the Yiddish word for Jew, and Jews use it to refer to themselves a lot, including sometimes when they do something stupid, when they might say “Yiddisher kop!” (Jewish head), but would be offended if a gentile said this. FWIW, when gentiles do something gentile-ish, sometimes Jews say “goyisher kop,” but more likely just “der goyim.” It would usually be for something like asking “Why are you having your son’s bar mitzvah on Christmas?” though (I got asked a question along those lines once), which is a less serious thing than the sort of thing that might lead someone to say “Yiddisher kop,” which pretty much equals saying “What a stupid Jew.” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-jew-not-a-slur/695782.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-jew-not-a-slur/695782.md?page=3)