Hebrew abbreviations

Abbreviations(Hebrew:ראשי תיבות) are a common part of theHebrew language,with many organizations, places, people and concepts known by their abbreviations.

Typography

Acronymsin Hebrew use a specialpunctuationmark calledgershayim(״‎). This mark is placed between the last two letters of the non-inflected form of the acronym (e.g. "report" in singular isדו״ח,hence the pluralדו״חות).Acronyms can be formed from strings of single initial letters, e.g.פזצט״אpazátsta(forפול, זחל, צפה, טווח, אש), or multiple initial letters, e.g.ארה״ק(forארץ הקודש,the Holy Land) orראשל״צráshlats(forראשון לציון,Rishon LeZion).

If the acronym is read as is, then the spelling should be with afinal formletter. If, on the other hand, the acronym is read as the complete phrase or read as the individual letters, then it should be spelled with a medial form letter.In practice, this rule is often ignored, and the acronyms spelled either way.

Abbreviationsthat are truncations of a single word, consisting of the first letter or first several letters of that word (as opposed to acronyms formed from initials or truncations of more than one word) are denoted using the punctuation markgeresh(׳‎) by placing the sign after the last letter of the abbreviation (e.g. "Ms.":גב׳).However, in practice, single and double quotes are often used instead of the special punctuation marks (for which most keyboards do not have keys), with the single quote used both in acronymsand abbreviations.

In Modern Hebrew, periods are sometimes used to mark an abbreviation (e.g.,ת.ז.forתעודת זהות,"ID card", orת.ד.forתא דואר,"P.O.B." ) this notation is mainly used in technical writing and regarded nonstandard by the Hebrew Academy.

Pronunciation

Often (and especially when they describe a noun), Hebrew acronyms are pronounced by the insertion of a vowel sound (usually[a]) between the letters. These vowels often appear in transliterations to other scripts. Examples includeShas(ש״ס),Tanakh(תנ״ך) andShabak(שב״כ). There are exceptions to the use of "a", such asEtzel(אצ״ל).

When one of the letters isvavoryud,these may be read as vowels ( "u" / "o" and "i" ) instead:דו״ח(duakh/dokh=דין וחשבון,judgement and account);אדמו״ר(admor=אדוננו מורנו ורבנו,Hasidic rebbe);שו״ת(shut=שאלות ותשובות,questions and answers);סכו״ם(sakum=סכין כף ומזלג,knife spoon and fork);תפו״ז(tapuz=תפוח זהב,orange, lit. golden apple);או״ם(um=האומות המאוחדות,theUnited Nations);ביל״וBilu;לח״יLehi.(An exception isבית״ר,Beitar,pronouncedbeytar.)

Hebrew numbers (e.g. year numbers in theHebrew calendar) are written the same way as acronyms, with gershayim before the last character, but pronounced as separate letter names. For example,ה׳תשע״ה(5775AM,or 2014–2015CE) is pronouncedhei-tav-shin-ayin-hei.

Usage

Main article:List of Hebrew abbreviations

People

Acronyms have been widely used in Hebrew since at least theMiddle Ages.Several importantrabbisare referred to with acronyms of their names. For example,RabbiShlomo benYitzchak is known asRashi(רש״י),RabbiMoshebenMaimon (Maimonides) is commonly known asRambam(רמב״ם),RabbiMoshebenNahman (Nahmanides) is likewise known as theRamban(רמב״ן), andBaalShemTovis called theBesht(בעש״ט).

A number of such acronyms differ only in their last letter. They all begin withMahara-,as an acronym of the wordsמורנו הרב רבי...(Morenu Ha-Rav rabi...,"Our teacher theRabbi... ").

• "Maharam",with the final" m "standing for a number of names, such asMoshe andMeïr.
• "Maharal" forJudahLoew ben Bezalel
• "Maharash" for eitherMeirShaulsorShmuel Schneersohn.

Text

The usage of Hebrew acronyms extends to liturgical groupings: the wordTanakh(תנ״ך) is an acronym forTorah(Five Books of Moses),Nevi'im(Book of Prophets), andKetuvim(Hagiographa).

Most often, though, one will find use of acronyms asacrostics,in both prayer, poetry (seePiyyut), andkabbalisticworks. Because each Hebrew letter also has a numeric value, embedding an acrostic may give an additional layer of meaning to these works.

One purpose of acrostics was as amnemonicor a way for an author to weave his name as a signature, or some other spiritual thought, into his work, at a time when much was memorized. Examples of prayers which contain acrostics include:

• Ashrei– The first letter of every verse starts with a consecutive letter of theHebrew alphabet,with the omission ofnun.
• Lekhah Dodi– The first letter of each stanza (not including the first and last) spells out "Shlomo Halevi" (שלמה הלוי) the name of the authorShlomo Halevi Alkabetz.
• Shokhen Ad– Four lines are written so that letters line up vertically, with the first letter of the second word in each line spelling the nameYitzchak,which may refer either to thePatriarchYitzchak or to an unknownauthor,and the first letter of the last word in each line spelling out the nameRivka,one of the Matriarchs.

See also

• Notarikon
• Acronym and initialism
• Bible code