URJ Transliteration Guidelines and Master Word List Prepared by Debra Hirsch Corman and Rabbi Hara Person February 1, 2001 Transliteration See Word List for exceptions to the following guidelines, based on dictionary spelling or common usage. “ch” for chet and chaf “f” for fei “k” for kaf and kuf “tz” for tzadi “i” for chirik “e” for segol “ei” for tzeirei “a” for patach and kamatz “o” for cholem and kamatz katan “u” for shuruk and kibbutz “ai” for patach with yod Final “h” for final hei; none for final ayin (with exceptions based on common usage): atah, Sh’ma, but Moshe. Apostrophe for sh’va nah (with exceptions based on common usage): b’nei, b’rit, Sh’ma, but ketubah. Hyphen for two vowels together where necessary for correct pronunciation: ne-eman, samei-ach, but maariv, Shavuot. No hyphen for prefixes unless necessary for correct pronunciation: babayit, HaShem, Yom HaAtzma-ut, but Va-eira. Do not double consonants (with exceptions based on dictionary spelling or common usage): t’filah, chayim, but tallit, Sukkot. Capitalization In transliterated text, capitalize only proper nouns. In general, capitalize transliterated word if the word would be capitalized in English (exceptions: pronouns referring to God): Adonai, Eretz Yisrael, Gan Eden, Adonai Eloheinu Melech haolam, but atah, hu. In transliterated text, use lowercase for prefixes in running text, but capitalize prefixes in titles and proper nouns: “Ki MiTziyon” (title of song), Ki miTziyon teitzei Torah (running text); V’zot HaTorah (title of prayer), V’zot haTorah asher… (text of prayer); l’Adonai; HaShem; Rosh HaShanah. Capitalize references to God: the Divine, the Divine Presence, the One, HaShem, You, Your, but who, atah, hu. Use lowercase for derivatives of references to God: godlike, godly, messianic. Capitalize the names of religious denominations and words derived from them: Chasidism, Chasidic, Judaic, Sephardic, Reformers. Capitalize titles of prayers: Kiddush, Kaddish, Blessing after Meals, the Four Questions. Capitalize the names of the service or parts of the service: Shacharit, Yizkor. Use lowercase for life-cycle events: bar mitzvah, confirmation, b’rit milah. Italics, Roman, & Quotation Marks Generally use italics for transliterated words that do not appear in the dictionary (see Word List). Generally use roman for transliterated words that appear in the dictionary (see Word List); but use italics if the word appears in a transliterated phrase where other words are in italic: Shabbat, Oneg Shabbat. Use roman or italics for foreign titles according to whether they would be roman or italic in English: the song “Hava Nagila”; the book Mishneh Torah. Use roman for titles of classic Jewish texts: Torah, Mishnah, Talmud, midrash. Use italics for the Hebrew titles of prayers, roman for English titles: Kaddish, Kiddush, Sh’ma, the Four Questions, Blessing after Meals. Use roman for foreign proper names, including organizations: Yochanan ben Zakkai, Magen David Adom. Use roman for Hebrew months: Adar, Elul. Use roman for holidays: Pesach, Lag BaOmer. UAHC Press Master Word List 2 MASTER WORD LIST, UAHC PRESS Copyeditor: Debra Corman acknowledgment bar mitzvah Adar (month) Baruch atah Adonai, Eloheinu Melech haolam, Adar I (month) asher kid’shanu b’mitzvotav v’tzivanu Adar II (month) Baruch Shem Adon Olam bat Adonai bat mitzvah Adonai Melech bayit (house) Adonai Tz’vaot Bayit (the Temple) afikoman B.C.E. (SMALL CAPS) aggadah beit (house of) agunah beit din Ahavah Rabbah beitzah Ahavat Olam ben Akeidah bet (letter) Akiva biblical Al Cheit bikur cholim alef (letter) bimah alef-bet binah Aleinu Birkat HaMazon Al Hanisim Birkat Kohanim aliyah, aliyot Birkat Shalom A.M. (SMALL CAPS) Blessing after Meals Amora, Amoraim B’nai B’rith amoraic b’nei mitzvah Amidah B’nei Yisrael Am Yisrael Book of Exodus anti-Semitism Book of Life aravah boshet arbaah minim b’rachah, b’rachot ark (synagogue) b’reishit Ark of the Covenant, the Ark B’reishit Rabbah Aron HaB’ritAron Kodesh b’rit Ashamnu b’rit hachayim Ashkenazi, Ashkenazim b’rit milah Ashkenazic b’rit olam Ashrei b’tzelem Elohim atzei chayim aufruf candlelighting blessings Av (month) C.E. (SMALL CAPS) avanah Central Europe Avinu Malkeinu “Chad Gadya” avodah chag Avot chai Avot D’Rabbi Natan challah, challot ayin (letter) chameitz Chanukah Baal Shem Tov chanukiyah Babylonian empire charoset Babylonian exile Chasid, Chasidim bal tashchit Chasidic baraita, baraitot Chasidism Bar’chu chatan Bar Kochba chatimah UAHC Press Master Word List 3 chavurah Elohai N’shamah chayim Eloheinu chazan Elohim chazanut Elul (month) cherem e-mail cherubim Emancipation chesed emet Cheshvan (month) emunah chet (letter) the Enlightenment chevrah kadisha Eretz Yisrael Children of Israel eternal light chochmah etrog chol hamo-eid the Exodus (from Egypt) Chol HaMo-eid Sukkot the Chosen People family education chug the Festivals Chumash firstborn chuppah the First Temple classical Reform Judaism the Flood (from Noach) confirmand the Four Questions confirmation Conservative Judaism Gan Eden the Creation gelt Gemara daat gentile dalet (letter) ger, gerim Days of Awe get, gittin “Dayeinu” gimel (letter) a diaspora, the Diaspora Gittin (Talmud) din giyoret, giyorot divine (adj.) g’matria the Divine g’milut chasadim the Divine Name (God) godlike the Divine Presence (God) godliness d’rash godly dreidel Golden Calf D’varim Rabbah goy d’var Torah G’ulah gut yontiv (Yiddish) Eastern Europe G’vurot East European echad Habakkuk Eichah (Lamentations) hachnasat orchim Eichah Rabbah hadas, hadasim Ein Adir haftarah, haftarot Ein Kamocha Haggadah Ein Keloheinu hakafah, hakafot Ein Sof halachah Eishet Chayil halachic eitz Hallel Eitz Chayim Hi Hallelujah (English translation) el (to) hall’luyah (transliteration) El (God) hamantashen Eliyahu HaNavi (the prophet) Hamavdil “Eliyahu HaNavi” (the song) HaMotzi El Malei Rachamim haolam UAHC Press Master Word List 4 HaShem keva Hashkiveinu k’hilah, k’hilot “Hatikvah” Ki Anu Amecha “Hava Nagila” kibud z’keinim Havdalah kibbutz hayom kibbutznik Hebrew school Kiddush Hebrew Union College–Jewish Institute of kiddushin Religion (HUC-JIR) [en-dash for spelled out; Kiddushin (Talmud) hyphen for abbreviation] “Ki MiTziyon” hei (letter) Kingdom of Israel hidur mitzvah Kingdom of Judah High Holy Days kippah, kippot High Priest Kislev (month) Hilchot T’shuvah K’lal Yisrael Hillel kodesh “Hinei Mah Tov” kohein, kohanim (priest) Historical Prophets Kohelet (Book of Ecclesiastes) Hodaah Kohelet Rabbah the Holy Ark kol the Holy Land Kol Nidrei the Holy of Holies korban the Holy One (God) kosher hora k’riah Hoshana Rabbah (holiday) K’tuvim (Writings—Bible) House of David k’vod hamet House of Israel kuf (letter) House of Judah kugel Iyar (month) l’Adonai Iyov (Book of Job) Lag BaOmer lamed (letter) the Jewish Federation Land of Israel Jews-by-choice lashon hara Judah HaNasi Later Prophets judgment latke laypeople Kabbalah L’chah Dodi Kabbalat Shabbat l’chayim kabbalistic lev kabbalists Levite Kaddish Liberal (referring to denomination) Kaddish Yatom life cycle, life-cycle event kadosh Literary Prophets kaf (letter) L’maan Tizk’ru kaf sofit (letter) lo anochiyut kallah, kallot lo l’vayeish karpas loving-kindness kashrut lulav kavanah kavod Maariv (Evening Service) k’dushah maaseh K’dushah (the prayer) Maaseh Merkavah K’dushat HaShem maasim tovim K’dushat HaYom Maccabees ketubah, ketubot machzor UAHC Press Master Word List 5 Machzor Vitry Morning Blessings Magen David Motzi Magen David Adom Mourner’s Kaddish Mah Nishtanah Mount Sinai Mah Tovu m’tzaveh Major Prophets musar malach mamzer, mamzerim Naaseh V’nishma mamzeret, mamzerot Nachman of Bratzlav Manasseh Nachmanides maror N’chemyah (Book of Nehemiah) mashiach n’divut the Matriarchs ne-eman matzah, matzot nefesh mazal tov ner tamid m’chabeid zeh et zeh New Moon M’dinat Yisrael New World megillah (Eng.; e.g., “the whole megillah”) New Year melech nidah mem (letter) Nidah (Talmud) mem sofit N’ilah menorah the Ninth of Av (holiday) mensch Nisan (month) a messiah Nishmat Kol Chai the Messiah nisuin messianic nitzotzot mezuzah Noach m’gillah, m’gillot (Heb. “scroll”) Northern Kingdom the M’gillah (Book of Esther) n’shamah M’gillat Esther nun (letter) Mi Chamochah nun sofit (letter) midah, midot N’vi-im (Prophets—Bible) midrash, midrashim, midrashic Mikdash (the Temple) Ohel Mo-eid (Tent of Meeting) mikdash m’at ohev zeh et zeh mikveh olah Minchah (Afternoon Service) olam haba minhag, minhagim the Omer Minor Prophets ometz lev minyan onah Mi Shebeirach Oneg Shabbat Mishkan (the Tabernacle) onein mishlo-ach manot Oral Torah a mishnah Orthodox, Orthodoxy (referring to the Mishnah denomination) Mishnaic Oseh Shalom mishnayot Outreach (Reform program) Mishneh Torah mitzvah, mitzvot parashah, parshiyot mixed marriage Parashat Noach mixed-marriage family the Patriarchs m’nuchah pei (letter) modern Orthodoxy pei sofit (letter) Modim Anachnu Pentateuch mohel Pentateuchal mohelet Pesach UAHC Press Master Word List 6 pidyon haben the Second Temple pikuach nefesh seder (Passover) Pirkei Avot sefer Pittsburgh Platform sefer Torah (a Torah scroll) piyut, piyutim Sefer Torah (tractate) P.M. (SMALL CAPS) seiver panim yafot pomelos selah postbiblical Sephardi, Sephardim prayer book Sephardic priest (but High Priest) seraphim Priestly Benediction the Seven Blessings Promised Land s’firah, s’firot a prophet, prophets Shabbat Prophets (book of the Bible) Shabbat HaChodesh a psalm, psalms Shabbat HaGadol the Psalmist Shabbat Shuvah Psalms (book of the Bible) Shabbat Zachor p’shat Shacharit (Morning Service) Purim