An acronym is a shortened form of a phrase, usually consisting of the first letters of each word.
15
votes
2answers
268 views
Can anyone explain the meaning of this amulet / inscription?
Right before my grandfather went away to fight in WWII, a rabbi in Munkács (מונקאטש) gave him a small cloth container that had a piece of parchment in it, as a kind of amulet. The piece of paper has ...
14
votes
2answers
838 views
Abbreviations before/after names
What are the more common abbreviations one might see printed before or after a person's name, and what do they mean? Please include honorifics (R'=Rabbi) as well as memorial - or prayerful - suffixes ...
10
votes
5answers
181 views
Meaning of ודו"ק
It is fairly common to find the abbreviation ודו"ק at the end of a complex explanation of a Torah thought (Maharsha, for example, famously does this very often). Roughly, it means: "I didn't explain ...
10
votes
2answers
1k views
B'siyata D'shmaya or Baruch Hashem
Often, at the top of written work, Jews write either ב"ה, which stands for Baruch Hashem =blessed is the Name i.e., God, or בס"ד, which stands for b'siyata d'shmaya =with Heavenly help.
What is the ...
9
votes
1answer
119 views
Why was Rabbi Yitzchok Alfasi known as the Rif - rather than the Ria? (הרי"ף - רבי יצחק אלפסי)
Rabbi Yitzchok Alfasi was known as the Rif. The Roshei Teivos of his name is רי"א, and as far as I know there is no other historic figure known as the רי"א. Then why was he known as the Rif?
8
votes
1answer
951 views
Does ב"ה actually stand for Boruch Hashem?
We asked here about writing either ב"ה or בס"ד on the top of a letter. In the question it was assumed that ב"ה stands for Boruch Hashem.
Do we have a source that ב"ה actually stands for Boruch ...
7
votes
3answers
202 views
Meforshim Nick"names
It has become common practice to refer to most meforshim by acronyms of their name (eg Rashi, Rosh, etc.). When and why did this practice start, and is it proper?
7
votes
1answer
155 views
What does א.ד.ג. stand for in Yiddish?
What does א.ד.ג. stand for in Yiddish? It seems from context that it is the equivalent to etc. but I can't find what it stands for exactly.
For example, this this excerpt from a Hassidic story ...
5
votes
4answers
342 views
Gematrias or Roshei Taivos for the year 5772
Looking for Gematrios of phrases and/or Roshei Teivos that are appropiate for the year 5772 (by adding up to either 5772 or 772, which is the accepted numerical abbreviation for the year after ...
5
votes
1answer
103 views
When did “Zal” give way to “Zatzal”?
Inspired by this answer and it's comments.
Early on, it was standard to refer to great Rabbis who had passed away with the appellation "Zal" - "zichrono/ah livracha "May his/her/their memory be a ...
5
votes
1answer
88 views
Source for this Remez expansion of יד שחט דם
There is an acronym for the liquids that make things able to be made ritually impure. The Halacha is in order for fruit and the like to be made ritually impure it has to be made wet with these ...
4
votes
2answers
431 views
Hebrew letters Hey-Yud-Dalet after a name
I'd seen some stuff written about a man, with the Hebrew הי"ד (Hey-Yud-quotes-Dalet) after his name. What does that mean?
4
votes
1answer
99 views
What is the proper way to write the year when it is a year that ends in מנצפך?
When the year ends with one of the letters of מנצפך - for example 5780 - What is the correct way to write it תש"פ or תש"ף?
4
votes
1answer
113 views
What does חיו“ש וכט”ס stand for?
What does this abbreviation stand for? It is part of the greeting section of a letter written in Hebrew from the late 19th century. The phrase in which it appears is:
שפעת חיו"ש וכט"ס לכבוד הרב ...
4
votes
1answer
124 views
Closing abbreviation ושכמ"ה
Every [anonymous] question asked in the responsum Torah Lishmah ends with an address to the answerer and the abbreviation ושכמ"ה (e.g.). The Otzar Rashei Teivos had only one entry for this ...
4
votes
2answers
228 views
When did the use of Rashei Tevot, Heh Kuf, הק׳ in writings, books, letters, etc., begin?
Perhaps I'm among the last to have found this out, but it took me quite a while to understand why, in a signature, the name was preceeded by a הק׳. THe Ozar Rashei Tevot book has 31 different ...
1
vote
3answers
177 views
Elul's acronyms
What are the Roshei Teivos (acronyms) of Elul (א.ל.ו.ל) and what are their significances?
0
votes
2answers
86 views
Who was the first person to be referred to by acronym? [duplicate]
Rashi, Rambam, the Maharal, the Rosh, the Rema, etc. are all usually referred to by their acronyms. This custom makes sense in a culture that is mostly transmitted through the written word where ink ...
