Pronunciations
Definitions
n. A mother tongue.
n. Yiddish.
Example Sentences
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"Please call us to discuss the many naming opportunities available at Yiddishkayt. Name one of our education and outreach programs, or one of our upcoming events, as a powerful tribute to mameloshn." (source: the Yiddishkeit LA website donor page)
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"As a bilingual child, whose mameloshn (mother tongue) was Yiddish, and whose beloved bobe (grandmother) spoke very little English, I flipped between one language and the other without pausing for breath, translating for others as the need arose." (source)
Languages of Origin
- Textual Hebrew
- Yiddish
Etymology
מאַמע־לשון mame-loshn. "Loshn" is the Yiddish version of the Hebrew word "lashon," which means both "tongue" and "language."
- Older: Jews who are middle-aged and older
- Ashkenazim: Jews with Ashkenazi heritage
- North America
- Great Britain
- South Africa
- Australia / New Zealand
- View More
- The New Joys of Yiddish, by Leo Rosten and Lawrence Bush (New York, 2003[1968]).
- Yiddish and English: A Century of Yiddish in America, by Sol Steinmetz (Tuscaloosa, 1986).
- The JPS Dictionary of Jewish Words, by Joyce Eisenberg and Ellen Scolnic, (Philadelphia, 2001).
- Dictionary of Jewish Usage: A Popular Guide to the Use of Jewish Terms, by Sol Steinmetz (Lanham, MD, 2005).
- View More
Who Uses This
Regions
Dictionaries
Alternative Spellings
mameloshn, mame-loshen, mameloshen, mama loshon, mamma loshen, mama loshen, mama loshin, mama loshn, mama-loshen, mama loshen, mame loshen, mame-loshen
Notes
The name "mame-loshn," or "mother-tongue," reflects the emotional connection that many speakers feel towards this language.
See also Yiddish.
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