Among the honorifics in Judaism, there are several traditional honorifics for the dead which are used when naming and speaking of the deceased. Different honorifics might be applied depending on the particular status of the deceased. These honorifics are frequently found on gravestones, on memorial walls inside the sanctuary of synagogues, in speeches, and in writing such as in obituaries.

In writing, it is most common to use the name followed by an abbreviation of an honorific either in Hebrew or English. For examples, see chart.

Comparison chart

The following chart shows different honorifics used, along with their abbreviation in Hebrew and English, their translation, the masculine and feminine forms, the type of person which the honorific is applied to, and examples.

English
abbreviation		 Hebrew
abbreviation		 Full phrase in Hebrew English translation When used Example
For a man For a woman
Z"L
 ז״ל[1] זכרונו לברכה
zikhrono livrakha		 זכרונה לברכה
zikhronah livrakha		 of blessed memory; or
may his/her memory be a blessing		 a holy or a
righteous person		 Israel Israeli Z"L or Israel Israeli ז״ל or Rabbi Israel Israeli Z"L or Rabbi Israel Israeli ז״ל
A"H ע״ה[1] עליו השלום
alav ha-shalom		 עליה השלום
aleha ha-shalom		 may peace be upon him/her non-rabbinical
or biblical figure		 Albert Peretz A"H or Albert Peretz ע״ה or Avraham Avinu A"H or Avraham Avinu ע"ה
ZT"L
or ZTz"L		 זצ״ל[2] זכר צדיק לברכה
zekher tzadik livrakha		 may the memory of
the righteous be a blessing		 a holy or a
righteous person		 Maran Ovadia Yosef ZT"L or Maran Ovadia Yosef ZTz"L or Maran Ovadia Yosef זצ״ל
ZK"L זק״ל זכר קדוש לברכה
zekher kadosh livrakha		 may the memory of the holy be a blessing holy person, not necessarily a martyr Judah Halevi ZK"L or Judah Halevi זק״ל
ZTVK"L זצוק״ל זכר צדיק וקדוש לברכה
zekher tzaddik v'kadosh livrakha		 may the memory of the righteous and holy be a blessing righteous and holy person, not necessarily a martyr Rabbi Avraham Yitzchak Bloch ZTVK"L or Rabbi Avraham Yitzchak Bloch זצוק״ל
ZTzVKLLH"H זצוקללה״ה זכר צדיק וקדוש לברכה
לחיי העולם הבא
zekher tzaddik v'kadosh livrakha,
l'chayei ha'olam ha-ba		 may the memory of
the righteous and
holy be a blessing
for the life of the world to come		 outstandingly holy person Rabbenu Tzadok Hacohen (may the memory of the righteous and holy be a blessing for the life of the world to come) or Rabbenu Tzadok Hacohen זצוקללה״ה
ZY"A זי"ע זכותו יגן עלינו
zechuto yagen aleinu		 may his merit shield us outstandingly holy person Rabbi Menachem Mendel Shneersohn ZY"A or Rabbi Menachem Mendel Shneersohn זי"ע
HY"D הי״ד השם יקום דמו
Hashem yikkom damo		 השם יקום דמה
Hashem yikkom dama		 May Hashem avenge his / her blood Martyred Jews or Jews killed by antisemites Hana "Hanička" Bradyová HY"D or Hana "Hanička" Bradyová הי״ד

General honorifics

Some honorifics may be used for any individual. These honorifics are generally not used for rabbis or other special persons, since the specific honorifics for those people are used instead, as a sign of honor and respect. See below.

Of blessed memory

The most common honorific is of blessed memory[3] or may his/her memory be a blessing.[4] The Hebrew transliteration is zikhrono livrakha (m.) / zikhronah livrakha (f.) (Hebrew: זיכרונה לברכה‎ (f.) / זיכרונו לברכה‎ (m.)). It is often abbreviated in English both as OBM and as Z"L. The Hebrew abbreviation is ז״ל‎.

In the past, it was common to use this expression for living people as well.[5] In the Babylonian Talmud, it is mentioned that a person should say this expression about his dead father, in addition to the phrase "I am the atonement of his bed."[6]

Peace be upon him/her

An alternative honorific is Peace be upon him/her. The Hebrew version is alav ha-shalom (m.) / aleha ha-shalom (f.) (Hebrew: עליו השלום‎ (m.) / עליה השלום‎ (f.)). It is abbreviated in English as A"H. The Hebrew abbreviation is ע״ה‎.

This phrase is the same as the Islamic honorific peace be upon him (which is used for all prophets of Islam). However, unlike in Islamic usage, the English abbreviation PBUH is not commonly used for the Jewish honorific.

The above two may be used interchangeably; however of blessed memory is the most common.

The term עליו השלום did not appear in Hebrew literature until the early Rishonic period, a century after its introduction in Judeo-Arabic. According to the theory of Michael Broyde, after the Arab conquest the Arabic phrase عَلَيْهِ ٱلسَّلَامُ ("peace be upon him") was translated to Hebrew עליו השלום‎ and was used for any deceased person, a usage which spread to the Jews of Christian Europe beginning in the 12th century. The phrase is more common in Islamic literature as an honorific for saints, and over time in Hebrew it came to predominate over עבד השם‎ (the classical Hebrew honorific for biblical figures), and by 1600 usage of עבד השם‎ had disappeared, leaving עליו השלום‎ (or its feminine/plural forms) as the only expansion of ע"ה‎.[7]

May HaShem avenge his/her blood

The honorific May HaShem avenge his/her blood is generally used for an individual who are considered to have been murdered through acts of anti-Semitism such as pogroms, genocide, or terrorist attacks. In the LGBTQ community in Israel, the term is also applied to any innocent Jew killed, whether for anti-Semitic reasons or others; for example, Shira Banki, a teenager murdered in the 2015 Jerusalem Pride Parade, is referred to as Shira Banki HY"D.[8] The Hebrew phrase is HaShem yikom damo (m.) / HaShem yikom dama (f.) / HaShem yikom damam (pl.) (Hebrew: השם יקום דמו‎ (m.) / השם יקום דמה‎ (f.) / השם יקום דמם‎ (pl.)). The English abbreviation is HY"D, the Hebrew one הי״ד‎.

Other

Other expressions used to add to the names of people who died: "the deceased", "rest of Eden", "rest in peace". It is customary to sign the tombstones with the initials תַּנְצְבָ"ה (תְּהִי נִשְׁמָתוֹ צְרוּרָה בִּצְרוֹר הַחַיִּים (according to the language of the verse:[9] and the soul was a pure soul in the chorus of life).

Holy and the righteous

The abbreviation "זי״ע/zy"a" stands for "zekhuto yagen `aleinu/May his merit shield us", and often follows the mention of meritorious righteous ones. A variant is "זיע״א/zya"a" which adds "Amen" at the end. This expression stems from the belief that a righteous person who passes to the next world can serve as an advocate before God for his remaining community. Other acronyms of this type are נבג"מ (נשמתו בגנזי מרומים; his soul in the heavenly vineyards) and נלב"ע (נפטר לבית עולמו; died to his world).

Memory of the righteous

The honorific "May the memory of the righteous be a blessing" is used after the names of holy rabbis and other holy people, and "the name of the wicked shall perish" on a wicked person.[2] both from Proverbs 10:7.

In Hebrew transliteration: "zekher tzadik livrakha" and in Hebrew: "זכר צדיק לברכה‎". The English abbreviation commonly used is "ZT"L" and in Hebrew, "זצ״ל‎" is used. It is pronounced in reading as "zatzal". It may be also written as "ZTz"L".

It is used primarily in reference to rabbis who have been deceased in recent memory. Thus, one is likely to write "Rabbi Moshe Feinstein ZT"L" (d. 1986) but far less likely to write "Rashi ZT"L" (d. 1105). This expression is synonymous with Z"L (see above) in that Z"L inherently implies the person was righteous, but, in modern Hasidic communities, where tzadik has acquired a different meaning, ZT"L may be used to distinguish the Tzadik in that modern sense.

In the course of time, additional versions of the above expressions were created, for example: "זכר צדיק וקדוש לברכה‎"; "may the memory of the righteous and holy be a blessing" (ZTVK"L; זצוק״ל‎), "may the memory of the righteous and holy be a blessing for the life of the world to come" (זצוקללה״ה‎).

Memory of the wicked

While the above mentioned positive honorifics are added to the names of beloved people, the names of those considered to be particularly wicked (i.e. evil, despised, etc.) are sometimes embellished with the phrase "Yimakh shemo" ימח שמו, "May his name be blotted out". Another phrase is "Shem reshaim yirkav" שם רשעים ירקב, "the name of the wicked will rot".[10]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Birnbaum, Philip (1964). Encyclopedia of Jewish Concepts. New York: Hebrew Publishing Company. pp. 564–565. ISBN 0-88482-930-8.
  2. 1 2 "Tractate Yoma 38a". Yoma. Retrieved July 7, 2019.
  3. ↑ Ben-Yehuda, Ehud; Weinstein, David, eds. (1961). Ben-Yehuda's Pocket English-Hebrew Hebrew-English Dictionary. New York: Pocket Books. pp. xx–xxvi. ISBN 0-671-47211-9.
  4. ↑ Burack, Emily (2020-09-21). "Why Jews Say 'May Her Memory Be a Blessing/Revolution' When Someone Has Died". Hey Alma. Retrieved 2022-10-01.
  5. ↑ Dandrowitz, Yisrael. "Zichrono Livrocho on a Living Man". Nezer HaTorah, Av 5765 (in Hebrew). Vol. 11. HebrewBooks. pp. 157–168.
  6. ↑ In tractate Kiddushin, 31:b
  7. ↑ ""Is the Epitaph Acronym ע״ה an Abbreviation of עליו השלום or עבד השם?" Michael J. Broyde Hakirah #3 pg. 17" (PDF).
  8. ↑ "שיגרת חיינו הרדופים". israelhayom.co.il (in Hebrew). Retrieved 25 August 2023.
  9. ↑ The Book of Samuel I, chapter 25, verse 29.
  10. ↑ This pharse refers to Proverbs 10:7
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