Modern Hebrew

Observation · July 21, 2025
The Places Where Israelis Take Shelter, and Their Acronyms
By Philologos
Mamad , mamak , mamam , mamats —how about some sleep?
Observation · January 6, 2021
Israel’s Changing Relationship with Those Who Leave It
By Philologos
As tracked through the waxing and waning value of the Hebrew words for "departees" and "descenders."
Observation · February 5, 2020
Are Biblical Hebrew and Modern Hebrew the Same Language, or Two Different Ones?
By Philologos
What separates language from language, and language from dialect.
Observation · October 25, 2017
The Famous Israeli Accent, and How It Came About
By Philologos
"I em verry heppy to mit you end yourr femily in yourr hawm.”
Observation · July 5, 2017
How Modern Hebrew Developed a Full-Blown Slang in Just a Hundred Years
By Philologos
In part, it borrowed extensively from the slangs and vernaculars of other languages. Consider the case of de la shmatte .
Observation · August 10, 2016
How English Words Get Entrenched in Israeli Speech, and How to Get Them Out
By Philologos
Why the Hebrew word for "shaming" (as in "Facebook shaming") should not be sheyming .