Mensch

Template:Use dmy dates Template:Short description {{#invoke:other uses|otheruses}} Mensch or mentsh (Template:Langx) is a Yiddish word which literally translates to "person",<ref>"person". The Comprehensive English-Yiddish Dictionary.</ref> and figuratively means "a person of integrity and honor".<ref>"mensch". Merriam-Webster</ref> Jewish American humorist Leo Rosten describes a Template:Lang as "someone to admire and emulate, someone of noble character. The key to being 'a real mensch' is nothing less than character, rectitude, dignity, a sense of what is right, responsible, decorous".<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The term is used as a high compliment, implying the rarity and value of that individual's qualities.

Overview

The Yiddish mensch developed alongside the Middle High German Template:Lang, both derived from the Old High German mennisco. The spelling "mentsh" is used less frequently than "mensch", but the former is the transliteration recommended by the YIVO.<ref>Michael Wex, How to Be a Mentsh (And Not a Shmuck), 2009, p. 20</ref>

Mensch has migrated as a loanword into Yinglish and American English with the German spelling to refer not to a person, but a particularly good person, similar to a "stand-up guy": a person with the qualities one would hope for in a friend or trusted colleague. Mentshlekhkeyt (Template:Langx) likewise literally means "humanity" but can also refer to the properties which make a person a mensch.

The word Template:Lang and the underlying concept have had an impact on popular culture. The Mensch on a Bench is a 2012 Hanukkah-themed book and doll set parodying The Elf on the Shelf. A life-size version of the doll was adopted as the mascot of Team Israel at the World Baseball Classic in 2016. According to pitcher Gabe Cramer, "The Mensch is a great way to have fun in the dugout while reminding us of why we're here and who we're representing".<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>

See also

• Template:Lang
• Template:Lang
• Moral idealist
• Template:Lang
• Template:Lang
• The Mensch on a Bench
• Jewish etiquette