Ashkenazi

American  

[ahsh-kuh-nah-zee] / ˌɑʃ kəˈnɑ zi /

noun

Ashkenazim plural

1. a member of the diasporic Jewish population that settled in central and eastern Europe, distinguished from the Sephardim chiefly by liturgy, religious customs, and pronunciation of Hebrew.

   For the benefit of Ashkenazim using the book, variations are included where they are significantly different.

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adjective

1. Also Ashkenazic of or relating to the diasporic Jewish population that settled in central and eastern Europe, or to the culture, liturgy, or variety of Hebrew used by these Jews.

   The melody is an adaptation of a South German chant sung in Ashkenazi synagogues during High Holy Days.

   Ashkenazi styles of cooking have influenced many other cuisines.

Ashkenazi British  

/ ˌæʃkəˈnɑːzɪ /

noun

1. (modifier) of or relating to the Jews of Germany and E Europe

2. a Jew of German or E European descent

3. the pronunciation of Hebrew used by these Jews

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• Ashkenazim
  plural

Etymology

Origin of Ashkenazi

First recorded in 1830–40; from post-Biblical Hebrew ashkənazzīm, plural of ashkənazzī, equivalent to ashkənaz + -ī a suffix indicating relationship or origin; see origin at Ashkenaz

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Ashkenazi Ashkenazim

This puts him more than $135 million above Alphabet’s Anat Ashkenazi, the next highest-paid CFO in 2025.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 23, 2026

A descendant of Turkish and Ashkenazi Jews, Neil Sedaka was born in Brooklyn, N.Y., on March 13, 1939.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 27, 2026

The American turn to monolingualism did not occur until after the Civil War, when new immigrants from southern and eastern Europe began to arrive in large numbers: Italians, Poles, Greeks and Ashkenazi Jews.

From Salon ● Feb. 12, 2026

That was due in part to assimilation of the Ashkenazi population -- forced and otherwise -- in the Soviet Union, the United States and Israel, where Hebrew is the official language.

From Barron's ● Oct. 26, 2025

“Need I remind you, I don’t know deep-cut Ashkenazi stuff; it’s not my thing. Like, I barely understand kugel. Is it a dessert or a side dish? Is it noodles or is it cheesecake?”

From "Night Owls" by A.R. Vishny

The Mizrahim who make up around half of Israel's Jewish majority - a figure hard to pin down due to widespread intermarriage with Ashkenazim - have at times complained of discrimination and socio-economic disadvantage.

From Reuters ● Jul. 16, 2023

The other side is mainly formed from the roughly 10,000 residents of the affluent villages, or kibbutzim, that surround the city — most of them Ashkenazim, or Jews of European descent, like Ms. Siach.

From New York Times ● May 7, 2023

Some ultra-Orthodox Ashkenazi communities today regularly administer genetic compatibility tests during matchmaking to limit the risk that children will inherit genetic diseases, and pre-conception testing is common in other Ashkenazim.

From Science Magazine ● Nov. 30, 2022

Vehemently secular, they insisted Mizrahi Jews shed their traditional cultural identities and become secular Ashkenazim, albeit ones of a darker hue.

From New York Times ● Oct. 20, 2016

The Jews here are from all over the world: Ashkenazim from Europe; Sephardim from Spain, Africa, Greece; Mizrahim from the countries here around us; Americans; Sabras, who've been here for millennia—all with their own languages.

From "What the Night Sings" by Vesper Stamper