Night by Elie Wiesel Vocabulary – Flashcards
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Abstraction
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a generality; an idea or thought separated from concrete reality
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Achtung
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German for attention
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Aden
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Former Middle Eastern British colony, now part of Yemen.
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Aryan
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In Nazi ideology, the pure, superior Germanic race.
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annihilate
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destroy completely, exterminate
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apathy
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lack of interest or emotion, indifference
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appeasing
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satisfying; relieving
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Austerlitz
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Parisian railroad station for eastbound trains. Austerlitz was the name of a Czech city
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Babylonian captivity
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Babylonians destroyed the first temple in Jerusalem in 86 B.C.E. and exiled the Jews to Babylonia.
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barometer
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literally, an instrument for measuring atmospheric pressure; an indicator of change
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beastial
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like a beast; cruel and savage
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billeted
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lodged; used to refer to temporary lodging of military personnel in private homes or other private establishments
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base
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ignoble, inferior, undignified
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benediction
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a formal blessing; act of calling upon God during a religious service
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blandishment
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flattering remarks that are meant to be persuasive
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boche or bosche
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WWI derogatory French slang for a German, usually a soldier.
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Cabbala
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Jewish mysticism, including numerology.
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the captivity of Babylon
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the period from 597 B.C. to 538 B.C. during which Jerusalem was conquered by King Nebuchadnezzar and the Jewish people were sent into captivity in Babylon.
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Cavalry
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literally, the place near Jerusalem where Jesus was crucified; here, used metaphorically to mean an experience of intense agony or grief
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charnel house
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A building used to house corpses and bones.
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compulsory
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required; that which must be done
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compatriots
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fellow countrymen
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concentration camp
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Camps that were primarily used for slave labor, holding camps or transit camps.
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constraint
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restriction, especially of feelings and behaviors
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countenance
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face or features of the face
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crucible
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container or vessel made of a substance that can withstand extreme heat; a severe trial or test
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death camp
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Camps dedicated to the efficient murder of Jews and other victims; e.g.ec, Chelmo, Madjanek, Sobibor, Treblinka. The Auschwitz-Birkenau,Belzterm was also used for concentration camps where thousands died of starvation and disease.
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Death's head
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Skull insignia for S.S. brigades working in concentration camps.
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derision
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scorn, ridicule
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the destruction of the temple
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King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon eaptured the Jewish city of Jerusalem and destroyed the temple in 587 B.C.
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dysentery
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intestinal inflammation causing abdominal pain and severe diarrhea; often fatal if left untreated in the very young or old or in those who are weakened by hunger or other disease
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edict
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an official public proclamation or order issued by an authority, such as a governmental or military authority.
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emigration
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the act of leaving one country or region to settle in another expounding—stating in detail; explaining
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expulsion
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driving out, especially by force
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fascism
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A system of government with centralized authority under a dictator, stringent socioeconomic controls, suppression of the opposition through terror and censorship and usually a policy of belligerent nationalism and racism.
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functionaries
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people who perform certain expected duties, especially official functions
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Gestapo
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German acronym for the German Secret State Police, part of the SS notorious for terrorism against enemies of the state.
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Guerrillas
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small groups of soldiers, often volunteers, who make surprise attacks and raids behind enemy lines
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ghetto
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The confinement of Jews in a set-apart area of a city. The first exclusively Jewish ghetto was in Venice in 1516.
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gypsy
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Pejorative term for Roma or Romany, an ethnic group with roots in India which suffered large losses in the Holocaust
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harangued
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scolded, especially in a noisy and bullying way
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Hasidism (Hasidic)
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Movement of Orthodox Judaism with strong mystical and emotional elements.
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hermetically
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in an airtight way
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Himmler, Heinrich (1900-1945)
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Head of SS and principal planner of Jews' total extermination.
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Hitler, Adolf (1889-1945)
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Dictator of Germany, 1933—1945.
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Horthy, Admiral Miklos (1868-1957)
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Regent of Hungary, 1920—1944, who was forced by the Nazis to relinquish power to the Nylias Hungarian Fascist party after Nazi invasion.
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implored
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begged; pleaded sincerely
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incite
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to urge to act; to provoke
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inconsiderable
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unimportant, small
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indeterminate
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indefinite; vague; subtle inert—motionless; lacking the ability to move or act
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interminable
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endless or seeming to be endless
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Job
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Biblical figure who has come to symbolize suffering.
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Kaddish
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A prayer in Aramaic praising God. The mourner's Kaddish is said for the dead.
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kapos
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Nazi concentration camp prisoners who were given special privileges in return for supervising other prisoners on work crews; often common criminals who were notorious for their brutality toward fellow inmates
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knell
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the sound of a bell, especially of a bell run slowly at a funeral; often used metaphorically to mean a bad omen
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lamentation
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an expression of grief and sadness
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Lazarus
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A man described in the Books of John and Luke as having been raised from the dead by Jesus.
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lorries
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trucks
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lucidity
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clear-headedness; clarity; rational understanding
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los
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German for "Go on!"
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Maimonides (1135-1204)
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Jewish rabbi, physician and philosopher.
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meager
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of small quantity; not adequate
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Mengele, Dr. Josef (1911-1978)
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Auschwitz physician notorious for so-called medical experiments performed on inmates, especially twins and dwarves.
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Messiah
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Greek translation of Hebrew Mashiach, the anointed one.
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mountebanks
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fakes; charlatans or tricksters
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Musulman
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German for Muslim. Camp slang for a prisoner who is too weak to walk, work, or stand, and therefore marked for death. Believed to derive from prisoner's resemblance to a Muslim in prayer.
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nocturnal
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of or happening during the night
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numerology
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an occult system, built around numbers, of foretelling the future and exploring the unknown Nyilas party-Hungarian for Arrow Cross, a fascist anti-semitic party which assumed power in late 1944 and assisted the SS in deportations of Jews.
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oblivion
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state of being completely forgotten
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Passover
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In Hebrew, Pesach. Greek word for the celebration of the exodus of Jewish people from slavery in Egypt.
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Pentecost
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In Hebrew, Shavuot, the celebration of the giving of the Torah.
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phylacteries
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In Hebrew, tefillin. Greek word for two black leather cubes, worn during daily morning prayer which contain verses from the Torah.
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pillage
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to loot; to rob of property
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premonition
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a feeling that something is about to happen, especially something bad.
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privations
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hardships; lack of necessities of everyday life
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rabbi
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a scholar and teacher of Jewish law; the spiritual leader of a Jewish congregation.
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raucous
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loud and rough sounding; hoarse
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Red Army
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the regular army of the former Soviet Union
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reprieve
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a postponement of punishment; a temporary relief
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Rosh Hashana
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Jewish New Year
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SS
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Abbreviation of Schutzstaffel (Defense Protective Units). Notorious for implementing European Jews' extermination.
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sage
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a person who is very wise, especially one whose great wisdom is the result of age and experience
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sanctity
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holiness; sacredness
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semblance
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appearance, resemblance
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Spanish Inquisition
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Brutal campaign by Roman Catholic church to punish nonbelievers including Jews and Muslims.
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stupefied
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stunned; amazed summarily—promptly and without formality
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Synagogue
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A Jewish house of worship and study.
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Talmud
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The most important compilation of Jewish oral tradition.
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Temple
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Holiest place in Judaism, located in Jerusalem. Biblically ordained sacrifices were performed here. Built and destroyed twice.
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treatise
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a formal article or book on a particular subject
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truncheons
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short, thick cudgels or clubs
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unremittingly
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constantly; without interruption
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vigilance
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the state of watchfulness; alertness, especially to danger
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visionary
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having th nature of a vision; unreal
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wizened
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shriveled, dried up
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yellow star
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Nazis forced Jews to wear a cloth badge with Jew written in the center of a yellow 6 pointed star.
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Yom Kippur
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Day of Atonement. Holiest day of Jewish year when Jews fast and pray for forgiveness of their sins.
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Zionism
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Political movement advocating the establishment of a Jewish state.
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Zohar
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From the Hebrew meaning light or splendor. One of the major works of the Cabbala.
