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Sheigetz: what Wikipedia removed

Sheigetz is a Yiddish term for a non-Jewish boy or man. Through 2010 the opening explained, “In former times, it was common practice for Jews in Eastern Europe who were harassed by anti-Semitic youths to label their tormentors shkotzim.” Today the opening makes no mention of antisemitism, and the word appears nowhere in the article. A reader today does not learn that the term’s origin is tied to Jews naming the youths who harassed them antisemitically.

The word “antisemitism” appeared 1 times in this article’s opening at its peak, in 2010. Today it appears nowhere in the article at all, references included. Checked against the full current article on 2026-08-01.

The tracked words, snapshot by snapshot

Section titled “The tracked words, snapshot by snapshot”
word2010201520206 October 20232025
antisemitism10000

Counts are of the opening paragraph only, the part most readers, search engines and AI training sets ever quote.

What was taken out

Section titled “What was taken out”
  • The Hebrew spelling and romanization variants of the term, reworded in the current opening.
  • The account of Jews in Eastern Europe labeling the antisemitic youths who harassed them shkotzim, dropped from the opening.
  • A general note that, like many Yiddish words for non-Jews, the term carries ambiguous connotations, dropped from the opening.
  • The explanation of what it means when one Jew calls another a shegetz, dropped from the opening.
  • The note that some disaffected religious Jews label themselves shkotzim ironically, dropped from the opening.
  • The comparison noting the term has had less currency in English than its feminine form shiksa, dropped from the opening.

How it opened then, and now

Section titled “How it opened then, and now”

2010 (revision 350122553):

Shegetz (שייגעץ or in Hebrew שֵׁיְגֶּץ; alternative Romanizations incl. shaygetz , sheigetz , shaigetz , sheygets ; plural שקאצים shkotzim , shgatzim ) is a Yiddish word that has entered English to refer to a non- Jewish boy or young man. Although shegetz, like its feminine counterpart shiksa , comes from the Hebrew sheketz (“detestable,” “loathed”, “blemish”) and literally translates as “rascal”, “scoundrel” or “varmint”, its pejorative connotations range from negligible to severe, depending on the context. In former times, it was common practice for Jews in Eastern Europe who were harassed by anti-Semitic youths to label their tormentors shkotzim . Nacham Grossbard of Haifa , writing in th…

2025 (revision 1264853906):

Disparaging term for a non-Jewish boy or young man Sheigetz or shegetz (שייגעץ or in Hebrew שֵׁיְגֶּץ; alternative Romanizations incl. shaygetz , shaigetz , sheygets ) with the alternative form shkotz (plural: sheygetses and shkotzim , respectively ) is a Yiddish word that has entered English to refer to a non- Jewish boy or young man. It may also be used by an observant Jew when referring to a non-observant Jewish man. It is mostly used disparagingly, although it can also be used in appreciation by semantic reversal , similar to “rascal” becoming positive when used affectionately in regard to a teenager. It is sometimes used to describe a specifically undesirable or low-class non-Jew versus…

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