AHASUERUS - king of Persia who ruled a vast empire who deposed  and banished his first queen, Vashti, for disobedience and who also chose Esther the Jewess as his wife in a beauty contest arranged for just that purpose.

BIGTHANA - one of the two chamberlains, the keepers of the door, who served under king Ahasuerus and who were caught planning to slay the king due to Mordecai uncovering their plot (Est 2:21).

CHALLAH - An extra large version of this traditional Jewish bread is prepared for Purim in recognition of this feasts celebratory spirit.

DECREE - Special announcements of the King that could not be repealed

ESTHER - heroine of the book of Esther was named after the Phoenician goddess of procreation and love, "Astarte," although her real Hebrew name was Hadassah, meaning "Myrtle" (Est 2:7). Esther was the orphaned daughter of Abihail the uncle of Mordecai (Est 2:15), who was raised by Mordecai until chosen to be queen to King Ahasuerus of Persia. Esther risked her life to appear before the king in order to reveal Haman's wicked plot to annihilate the Jewish people.

FEASTS - there are 10 of these special banquets in Esther, usually in pairs.

GROGGERS - meaning "noisemakers," are instruments used to help jeer the name of Haman whenever his name is mentioned during the reading of the Scroll of Esther on Purim.

HAMAN - the son of Amedatha, an Agagite who was promoted by King Ahasuerus to the chief of princes (Est 3:1). Haman is the villain of the book of Esther who plots to exterminate the Jewish people in Persia and hang Mordecai the Jew for refusing to bow down to him.

HAMANTASCHEN - (a German word meaning "Haman's pockets"), are the most popular of all delicacies eaten on Purim. They are triangular-shaped pastries filled with fruit, cheese, or poppy seeds. One explanation for the name is that Haman stuffed his pockets with bribe money. Originally, hamantaschen were called mohntaschen, "poppy seed pockets." A seed filling was used because the Hebrew word for "seed" (poppy seed) is mohn (manna); mohn sounds like the Hebrew pronunciation of the second syllable of the name Haman. It has been said that these three-cornered pastries are eaten as a reminder of the type of hat worn by Haman when he was second in command to the king of Persia.  Some people also refer to Hamantaschen as "Haman Ears."  Multiple meanings or interpretations are not uncommon in Judaica.

INDIA - was the most eastern reach of Ahaseurus' power,.ruling over 127 provinces stretching from India to Cush (Est 1:1)

JEHOVAH - God's name, conspicuous by its absence, in the entire book of Esther

KREPLACH - are triangular-shaped dumplings usually filled with chopped meat, chopped onion, and seasonings. It is customary to greet the name of Haman during the reading of the Megillah by clapping hands, stamping feet, turning groggers (noisemakers), and slapping or beating whatever object happens to be handy. From this, the idea of eating food that had been chopped or beaten evolved in Eastern Europe. Kreplach, a German word probably derived from the French crepe, was just such a dish.

LAST LAUGH  - is what Mordecai enjoyed at Haman's expense

MEGILLAH - the Scroll of the Book of Esther which is read in its entirety in the synagogue on the Feast of Purim.  Thus, the origin of the phrase, "the whole Megillah."

MORDECAI - name derived from the Babylonian god Marduke (the god of war) meaning "warrior, war like." Mordecai was a Benjamite, the descendent of a certain Kish, who was deported to Babylonia along with Jeconiah in 597 B.C. (Est 2:5-6). He was a cousin of Queen Esther who raised his orphaned cousin and enabled her to become the queen of King Ahasuerus of Persia. He was instrumental in uncovering a plot to kill the King and was instrumental in saving the Jewish people who were threatened with extermination by Haman.

NOBLES - King Ahasuerus seven "Wise Men" who convinced the king to banish Vashti for her refusal to dance.  

OBEDIENCE - An interesting theme of the book, Vashti did not obey King Ahasuerus command (Est 1), Esther did not reveal her Jewish identity following Mordecai's instructions (Est 2:19), Haman, plotting against the Jewish people, falsely reported to King Ahasuerus that a people lived in his land who did not "obey the king's laws" (Est 3:8), and Mordecai carried out all of Esther's instructions later in the story, regarding a three day fast (Est 4:17).

PURIM - (The Feast of Lots) is a holy day that commemorates the deliverance of the Jewish people throughout the Persian Empire from a plot hatched by Haman, who determined the day to exterminate the Jewish people by casting a "pur" or "lot".

PURIM PLAY - (in Yiddish: PURIM SHPIEL) on Purim, as early as the fourteenth century, the Jews of Germany took part in masquerades built around the subject of Haman's plot to exterminate the Jews of Persia. The revelers often dressed up as fools in cap and bells and blew on raucous horns.

QUEEN - Esther replaced Vashti in this special appointment of honor that was signified by a special crown (Est 2:17).

ROYAL ROBE - Haman unwittingly bestowed this honor on Mordecai (Est 6).

SHUSHAN - the palace in Persia where most of the events in the book of Esther took place (Est 1:2).

TERESH - one of the two chamberlains, the keepers of the door, who served under king Ahasuerus and were caught planning to slay the king due to Mordecai uncovering their plot (Est 2:21).

UPSIDE DOWN - is an expression often associated with the Purim story. The phrase V'nahafuch Hu "And it was turned about" in Esther 9:1 refers to the sudden reversal of fortunes in this story.  Haman, who had planned a genocide for the Jewish people, ended up hung on the gallows he had built for Mordecai.  

VASHTI - the first queen of King Ahasuerus of Persia who was banished by the King when she refused a command to come and appear before him in order to show her beauty to his princes and the people (Est 1).

WINE - Abundant at the King's banquet, resulting in his drunken request that Queen Vashti dance to amuse his guests (Est 1).

XERXES - Another name for King Ahaseurus (from Greek)

YIDDISH  - is a mixture of Hebrew, and German, Polish, and other European languages, written using Hebrew characters.  Many of its phrases have found their way into mainstream American culture (such as "the whole meggilah") - Hamanataschen, or Hamantashen, or however else you may have seen it spelled, is a Yiddish word.

ZERESH - the wife of Haman (Est 5:9).  Women seem to be given special editorial attention in this story that features, Esther, a courageous heroine.

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