bubbe meise

English - English

Definition of bubbe meise in English English dictionary

grandmother's tale; An "old wives' tale"; a fairytale

A grandmother's fable. Although very close to the idea of an old wives' tale, bubbe-meise is a shade more serious

Etymology

() From Yiddish באבע מעשה. Compares also to Slavic баба (grandmother). The roots of this expression lie in the Medieval Anglo-Norman chivalric romance, Sir Bevis of Hampton. When rewritten in Yiddish for Jewish audience by Elia Levita, and printed in 1541, it came to be known as Bove meise or Bovo-Bukh.