The Lexicographer's Rules

According to The Forward, the @ symbol is referred to as “shtrudel” in Hebrew. Yes, just like the pastry roll we call a “strudel” in English. The article was written as a correction to William Safire’s column of August 19.

It seems you may have confused Yiddish and Hebrew.

Safire reported that “@” is called a snail (shabul) in Hebrew.  You noted that The Forward, a noted American Yiddish newspaper, says the @ is called a shtrudel, which is the Yiddish--or Philadelphian, for that matter--pronunciation of strudel. 

I don’t know for sure, but I bet that’s the (new) Yiddish word, and not the (new) Hebrew word.  Perhaps you should ask editors at, say, The Jerusalem Post for their take.

Thanks for taking a look @ this!

Well, I didn’t confuse the two. I relayed what they said.

My apologies.  I should have said that perhaps *someone* had mixed things up.  Again, though, that’s just my guess. 

I had hoped my tentative opening, “It seems” and “you may have,” would have provided me enough cover.

Regardless, thanks for the link to Safire’s piece.  I missed it, and I’m glad to have something to tell my students who ask me what the @ is called.

I’m new to your blog--I found it through the podcast of “A Way with Words"--and I’m enjoying it quite a bit.

You are correct - in Hebrew, we say “Shtrudel” for the @ symbol. However, I’ve noticed that gradually more clients/colleagues are starting to say “at” when dictating their email addresses. I think the more computer-literate the person, the more likely they will say “at” nowadays. As for me, it depends who I’m speaking to. :)

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