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In Yiddish, a mensch[1] is "a person of integrity and honor".[2] American humorist Leo Rosten describes a mensch as "someone to admire and emulate, someone of noble character. The key to being 'a real mensch' is nothing less than character, rectitude, dignity, a sense of what is right, responsible, decorous".[3] The term is used as a high compliment, implying the rarity and value of that individual's qualities.
In Yiddish, mentsh roughly means "a good person".[4] The word has migrated as a loanword into American English, where a mensch is a particularly good person, similar to a "stand-up guy", a person with the qualities one would hope for in a friend or trusted colleague.[5] Mentshlekhkeyt (Yiddish: מענטשלעכקייט; German: Menschlichkeit) refers to the properties which make a person a mensch.
During the Age of Enlightenment, in Germany the term Humanität, in the philosophical sense of compassion, was used in Humanism to describe what characterizes a better human being. The concept goes back to Cicero's humanitas, which was literally translated as Menschlichkeit in German, from which the Yiddish word mentsh derives.[citation needed]
The word Mensch and the underlying concept have had an impact on popular culture. The Mensch on a Bench is a 2012 Hanukkah-themed book and doll set parodying The Elf on the Shelf. A life-size version of the doll was adopted as the mascot of Team Israel at the World Baseball Classic in 2016. According to pitcher Gabe Cramer, "The Mensch is a great way to have fun in the dugout while reminding us of why we're here and who we're representing".[6]
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