Chutzpah is a Hebrew term with layers of meaning. Pronunciation of the word chutzpah is varied. Typically the C is silent and the word may be pronounced “hutspah” or “huspa” with a short u sound. The word in Hebrew from which the modern spelling is derived is huspa and in Hebrew, chutzpah would be defined as arrogance, impertinence, or insolence. Similar words in Hebrew include katsuf and katsufah which translate as impudent man or woman, according to the ending sound.

In Yiddish, chutzpah is not always negatively viewed and it in fact may be a positive quality. If it is not exactly positive, people may have ambivalent feelings about displays of chutzpah. On the one hand, they may look at it as rude or impertinent, but on the other, they also may admire the bravery to be impertinent under certain circumstances. Related terms in other languages include cojones from Spanish, and hubris from Ancient Greek.

In other words, chutzpah can be defined as guts, the ability to say or act in ways that may be negatively perceived and require a certain amount of bravery. Challenging an elder or a teacher might be considered an act of chutzpah, but if you can prove your point, it might be an admirable thing to do, even if you generally would respect such a person. In negative sense, chutzpah can be more perceived as thumbing your nose at convention, simply because you can. A person in power might have the chutzpah to verbally attack people lower on the socioeconomic strata, representing chutzpah of a more negative form.

Generally though, impudence tends to be directed toward people in positions of authority. It therefore takes some nerve and daring to challenge someone who would have more authority in a community than you would. If you’re a student in a Jewish school and you verbally attack a rabbi on interpretation of the Torah, you’re displaying extraordinary chutzpah. Whether or not you’ll be admired for such an assault really depends upon the person on the receiving end. They may grudgingly admire your bravery, or they may dismiss you as simply arrogant and not respectful.

In Chaim Potok’s book Davita’s Harp, one of the key questions of the novel is the place of the woman in the Jewish religion. The young heroine of the novel decides to say Kaddish for her deceased father, a ritual prayer said at every Sabbath meeting for a year’s time. This is looked upon by others in her community as chutzpah. Women in Davita’s synagogue, and in the 1930s-1940s when the novel is set, did not normally say Kaddish.

As the year progresses, Davita’s determination to recite Kaddish begins to be met with admiration instead of consternation. Women in the temple join her in the prayer. This is typical of the American view of chutzpah. Davita’s act earns her blame and then praise. What is first viewed as disrespectful eventually earns Davita grudging respect for acting from the impulse of her heart and braving convention to do so.