Terefah facts for kids

Terefah (pronounced "teh-REH-fah") is a Hebrew word that means "torn by a wild animal." In Jewish law, it refers to an animal that cannot be eaten because it has certain serious injuries or health problems. Even if an animal is from a species that is normally considered kosher (meaning it's fit to eat according to Jewish dietary laws), it becomes terefah if it has these specific issues.

It can also refer to the list of these injuries or problems themselves. These rules make sure that the meat people eat is healthy and from an animal that was in good condition before it was prepared.

Why is Terefah Forbidden?

The idea of terefah comes from the Hebrew Bible. A verse in the book of Exodus says:

And you shall be holy people to Me, and flesh torn in the field you shall not eat; you shall throw it to the dog[s].

—Exodus 22:30

This verse teaches that meat from an animal that was torn or injured in the field should not be eaten by people. Instead, it should be given to dogs. This shows the importance of eating food that is clean and healthy.

How the Rules Developed

Over time, Jewish scholars and rabbis expanded on this basic idea.

• The Talmud, a collection of Jewish teachings, first listed eight main types of terefah.
• Later, the Mishnah (a part of the Talmud) added eighteen more conditions.
• Even more conditions were added by a famous scholar named Maimonides, bringing the total to 70.
• Eventually, Rabbi Joseph Karo organized all these rules in a book called the Shulchan Aruch. He grouped them by which part of the animal was affected, what kind of injury it was, or if it was a disease or a broken bone.

Terefah vs. Nevelah

It's important not to confuse terefah with another rule called nevelah (pronounced "neh-veh-LAH").

• A nevelah is an animal that died on its own or was killed in a way that is not allowed by Jewish law (not by shechita, which is the special kosher way of slaughtering an animal).
• An animal can only be considered terefah while it is still alive. If an animal has a terefah injury and then dies from it, it becomes a nevelah.
• However, if an animal has a terefah injury but is then slaughtered correctly using shechita, it is still not kosher to eat, but it is not considered a nevelah. This means it doesn't have the same rules about making things ritually unclean.

Common Types of Terefah Injuries

The Talmud lists eight main types of injuries or problems that make an animal terefah and unfit for kosher use. These include:

• Clawing: If a wild animal claws or attacks a kosher animal, or if a bird of prey attacks a kosher bird.
• Perforation: A hole or tear in important organs like the brain's membrane, heart, lungs, intestines, or stomach.
• Deficiency: If an animal is born missing a part, like a lung lobe or a foot.
• Missing: If certain important parts are missing, such as specific tendons in the thigh, or the liver, or the upper jaw.
• Severing: If the membrane covering the spinal cord is cut, even if the spine itself isn't broken.
• Falling: If an animal falls and crushes one of its internal organs.
• Tearing: If most of the flesh covering the rumen (one of the stomachs in animals like cows) is torn.
• Fracturing: If most of an animal's ribs are broken.

Terefah in Other Languages

The word terefah has even influenced other languages!

• In Yiddish, a language spoken by many Jewish people, the word became treyf. This word is used to describe anything that is not kosher.
• In Polish, the word treyf led to trefny, which means something that is deficient or not allowed.
• In Suriname, a country in South America, some food rules are called treef in Surinamese Dutch. This word comes from the Sranan Tongo language, which got it from terefah. This happened because Sephardi Jews (Jews from Spain and Portugal) came to Suriname in the 1600s and influenced the local language.