how to say “commander” in Hebrew
מְפַקֵּד
My cousin Yudi is the third Chabadnik to become a combat officer in the Israeli military. He is currently serving as a commander.
The Hebrew word for military commander is מְפַקֵּד
Its root is פ.ק.ד (p.k.d), the concept of turning attention to something: someone who commands causes those under him or her to turn their attention to the task at hand.
Its root is פ.ק.ד (p.k.d), the concept of turning attention to something: someone who commands causes those under him or her to turn their attention to the task at hand.Whereas American soldiers shout yes, sir! to their commanders, Israeli soldiers shout:
כֵּן, הַמְּפַקֵּד!
yes, commander!
…if the commander is a male, and
כֵּן, הַמְּפַקֶּדֶת!
…if she’s a female.
פ.ק.ד is also the root of the name of the Torah portion to be read this Shabbat by Jews around the world:
אֵלֶּה פְּקוּדֵי הַמִּשְׁכָּן…
these are the numbers (of things worth paying attention to and counting) of the Tabernacle…