Schnorrer

Schnorrer (שנאָרער; also spelled shnorrer) is a Yiddish pejorative term for a beggar who, unlike ordinary beggars, presents himself as respectable and feels entitled for the alms received.

Historical

A large number of beggars appeared in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth after the pogroms of the Khmelnytsky Uprising, when many homes were destroyed. Schnorrers begged for themselves, for the dowries of poor brides (Yiddish: הכנסת-כלה, romanized: hakhnóses-kale), or for the restoration of a house that had burned down. This practice was allowed even when it disrupted the public study of the Torah. Azriel Hildesheimer was described as the "international schnorrer" for his calls for philanthropy in many countries he visited.

Milton Hindus, commenting on the picaresque novel The King of Schnorrers, wrote that the Jews did not regard outcasts as failures, and assumed social responsibility for them. "Properly exploited by a fertile intelligence like Menasseh’s, this attitude enables the ostensible mendicant to become the actual master in the eleemosynary relationship."

Jewish humor

Schnorrers are a common butt of Jewish jokes, depicted as living off their wits and assuming a dignified entitlement to handouts.

(One of many variants) A schnorrer comes to a wealthy businessman and asks for a handout. "Have a pity for a poor shoemaker whose family is starving." - "But aren't you the one who asked for alms from me last week presenting yourself as a carpenter?" - "So true, who can in these bad times support himself from just one job?"

Moishe the shnorrer is outraged to hear that his wealthy patron has halved his annual allowance. The donor apologetically explains that his son has married a woman of expensive tastes and he, the father, must foot the bill.