פִּגּוּעַ (Pigu'a) — terrorist attack
Etymology
The word pigu'a emerged in the late 1960s as a response to the growing wave of international terrorism targeting Israel. Before its introduction, Israelis typically described such events using general terms like hatkafa (attack) or hitnakshut (assassination/attack). The specific need for a term to describe a modern terrorist incident led to the adaptation of the root P-G-' (פ-ג-ע), which traditionally means "to hit," "to strike," or "to injure."
The first recorded use of the word is attributed to Prime Minister Levi Eshkol on December 29, 1968. Speaking shortly after an El Al plane was attacked in Athens and Israel's subsequent retaliatory raid on Beirut airport, Eshkol stated that Israel had no desire to compete with terrorists in a "global war of pigu'a" (milhemet pigu'a). At this stage, the word functioned more as a description of the act of causing injury rather than a concrete noun for the event itself.
Linguistically, pigu'a is the verbal noun (gerund) of the Pi'el stem verb pigea. While the Kal stem already provided the word pgi'a (injury/hit), the shift to the Pi'el construction—which often denotes a more intensive or causative action—was likely a deliberate choice to convey a more forceful and intentional strike. Initially used in phrases like "acts of pigu'a" or "war of pigu'a," it transitioned by the autumn of 1969 into a standalone noun specifically meaning a "terrorist attack."
Key Quotes
"אין לנו רצון לצאת לתחרות עם טרוריסטים במלחמת פיגוע עולמית." — לוי אשכול, 1968
"התמיכה המצרית הגוברת ב׳אל-פתח׳ הביאה גם להכוונה מצרית ביחס למטרות הפיגוע." — שמואל שגב (מעריב), 1969
"ארבע פעולות נגד מטוסים... וכן כמה נסיונות פיגוע שנכשלו לפני שהגיעו לכלל ביצוע." — חזי כרמל (מעריב), 1969
Timeline
- 1968 (Dec 26): Terrorists attack an El Al plane in Athens, killing one Israeli.
- 1968 (Dec 28): IDF commandos destroy 14 Lebanese planes in Beirut as a reprisal.
- 1968 (Dec 29): PM Levi Eshkol uses the term "war of pigu'a" in a public speech.
- 1969 (Early): Journalists begin using the word as a synonym for a lethal strike.
- 1969 (Autumn): The word becomes the standard journalistic term for a "terrorist attack."
Related Words
- פגיעה (pgi'a) — injury, hit, or strike (standard Kal form)
- פִּגֵּעַ (pigea) — to carry out a terrorist attack (Pi'el verb derived from the noun)
- פֶּגַע (pega) — a nuisance, plague, or harm