קֶטְשׁוֹפּ (ketchup) — ketchup
Etymology
The word קֶטְשׁוֹפּ is a loanword with a long and winding journey. In Chinese Hokkien, 鮭 (koe) means a type of salted fish and 汁 (chiap) means "sauce" or "juice," so 鮭汁 (koe-chiap) was a fermented fish sauce — similar to Southeast Asian fish sauces still used today. English merchants in Southeast Asia in the 17th century encountered this sauce and brought it to England along with the name. The word "ketchup" appears in English from 1682. For the next two centuries, "ketchup" (also spelled "catsup" or "catchup") was a generic term for any flavored sauce — oyster ketchup, plum ketchup, mushroom ketchup. The association with tomatoes came only after Henry Heinz began manufacturing and marketing tomato ketchup in 1876, which became one of the cornerstones of American cuisine.
Ketchup arrived in Mandatory Palestine and early Israel during World War II and quickly gained popularity. In December 1956, linguist Yitzhak Avinery objected in Al HaMishmar to the use of "קטשופ," calling it a word that "defiles the honor of Hebrew," suggesting people use "מיץ עגבניות" (tomato juice) instead. A few months later he changed his mind, deciding that "tomato juice" was an inadequate substitute, and in the 1957 Koopeartsia yearbook he proposed מִתְבָּל (from the root ת.ב.ל, to season/spice). His proposal was ignored.
The word מִתְבָּל lay dormant in dictionaries until 2015, when it was accidentally revived. Israel's dominant ketchup manufacturer Osem orchestrated a class-action lawsuit against Heinz, claiming that Heinz ketchup failed to meet Israel's 1979 standard requiring at least 10% tomato solids. Forced to rebrand, Heinz searched for an alternative name — "tomato sauce" (רוטב עגבניות) was already taken by another product — and stumbled upon מתבל עגבניות, unwittingly using Avinery's original proposal. The lawsuit was filed in January 2015; Heinz agreed in May to remove the word "ketchup" from its labeling; and in February 2017 the Knesset updated the import order to allow Heinz to restore the "ketchup" label.
The word מִטְבָּל (different spelling, same pronunciation) is a parallel but distinct coinage: it means "dip" (a sauce for dipping) and was apparently coined by journalist Tamar Avidar in January 1967. The two words מִתְבָּל (condiment) and מִטְבָּל (dip) are pronounced identically but written differently — מִתְבָּל (from ת.ב.ל, to season) vs. מִטְבָּל (from ט.ב.ל, to dip).
The broader category "condiment" — grouping ketchup, mustard, and mayonnaise as a distinct class of table sauces — has no standard Hebrew equivalent. In German these are Würzsauce; in English/French/Dutch, condiment. Hebrew has managed without this category, treating ketchup simply as a "sauce" (רוטב). The category condiment does have an official Academy coinage from 1938 — תַּבְלִין or נוֹתֵן טַעַם — but neither has achieved currency.
Key Quotes
"לא אבין מה לנו ולקטשופ או הקטשאפ הזה הצורם את אזנינו ואת עינינו גם יחד. יש להסתפק במיץ עגבניות..." — Yitzhak Avinery, Al HaMishmar, December 1956
"הנני מציע מתבל (במשקל ממסך, ממרח), כלומר מיץ לתבול" — Yitzhak Avinery, Koopeartsia Yearbook, 1957
Timeline
- 17th century: English merchants bring 鮭汁 (ke-chiap) from Southeast Asia; "ketchup" first attested 1682
- 1876: Henry Heinz standardizes tomato ketchup; product becomes an American staple
- 1940: Ketchup arrives in Mandatory Palestine/early Israel during WWII
- 1938: Hebrew Academy coins an equivalent for "condiment" (little used)
- December 1956: Avinery objects to "קטשופ" in Al HaMishmar
- 1957: Avinery proposes מִתְבָּל as a replacement
- January 1967: מִטְבָּל coined (for "dip") by Tamar Avidar
- 1979: Israeli standard established: ketchup must contain at least 10% tomato solids
- 1983: Abraham Even-Shoshan redefines מִתְבָּל in his dictionary supplement as "vegetable puree for flavoring"
- January 2015: Class-action lawsuit against Heinz filed; Heinz forced to rebrand as מתבל עגבניות
- February 2017: Knesset updates import order; Heinz ketchup can again be labeled "קטשופ"
Related Words
- מִתְבָּל — condiment (proposed 1957 by Avinery as ketchup substitute; later redefined; used by Heinz 2015)
- מִטְבָּל — dip (sauce for dipping, coined ~1967; same pronunciation as מתבל but different root)
- רוֹטֶב — sauce (general term; standardized 1913 as equivalent of German Soße)
- מִמְרָח — spread (standardized 1938 as equivalent of German Aufstrich)
- תַּבְלִין — condiment/spice (another term; the root is ת.ב.ל)