Take the 2-minute tour ×

I vaguely remember some phrase used in Torah discussions such as "moni palomy" or "moni plamoni" that means "John Doe" or "What's his name" or "John Q Public". Seems like it was used in Ester, but I cannot find it.

share|improve this question
Is this on topic? Can anyone defend its being on topic? If not I will close it. –  Double AA Apr 22 '13 at 23:14
Don't understand, are you asking if question is topic, in the realm of Judaism? I obviously googled first, and couldn't find the answer anywhere. Or should questions deal less with Hebrew and more with halacha? –  NealWalters Apr 23 '13 at 0:04
Well, as the FAQ list says, "questions unrelated to Jewish life and learning, even if they are about... Hebrew language... are generally off-topic". The connection of this question to Jewish learning is tenuous at best, borne wholly by the reference to Ester. –  msh210 Apr 23 '13 at 2:05
I would say it falls under both of these categories: language used in Jewish life and learning general knowledge (science, etc.) as it relates directly to Jewish life and learning. This phrase is used by Rabbis, Yeshiva students, Torah scholars, and those intimate with Judaism. While it is used in modern Hebrew, I don't think I've ever seen it taught in any Hebrew book. I claim it is more of a Jewish phrase, than a Hebrew phrase. –  NealWalters Apr 24 '13 at 0:40
@DoubleAA, I edited in the on-topic motivation from the above comment. –  Isaac Moses Apr 24 '13 at 15:05

1 Answer 1

up vote 9 down vote accepted

You might be thinking of P'loni Almoni פלוני אלמוני, used first in Ruth 4:1 as a placeholder name. (See here for its etymology and why it must be a placeholder name.)

share|improve this answer

Your Answer


