Sofer Stam
February 07, 2007 Here is your vocabulary word for the day. Sofer Stam - a sofer (scribe) who writes STaM - an acronym for Sefer Torah, Tefillin and Mezuzahs. A Sofer Stam also writes Megillahs for Purim and may write other items like a Get (divorce document) or a Ketuba (marriage document).
The funny thing is that the word Stam in Hebrew also means plain or not special. So whenever I introduce myself to a Hebrew speaker as a Sofer Stam, I get the same joke. It goes like this:
Them: What do you do for a living?
Me: I am a Sofer Stam.
Them: Are you a Sofer Stam or a Stam Sofer (plain old scribe).
Its funny the first few times you hear it.
Tags: Sofer Stam, Los Angeles.