Oy vey

Oy vey () is a Yiddish phrase expressing dismay or exasperation. Also spelled oy vay, oy veh, or oi vey, and often abbreviated to oy, the expression may be translated as, "oh, woe!" or "woe is me!" Its Hebrew equivalent is oy vavoy (אוי ואבוי, ój vavój).
Derivation.
According to etymologist Douglas Harper, the phrase is derived from Yiddish and is of Germanic origin. It is cognate with the German expression "o weh", or "auweh", combining the German and Dutch exclamation "au!" meaning "ouch/oh" and the German word "weh", a cognate of the English word "woe" (as well as the Dutch "wee" meaning pain). The expression is also related to "oh ve", an older expression in Danish and Swedish, and "oy wah", an expression used with a similar meaning in the Montbéliard region in France. The Latin equivalent is "heu, vae!"; a more standard expression would be "o, me miserum," or "heu, me miserum."
According to Chabad.org, an alternative theory for the origin of the Yiddish expression is that "oy" stems from Biblical Hebrew, and that "vey" is its Aramaic equivalent. It is alternatively spelled אוי, הוי, or הו in Biblical Hebrew and ווי, וי, ואי, and ויא in Aramaic. The term is occasionally doubled, as הו הו in Amos 5:16 and וי וי in Targum Pseudo-Jonathan on that verse, but two versions were never combined classically.
Significance.
The expression is often abbreviated to simply "oy", or elongated to "oy vey ist mir" ("Oh, woe is me"). The fuller lament may also be spelled as "Oy vey iz mir". The main purpose or effect of elongating it is often dramatic, something like a "cosmic ouch". "Oy" is not merely an ordinary word, but rather expresses an entire world view, according to visual anthropologist Penny Wolin. Its meaning is approximately opposite that of mazel tov.
A related expression is "oy gevalt", which can have a similar meaning, or also express shock or amazement.