What is "payot"

n. (context Judaism English) curly sideburns worn by Jewish men

Payot (; ), also pronounced pe'ot, peyot; or payos, peyos, peyois, payois in Ashkenazi pronunciation, is the Hebrew word for sidelocks or sidecurls. Payot are worn by some men and boys in the Orthodox Jewish community based on an interpretation of the Biblical injunction against shaving the "corners" of one's head. Literally, pe'ah means "corner, side, edge". There are different styles of payot among Haredi, Yemenite, and Hasidic Jews. Yemenite Jews call their sidelocks simonim , literally "signs", because their long-curled sidelocks served as a distinguishing feature in the Yemenite society (differentiating them from their non-Jewish neighbors).

Payot is a French surname that may refer to

• Charles Payot (1901–?), French Olympic ice hockey player
• Étienne Payot (1900–?), French Olympic bobsledder
• Jules Payot (1859–1939), French educationist
• Lolette Payot (1910–), Swiss-French tennis player
• Martial Payot (1900–1949), French Olympic skier
• Philippe Payot (1893–1958), French Olympic ice hockey player, brother of Charles
• Venance Payot (1826-1902), French naturalist, glaciologist, Chamonix mountain guide.