Below are some common Jewish words paired with their verbal doppelgangers — words that sound similar, yet have vastly different meanings. To spare you some potential embarrassment, we explain it all in alphabetical order below.

Did we miss some important ones? Comment below or email us at community@myjewishlearning.com.

1. Challah and Kallah

Challah (חלה), pronounced KHAH-luh, is the braided bread traditionally served on Shabbat. Find some great challah recipes here.
Kallah (כּלה), pronounced KAH-luh, is Hebrew for “bride.”

2. Chesed (or Hesed) and Hasid (or Chasid)

Chesed (חסד), pronounced KHEH-sed, is usually translated as “lovingkindness,” and describes acts such as visiting the sick and helping the poor.
Hasid (חסיד), pronounced KHAH-sid,is a Hasidic Jew, someone who is part of an ultra-Orthodox spiritual movement that began in late 18th-century Europe and comes from the same Hebrew root as chesed.

3. Chodesh and Kodesh

Chodesh (חודשׁ), pronounced KHOH-desh, is Hebrew for “month,” and is most often used in the term Rosh Chodesh, the celebration marking the beginning of each new Jewish month.
Kodesh (קודשׁ), pronounced KOH-desh, is Hebrew for “holy,” as in sefer kodesh (holy book), am kodesh (holy people) and limmudei kodesh (holy studies).

4. Chuppah and Chutzpah

Chuppah (חופּה), pronounced KHOO-pah (oo as in book) or khu-PAH, is a Jewish wedding canopy.
Chutzpah (חוצפּה), pronounced KHOOTZ-pah (oo as in book) or khootz-PAH, is Yiddish (and Hebrew) for “nerve” or “audacity.”

5. Eruv and Erev

Eruv (עירוב), pronounced AY-ruhv or ay-RUVE, is a boundary inside of which Shabbat-observant Jews are allowed to carry items or push strollers on Shabbat.
Erev (ערב), pronounced EH-rehv, means “evening,” and commonly refers to the first night of a Jewish holiday and sometimes the day before the holiday, as in Erev Yom Kippur.

6. Hamsa, Hametz and Hummus

Hamsa (חמסה), pronounced HAHM-suh, is a hand-shaped amulet.
Hametz (חמץ), pronounced khah-METZ, is leavened food traditionally avoided during Passover. Learn more about keeping kosher for Passover.
Hummus (חומוס), pronounced KHOOM-oos (oo as in book) or KHOOM-oos (oo as in food) is a chickpea puree popular in Israel and throughout the Middle East. Find hummus recipes here.

7. Kibbitz and Kibbutz

Kibbitz (קבּץ), pronounced KIB-itz, is Yiddish for chat or small talk, as in “I ran into my friend at the store and kibbitzed with her.”
Kibbutz (קיבּוץ), pronounced kee-BOOTZ, is a collectively run residential and economic community in Israel.

8. Kiddush and Kaddish

Kiddush (קידושׁ), pronounced KID-dish or kee-DOOSH (oo as in boot), is the blessing that is said over wine to sanctify Shabbat. (It comes from the same root as kodesh, meaning “holy.”)
Kaddish (קדישׁ), pronounced KAH-dish, usually refers to the Mourner’s Kaddish, an Aramaic prayer said during all Jewish worship services where a minyan is present. (It also shares a root with kodesh.)

9. Mashgiach and Moshiach

Mashgiach (משׁגיח), pronounced mahsh-GHEE-ahkh, is a person who supervises a commercial or institutional kosher kitchen and ensures that dietary laws are observed.
Moshiach (משׁיח), pronounced moe-SHEE-ahkh, is Hebrew for “messiah.”

10. Mikveh and Mitzvah

Mikveh (מקוה), pronounced MIK-vuh or meek-VAH, is a Jewish ritual bath.
Mitzvah (מצוה), pronounced MITZ-vuh or meetz-VAH, is Hebrew for commandment.

11. Seder and Siddur

Seder (סדר), pronounced SAY-der, is a ritual meal that follows a certain order, usually used to refer to the Passover seder (like the one above). However, many Sephardic Jews also have a Rosh Hashanah seder, and the holiday of Tu Bishvat (the birthday of the trees) also has a seder.
Siddur (סידור), pronounced SIDD-er or see-DOHR, is a Jewish prayer book. Like seder, it derives from the Hebrew root samech (ס), dalet (ד), reysh (ר), which means “order.”

12. Sheitel, Shtetl, Shtiebel and Shtreimel

Sheitel (שייטל), pronounced SHAY-tull, is Yiddish for a wig that some Orthodox women wear to cover their hair after they marry.
Shtetl (שׁטעטל), pronounced SHTEH-tull, is the term for a historic Eastern European village with a significant Jewish community.
Shtiebel (שטיבל), pronounced SHTEE-bull, is a small synagogue, usually referring to a small ultra-Orthodox synagogue.
Shtreimel (שטריימל), pronounced SHTRY-mull, is a type of fur hat worn by some Hasidic men.

13. Simcha and Smicha

Simcha (שׂמחה), pronounced SIM-khuh or seem-KHAH, is Hebrew for “joy” and is used to refer to a joyous Jewish occasion, such as a wedding or bar/bat mitzvah.
Smicha (סמיכה), pronounced SMEE-khuh or smee-KHAH, is Hebrew for rabbinic ordination.

14. Tisha B’Av, Tu Bishvat and Tu B’Av

Tisha B’Av (תשׁע בּאב), pronounced TISH-uh bahv, is the ninth of the Jewish month of Av, a day of mourning commemorating the destruction of the ancient temples in Jerusalem.
Tu Bishvat (ט״ו בּשׁבט), pronounced too bish-VAHT (oo as in boot), is the 15th of the Jewish month of Shevat, a holiday celebrating trees.
Tu B’Av (ט״ו בּאב), pronounced too buh-AHV, is the 15th of the Jewish month of Av, a day celebrating romantic love that is often referred to as “the Jewish Valentine’s Day.”

15. Yizkor and Yahrzeit

Yizkor (יזכּור), pronounced YIZ-kohr, is the memorial service that is part of four Jewish holidays: Yom Kippur, Passover, Sukkot and Shavuot.
Yahrzeit (יארצייט), pronounced YAHR-tzight or YOHR-tzight, is the Yiddish word for the anniversary of a death. Learn how to mark a yahrzeit.

Want to learn Hebrew one day at a time? Click here to sign up for our Hebrew Word of the Day email.

The post Similar Jewish Words You Don’t Want to Mix Up appeared first on My Jewish Learning.

Unlike the Indian tea chai, which is pronounced with the “ch” sound of “chocolate,” the Hebrew chai is pronounced with the same “kh” sound as in challah. Both words  rhyme with “high,” however.

Chai also refers to the number 18. That’s because each Hebrew letter has a numerical equivalent, and the sum of chet (numerical value of 8) and yud (numerical value of 10) is 18. As a result of its connection to the word for life, the number 18 is considered a special number in Jewish tradition. For this reason, Jews frequently make gifts or charitable contributions in multiples of $18.

In Hebrew, chai is often referred to in the plural form, chaim (חים), hence the boy’s name Chaim and the toast l’chaim (לחים), which, as anyone who has seen Fiddler on the Roof knows, means “to life.”

Chai pendants and other chai jewelry can be purchased at Judaica stores, many jewelry stores and online.

The post What Is the Meaning of Chai? appeared first on My Jewish Learning.

Acronyms — in Hebrew, Aramaic and transliteration — appear frequently in Jewish correspondence, books, spoken conversation and even on gravestones. Famous rabbis are frequently referred to by their acronyms. Even books themselves, like the Hebrew Bible are often identified in this abbreviated manner.

Modern Hebrew has its own ever-growing roster of acronyms, such as its FBI equivalent, Shabak (שׁבּ״כּ), also known as the Shin Bet. (Stands for for Sherut Habitakhon Haklali, or General Security Service.)

Below are some of the most common acronyms and abbreviations organized alphabetically (in English transliteration) by category. If no English initials appear, that means English initials aren’t used for this term. Did we miss an important one? Leave it in the comments below or email us at community@myjewishlearning.org.

General Acronyms and Abbreviations
On Gravestones
Rabbis and Sages
Modern Hebrew

General Acronyms and Abbreviations

A”H
ע״ה

Stands for: alav hashalom (עליו השלום), aleha hashalom (עליה השׁלום) or aleihem hashalom (עליהם השלום)
Pronounced: ah-LAHV hah-shah-LOHM, ah-lay-HAH hah-shah-LOHM
What it means: Hebrew for “peace be upon him.” Alternately “upon her” or “upon them.”
When it’s used: Following the name of someone who is dead.

BD”E
בּד״א

Stands for: Baruch dayan emet (ברוך דיין  אמת)
Pronounced:bah-ROOKH dah-YAHN eh-METT
What it means: Hebrew for “blessed is the true judge.”
When it’s used: Commonly said to a mourner upon learning of their loss.

B’’H
בּ״ה

Stands for: B’ezrat hashem (בּעזרת השׁם)
Pronounced: b’ez-RAHT hah-SHEM.
What it means: Hebrew for “with God’s help.”
Note: This acronym also stands for Baruch HaShem (בּרוך השׁם) or Blessed is God.

BS’’D
בּס׳׳ד

Stands for: B’siyata dishmaya (בסיעתא דשמיא)
Pronounced: bah-SAHD.
What it means: Aramaic for “with the help of Heaven.”
When it’s used: Some traditional Jews put these letters on the upper corner of every piece of written material.

IY”H
אי״ה

Stands for: Im yirtzeh hashem (אם ירצה השׁם)
Pronounced: eem yeer-TZEH hah-SHEM
What it means: Hebrew for “if it will be God’s will” or “if it is God’s will.”

N”Y
נ״י

Stands for: Nehro (נרו) or nehrah (נרה) yair (יאיר)
Pronounced: noon yood (the two Hebrew letters), or neh-ee-ROH yah-EER (for a man), neh-ee-RAH yah-EER (for a woman)
What it means: Hebrew for “his/her candle should burn bright.”
When it’s used: When writing a letter to someone who is alive. As in, “Dear David N”Y, How are you?….”

Shlita

שׁליט״א

Stands for: Sh’yichyeh l’orekh yamim tovim amen. ( שׁיחיה לאורך יומים טובים אמן
Pronounced: SHLEE-tuh
What it means: May he (or she) live for many good days, Amen.
When it’s used: Often said after the name of a prominent living rabbi.

Shotz
שׁ״צ

Stands for: Shaliach tzibur (שׁליח ציבּור)
Pronounced: SHAHTZ or shah-LEE-ahkh tzee-BOHR
What it means: Hebrew for the person leading a prayer service (literally “public emissary”).

Tanach
תנ״ך

Stands for: Torah (תורה), Nevi’im (נביאים), Ketuvim (כּתובים) — known in English as Torah (also Five Books of Moses), Prophets and Writings
Pronounced: tah-NAKH
What it means: The Hebrew Bible, which Christians refer to as the Old Testament.

Z’’L
ז״ל

Stands for: Zichrono (זכרונו) [for a man] or zichrona (זכרונה) [for a woman] l’bracha (לבּרכה)
Pronounced: zahl, or zee-chroh-NOH luh-brah-KHAH or zee-chroh-NAH luh-brah-KHAH
What it means: Hebrew literally for “memories for blessing,” usually translated to “may his or her memory be a blessing.”
When it’s used: Usually appears in parentheses after the name of a person who is deceased.

On Gravestones and in Cemeteries

N”E
נ״ע

Stands for: Nucha (נוחה) [for a woman] or nucho (נוחו) [for a man] eden (עדן).
Pronounced: noon ayin (the names of these two Hebrew letters) or noo-KHAH EH-den (for women) or noo-KHOH EH-den (for men)
What it means: Hebrew for “Let his/her rest be paradise (Eden).”

P”N
פּ״נ

Stands for: Po nikhbar (פּה נקבּר)
Pronounced: pay noon (the two Hebrew letters) or POH neek-BAHR
What it means: Hebrew for “here lies” or “here is buried.” A variation on this is pay tet (פּ״ט), which stands for  po tamun, “here is hidden.”

TNZBH

תנצבּ״ה

Stands for: Tehi nishmato tzrura btzror hachayim (תהי נשׁמתו צרורה בּצרור החיים)
Pronounced: tuh-HEE neesh-mah-TOE tzroo-RAH beh-TZROHR ha-khaye-EEM
What it means: Hebrew for “May his/her soul be bound up in the bond of life.”

Rabbis and Sages

Besht

בּשׁ״ט

Stands for: Ba’al Shem Tov (בּעל שׁם טוב)
Pronounced: Besht
What it means: Hebrew for “the owner/master of a good name,” this was the title given to Israel ben Eliezer (1698‑1760), the founder of Hasidic Judaism.

Rambam
רמבּ״ם

Stands for: Rabbi Moshe (Moses) Ben Maimon, also commonly known as Maimonides, the prolific and influential 12th-century scholar originally from Spain.
Pronounced: RAHM-bahm

Ramban
רמבּ״ן

Stands for: Rabbi Moshe (Moses) Ben Nahman, also commonly known as Nahmanides, a 13th-century Spanish scholar.

Pronounced: RAHM-bahn

Rashi
רשׁ״י

Stands for: Rabbi Shlomo (Solomon) Yitzchaki, the 11th-century French scholar best known for his comprehensive Bible commentaries.
Pronounced: RAH-shee

Modern Hebrew

Motzash
מוצ”ש

Stands for: motz-AY sha-BAHT (מוצאי שׁבּת)

Pronounced: moh-TZASH

What it means: Saturday night, after Shabbat officially ends.

Ramat Kal

רמטכ”ל‎

Stands for: ROHSH ha-mah-TEH ha-klah-LEE (ראשׁ המטה הכללי)
Pronounced: RAH-mat KAHL
What it means: Chief of staff, or commander-in-chief of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF)

Sofash

סופ״שׁ

Stands for: sohf shah-VOO-ah (סוף שׁבוע)
Pronounced: soh-FAHSH
What it means: Weekend

Tzahal

צה״ל

Stands for: Tzava hahagana l’Israel (צבא ההגנה לישראל)
Pronounced: TZAH-hall
What it means: The Israel Defense Forces (IDF)

The post A Guide to Jewish Acronyms and Abbreviations appeared first on My Jewish Learning.

In addition to the traditional route of consulting books or signing up for an in-person class through a synagogue, Jewish community center or university — or traveling to Israel where there are myriad in-person courses and programs — you now can choose from an array of online courses, apps and software. Or, you can set aside a summer vacation for a full-scale immersion program in rustic Vermont!

Selecting the Right Program for You

In sifting among the options, think about your goals, your level of self-discipline and how much time you are able to commit to the endeavor. Are you looking simply to decode so you can follow along in the prayer book? Do you want to study the Bible in its original? Seeking to learn a few phrases to use on a vacation in Israel? Or are you hoping to become fluent in conversational Hebrew?

Vardit Ringvald, director of the School of Hebrew at Middlebury College and a longtime consultant to a variety of institutions that teach Hebrew, also suggests you think about your learning style. “Some people are very independent” and can teach themselves from a book or self-paced program, but others need the social interaction and structure of studying with other people at a scheduled time.

While apps can be engaging and are useful for introducing and reinforcing vocabulary, Ringvald says, they lack “real interaction,” which can make it hard for students to progress from intermediate to advanced or “be able to use the language in real-life situations.”

Although many beginners are interested in focusing on reading or biblical/prayer book Hebrew exclusively, Ringvald encourages learners to jump in with conversational Hebrew.

“Modern Hebrew will reinforce your classical Hebrew,” she says. “It’s not a linear process where first you learn the alphabet, second you learn to read and third you learn the language. Doing it all together is key to success.”

Below is a sampling of online courses and resources organized by category and alphabetically. Did we miss something important? Have you tried some of the programs below and had positive or negative experiences? Do you see something that needs to be updated? Let us know by emailing community@myjewishlearning.org.

Explore My Jewish Learning’s courses for learning Hebrew:

Hebrew Word of the Day

Learn Hebrew one day at a time through this email series! Each day, you will receive a Hebrew word in your inbox, as well as its pronunciation, definition and other helpful information. Sign up here.

Introduction to Hebrew with Rabbi Peretz Rodman

Learn how to read Hebrew or brush up your skills in just six sessions with Rabbi Peretz Rodman! By the end of the series, participants will be able to “sound out” any word in Hebrew (with vowels).

Hebrew Language for the High Holidays

This course is led by Dr. Tamar Kamionkowski, longtime professor for Biblical Studies at the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College, who teaches vocabulary, grammar, and interpretation of Hebrew prayers, with an emphasis on the High Holiday liturgy. Exercises and PDFs for each session can be found at the Kamionkowski Beit Midrash website.

Self-Paced Courses/Lessons

These lessons can be done completely on your own schedule, but they do not include interaction with a real person.

EasyLearnHebrew.com
Focused on Hebrew reading; seven lessons (accessible on computers and mobile devices), includes flashcards, quizzes, videos and other resources.

LearnHebrewPod.com
Can sample online Hebrew learning tools, including audio lessons, games and quizzes, for free before you buy it. Accessible on computers and mobile devices. In addition to conversational Hebrew lessons, offers a separate reading class, as well as a prayers class. Beginners can try out one month for free.

Mango Languages 
Offers both biblical and modern Hebrew. Accessible on computers and mobile devices. Available for free through participating libraries in the United States, Canada and several other countries, or you can purchase a monthly or annual subscription.

Pimsleur
Mostly audio, but includes reading instruction too. They promise, “Thirty minutes a day is all it takes, and we get you speaking right from the first day.” Available for free through some public libraries, for sale on own site and Amazon. Can be purchased five lessons at a time, one level at a time, or all three levels in one package . You can also download one free lesson from their official website.

Rosetta Stone
Software package, accessible on computer and mobile devices — can pay for a subscription by the month, year, two-year. Or can pay one-time fee to download to computer (no mobile access, but can use without Internet connection and can be used by up to five people). Has speech-recognition software to provide feedback on your accent/pronunciation. Available for free at some public libraries. Downloads and discs also available through Amazon.

Online Courses With Teachers or Tutors

The below all include synchronous sessions (whether via Skype, Webinar or other software) where you can see and speak with the teacher and other students.

Rosen School of Hebrew
Classes in small groups or one-on-one with Israel-based teachers certified in teaching Hebrew as a second language. Eight levels are offered, and a separate program for children is also available. Option to take classes once or twice weekly. Offers separate biblical Hebrew classes through a partnership with the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

Hebrew College
Various levels of Hebrew courses offered online, on a college semester schedule (Fall, Spring, Summer), with option to take for college credit or not. (For credit is more expensive). Courses include weekly live class session plus assignments and exercises.

Hebrew Homepage (also available for children)
Weekly 30-minute one-on-one sessions with tutor using a webinar platform. Curriculums include learning the Aleph Bet, navigating prayer book Hebrew and modern conversational Hebrew.

Ulpan La-Inyan
Offers virtual group and private lessons in Modern Hebrew; also organizes in-personal classes in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. Instruction is available at multiple levels, as well as special business curriculums and courses for kids.

Live-Hebrew.net
One-on-one 30-minute or 45-minute sessions via Skype, plus homework and exercises. Also offer video course to teach beginners how to read in Hebrew and free e-book “First 100 words in Hebrew: what a tourist in Israel should know.”

Apps and Podcasts

A search on the App Store or Google Play will turn up on an overwhelming quantity of apps, many of them free, that teach Hebrew reading/decoding and sometimes conversational skills. We selected the following ones because they were personally recommended by individual educators. If you’ve had a good or bad experience using these or others, please let us know!

Duolingo
Offers a placement test and lots of lessons, games and activities. They claim it is “so fun that people would prefer picking up new skills over playing a game.” Can be used on computer or on iOS or Android mobile devices.

Hebrew Podcasts
Podcasts are approximately 10-15 minutes each and are based on short dialogues on a wide variety of topics. Despite the very basic-looking website, the technology works smoothly. All audio lessons can be streamed for free, but a subscription is required to download them and to access supporting materials, such as transcripts, flash cards, games and quizzes. The more than 150 podcasts (new advanced ones are added monthly) range from beginner to advanced. Although there is a lesson teaching the aleph-bet, it is not clear whether this would be sufficient to teach reading.

Memrise
Interactive lessons and activities available on desktop computer and mobile devices. Enables users to create customized flash cards and other materials, compete with friends and form or join study groups. According to Memrise, the program “uses clever science to adapt to your personal learning style and performance.”

Tools for Enrichment

EKS Hebrew Flashcards
Virtual Hebrew-English flashcards for both Biblical Hebrew (includes 335 words) and Prayerbook Hebrew (includes 332 words), with audio feature to test learner’s pronunciation. Available as iPhone or Android apps.

Streetwise Hebrew
Short (approximately 8-minute) and entertaining podcasts about Modern Hebrew, focusing on slang and etymology.

Intensive Immersion Experiences

Middlebury Immersion Program
Participants live on campus and commit to speaking only Hebrew for the entire three-week or seven-week session. Rigorous daily classroom instruction for various levels, including beginner, plus organized all-in-Hebrew activities, such as soccer and theater. Offers both Modern and Classical Hebrew.

Israeli Ulpans
Numerous intensive Hebrew programs (called ulpans) are offered throughout Israel, ranging from one week to five months in length and ranging widely in price. They include Ulpan Israeli, Ulpan Etzion and programs at major universities, such as the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Tel Aviv University. Click here for a directory of Israeli ulpans compiled by Nefesh B’Nefesh, a group that promotes and facilitates Jewish immigration to Israel.

The post How to Learn Hebrew appeared first on My Jewish Learning.

We have recipes (usually more than one) for all the specific foods listed. Did we miss something? Email us your suggestions to community@myjewishlearning.com.

Hungry for more? Visit The Nosher, our lively food blog!

Words About Eating and Meals

Bentsching: (Yiddish) Reciting Grace after Meals, or Birkat Hamazon.

Bracha: (Hebrew) A blessing.

B’tayavon: (Hebrew) Literally “in appetite,” used to convey “bon appetit.”

Fress: (Yiddish) To eat copiously and without restraint. (Rhymes with dress.)

Hamotzi: (Hebrew) Blessing said over bread. On Shabbat, Hamotzi is usually said over challah.

Nosh: (Yiddish) To snack. (Rhymes with posh.)

Potchke: (Yiddish) To fuss, or mess around, as in “I was potchke-ing around in the kitchen, when I came up with this recipe.”

Schmear: (Yiddish) A generous spread, usually used to refer to an ample portion of cream cheese applied to a bagel.

Zemirot: (Hebrew) Songs sung at the Shabbat table.

Words Related to Jewish Dietary Laws (Kashrut)

Cholov Yisroel: (Hebrew, also spelled Halav Yisrael) Dairy products produced by Jewish farmers. Some ultra-Orthodox Jews will only eat kosher dairy products that are also cholov yisroel, while others eat any dairy products that are certified kosher.

Fleishig: (Yiddish) Meaty, an adjective to identify foods containing meat or dishes/utensils that are used for meat. Jewish dietary laws prohibit combining meat and dairy foods.

Glatt: (Yiddish) A type of kosher meat, whereby the lungs of the animal were smooth, without any adhesions that could potentially prohibit the animal as unkosher, an issue only applicable to animals, not fowl or non-meat products. (Rhymes with pot.)

Hechsher: (Hebrew) Kosher certification for foods, and some other items, a label that identifies a product as complying with Jewish law.

Kasher: (Hebrew) To make something kosher, usually referring to dishes, cookware or a kitchen.

Kosher: (Hebrew) Adhering to kashrut, the traditional Jewish dietary laws.

Mashgiach: (Hebrew) A kashrut supervisor, someone who ensures that a product or restaurant can be certified as kosher.

Milchig: (Yiddish) Dairy, as an adjective to describe food containing dairy, or dishes used for foods containing dairy. Jewish dietary laws prohibit combining meat and dairy foods.

Pareve: (Hebrew) An adjective to describe food that is neither meat nor dairy and that can be served with either.

Pessadik or Pesachdik: (Yiddish) An adjective meaning kosher for Passover.

Treyf: (Yiddish) Not kosher.

Classic Jewish Dishes/Foods

Babka: A dense bread that’s swirled with chocolate or cinnamon and often topped with nuggets of cinnamon-sugar streusel.

Bagel: On the off chance you’ve been living under a rock for the past 50 years and never saw a bagel, it’s a delicious boiled-then-baked roll with a hole, perfect topped with cream cheese and lox. Try these 12 recipes for using up stale bagels.

Bamia: Libyan Jewish okra dish.

Bialy: A bagel-like roll, but with a matted finish, no hole and almost always stuffed with cooked onions. Try a low-carb bialy here.

Blintz: A thin, crepe-like pancake usually rolled up around fruit or sweet cheese. Traditionally served on Shavuot. Watch our video showing how to make them. Or check out our list of  16 blintz recipes.

Boureka: A savory serving-sized Middle Eastern pastry wrapped in fillo dough.

Borscht: An Eastern European soup containing beets and other vegetables. There are hot and cold versions.

Challah: A braided bread traditionally served on Shabbat. Find scores of challah recipes here.

Cholent: A slow-cooked stew, traditionally served for Shabbat lunch.

Chrain: A spicy horseradish sauce used for topping gefilte fish.

Egg Cream: A sweet drink made with seltzer, chocolate syrup and milk.

Falafel: Fried chickpea fritters served throughout the Middle East and considered Israel’s national dish. Learn 13 ways to eat falafel.

Gefilte Fish: Ground fish mixed with matzah meal and other ingredients and rolled into balls or cylinders, which are then poached or boiled. Traditionally served on Passover and Shabbat.

Halvah: A Middle Eastern candy made from tahini (sesame paste). Try these 10 halvah recipes from around the world.

Hamantaschen: Triangle-shaped cookies traditionally served on Purim.

Hummus: Middle Eastern dip made of pureed chickpeas, tahini, garlic and lemon juice. This video explains how to make simple hummus.

Gefilte Fish: Ground, deboned fish (usually whitefish, carp, pike and/or mullet), mixed with eggs, matzah meal, and other seasoning, which is then boiled or poached (but can also be baked). Traditionally served on Passover.

Kasha: Buckwheat or groats, prepared in a pilaf and often served with bow tie noodles. Try our lightened-up version.

Kichels: Bow tie pastries that are fried and often sprinkled with sugar.

Kishke: A sausage-like dish, traditionally packed inside beef intestine.

Kneidlach: Yiddish for matzah ball, a dumpling made of matzah meal, eggs and oil, usually served in chicken soup. Check out our many recipes for matzah balls and watch our video tutorial on how to make matzah balls.

Knish: A savory serving-sized Eastern European pie frequently stuffed with potato filling.

Kreplach: A triangle-shaped dumpling, usually filled with meat and served in chicken soup.

Kubbeh: An Iraqi Jewish dumpling soup.

Kugel: A sweet or savory baked casserole usually made with some type of starch (often noodles or potatoes), eggs and a fat.

Labne: A thick yogurt-based cheese, often served with breakfast in Israel. Try this labne ice cream.

Latke: A potato pancake, traditionally served on Hanukkah. We have a LOT of latke recipes to try.

Lox: Smoked salmon, traditionally served on a bagel with cream cheese. Learn about the different kinds of lox here.

Mandelbrot or Mandel Bread: Biscotti-like cookies.

Matzah: Unleavened bread traditionally eaten on Passover.

Matzah Ball: See kneidlach (above)

Matzah Brei: A classic Passover breakfast dish of matzah and scrambled eggs, which can be served sweet or savory.

Rugelach: Cookie usually made with a cream-cheese dough and twisted with cinnamon or chocolate. Our video guides you through the rugelach-making process.

Sabich: An Iraqi Jewish sandwich containing fried eggplant, a hard-boiled egg, hummus and Israeli salad.

Schav: A cold sorrel soup.

Schmaltz: Rendered chicken (or other poultry) fat. Learn how to make it and what to do with it.

Shakshuka: North African egg-and-tomato dish. Watch our video on how to make shakshuka.

Shawarma (also spelled shwarma): Spiced meat grilled on a vertical spit, usually served in a pita. This is popular throughout the Middle East, often made with lamb and served with yogurt sauce; in Israel (and in kosher restaurants elsewhere), it is often made with turkey and served with tahini sauce.

Tzimmes: A sweet carrot dish traditionally served on Rosh Hashanah, it often includes meat, sweet potatoes, onions and dried fruit.

The post Guide to Jewish Food Terms appeared first on My Jewish Learning.

No one knows for sure why this is, but scholars theorize that it has to do with the medium in which the language was originally written. Left to right languages are convenient for right-handed people writing in ink. By writing from left to right, the scribe avoids smearing what they’ve written. 

Find out why Hebrew is of central importance in Judaism.

By contrast, scholars believe Hebrew was initially inscribed in stone. For a right-handed person chiseling a tablet, it is most convenient to hold an awl in the left hand and strike it with a mallet held in the right, naturally progressing from right to left across a stone surface. The large blocky letters are also conducive to being rendered in simple, straight marks. By the time parchment and papyrus became the preferred media for writing, Hebrew script was already fixed. 

Writing from right to left makes writing Hebrew by hand a little more awkward than some other languages. As any right-handed sofer (Torah scribe) will likely tell you, inking Hebrew scrolls can be a messy business. Nevertheless, since ancient times Hebrew scribes have developed many beautiful versions of it for sacred Jewish texts, like the sefer Torah and mezuzah scroll. Because these traditional styles are  not conducive to writing quickly by hand, Hebrew also has a script just for handwriting.

Incidentally, the contemporary Hebrew letters — which have remained largely unchanged over the last 2,000 years — are not the original script of the language. An older Hebrew script called paleo-Hebrew was used up until the Babylonian exile in the 6th century BCE (and in some contexts afterward). That script was also written from right to left.

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The post Why is Hebrew Written from Right to Left? appeared first on My Jewish Learning.

In Hebrew, the letters are all consonants and the language is comprehensible when written without vowels. However, some texts do include vowels, which are represented in writing by a set of marks, mostly dots and dashes, written under and between the letters. Sacred texts and books for children who are still learning the language are commonly written with vowels. Other texts, like newspapers and books for adults, are written without.

Unlike English, Hebrew does not have uppercase and lowercase versions of each letter. However, some letters do have a second form that is used in the final position of a word. This is because in ancient times Hebrew was written without spaces between words and these letters helped differentiate where one word ended and another began.

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Modern Hebrew has a separate script for handwriting, although scribes use the block script pictured below when handwriting sacred scrolls like a mezuzah or a Torah.

Each modern Hebrew letter, as well as its corresponding English sound and its numerical value, is listed below. Note that two letters make no sound at all. Scroll all the way down to see the vowels as well.

Click here for a printable guide to the Aleph Bet.

Aleph
Sound: Silent
Numerical value: 1
Example: אִמָא (ima, meaning “mother”)

Bet / Vet
Sound: B with the dagesh (dot); V without
Numerical value: 2
Example: בַּיִת (bayit, meaning “house”)

Gimmel
Sound: G
Numerical value: 3
Example: גָמָל (gamal, meaning “camel”)

Dalet
Sound: D
Numerical value: 4
Example: דָג (dag, meaning “fish”)

Hay
Sound: H
Numerical value: 5
Example: הַר (har, meaning “mountain”)

Vav
Sound: V
Numerical value: 6
Example: וֶרֶד (vered, meaning “rose”)

Zayin
Sound: Z
Numerical value: 7
Example: זָכוֹר (zachor, meaning “remember”)

Chet
Sound: Gutteral Ch/Kh
Numerical value: 8
Example: חַג (chag, meaning “holiday” or “festival”)

Tet
Sound: T
Numerical value: 9
Example: טִיסָּה (tisa, meaning “flight”)

Yud
Sound: Y
Numerical value: 10
Example: יְהוּדִי (yehudi, meaning “Jewish”)

Khaf / Kaf
Sound: K with the dagesh (dot); gutteral CH/KH without
Numerical value: 20
Example: כִּיפָּה (kippah, meaning “yarmulke” or “dome”)

Lamed
Sound: L
Numerical value: 30
Example: לָשׁוֹן (lashon, meaning “language” or “tongue”)

Mem
Sound: M
Numerical value: 40
Example: מְנוֹרָה (menorah, meaning “lamp”)

Nun
Sound: N
Numerical value: 50
Example: נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh, meaning “soul”)

Samech
Sound: S
Numerical value: 60
Example: סֵפֶר (sefer, meaning “book”)

Ayin
Sound: Silent
Numerical value: 70
Example: עִבְרִית (ivrit, meaning “Hebrew”)

Pey / Fey
Sound: P with the dagesh (dot); F without
Numerical value: 80
Example: פִּלְפֵּל (pilpel, meaning “pepper”)

Tzadi
Sound: Tz or Ts
Numerical value: 90
Example: צְדָקָה (tzedakah, meaning “charity”)

Kuf
Sound: K
Numerical value: 100
Example: קָהָל (kahal, meaning “community”)

Reysh
Sound: R
Numerical value: 200
Example: רַב (rav, meaning “rabbi”)

Shin / Sin
Sound: Sh when the dot is on the right; S when the dot is on the left
Numerical value: 300
Example: שַׁבָּת (shabbat, meaning “sabbath”)

Taf
Sound: T
Numerical value: 400
Example: תְּפִילָה (tefilah, meaning “prayer”)

Final Forms (Sofit)

Five letters have a distinct final form that is used if the letter ends a word.

Mem Sofit
Sound: M
Example: אָדוֹם (adom, meaning “red”)

Nun Sofit
Sound: N
Example: יַיִן (ya-yeen, meaning “wine”)

Tzadi Sofit
Sound: Tz or Ts
Example: אֶרֶץ (eretz, meaning “land”)

Pey / Fey Sofit
Sound: F
Example: חֹרֶף (choref, meaning “winter”)

Kaf / Khaf Sofit
Sound: Guttural Kh
Example: מֶלֶך (melekh, meaning “king”)

Vowels (Nikkudot)

Each vowel sound in Hebrew corresponds with a nikkud (Hebrew for “dot”). Many prayer books and dictionaries include nikkudot, while Hebrew-language literature, newspapers, signs and other written materials typically do not.

Kamatz
Sound: ah
Example: אָדוֹם (adom, meaning “red”)

Patach
Sound: ah
Example: אַחֲרֵי (acharei, meaning “after”)

Sh’va
Sound: uh or ih
Example: בְּיַחַד (beyachad, meaning “together”)

Hiriq
Sound: ee
Example: מִלִּים (mee-leem, meaning “words”)

Segol
Sound: eh
Example: אֶשׁכּוֹלִיוֹת  (eshkoli’ot, meaning “grapefruit”)

Shuruk
Sound: oo
Example: צְנִיעוּת  (tzniut, meaning “modesty”)

Cholam
Sound: oh
Example: עוֹלָם  (olam, meaning “world”)

Kubutz
Sound: oo
Example: שֻׁלְחָן (shulchan, meaning “table”)

Nikkudot can also be used with consonants to distinguish between two similar sounds. The dagesh that distinguishes the letters bet/vet, khaf/kaf, and pey/fey is one example.

The post How To Read the Hebrew Alphabet appeared first on My Jewish Learning.

Hebrew is the language of the Jewish Bible and the modern state of Israel. Jews have traditionally referred to it as lashon hakodesh, the holy tongue — the language of God and the angels. Jewish mystics believe its words, even its letters, hold enormous power. But Hebrew has long been used for mundane purposes as well. In the medieval period, Jewish merchants and travelers used the sacred language as a way to communicate with Jews in other parts of the world. Today, it is the first language of millions of people, most of them living in Israel.

There’s no better way to get started with Hebrew than by learning some basic greetings. Whether you’re planning a trip to Israel or you’re just at a synagogue or visiting a local Israeli restaurant, give some of these a try:

Shalom (shah-LOME): The Hebrew word for peace, which literally means wholeness, also serves as the best-known Hebrew greeting. It also doubles as “good-bye.”

Shalom aleichem (shah-LOME ah-LAY-khem): A fuller greeting than a simple shalom is the phrase shalom aleichem, which means “peace be upon you.” The traditional response is to reverse the words and say it back: aleichem shalom. Shalom Aleichem is also the name of a poem traditionally sung at the Friday night Shabbat dinner table.

Mah Shlomcha/Mah Shlomeich (mah shlome-KHAH, mah shlo-MAYKH): Literally: “What is your peace?” This phrase is a casual way to say hello and inquire how someone is doing. Mah Shlomcha is directed to someone who is male and mah shlomeich is for a female.

Mah Nishma (mah neesh-MAH): This one means “What is heard?” It’s another friendly way to ask someone how they are doing.

Mah Koreh (mah ko-REH): What’s happening?

Mah Hadash (mah khah-DAHSH): What’s new? 

Mah Ha’Inyanim (mah ha-een-yah-NEEM): Literally: “What are the matters?” In other words: What’s going on?

Baruch Haba/Bruchah Haba’ah (bah-ROOKH ha-BA/broo-KHAH ha-ba-AH): Welcome. The literal translation is “blessed is the one who comes.” Baruch Haba is used for someone who is male, while bruchah haba’ah is for someone who is female.

Boker tov (BO-ker tove): Good morning. The traditional response is boker or, meaning morning of light.

Tzohorayim tovim (tzo-ho-RAH-yeem to-VEEM): Good afternoon.

Erev tov (EH-rev tov): Good evening.

Laila tov (LY-lah tov): Good night.

Want to learn more Hebrew, one word at a time?

Sign up for My Jewish Learning’s Hebrew Word of the Day email series.

Looking for Hebrew greetings for special occasions? Check out these other resources:

How to greet someone on Shabbat.

How to greet someone on Rosh Hashanah.

How to greet someone on Yom Kippur.

How to greet someone on Passover.

The post How to Greet Someone in Hebrew appeared first on My Jewish Learning.

Ben-Yehuda conceived of Jewish nationalism as both the return to the historical homeland in the land of Israel, as well as the revival of the Hebrew language. To accomplish the latter, Ben-Yehuda needed to inspire a near impossible feat: transform Hebrew, which for centuries had been used only in study, into a modern spoken language.

A Youthful Yearning

Eliezer Ben-Yehuda was born Eliezer Perelman in Luzhky, Lithuania, in 1858. The son of a Chabad Hasid, Ben-Yehuda was given a traditional religious education at a local yeshiva. The rosh yeshiva, or head of the school, was secretly a maskil, or enlightened thinker. He introduced Ben-Yehuda to secular literature and piqued the boy’s interest in non-religious study.

Eventually Ben-Yehuda transferred to a Russian school, but he remained obsessed with modern Hebrew literature, eagerly consuming Hebrew periodicals, especially those concerned with Jewish nationalism. For Ben-Yehuda, nationalism became a way to embrace Hebrew without religion.

Ben-Yehuda found further inspiration in European nationalist movements. In the 19th century, Italy and Greece — both countries with ties to ancient lands and languages — became independent nations. In 1877, the year of Ben-Yehuda’s graduation from high school, the Russo-Turkish war began and brought prominence to the Bulgarian national movement that sought independence from the Ottomans. Envisioning the Jews as a nation akin to the Bulgarians, Greeks, and Italians, Ben-Yehuda became determined to help create a nation where the Jews could adopt Hebrew as their national language.

Soon after, Ben-Yehuda learned that Jewish communities were using Hebrew to communicate when other languages wouldn’t suffice. (Historians now know that this phenomenon had existed since the Middle Ages in Europe and the Near East.) In Jerusalem, for example, Jews spoke Yiddish, French, or Arabic colloquially.

However, in the rare occurrences when inter-communal affairs required verbal communication, a modified form of medieval Hebrew was the common language. The Hebrew spoken in these contexts was far from what would be required for a national, modern language, but the news nevertheless inspired Ben-Yehuda to move to Palestine.

Arriving in Jerusalem in 1881, Ben-Yehuda immediately put his plan of Hebrew revival into action. He left behind his birth name and with his wife, Deborah Jonas, he created the first Modern Hebrew-speaking household. He also raised the first modern Hebrew-speaking child, Ben-Zion Ben-Yehuda.

In Jerusalem, the secular Ben-Yehuda tried to use Hebrew to attract religious Jews to the nationalist cause. He and his wife wore religious garb — he grew out his beard and payot, and his wife wore a wig, trying to pass as observant. But the ultra-Orthodox Jews living in Jerusalem, for whom Hebrew was used only for holy purposes such as studying Torah, saw through Ben-Yehuda’s guise. Sensing his secular-nationalist intentions, they rejected him and his language. They went so far as to declare a herem, excommunicating Ben-Yehuda.

This setback did little to deter Ben-Yehuda from concentrating on his project. He continued to speak Hebrew at home and convinced other families — who were part of the growing community of secular Jewish nationalists in Palestine — to do the same.

At home, Ben-Yehuda used his son to test the viability of the Hebrew language project; if a child can be brought up speaking entirely Hebrew, then an entire nation should be able to adopt the language as well. This required extreme measures on the part of Ben-Yehuda, who tried to prevent his son from playing with other children and from hearing other languages spoken — so afraid was the father of failing in his endeavor

The other elements of Ben-Yehuda’s revival project were the use of Hebrew as a language of instruction and study in schools, and the creation of a vocabulary that would make Hebrew a tenable language for national use. Ben-Yehuda gained the support of educators who were enthusiastic Jewish nationalists and identified with his project. Teaching Hebrew in schools was also a practical solution to the problem of immigrants from different countries speaking a variety of languages.

Ben-Yehuda began collecting material for the creation of a Modern Hebrew dictionary when he arrived in Israel, and never ceased expanding the language, frequently spending 18-hour workdays developing new words and writing articles.

Lists of words were published in Hebrew language periodicals, particularly Hatzevi, which Ben-Yehuda founded. In 1910 Ben-Yehuda began publication of his dictionary, but the full 17-volume set of the Complete Dictionary of Ancient and Modern Hebrew wasn’t completed until well after his death, in 1922.

A Legacy of Language

Ben-Yehuda’s life was exemplary because, despite the small successes and failures of his various projects, his dedication to speaking Hebrew and cultivating the language inspired others to do the same. In his later years, he co-founded and established the ruling principles for the Va’ad Halashon, the Language Council. The Council gave way to the Academy of the Hebrew Language, which adopted Ben-Yehuda’s rules and took upon itself his life’s work. The Academy, still housed at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, approves new Hebrew words to meet the ever-evolving needs of contemporary Israeli society. The Academy is also in the process of writing the Historical Dictionary of the Hebrew Language.

Eliezer Ben-Yehuda never saw the creation of the State of Israel. He passed away only one month after the British authorities declared Hebrew to be the official language of the Jews of Palestine. Yet his dream of yisrael be’artzo uvilshono, the rebirth of the nation of Israel in its own land, speaking its own language, came to fruition. His efforts are counted among the great language revivals of human history.

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The post Eliezer Ben-Yehuda and the Making of Modern Hebrew appeared first on My Jewish Learning.

Looking for the latest Hebrew literature in translation? Find catalogues detailing which Israeli books have been translated recently and which titles are in the works.

While not all Hebrew books appear in English as quickly as these Israeli best sellers, readers in English can sample the richness of modern Hebrew literature, particularly novels and short stories, through the many works currently available in translation.

Beginnings of Modern Hebrew Literature

Modern Hebrew literature first emerged in Europe during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Few of these classics are still in print, but several notable writers are featured in recent books and reprints.

READ: 7 Female Israeli Writers You Should Be Reading

Chaim Nachman Bialik

(1873-1934) is one of the best known poets of the late 19th century and early 20th century renaissance of Hebrew literature. His rich and complex poetry, presented in translations such as David Aberbach’s C.N. Bialik: Collected Poems, explores radical changes in Eastern European Jewish life, biblical themes and the beauty of the natural world.

Yosef Chayim Brenner (1881-1921) was among the first generation of Hebrew writers in the Yishuv (the Jewish community in pre-state Palestine). Perhaps his best known work is Breakdown and Bereavement, a novel that traces the unraveling of an aspiring pioneer.

While Bialik and Brenner are mainstays of the Hebrew canon, a more surprising figure to find in English translation is Devora Baron (1887-1956). Baron wrote one novel and many intricate, lyrical short stories–often set in small towns in Eastern Europe–that have been collected in “The First Day” and Other Stories, translated and edited by Naomi Seidman and Chana Kronfeld.

Sly Modernists and Fervent Zionists

By the 1930s, the center of Hebrew literature had shifted from Europe to the Jewish community in Palestine. In the decades before and after the founding of the state of Israel, there is immense variety in Hebrew literature, mixing new and old literary themes and techniques.

S.Y. Agnon (1888-1970) was one of the most celebrated Hebrew writers of the twentieth century, and the only Israeli to receive the Nobel Prize for Literature. Among his best known works are A Guest for the Night, which narrates the protagonist’s return to his Galician town after the destruction of World War I, Only Yesterday, a sprawling social and psychological portrait of the Second Aliya, and his many short stories, collected in A Book That Was Lost and Other Stories.

In contrast to Agnon, Chayim Hazaz‘s (1898-1973) modernist stories and novels are often explicitly ideological, examining different social and historical aspects of Zionism. In the story “The Sermon,” from the collection The Sermon and Other Stories, his characters reject Jewish life in the Diaspora and envision a new Jewish nation, free of the neuroses of previous generations.

Aharon Megged (1920-2016) often writes about the powerlessness and disillusionment of his generation. One of Megged’s best known novels, The Living on the Dead, questions the existence of heroism in Israeli society. A more recent book, Foiglman, examines conflicted relationships between fathers and sons, Israel and the Diaspora, and Hebrew and Yiddish.

The New Wave

From the early 1960s, Israeli fiction has been filled with complex characters alienated from society and the land. Though writers such as Yehoshua Kenaz and Binyamin Tammuz are not easy to find in translation, many others writers of the time are well-represented in English.

Yehuda Amichai (1924-2000) is one of the best known and most beloved Israeli poets. His work has been translated into more than 20 languages, from Albanian to Turkish. His lyrical poetry and prose use everyday language to create vivid, poignant images and capture complex emotions and experiences, both in his early poetry, represented in the translated collection The Selected Poetry of Yehuda Amichai, and in his final book, Open Closed Open: Poems.

Many of Amos Oz‘s (1939-2018) novels reveal the dark underside of life and the psyche. In The Hill of Evil Counsel and My Michael, for example, passion and family dysfunction are narrated from very different perspectives, one of an adolescent boy during the British Mandate, the other of a women in 1950s Jerusalem.

A.B. Yehoshua, (1936-) another  prominent contemporary Israeli novelist, has written a wide range of books, from A Journey to the End of the Millennium, which chronicles a family’s voyage through medieval Ashkenaz, to A Woman in Jerusalem, which focuses on the circumstances surrounding a woman’s violent death.

The majority of Aharon Appelfeld‘s (1932-2018) novels and novellas focus on the Holocaust, both the events leading up to the genocide and its lasting legacy. In clean, calm prose, he sketches a vibrant Jewish community that ignores the looming signs of disaster in Badenheim 1939. Other works, such as The Iron Tracks and The Immortal Bartfuss, feature characters who wrestle with the physical and psychological scars of the Holocaust.

Surprisingly, Yoram Kaniuk’s (1930-2013) work is available in English, even though he has long been on the margins of Hebrew literature. Kaniuk writes innovative fiction that mixes the fantastic and the grotesque, including the exploits of Holocaust survivors in Adam Resurrected and Jewish identity and collective memory in The Last Jew.

Changing Society, Changing Literature

In recent years, Hebrew literature has reflected the increasing fragmentation of Israeli identity and society. Writers like Anton Shammas, Sami Michael, and Dorit Rabinyan represent the changing face of the Israeli author, while the works of writers such as David Grossman and Meir Shalev challenge traditional narratives about Israeli history and Zionism.

Though not always easy to find in print, Sami Michael‘s (1926-) novels represent the emergence of mizrahi writing, work by Jews from Arab lands. Among Michael’s many novels, Refuge chronicles the complex relationships between Jews, Arabs, and Arab-Jews, while A Trumpet in the Wadi narrates a love affair that crosses boundaries between Jew and Arab.

Yoel Hoffman (1937-) weaves together experimental and fragmented language with elements of Buddhism and Western philosophy into books  such as the dream-like love story, The Heart is in Katmandu, and the complex mixture of reality and fantasy, Katschen and the Book of Joseph.

Haim Be’er‘s (1945-) acclaimed novels, Feathers and The Pure Element of Time, are often described as Israeli magic realism. Both books explore life in religious communities in Jerusalem, leaping between past and present, comedy and the macabre, and wholeness and fragmentation.

Several of Batya Gur‘s (1947-2005) popular mysteries, featuring Jerusalem police office Michael Ohayon, have been translated to English. From her first novel, The Saturday Morning Murder, to her final book, Murder in Jerusalem, Gur’s work combines the suspense of classic detective narratives with deft portrayals of Israeli characters and society.

Journalist and writer David Grossman (1954-) takes on some of the most sensitive subjects in Israeli society in his novels, including the legacy of the Holocaust, in the brilliant See Under: Love, and the disillusionment of a young soldier, in The Smile of the Lamb.

Palestinian-Israeli writer Anton Shammas (1950-) provoked a major controversy in Israel in 1986 when he published the Hebrew novel Arabesques, an exploration of Palestinian identity that weaves together personal stories, history, and fantasy into a rich and dense narrative.

Zeruya Shalev‘s (1959-) popular novels focus on family dynamics in Israeli society andthe pressures of marriage. With lyrical prose and deep psychological insight, books like Husband and Wife investigate the mind and desires of contemporary Israeli women.

Orly Castel-Bloom (1960-) has written many stories and novels that capture the fragmentation of contemporary Israeli society. Her satirical novel Human Parts chronicles the exploits of a series of complex women, offering a fascinating portrait of Israeli life with a strange and often surreal sense of humor.

One of the best known Israeli writers to emerge in the 1990s is Etgar Keret (1967-), whose stories, children’s books, and graphic novels have been extremely popular. His short-short stories, collected in Bus Driver Who Wanted to Be God and Other Stories and The Nimrod Flipout: Stories, are filled with cynicism, humor, irony, sexuality, and Israeli pop culture.

Deftly evoking Jewish life in Iran in Persian Brides and Iranian families in Israel in Strand of a Thousand Pearls, Dorit Rabinyan‘s (1972-) lyrical novels offer rich emotional portraits of family life, especially the psychological and emotional dimensions of female characters.

Sayed Kashua (1975-) is a writer and journalist whose work focuses on Palestinian life in contemporary Israel. His first novel, Dancing Arabs, features the protagonist’s struggles as he moves from childhood and adulthood and navigates Palestinian and Israeli culture.

There are many more Hebrew writers who could be added to this diverse list, and many others who will hopefully be translated into English in the near future. Other rich sources of Hebrew literature in translation include the many anthologies of prose, such as the classic Modern Hebrew Literature and the more recent Oxford Book of Hebrew Short Stories, as well as collections of poetry, like The Penguin Book of Hebrew Verse, The Modern Hebrew Poem Itself and The Defiant Muse: Hebrew Feminist Poems From Antiquity to the Present. 

The post Hebrew Literature in Translation: A Reader’s Guide appeared first on My Jewish Learning.

1) The Alphabet (Called the Aleph-Bet) Has 22 Letters.

There are 22 letters in the Hebrew alphabet (commonly referred to as the aleph-bet, after the first two letters, aleph and bet). In addition, the language includes five final letters: When the letters khaf, mem, nun, pey, and tzade are the last letters of a word, they are written differently.

2) It’s Related to Arabic and Aramaic — and Originally Had No Vowels.

Hebrew is a Semitic language — like Arabic and Aramaic — and like most ancient Semitic languages its alphabet has no vowels. However, sometime between the middle and end of the first millennium, rabbis known as the Masoretes instituted a system of dots and dashes to indicate how words were to be pronounced. Torah scrolls and most contemporary Hebrew writing are still written without vowels.

3) It’s Read from Right to Left.

Unlike English, Hebrew is read and written from right to left. There are numerous types of Hebrew script. The most familiar is the block letters used in Torah scrolls and most printed texts. This was originally referred to as ktav ashuri, or Assyrian script. It is contrasted with ktav ivri, which was an earlier script probably used until a few hundred years prior to the Common Era. In addition, there is a cursive script for Hebrew, as well as a script named after the medieval commentator Rashi, which was used in Rashi’s works on the Bible and Talmud, as well as in other texts.

4) It Dates Back to the Second Millennium BCE.

The earliest Hebrew texts date from the end of the second millennium BCE. Hebrew was employed as both a written and spoken language until the destruction of the First Temple in 587 BCE. After that, Hebrew was used primarily as a literary and liturgical language.

5) Not All Major Jewish Texts Are In Hebrew.

The Bible (except for parts of Ezra and Daniel) is written in Hebrew, as is the Mishnah, the corpus of Jewish law edited during the second and third century CE.

The Gemara — books of rabbinic legal discussions interpreting the Mishnah — is largely written in Aramaic with some Hebrew, while medieval Jewish literature is written primarily in a combination of Hebrew and Aramaic.

5) It Was Often Thought to Be the Language of Angels — and God.

Because it is the language of sacred texts, Hebrew itself was often considered sacred. In post-biblical times, it was referred to as lashon ha-kodesh, the holy language. Hebrew was often thought to be the language of the angels, and indeed, of God. According to rabbinic tradition, Hebrew was the original language of humanity. It was spoken by all of humankind prior to the dispersion described in the Tower of Babel story in Genesis. In addition, the Hebrew language was thought of as the tool that God used to create the world. A midrash states that, “Just as the Torah was given in lashon ha-kodesh, so the world was created with lashon ha-kodesh.” Similarly, the mystical book Sefer Yetzirah, describes the creation of the world through the manipulation of the Hebrew alphabet.

6) Secular Hebrew Journals, Newspapers and Literature Emerged in the 18th Century.

The Haskalah, the Jewish Enlightenment, sparked a renewed interest in Hebrew, particularly biblical Hebrew, which the maskilim (the proponents of the Enlightenment) viewed as a purer form of the language. Journals, newspapers, and literature were written in Hebrew, but there were many problems with adapting this ancient language to the needs of modern prose. Many of these problems were addressed by S.Y. Abramowitz (better known as Mendele Mokher Seforim), who created an amalgam of rabbinic and biblical Hebrew that suited modern literary needs.

7) After Not Being Spoken for Two Millennia, It Was Dramatically Revived.

While the creation of a corpus of secular Hebrew literature was impressive, the reinstitution of Hebrew as a spoken language was almost miraculous. Hebrew had not been a spoken language for two millennia, and yet at the end of the 19th century, European Jews dreaming of a cultural renaissance in Palestine began to resurrect the language.

Eliezer Ben-Yehuda is considered the father of Modern Hebrew. He developed a vocabulary for Modern Hebrew, incorporating words from ancient and medieval Hebrew, in addition to creating new words. In 1922, Hebrew became one of the official languages of British Mandate Palestine, and today it is a modern language spoken by the citizens of Israel and Jews around the world.

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The other advantage of praying in Hebrew without understanding it is that it spares you from the temptation to argue with the prayer book. My aphorism is, “Liturgy unites, theology divides.”

When a hundred Jews are chanting a prayer in Hebrew, they are welded into a single congregation. When, instead of chanting the Hebrew, they contemplate the English translation (usually offered on the facing page of the Hebrew prayer book), that unity is lost as every. one of them begins to challenge and analyze what he has just been saying.

That is why congregations get so upset when the cantor introduces a new melody for a familiar prayer. It is not the meaning of the words that matters to us; it is the emotional-aesthetic, right-brain experience we crave.

Reprinted with permission from To Life!: A Celebration of Jewish Being and Thinking (Little, Brown & Co.)

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Hebrew

Hebrew is the language of the Bible and of traditional Jewish liturgy. As such, it is integrally connected with the Jewish religion. The rabbis attributed theological significance to the Hebrew language. Rabbinic literature refers to Hebrew as lashon ha-kodesh, the holy language. In addition, Hebrew was thought to be the language of God and the angels, as well as the original language of all humanity.

It is unclear when the Israelites began using Hebrew, but the earliest Hebrew texts date from the end of the second millennium B.C.E. However, Hebrew’s primacy as a spoken language began to diminish following the destruction of the First Temple in 587 B.C.E. and the exile that followed.

In the Middle Ages, Hebrew was used primarily for ritual and religious purposes. During the Jewish Enlightenment of the 18th and 19th centuries, however, Jews adopted Hebrew as a secular language. Hebrew newspapers and novels began to emerge, and a number of scholars took up the task of transforming Hebrew into a modern spoken tongue. With the rise of Zionism this endeavor gained political and practical relevance. Today Modern Hebrew is the official language of the State of Israel.

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Other Jewish Languages

Aramaic

Interestingly, the–arguably–second most important Jewish language wasn’t Jewish at all. Aramaic, the language of the biblical Book of Daniel, the Jerusalem and Babylonian Talmuds, and the mystical masterpiece the Zohar was actually spoken by Semitic people throughout the ancient Near East. Nonetheless, as the language spoken by most Jews during the influential rabbinic period (the several centuries following the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 C.E.), it became an essential component of future forms of Hebrew, as well as other Jewish languages.

Jewish Hybrid Languages

Indeed, Hebrew and Aramaic, together, served as the basis for all Jewish hybrid languages — languages such as Judeo-Greek, Judeo-Italian, and of course, Ladino and Yiddish. These hybrid languages generally retained the linguistic structures of their non-Jewish parents (e.g. Spanish for Ladino, German for Yiddish), while using Hebrew script and integrating Hebrew and Aramaic words. Though Hebrew remained the primary religious and scholarly language of the various Diaspora Jewish communities, many Jews were unable to understand Hebrew, and the hybrid languages were their primary tongues. Today, however, most of these Jewish hybrid languages are extinct, with the exception of Ladino and Yiddish.

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One can expect to hear people shout “mazel tov” at celebrations like Jewish weddings just after the glass is broken, at brit milah (bris) ceremonies, and at bar and bat mitzvahs. Mazel tov is an appropriate response to any good news, from an engagement to a graduation, a new job, a new house, or any other honor or milestone. In modern Israeli Hebrew, it is common to congratulate people on their birthday using this phrase.

Mazel tov isn’t always a perfect substitute for the English “congratulations.” Some people avoid saying mazel tov to a pregnant woman out of superstition that something might happen to the baby. Instead, it is customary to say “b’sha’ah tovah,” (beh-shah-AH toe-VAH) meaning “at a good time.” The implicit wish is that the baby will be born healthy and safe — at which point mazel tov would be an appropriate greeting.

The phrase mazel tov literally means “a good constellation,” implying that the recipient is experiencing good fortune because the stars have aligned for them. In fact, the medieval song incorporating this phrase — siman tov u’mazal tov, “a good sign, a good constellation” — makes this even more explicit.

Ancient rabbinic texts speak of good and bad mazalot (constellations), but the phrase mazel tov was not used in a congratulatory manner until the 19th century. A reasonable literal translation of the phrase might be “good luck” but this doesn’t, as it does in English, carry the connotation of hoping for future fortune. Rather, it acknowledges present good fortune. To wish a person future luck in Hebrew, one would say b’hatzlachah — may you have success.

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Many pronunciation differences are rooted in the interpretation of six consonants that can take a dagesh (a small dot inside the letter). The Hebrew letters bet, gimmel, dalet, kaf, pey, and tav can all be pronounced in two distinct ways depending on whether or not they contain a dagesh. In Modern Israeli pronunciation, only three in fact are (bet, kaf and pey). But in Ashkenazi pronunciation, for instance, tav can be pronounced in two ways (t or s), and in Mesopotamian dialects, gimmel without dagesh is often pronounced gh (as in Arabic ghayn or French r). But there are many other pronunciation variations, in particular with the vowels which, in Hebrew, are secondary to the consonants.

Learn the Hebrew letters and vowels.

Ashkenazi and Sephardi Pronunciations

There are two particularly widespread systems of Hebrew pronunciation encountered today: Ashkenazi and Sephardi. The Ashkenazi pronunciation has been historically used by Jews who spoke Yiddish (Judeo-German) and their descendants, who migrated throughout central and eastern Europe. Sephardi pronunciations originated with Judeo-Spanish-speaking Jews who, after their expulsion from the Iberian Peninsula in the 15th century, settled throughout the Mediterranean, including North Africa, as well as in some western European countries such as England and the Netherlands. The latter is the basis for Modern Israeli Hebrew pronunciation which is currently ascendant and will be the baseline for comparison in this article.

Ashkenazi pronunciation is particularly recognizable by the differentiation between tav with a dagesh (תּ), which is pronounced as t, and tav without a dagesh (ת), which is pronounced as s. Hence, the following are Ashkenazi pronunciations: bas mitzvah (bat mitzvah in Modern Israeli Hebrew), emes (emet, truth), Shabbos (Shabbat). Ashkenazi pronunciation is also characterized by a distinctive system of sounding vowels so that, for instance, the name for God, commonly pronounced in Modern Israeli Hebrew as Adonai, is rendered by Ashkenazi speakers Adonoy.

Until the middle of the 20th century, most American synagogues used the Ashkenazi Hebrew pronunciation, as the majority of American Jews were of Ashkenazi descent. As a result, Jewish cultural loanwords into English are typically pronounced according to the Ashkenazi tradition, i.e. bar mitzvah. (Compare this to the Balkans pronunciation which has a different sound for tzadi in bar misvah and the Iraqi pronunciation which pronounces vav as waw to yield bar miswah.) After the creation of the State of Israel in 1948, there was a gradual shift in American congregations toward using the Modern Israeli Hebrew pronunciation which was developed by Ashkenazi Hebrew revivalists who wanted to speak Sephardi Hebrew, but did so with an Ashkenazi influence on many of their consonants. One can still hear both Ashkenazi and Sephardi pronunciations used when referring to certain holidays, prayers or lifecycle events. Thus, the ceremony for welcoming a baby boy into the covenant might be referred to as either a brit (Sephardi pronunciation) or a bris (Ashkenazi pronunciation).

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Other Systems of Pronunciation

Ashkenazi and Sephardi are just the tip of the iceberg. Italki Jews, also known as Roman Jews, use a pronunciation of Hebrew that is similar to those used by Spanish and Portuguese Jews, but has unique features, such as the pronunciation of the letter ayin as ng (as in E“ng”lish). Romaniote Jews, or Judeo-Greek speaking Jews, pronounce tav as either t or th, and retained a pronunciation of zayin that sounds more like dz.

The third largest Hebrew pronunciation in use today is that of the Arabic-speaking Jewish communities of North Africa and West Asia. All of these communities are influenced by Arabic but have regional differences in their pronunciations of liturgical Hebrew. (They often self-identify as Sephardi due to following a Sephardi rite developed over the course of centuries of cultural exchange among Mediterranean Jews.) 

Yemenite Jews, who also historically speak Arabic, have a vowel and consonant pronunciation system that is distinct from other Arabic-speaking Jews. This system is particularly noteworthy for retaining guttural sounds that many other speakers find difficult to make. In the Yemenite pronunciation system, the guttural ayin is clear and distinct, as is the difference between sounds made by the letters het (breathy h) and kaf (non-guttural kh). Yemenite Jews pronounce gimmel with dagesh as j, as in the word Jewish.

Another large group includes Persian-speaking Jews from Persia, Central Asia and the Caucasus, as well as the Aramaic-speaking Jews of northern Mesopotamia. Jews from Central Asia and the Caucasus trace their origin to Jews who migrated out of Persia. Their pronunciations share vowel and consonant systems with those of Persian-speaking Jews.

Finally, Marathi-, Malayalam-, Georgian- and Amharic- speaking Jews from India, Georgia and Ethiopia, respectively, have their own unique pronunciation traditions. For example, Georgian Jewish liturgical Hebrew uses a q sound for ayin.

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A Brief History of Hebrew

Hebrew was the language spoken in biblical times by the ancient Israelites. One of the original names for this language, and the one it is called today, is ivrit, because it is the language spoken by a people called the ivrim, or the Hebrew people. But it goes by many names in ancient Jewish texts, most frequently lashon hakodesh — the holy tongue.

Archaeologists have uncovered examples of written Hebrew that are 3,000 years old, though people only familiar with modern Hebrew script find them indecipherable because they are written in an older alphabet. Scholars refer to this ancient Hebrew script as paleo-Hebrew and ancient rabbis called it libona’ah, perhaps from the word livanah meaning brick or tile — a nod to the blocky shape of the letters. Some of the Dead Sea Scrolls are written in this ancient script and today Samaritan Hebrew continues to use an alphabet derived from it.

Everything changed for the Jewish people and their language in 586 BCE, when the Babylonians destroyed the First Temple and sent a large portion of the populace into exile. In the wake of that disaster, scholars believe, many if not most Jews began to speak other languages, especially Aramaic, which became ascendant with the rise of the Persian Empire less than a century later. In this period, Hebrew did not disappear, but it became the language of scripture and liturgy while other languages were spoken in the street. Also in this period, Jews began to write Hebrew in a new script heavily influenced by Aramaic, a precursor of the modern Hebrew script.

By late antiquity (somewhere between the 2nd and 4th centuries CE), in the wake of the destruction of the Second Temple, Hebrew completely ceased to be a spoken language among Jews. However, it remained an important language of scripture, prayer and learning. Over the next millennium and a half, Jews scattered across the globe spoke the languages of the countries in which they found themselves, but they were able to communicate with other Jews using Hebrew. This common language made it possible for Jews to become prominent global traders in the medieval and early modern periods and kept Jewish communities connected through centuries of dispersion.

Modern Revival

Hebrew is the only known example of a language being revived as a spoken language millennia after it stopped being one. This achievement is due largely to the efforts of one man, Eliezer Ben-Yehuda, who championed Hebrew as the language of the future State of Israel. Many of his contemporaries suggested languages like Yiddish that were already spoken by many Jews should be the Jewish national language. Ben-Yehuda, however, strongly believed that Hebrew was a better choice. He famously raised his son to speak only Hebrew (when no one else on the planet spoke Hebrew as a first language) and developed hundreds of modern words to update the language, eventually producing a 17-volume dictionary. His mission was successful and Hebrew became the official language of the State of Israel when it was created in 1948, 26 years after Ben-Yehuda’s death. 

Today, Hebrew is the native language of over 9 million people. The Academy of the Hebrew Language uses Ben-Yehuda’s principles to continually invent and approve new Hebrew words. Because it was largely a language frozen in texts for so long, modern Hebrew is not terribly removed from ancient forms. It is grammatically different from biblical Hebrew, but not wildly so. It is closest to mishnaic Hebrew (a version used to write the Mishnah in the 3rd century), and more dissimilar to later rabbinic Hebrew, which adopted many Aramaic words and phrases.

Learn more about Eliezer Ben-Yehuda and his unprecendented efforts that led to revival of spoken Hebrew.

Sacred Language

Jews refer to Hebrew as lashon hakodesh, the sacred language (Berakhot 13a, Sotah 49b), in part because it is the language of the Jewish Bible, and also because, according to the Jewish scriptures, Hebrew played a key role in the creation of the world. In Genesis 1, God creates the world by speaking Hebrew.

Jewish tradition holds that Hebrew words are brimming with meaning, both manifest and hidden. In the Talmud, Rabbi Akiva is particularly skilled at teasing out the many hidden meanings in Hebrew words, teaching his students to adduce meaning not only from the words, but from individual letters and even the decorations used by scribes to illuminate the script. The Talmud records:

When Moses ascended on High, he found the Holy One, Blessed be He, sitting and tying crowns on the letters of the Torah. Moses said before God: “Master of the Universe, who is preventing You (from giving the Torah without these additions)?” God said to him: “There is a man who is destined to be born in several generations, and Akiva ben Yosef is his name. He is destined to derive from each and every thorn of these crowns mounds upon mounds of halakhot (laws).

Menachot 29b

Another Jewish way of deriving meaning from Hebrew is through the practice of gematria, Hebrew numerology. Gematria assigns a numerical value to each letter of the Hebrew language, through which one can calculate the value of words and phrases to find additional insights. The best-known example is the Hebrew word chai (חי), meaning life, which has the value of 18. Eighteen is considered a lucky number and Jews often give monetary donations in multiples of it. The Talmud contains many other examples of meanings derived through gematria. For instance, hasatan, meaning “the satan,” has the numerical value of 364. The rabbis explain that this is because the satan is allowed to prosecute humankind for 364 days out of the year, but on Yom Kippur, when humans are atoning and God is judging, he is not permitted to prosecute (Yoma 20a).

Ancient rabbinic authorities disagree as to why Hebrew is a sacred language. Maimonides (Guide of the Perplexed, 3:8) says that Hebrew is sacred because it has no words for things like male and female genitalia, sperm, urine, or excrement — preferring euphemisms in their place. Nahmanides (commentary to Exodus 30:13) disagrees, claiming that Hebrew is sacred because God created the world through Hebrew letters and spoke to the prophets in Hebrew.

Nahmanides was one of many Jewish mystics inspired by the idea that Hebrew was the vehicle through which God created the world. The kabbalists attached many interpretations to the letters themselves, which they believed could be arranged in 70 different ways to write the name of God. Kabbalistic exercises included many meditations on the letters, which were thought to represent various kinds of cosmic forces. This idea found early expression in Sefer Yetzirah:

He hath formed, weighed, transmuted, composed, and created with these twenty-two letters every living being, and every soul yet uncreated.

Sefer Yetzirah 2:2

Today, Hebrew continues to be the dominant language for Jewish prayer around the world. Though some Jewish movements have experimented with more prayer in the vernacular, virtually all Jewish communities conduct a significant component of the prayer service in Hebrew. This remains the case even though most non-Israeli Jews are not fluent in the language and many ancient Jewish sources assert that one can pray in any language.

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Its significance is thus not limited to the political domain — to the absence of war and enmity — or to the social — to the absence of quarrel and strife. It ranges over several spheres and can refer in different contexts to bounteous physical conditions, to a moral value, and, ultimately, to a cosmic principle and divine attribute.

Biblical Usages

In the Bible, the word shalom is most commonly used to refer to a state of affairs, one of well-being, tranquility, prosperity, and security, circumstances unblemished by any sort of defect. Shalom is a blessing, a manifestation of divine grace.

In inquiring about the peace of one’s fellow, one inquires as to whether things fare well with him. (In a borrowed sense, we read: “Va-yish’al David…li-shlom ha-milhamah“; “David asked of him…how the war prospered” [II Samuel 11:7].) The usage of the term is thus not restricted to international, intergroup, or interpersonal relations. It signifies a state of prosperity, of blessed harmony, on several levels, physical and spiritual.

Of course, shalom also denotes the opposite of war, as in “a time for war, and a time for peace” (Ecclesiastes 3:8), for the absence of war, too, suggests an orderly, prosperous, and tranquil state of affairs. In several scriptural passages the word peace refers to a value, and is used in the sense of equity, or loyalty (cf. Zechariah 8:16; Malachi 2:6).

Rabbinic Morality

In the rabbinic texts, shalom primarily signifies a value, an ethical category — it denotes the overcoming of strife, quarrel, and social tension, the prevention of enmity and war. It is still, to be sure, depicted as a blessing, a manifestation of divine grace, but in a great many sayings it appears in a normative context: The pursuit of peace is the obligation of the individual and the goal of various social regulations and structures.

The majority of passages on the subject of peace are concerned with family or communal life, that is, with internal peace among the people, and only a minority are concerned with external relations between Israel and other peoples, between nations and states.

Nevertheless, the two realms are not always differentiated from one another, and at times they appear to be continuous; we read, for example: “He who establishes peace between man and his fellow, between husband and wife, between two cities, two nations, two families or two governments…no harm should come to him” (Mekhilta Bahodesh 12).

The series of regulations ordained by the Sages “in the interest of peace” (mi-pene darkhei shalom) were also meant to affect relations both among the Jews themselves and between the Jews and the Gentiles.

The Sages went to great lengths in their praise of peace, to the point of viewing it as a meta-value, the summit of all other values, with the possible exception of justice.

Peace was the ultimate purpose of the whole Torah: “All that is written in the Torah was written for the sake of peace” (Tanhuma Shofetim 18). It is the essence of the prophetic tiding — “The prophets have planted in the mouth of all people naught so much as peace” (Bamidbar Rabah Naso 11:7) — and of redemption, “God announceth to Jerusalem that they [Israel] will be redeemed only through peace” (Deuteronomy Rabah 5:15).

Shalom is the name of the Holy One, the name of Israel, and the name of the Messiah (Derekh Erez Zuta, Perek ha-Shalom), yet the name of God may be blotted out in water for the sake of peace (Leviticus Rabah 9:9). Other sayings in the same vein are numerous.

Rating the Value of Peace

Nevertheless, alongside this sort of expression the Sages discuss the question of the relationship between peace and other competing values, of situations in which different norms might conflict with one another.

For instance, peace was opposed to justice: Rabbi Joshua ben Korha taught that “where there is strict justice there is no peace, and where there is peace there is no strict justice,” and he consequently instructed the judge to “act as an arbiter,” that is, to rule for compromise, which is justice tempered with peace (see Jerusalem Talmud Sanhedrin 1:5; Babylonian Talmud Sanhedrin 6b; the opposing view is “let justice pierce the mountain,” that is, justice at all costs).

On another level, peace was contrasted with truth: It was said in the name of Rabbi Eleazar ben Simeon that “one may deviate from the truth for the sake of peace” (BT Yevamot 65b); in an even stronger formulation, it was said, “All falsehood is forbidden, but it is permissible to utter a falsehood for the purpose of making peace between a man and his fellow” (Derekh Erez Zuta, loc. cit.).

In all of these instances, even where peace is given priority and tips the balance, it is viewed as an individual, partial value that must compete with other values.

In contrast with this dichotomous approach, however, we also find another approach that attempts to harmonize the separate values and make them complement one another: “By three things the world is preserved, by justice, by truth, and by peace, and these three are one: if justice has been accomplished, so has truth, and so has peace” (JT Ta’anit 4:2). Here, not only is peace made among men, but also the competing values are reconciled.

The Obligations of Peace: A Special Category

Drawing upon a fine distinction between the terms used in several scriptural expressions, one rabbinic saying proposed an interesting differentiation between two types of obligation.

The first type is that which arises from a given situation, that is, man’s obligation to respond in a particular way to a given set of circumstances. The second type, on the other hand, demands that one create situations and shape them in such a way as to bring the obligation upon himself. The first group includes all of the commandments, the second the pursuit of peace alone:

“Great is peace, for of all the commandments it is written: ‘if [emphases added] thou see,’ ‘if thou meet’ (Exodus 23:4, 5), ‘if [there] chance’ (Deuteronomy 22:6); that is, if the occasion for this commandment should arise, you must do it, and if not, you need not do it. In relation to peace, however, [it is written]: ‘seek peace, and pursue it’ — seek it in your own place, and pursue it even to another place as well.” (Leviticus Rabah 9:9)

It may be asked, to be sure, whether peace alone should be included in the second group. Nevertheless, the distinction itself draws our attention, and the need to clarify it conceptually and to determine its outlines is an open invitation to the philosopher.

God as Peacemaker

Finally, several sayings concerning the power of peace go beyond the social-ethical realm to enter the domain of the cosmic: The Holy One makes peace between the supernal and the lower worlds, among the denizens of the supernal world, between the sun and the moon, and so on (Leviticus Rabah, loc. cit.; Deuteronomy Rabah 5:12; and see Job 25:2).

Most of these passages in fact acclaim yet more ardently the pursuit of peace among men, in an a fortiori formulation: “And if the heavenly beings, who are free from envy, hatred and rivalry, are in need of peace, how much more are the lower beings, who are subject to hatred, rivalry, and envy” (Deuteronomy Rabah, loc. cit.).

Reprinted with permission of The Gale Group from  Contemporary Jewish Religious Thought , edited by Arthur A. Cohen and Paul Mendes-Flohr, Twayne Publishers.

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Judaism’s Uniqueness

The answer to these questions may be discovered by consider­ing the unique character of Judaism and its relation to the Hebrew language. Hebrew has not been a denationalized uni­versal tongue, the medium of a specific religion, in the sense that Latin has been the official language of the Roman Catholic Church. Nor has it been merely a folk tongue like other living languages. As a matter of fact, it has persisted as a living language for many centuries after it had ceased to be a spoken vernacular in the accepted sense of the term.

Hebrew has been the sacred language of the Jewish people — the language of its re­ligion, culture and civilization. It has been, in sum, the language of Judaism and intimately identified with the national and re­ligious experiences of the Jewish people throughout the genera­tions. The Jewish people can no more be dissociated from Hebrew than they can be dissociated from their own spiritual identity — Judaism.

Relationship Between Language and Culture

An analysis of the nature of language and of Judaism may help to clarify this point.

Our ideas and experiences are not independent of language; they are all integral parts of the same pattern, the warp and woof of the same texture. We do not first have thoughts, ideas, feelings, and then put them into a verbal framework. We think in words, by means of words. Language and experience are inextricably interwoven, and the awareness of one awakens the other. Words and idioms are as indispensable to our thoughts and experiences as are colors and tints to a painting. Our per­sonality matures and develops through language and by our use ­of it. Defective linguistic growth is known to go hand in hand with stunted intellectual and emotional development.

What is true of language in relation to individual growth is equally true in the case of the cultural growth and development of a people. Indeed, students of language have come to recog­nize that the experiences of a group, its mental and emotional habits, its modes of thoughts and attitudes are registered and reflected in the words and idioms of the group’s language. Thus, for example, the word shalom, usually rendered as “peace,” has in effect little in common with its English equivalent. Shalom does not have the passive, even negative, connotation of the word “peace.” It does not mean merely the absence of strife. It is pregnant with positive, active, and energetic meaning and association. It connotes totality, health, wholesomeness, har­mony, success, the completeness and richness of living in an integrated social milieu. When people meet or part they wish each other shalom, or they inquire about each other’s shalom.

Similarly, the Hebrew words ruach (spirit) and nefesh (soul) do not have the implications of a disembodiment, such as are indicated by their English equivalents. There is no dichotomy in the Hebrew mind between body and spirit or soul. One is not the antithesis of the other. These Hebrew words have dynamic, life-giving, and motor-urgent connotations. Every living being has a ruach, even the beast possesses a ruach (Ecclesiastes 3: 21).

The same is true of the synonym nefesh, which is generally rendered by “soul.” But nefesh, too, is the property of all living beings (Job 12:10), including the beast (Proverbs 12:10). Even the netherworld has a nefesh (Isaiah 5:14). Furthermore, every living creature, man as well as animal, is designated as nefesh (Genesis 1:20, 21, 24, 12:5, 14:21, etc.). Both nefesh and ruach often signify strength and vigor, both in a material and a spiritual sense. Voracious dogs are said to possess a strong nefesh (Isaiah 56. 11); and the horses of Egypt, the prophet warns, are weak: they are “flesh and no ruach” (ibid., 31. 3).

Justice or Charity?

There is likewise a far cry between the Hebrew word tzedakah (from the stem tzadak, to be just or righteous), with its implications of social justice, and the English word “charity.” In the case of “charity” the recipient sees himself beholden to the donor, whose action is voluntary. Tzedakah, on the other hand, has to be performed as a matter of obligation and the recipient is in no way indebted to the donor. The needy have a right to tzedakah, while those possessing means have a duty to give it. Indeed, even a poor person who receives tzedakah must in turn give tzedakah (Gittin 7b).

There is, likewise, a wide semantic gulf between the Hebrew rahamimor rahmanut and the English equivalent “pity” or “mercy.” The Hebrew word connotes love, family feeling (see Genesis 43:30, etc.), even motherliness, since it is related to rehem (mother’s womb) of the same stem. None of these con­notations is implied in the English equivalents. Similarly, the richly meaningful and historically hallowed implications of the Hebrew Torah are totally absent in the English equivalent “law.” The Hebrew term Torah embraces the totality of Jewish creative labor throughout the ages. Just as inadequate is the English translation “commandment” for the Hebrew mitzvah.

Every language, including English, has a stock of words which are charged with the emotional and intellectual experiences of the people employing it. To illustrate, within our own experiences, the English word “fireside” came to assume a new connotation as a result of listening to the fireside chats inaugurated by the late president, Franklin D. Roosevelt. Similarly, the word “filibuster,” originally signifying a freebooter or pirate, is now employed in the United States in the sense of hindering legislation by means of long speeches or other parliamentary tricks. One may also add, as examples, such expressions as “go to bat,” “strike out” and the like.

The richer and the more intense the historical experiences of a people, the greater is the number of such words in its language and the more emotionally charged they are. When translated into another language, they become devitalized and almost meaningless.

Such words are not mere linguistic units; they are cultural deposits. But they cannot be transmitted in isolation. They take on their meaning and gain in richness of association and connotation only through the context of experience. In the past some Hebrew words and expressions survived in the vernacular of the people long after the Hebrew language had ceased to be popularly spoken. They were kept alive by the intimate contact which the majority of the people continued to maintain with the Hebrew literary sources and by the persistence of Jewish forms of living and habits of thinking.

This article is excerpted from William Chomsky’s magnum opus Hebrew: The Eternal Language, first published in 1957. Reprinted with permission from the Jewish Publication Society.

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Mysterious Origins

The Hebrew alphabet’s origins lie shrouded in the mists of antiquity. Today, scholars believe that a version known as North Semitic arose among northwest Palestine and Syria’s inhabitants more than 3,500 years ago and established permanently the phonetic sound, numerical value, and order of what initially became Early Hebrew. Already used in the time of King Solomon, this was the original script of the Bible.

When–led by Ezra the Scribe in approximately the fifth century B.C.E. — the Jewish people returned from Babylonian Exile, the Square Script, a dis­tinctive descendant from the Jewish Aramaic used in the Holy Land, became the preferred language. It was eventually adopted officially for the writing of Torah scrolls. Yet, Early Hebrew never entirely vanished and was used by the second-century Jewish revolutionary Bar Kochba on his coins in defying Roman rule. Nevertheless, for nearly 2,000 years, the Square Script has been basic to Judaism, and relied upon by our greatest sages for prayer, sacred study, and meditation.

22 Letters, No Vowels

The Hebrew language is comprised of 22 letters, five of which are known as double (or mother letters, as they have two distinct forms: when beginning a word and when placed at its ending). These letters are Kaf, Mem, Nun, Pei, and Tzadi. According to mystical lore, they were originally known only to the righteous such as Abraham, and later, to Moses, Joshua, and the Seventy Elders of Israel under their leadership. They brought the knowledge of these special Hebrew letters to the Holy Land, where through the Prophets, the entire Jewish people came to use them.

It’s also worthwhile to note that the Hebrew language originally con­tained no vowels, though the Ayin or Aleph were sometimes utilized for that purpose. Vowel signs were developed during the second half of the first millennium C.E., but they appear neither in the Torah Scroll nor in most religious documents.

Hebrew as the Holy Tongue

In the legendary tradition known as the midrash, Jewish veneration for the Hebrew letters was fervent. The Holy Tongue was the usual designation for Hebrew, which was even deemed the language of the angels. The early rabbis regarded the letters as existing independently in a transcendent realm, and taught that when Moses ascended Mount Sinai to receive the Torah, he saw God designing crowns for the individual letters.

Likewise, in Talmudic commentary on the Book of Exodus, the artisan Bezalel built the Tabernacle in the wilderness because he “knew how to combine the letters with which heaven and earth were created.” The sages compared such mystical wisdom to God’s in creating the cosmos, and corre­spondingly, included in the Talmud an introductory lesson on the import of every Hebrew letter. Similarly, the midrashtaught that King Solomon achieved great wisdom and power through a ring inscribed with a particular, Hebrew Name of God.

For the sages, the Jewish prayers are sacred precisely because their words are composed of Hebrew letters. In keeping with this view, they declared that persons who made it their regular practice to speak Hebrew would have a special place in the afterlife.

Hebrew Numerology (Gematria and Notarikon)

Dating back to Talmudic times, the Hebrew letters have not only been celebrated as holy, but also venerated as an actual tool for spiritual mastery. Traditionally, the two most preferred techniques have been gematria and notarikon. In gematria, words with dissimilar meanings but equal numerical values (since each Hebrew letter also has a number associated with it) are probed for their hidden linkages.

In notarikon, words are broken down into sentences composed of initial letters. Thus, the first word of the Ten Commandments, ANoKhY (“I Am”) alludes to the sentence Ario Nafshoy Katovit Yahovit (“I have written and given myself to you in this book”).

Reprinted with permission from The Hebrew Alphabet: A Mystical Journey (Chronicle Books).

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<!–In Jewish mystical texts, the Hebrew letters assumed even greater importance. Jewish mystics considered the letters to be divine energy patterns. Read about their views in part II of this article.

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The Haskalah (Jewish Enlightenment)

The 18th century saw the first examples of Hebrew newspapers, in connection with which I. Lampronti (1679‑1756) at Ferrara and, from 1750, M. Mendelssohn at Dessau were pioneers. From 1784 until 1829 the quarterly review Ha‑Me’assef appeared fairly regularly. Edited by the “Society of Friends of the Hebrew Language,” it received contributions from important figures of the Haskalah [the Jewish Enlightenment]. The first regular weekly, Ha‑Maggid, began publication in Russia in 1856.

In the second half of the 18th century, the Haskalah made a significant impact on the language. The new “illuminati” or maskilim viewed Rabbinic Hebrew with disdain, believing it to be full of Aramaisms [i.e. Aramaic derivatives] and replete with grammatical errors, and they lamented the sorry state of Hebrew in the Diaspora. According to them, the blame lay with the paytanim [medieval liturgical poets], the influence of Arabic in medieval philosophy, the use of the “corrupt” Yiddish language, and with the inadequacies of Hebrew itself in comparison with other languages.

The most important representatives of this cultural movement tried to restore Hebrew as a living language. Not only did they attempt to purify the language and to promote correct usage, but they also increased its powers of expression, and showed little aversion to calquing modern terms from German and other Western languages.

Although certain figures regarded Rabbinic Hebrew as a legitimate component of the new language, the majority settled on a pure form of Biblical Hebrew for poetry and on an Andalusian style of prose, similar to that used by the Ibn Tibbons [a family of Jewish translators who flourished in the 12th and 13th centuries].

Poets like A.D. Lebensohn and J.L. Gordon, writers like M. Mendelssohn, N.H. Wessely, I. Satanow, and J.L. Ben‑Ze’ev, dramatists like D. Zamoscz (who wrote the first modern play, in 1851), novelists like, A. Mapu (who, in 1853, composed the first work to use this new style), and even translators of Yiddish like S.J. Abramowitsch (Mendele Mokher Seforim), at the close of the 19th century, all helped in important ways to lay the foundations of Modern Hebrew.

Although some 19th‑century writers tried to use a fundamentally biblical form of language, they often introduced structures that were alien to its spirit and frequently made grammatical errors, incorrectly employing the article with nouns in the construct state, treating intransitive verbs as transitives, confusing particles, and so on.

Also, they frequently had recourse to turgid paraphrase in a desperate attempt not to stray from the limited vocabulary of the Bible for expressing contemporary referents, thus endowing many biblical expressions with new content. A. Mapu, whom we have already mentioned, emphasized the inadequacy of Biblical Hebrew for the demands of literature and advocated the use of post‑biblical sources.

This tendency is clearly seen in the work of Mendele Mokher Seforim (1835‑1917), whom many regard as the real creator of Modern Hebrew. Jewish culture underwent a marked change at the end of the 19th century, with the abandonment of the ideal of assimilation and its replacement by the nationalist and Zionist program of the Hibbat Zion.

Mendele, who wrote in both Yiddish and Hebrew, accepted into his language the most varied elements not only from Biblical Hebrew but also from all the later stages of the language, as well as from Yiddish. J.H. Alkalai, A.J. Schlesinger, Y.M. Pines, and others also made successful contributions to the task of ensuring that Hebrew would once more possess the character of a spoken language.

Hebrew in Palestine (Pre-State Israel)

A new era opened with the publication in 1879 of Eliezer Ben‑Yehuda‘s article entitled “A burning question.” The use of Hebrew as a spoken language was to be for Ben‑Yehuda one of the most important aspects of the new plan for settlement in Palestine.

From 1881, Ben‑Yehuda lived in Jerusalem, and starting with his own family, forged ahead with his objective of changing Hebrew into a language suitable for daily use. With enthusiastic backing from such supporters of the nationalist cause as Y.M. Pines and D. Yellin, he struggled to give new life to the language. One of his greatest endeavors was to develop an appropriate vocabulary, in which Ben‑Yehuda incorporated material from ancient and medieval literature and created new words eventually to be included in his monumental Thesaurus (continued after Ben-Yehuda’s death by M.H. Segal and N.H. Tur‑Sinai).

Although the Jews who were already established in Palestine had previously used Hebrew as a lingua franca [a common language spoken by people who have different primary languages], it was not employed more generally, and the various immigrant communities continued to speak their native languages. Among the factors that helped turn Ben‑Yehuda’s dream into reality were the lack of a national language in the region, a desire on the part of successive waves of immigrants from central and eastern Europe to renew Jewish culture, and memories of the centuries of ancient grandeur that the Jews had once experienced in the very place they now lived.

Many other personalities played a part in this undertaking, which at the beginning appeared little less than impossible. Among them were important groups of teachers who adopted the cause of teaching Hebrew via Hebrew.

During this first stage of the revival, which lasted up to 1918, consideration was given to a number of problems in phonology (adaptation of Hebrew to the pronunciation of foreign names, resulting in the introduction of some graphemes that are followed by an apostrophe), orthography (adoption of scriptio defectiva), and morphology and syntax (no deliberate major changes).

However, the process did not follow just one path–at the end of the 19th century, for example, I. Epstein and other leading teachers cultivated a separate pronunciation in Galilee that continued to gain ground until 1920 before eventually disappearing completely.

But the most pressing issue was the creation of new words, the basic task of Ben‑Yehuda and the Va’ad ha‑Lashon [Language Council], which began to operate in 1890. In the introduction to Ben‑Yehuda’s Thesaurus, the methods employed for adapting the language to everyday needs are explained.

These include a return to the scientific and technical Hebrew vocabulary of the Tibbonid translations and the introduction of Arabic loanwords on the basis of semantic proximity to Hebrew, with their forms adapted to Hebrew patterns. From the Mishnah, Talmud and midrashim, Ben‑Yehuda adopted any potentially useful Hebrew and Aramaic expressions, and even Greek and Latin loanwords.

Aramaic morphological patterns and suffixes were employed, and precise senses established for infrequent biblical words, especially hapax legomena [a word that appears only once in the texts of a given language], the meanings of which are not evident from context. Roots attested in Biblical Hebrew were exploited to derive additional vocabulary according to traditional morphological patterns. The end result of this was an immense and thoroughgoing enhancement of the expressive potential of the language.

Reprinted from A History of the Hebrew Language with the permission of Cambridge University Press.

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