Glossary This glossary is designed to be a quick reference for archivists working with Jewish material in institutions across the UK and Northern Ireland. These are the terms which most often appear in archival collections. This list is not exhaustive but if there is a term you think we should add, please let us know! Click here for Jewish Ritual Objects and Jewish Festivals, or use the search function in the menu to find a specific term. Jewish life and life-cycle events BIRTH Brit Milah / bris – Jewish ceremony in which a baby boy is circumcised Mohel – person qualified to perform Jewish ritual practice of male circumcision Pidyon Ha’ben – ceremony of the redemption of the first-born son BAR / BAT MITZVAH Aliyah (pl. aliyot) – being called-up to recite a blessing over the Torah Bar Mitzvah – ceremony for a Jewish boy when they reach the age of 13 and become accountable for their own actions Bat Mitzvah – ceremony for a Jewish girl when they reach the age of 12 or 13 MARRIAGE Chatan (pl. Chatanim) – groom Chupa – Jewish wedding canopy with four posts Get (pl. Gittin)- Jewish divorce contract Kallah – bride Ketubah (pl. Ketubot) – Jewish marriage contract SHABBAT (SABBATH) Challah (pl. Challot) – ceremonial bread eaten on Shabbat and Jewish holidays Havdalah – ceremony marking the end of Shabbat and the beginning of the week Kabbalat Shabbat – evening service welcoming the sabbath Kiddush – blessing said over wine or grape juice to sanctify Shabbat and Jewish holidays Shabbat – the Jewish sabbath, from sunset on Friday night to sunset Saturday SYNAGOGUE Beit Knesset – Hebrew for Synagogue Cohen (pl. Cohanim) – descendant of the Jewish priestly class given a role in synagogue services Dvar Torah (pl. Divrei Torah) – a short talk about the weekly Torah portion Kiddish – a communal gathering with food held immediately after services on Shabbat or Jewish holidays L’chaim – meaning ‘to life’, can also refer to a drink to mark or celebrate an occasion Leyning – chanting the text from the Torah scrolls Rabbi – Jewish religious teacher who may also lead a congregation Shul – Yiddish term for synagogue Synagogue – building where Jewish communities hold services and other communal activities DIETARY LAWS Fleishik – food made with meat ingredients without milk Kashrut – Jewish dietary laws Kosher – food made and served according to Jewish dietary laws Milky – food made with milk ingredients and without meat Parve – food made without milk or meat ingredients Shechita – Jewish ritual slaughter JEWISH LIFE Ashkenazi – diaspora community of Jewish originally from central and eastern Europe Beit Din – rabbinic court Halacha – Jewish civil, criminal and religious law Mezuzah (pl. Mezuzot) – small box containing the words of the Shema which are attached to door posts Mikvah / mikveh (pl. Mikvaot) – Jewish ritual bath Mitzva (pl. Mitzvot) – commandment or obligation given by God to Jews Mizrahi – Jews and their descendants who lived in the Middle East or North Africa until the mid-20th century Sephardi – diaspora community of Jews originally from Spain and Portugal Tallit – Jewish prayer shawl (see Jewish ritual objects) Tefillin (phylacteries) – small boxes containing the words of the Shema traditionally wrapped around one’s head and arm during morning prayers (see Jewish ritual objects) Tsedakah – charitable giving JEWISH DEATH Chevra Kadisha – group of people that prepare bodies of Jews for burial according to Jewish tradition Nifter / niftar – Hebrew / Yiddish term meaning ‘passed away’ L’vaya / levoya – Jewish funeral Hesped – eulogy or funeral speech Kaddish – a prayer recited by mourners Shiva – first seven days of mourning after the funeral Sheloshim – 30-day mourning period with fewer restrictions than shiva Yahrzeit – Yiddish term for ‘anniversary of death’ Azkara / Nahalah – Sephardi / Mizrahi term for marking date of death Matseva – stone-setting CHAGIM (FESTIVALS) Chagim (sing. Chag) – Jewish festivals which occur throughout the year (see Jewish Festivals) Chol Hamoed – the middle days of longer festivals (e.g. Sukkot and Pesach) when restrictions are different to full festival days Chanukiah (pl. Chanukiot) – 9 branched candelabra lit during Chanukah also referred to as a Chanukah ‘menorah’ (see Jewish Festivals) Lulav and etrog – palm branch and citron which make up two of the ‘Four Species’ and are used during Sukkot (see Jewish festivals) Matzah (pl. Matzot)– unleavened bread eaten during Passover (see Jewish festivals) Omer – the 50 days between Passover and Shavuot (see Jewish festivals) JEWISH DOCUMENTS Burial books – burial register for a community Genizah (pl. Genizot)- a dedicated place where old sacred texts are stored, often before being buried (see shaimot) Get (pl. Gittin) – bill of divorce from a Jewish marriage Ketubah (pl. Kettubot) – Jewish marriage contract Mohel books – records kept by those carrying out circumcisions Pinkas (pl. Pinkassim) – Jewish community book Shaimot / shaimos – sacred Hebrew texts and objects containing God’s name which are buried out of respect Vital registries – registries of death, birth and marriages JEWISH BOOKS Chumash (pl. Chumashim) – a printed book containing the ‘Five Books of Moses’ (Torah) Bentscher – booklet with blessings for ‘grace after meals’ Haggadah (pl. Haggadot) – the text recited at the Passover seder including the narrative of the Exodus from Egypt Machzor (pl. Machzorim) – Jewish prayer book used on festivals Megillah (pl. Megillot) – a parchment scroll of the Book of Esther read during Jewish holidays (see Jewish ritual objects) Mishnah / Gemara / Talmud – books containing the Jewish civil and religious laws Pirkei Avot – ‘Ethics of the Fathers’ Siddur (pl. Siddurim)– Jewish daily prayer book Tanakh – Judaism’s foundational text containing the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible – the Five Books of Moses (the Torah), Prophets (Nevi’im), and Writings (Ketuvim) Tehillim – biblical ‘Book of Psalms’ LANGUAGE Aleph Bet – Hebrew alphabet Hebrew – semitic language, read from right to left and used in the Hebrew bible, for Jewish prayer and spoken in modern-day Israel Ivrit – modern spoken Hebrew Judeo-Arabic – a language traditionally used by Jews throughout the Arabic-speaking world Ladino – Judeo-Spanish language traditionally spoken by Sephardi Jews Yiddish – language traditionally used by Jewish people in central and eastern Europe SYMBOLS Chai – Hebrew word for ‘life’ often worn as jewelry Hamsa – an amulet or symbol depicting an eye embedded in the palm of an open hand often worn as jewelry or displayed in homes Magen David – six-pointed star recognised as a symbol of Jewish identity and culture Jewish Ritual Objects The Judaica Index is a comprehensive online thesaurus of more than 200 Jewish ritual objects, searchable in 15 languages by name or keyword. Each record includes a definition, photos and videos and a bibliography. Common ritual objects found in UK museums and archives: Bimah; Candle sticks; Challah cover; Chanukiah; Dreidel; Gregor; Havdalah candle and besamim box; Kiddish cup; Kippah; Luach; Megillat Esther; Mezuzah; Ner tamid; Seder plate; Shofar; Sukkah; Tallit; Teffilin / phylacteries; Torah scroll, mantle and rimonim; Tzitzit; Yad Jewish Festivals Hebrew Name (English equivalent)Brief DescriptionHebrew date (approx. time of year)Rosh HashanahThe Jewish new year, a two-day festival and the beginning of the ‘Ten Days of Repentance’. 1 Tishrei (September / October)Yom KippurThe Day of Atonement, the holiest day on the Jewish calendar and, with Rosh Hashanah, one of the High Holidays.10 Tishrei (September / October)Sukkot (Festival of Tabernacles)A harvest festival in which Jews eat inside temporary huts (see sukkah). 15 Tishrei (September / October)Shemini Atzeret & Simchat TorahTwo holidays at the end of Sukkot (in Israel and amongst Progressive UK communities they are combined into one day). Simchat Torah celebrates the conclusion of the annual cycle of readings from the Torah and the beginning of another.22 / 23 Tishrei (September / October)ChanukahAn eight-day festival commemorating the Maccabees’ victory over the Greeks and subsequent rededication of the temple.25 Kislev (November / December / January)Tu B’ShevatA day celebrating the ‘new year of the trees’.15 Shevat (January / February)PurimA joyous holiday recounting the saving of the Jews from a threatened massacre during the Persian period.14 Adar (February / March)Pesach (Passover)An eight-day festival commemorating the Exodus of the Israelites from slavery in Egypt (7 days in Israel and amongst Progressive UK communities).15 Nisan (March / April)ShavuotCelebrates the giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai. One of three Pilgrimage festivals alongside Sukkot and Pesach. 6 Sivan (May / June)Tisha B’AvA day of mourning commemorating the destruction of the First and Second Temples in Jerusalem.9 Av (July / August)Tu B’AvOriginally a matchmaking day for unmarried women in the Second Temple period (before the fall of Jerusalem in 70 C.E.). In modern times it has become a ‘Jewish Day of Love’ similar to Valentine’s Day.15 Av (July / August)