Learn all about New Year’s Day in Israel and how it's celebrated
Now Playing: Lesson Audio
Get this lesson’s key vocab, their translations and pronunciations. Sign up for your Free Lifetime Account Now and get 7 Days of Premium Access including this feature.
| Hello, and welcome to the Culture Class - Holidays in Israel Series at HebrewPod101.com. In this series, we’re exploring the traditions behind Israeli holidays and observances. I’m Eric, and you're listening to Season 1, Lesson 1, New Year’s Day. |
| Israel uses a Hebrew calendar alongside the Gregorian calendar which is used by most other countries. The Hebrew year begins on the first of Tishrei, and on that day people celebrate Rosh HaShanah—the holiday marking the beginning of the New Year. In 2015, it was celebrated on September 13th, and in 2016, it will be celebrated on October 2nd. |
| In this lesson, you’ll learn about the holiday where Jewish people begin again. |
| Now, before we get into more detail, I've got a question for you- |
| Do you know why it is customary to eat apples and honey on Rosh HaShanah? |
| If you don't already know, keep listening! The answer will be revealed at the end of this lesson! |
| The Jewish New Year is considered to be a Day of Judgement, or יום דין (yom din) in Hebrew. On this day, people are judged on what they did the previous year, and they predict what will happen in the coming year. The custom most associated with the festival is the shofar. Between holiday prayers, the shofar is loudly blown. The shofar is made from a ram's horn, and the noise it makes, which sounds like crying, opens the heart and reminds people how important this day really is. |
| On the eve of Rosh HaShanah, each family meets for the festive holiday meal. They consume special New Year foods, like pomegranate seeds, cooked fish, dates, and desserts containing honey or in Hebrew דבש (dvash). The members of the family wish each other a new year that will be better and happier than the previous one. |
| Since Rosh HaShanah symbolizes a new beginning, one of the customs of the holiday is Tashlikh – during which, after lunch on the first day of the holiday, many people go to a seashore or חוף (ħof) in Hebrew, or to a river, recite a special prayer, and shake out their clothes and pockets to symbolically cast away the sins and wicked deeds they did the previous year, and to express their desire to improve next year. |
| Some people avoid sleep on Rosh HaShanah, following an ancient custom, which is an idea based on a Jewish tradition that says "He who sleeps on Rosh Hashanah, his luck sleeps too.” In Hebrew, this is מי שישן בראש השנה, מזלו ישן (mi she-yashen be-rosh ha-shana, mazalo yashen). |
| Now it's time to answer our quiz question- |
| Do you know why it is customary to eat apples and honey on Rosh HaShanah? |
| On Rosh HaShanah, it is customary to dip slices of apple, or תפוח (tapuaħ) in Hebrew, in honey and greet each other by saying, “that we shall be renewed with a good and sweet year" or in Hebrew שתתחדש עלינו שנה טובה ומתוקה (she-titħadesh alenu shana tova u-metuka). So, in other words, we are asking that the following year will be as good as the sweet taste of apples and honey. |
| How was this lesson? Did you learn something interesting? |
| How do you celebrate the New Year in your country? |
| Leave a comment letting us know at HebrewPod101.com, and we'll see you in the next lesson! |
Comments
Hide