(''Ḥag HaShavuot'' or ''Shavuos'') , nickname = English: "Feast of Weeks" , observedby = Jews and Samaritans , type = Jewish and Samaritan , begins = 6th day of Sivan (or the Sunday following the 6th day of Sivan in

Karaite Judaism Karaite Judaism () or Karaism (, sometimes spelt Karaitism (; ''Yahadut Qara'it''); also spelt Qaraite Judaism, Qaraism or Qaraitism) is a Jewish religious movement characterized by the recognition of the written Torah alone as its supreme ...

) , ends = 7th (in

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

: 6th) day of Sivan , celebrations = Festive meals. All-night

Torah The Torah (; hbo, ''Tōrā'', "Instruction", "Teaching" or "Law") is the compilation of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, namely the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. In that sense, Torah means the ...

study. Recital of Akdamut liturgical poem in Ashkenazic synagogues. Reading of the

Book of Ruth The Book of Ruth ( he, מגילת רות, ''Megilath Ruth'', "the Scroll of Ruth", one of the Five Megillot) is included in the third division, or the Writings (Ketuvim), of the Hebrew Bible. In most Christian canons it is treated as one of th ...

. Eating of

dairy A dairy is a business enterprise established for the harvesting or processing (or both) of animal milk – mostly from cows or buffaloes, but also from goats, sheep, horses, or camels – for human consumption. A dairy is typically located on ...

products. Decoration of homes and

synagogue A synagogue, ', 'house of assembly', or ', "house of prayer"; Yiddish: ''shul'', Ladino: or ' (from synagogue); or ', "community". sometimes referred to as shul, and interchangeably used with the word temple, is a Jewish house of wor ...

s with greenery (

Orach Chayim Orach Chayim, (''manner/way of life'') is a section of Rabbi Jacob ben Asher's compilation of Halakha (Jewish law), Arba'ah Turim. This section addresses aspects of Jewish law pertinent to the Hebrew calendar (be it the daily, weekly, monthly, o ...

494
. , significance = One of the

Three Pilgrimage Festivals The Three Pilgrimage Festivals, in Hebrew ''Shalosh Regalim'' (שלוש רגלים), are three major festivals in Judaism— Pesach (''Passover''), Shavuot (''Weeks'' or ''Pentecost''), and Sukkot (''Tabernacles'', ''Tents'' or ''Booths'')—whe ...

. Celebrates the revelation of the Five Books of the Torah by God to

Moses Moses hbo, מֹשֶׁה, Mōše; also known as Moshe or Moshe Rabbeinu ( Mishnaic Hebrew: מֹשֶׁה רַבֵּינוּ, ); syr, ܡܘܫܐ, Mūše; ar, موسى, Mūsā; grc, Mωϋσῆς, Mōÿsēs () is considered the most important pr ...

and to the

Israelite The Israelites (; , , ) were a group of Semitic-speaking tribes in the ancient Near East who, during the Iron Age, inhabited a part of Canaan. The earliest recorded evidence of a people by the name of Israel appears in the Merneptah Stel ...

s at

Mount Sinai Mount Sinai ( he , הר סיני ''Har Sinai''; Aramaic: ܛܘܪܐ ܕܣܝܢܝ ''Ṭūrāʾ Dsyny''), traditionally known as Jabal Musa ( ar, جَبَل مُوسَىٰ, translation: Mount Moses), is a mountain on the Sinai Peninsula of Egypt. It ...

, 49 days (seven weeks) after

the Exodus The Exodus (Hebrew: יציאת מצרים, ''Yeẓi’at Miẓrayim'': ) is the founding myth of the Israelites whose narrative is spread over four books of the Torah (or Pentateuch, corresponding to the first five books of the Bible), namely E ...

from ancient Egypt. Commemorates the wheat harvesting in the

Land of Israel The Land of Israel () is the traditional Jewish name for an area of the Southern Levant. Related biblical, religious and historical English terms include the Land of Canaan, the Promised Land, the Holy Land, and Palestine (see also Isr ...

. Culmination of the 49 days of the

Counting of the Omer Counting of the Omer (, Sefirat HaOmer, sometimes abbreviated as Sefira or the Omer) is an important verbal counting of each of the forty-nine days starting with the Wave Offering of a sheaf of ripe grain with a sacrifice immediately following ...

. , relatedto =

Passover Passover, also called Pesach (; ), is a major Jewish holiday that celebrates the Biblical story of the Israelites escape from slavery in Egypt, which occurs on the 15th day of the Hebrew month of Nisan, the first month of Aviv, or spring. ...

, which precedes Shavuot , date = , date = , date = , date = , date = Jewish Papercut

''Shavuot'' (), or ''Shavuos'' () in some

Ashkenazi Ashkenazi Jews ( ; he, יְהוּדֵי אַשְׁכְּנַז, translit=Yehudei Ashkenaz, ; yi, אַשכּנזישע ייִדן, Ashkenazishe Yidn), also known as Ashkenazic Jews or ''Ashkenazim'',, Ashkenazi Hebrew pronunciation: , singu ...

usage ( he, , ''Šāvūʿōṯ'', "Weeks"), commonly known in English as the Feast of Weeks, is a

Jewish holiday Jewish holidays, also known as Jewish festivals or ''Yamim Tovim'' ( he, ימים טובים, , Good Days, or singular , in transliterated Hebrew []), are holidays observed in Judaism and by JewsThis article focuses on practices of mainst ...

that occurs on the sixth day of the Hebrew month of Sivan (in the 21st century, it may fall between May 15 and June 14 on the Gregorian calendar). In the Bible, Shavuot marked the wheat harvest in the

(). In addition, Orthodox rabbinic traditions teach that the date also marks the revelation of the

and the

s at

, which, according to the tradition of

Orthodox Judaism Orthodox Judaism is the collective term for the traditionalist and theologically conservative branches of contemporary Judaism. Theologically, it is chiefly defined by regarding the Torah, both Written and Oral, as revealed by God to Moses o ...

, occurred at this date in 1314BCE.History Crash Course #36: Timeline: From Abraham to Destruction of the Temple
by Rabbi Ken Spiro, Aish.com. Retrieved 2010-08-19. The word ''Shavuot'' means "weeks", and it marks the conclusion of the

. Its date is directly linked to that of

; the Torah mandates the seven-week Counting of the Omer, beginning on the second day of Passover, to be immediately followed by Shavuot. This counting of days and weeks is understood to express anticipation and desire for the giving of the Torah. On Passover, the people of Israel were freed from their enslavement to Pharaoh; on Shavuot, they were given the Torah and became a nation committed to serving God. While it is sometimes referred to as Pentecost (in grc-koi, Πεντηκοστή) due to its timing after Passover, "pentecost" meaning "fifty" in Greek and Shavuot occurring fifty days after the first day of Pesach/Passover, it is not the same as the Christian Pentecost, which comes fifty days after Pascha/Easter. The Christian observance of

Pentecost Pentecost (also called Whit Sunday, Whitsunday or Whitsun) is a Christian holiday which takes place on the 50th day (the seventh Sunday) after Easter Sunday. It commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles and other followers ...

is a different holiday, but was based on a New Testament event that happened around the gathering of Jesus's followers on this Jewish holiday (

Acts of the Apostles The Acts of the Apostles ( grc-koi, Πράξεις Ἀποστόλων, ''Práxeis Apostólōn''; la, Actūs Apostolōrum) is the fifth book of the New Testament; it tells of the founding of the Christian Church and the spread of its messag ...

2:1 and following). One of the biblically ordained

, Shavuot is traditionally celebrated in

for one day, where it is a public holiday, and for two days in the

diaspora A diaspora ( ) is a population that is scattered across regions which are separate from its geographic place of origin. Historically, the word was used first in reference to the dispersion of Greeks in the Hellenic world, and later Jews after ...

Significance

Agricultural (wheat harvest)

Shavuot is not explicitly named in the Bible as the day on which the Torah was revealed by God to the Israelite nation at Mount Sinai, although this is commonly considered to be its main significance.See, for example, What is textually connected in the Bible to the Feast of Shavuot is the season of the grain harvest, specifically of the wheat, in the

. In ancient times, the grain harvest lasted seven weeks and was a season of gladness (, , ). It began with the harvesting of the barley during Passover and ended with the harvesting of the wheat at Shavuot. Shavuot was thus the concluding festival of the grain harvest, just as the eighth day of

Sukkot or ("Booths, Tabernacles") , observedby = Jews, Samaritans, a few Protestant denominations, Messianic Jews, Semitic Neopagans , type = Jewish, Samaritan , begins = 15th day of Tishrei , ends = 21st day of Tis ...

(Tabernacles) was the concluding festival of the fruit harvest. During the existence of the

Temple in Jerusalem The Temple in Jerusalem, or alternatively the Holy Temple (; , ), refers to the two now-destroyed religious structures that served as the central places of worship for Israelites and Jews on the modern-day Temple Mount in the Old City of Jeru ...

, an offering of two loaves of bread from the wheat harvest was made on Shavuot according to the commandment in . The last but one Qumran Scroll to be published has been discovered to contain two festival dates observed by the

Qumran sect Qumran ( he, קומראן; ar, خربة قمران ') is an archaeological site in the West Bank managed by Israel's Qumran National Park. It is located on a dry marl plateau about from the northwestern shore of the Dead Sea, near the Isra ...

as part of their formally perfect 364-day calendar, and dedicated to "New Wine" and "New Oil", neither of which is mentioned in the

Hebrew Bible The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
'' Qumran manuscript, the

Temple Scroll The Temple Scroll ( he, מגילת המקדש) is the longest of the Dead Sea Scrolls. Among the discoveries at Qumran it is designated: 11QTemple Scrolla (11Q19 1QTa. It describes a Jewish temple, along with extensive detailed regulations about ...

. These festivals "constituted an extension of the festival of Shavuot... which celebrates the New Wheat." All three festivals are calculated starting from the first Sabbath following Passover, by repeatedly adding exactly fifty days each time: first came New Wheat (Shavuot), then New Wine, and then New Oil. (See also below, at "The Book of Jubilees and the Essenes".)

Scriptural

Names in the Torah

In the Bible, Shavuot is called the "Festival of Weeks" ( he, חג השבועות, ''Chag HaShavuot'', , ); "Festival of Reaping" (, ''Chag HaKatzir'', ), and "Day of the First Fruits" (, ''Yom HaBikkurim'', ). ''Shavuot'', the plural of a word meaning "week" or "seven", alludes to the fact that this festival happens exactly seven weeks (i.e. "a week of weeks") after Passover.

In the Talmud

The

Talmud The Talmud (; he, , Talmūḏ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law ('' halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the ce ...

refers to Shavuot as ''ʻAṣeret'' ( he, עצרת, "refraining" or "holding back"), referring to the prohibition against work on this holiday and also to the conclusion of the Passover holiday-season. The other reason given for the reference ''ʻAṣeret'' is that just as ''Shemini'' ''ʻAṣeret'' brings the Festival of Succoth to a "close", in the same respect, Shavuot (''ʻAṣeret'') brings The Festival of Passover to its actual "close". Since Shavuot occurs fifty days after Passover, Hellenistic Jews gave it the name "Pentecost" ( grc-koi, Πεντηκοστή, "fiftieth

day A day is the time period of a full rotation of the Earth with respect to the Sun. On average, this is 24 hours, 1440 minutes, or 86,400 seconds. In everyday life, the word "day" often refers to a solar day, which is the length between two ...

").

Ancient observances

Ceremony of First Fruits, ''Bikkurim''

Shavuot was also the first day on which individuals could bring the ''Bikkurim'' (

first fruits First Fruits is a religious offering of the first agricultural produce of the harvest. In classical Greek, Roman, and Hebrew religions, the first fruits were given to priests as an offering to deity. In Christian faiths, the tithe is similar ...

) to the

( Mishnah Bikkurim 1:3). The ''Bikkurim'' were brought from the

Seven Species The Seven Species ( he, שִׁבְעַת הַמִינִים, ''Shiv'at HaMinim'') are seven agricultural products - two grains and five fruits - which are listed in the Hebrew Bible as being special products of the Land of Israel. The seven specie ...

for which the Land of Israel is praised: wheat,

barley Barley (''Hordeum vulgare''), a member of the grass family, is a major cereal grain grown in temperate climates globally. It was one of the first cultivated grains, particularly in Eurasia as early as 10,000 years ago. Globally 70% of barley p ...

grape A grape is a fruit, botanically a berry, of the deciduous woody vines of the flowering plant genus '' Vitis''. Grapes are a non- climacteric type of fruit, generally occurring in clusters. The cultivation of grapes began perhaps 8,000 years a ...

fig The fig is the edible fruit of ''Ficus carica'', a species of small tree in the flowering plant family Moraceae. Native to the Mediterranean and western Asia, it has been cultivated since ancient times and is now widely grown throughout the world ...

s, pomegranates,

olive The olive, botanical name ''Olea europaea'', meaning 'European olive' in Latin, is a species of small tree or shrub in the family Oleaceae, found traditionally in the Mediterranean Basin. When in shrub form, it is known as ''Olea europaea'' ' ...

s, and dates (). In the largely agrarian society of ancient Israel, Jewish farmers would tie a reed around the first ripening fruits from each of these species in their fields. At the time of harvest, the fruits identified by the reed would be cut and placed in baskets woven of gold and silver. The baskets would then be loaded on oxen whose horns were gilded and laced with garlands of flowers, and who were led in a grand procession to

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

. As the farmer and his entourage passed through cities and towns, they would be accompanied by music and parades.

Temple in Jerusalem

At the

, each farmer would present his ''Bikkurim'' to a

Kohen Kohen ( he, , ''kōhēn'', , "priest", pl. , ''kōhănīm'', , "priests") is the Hebrew word for " priest", used in reference to the Aaronic priesthood, also called Aaronites or Aaronides. Levitical priests or ''kohanim'' are traditionally ...

in a ceremony that followed the text of . This text begins by stating: "An Aramean tried to destroy my father," referring to Laban's efforts to weaken

Jacob Jacob (; ; ar, يَعْقُوب, Yaʿqūb; gr, Ἰακώβ, Iakṓb), later given the name Israel, is regarded as a patriarch of the Israelites and is an important figure in Abrahamic religions, such as Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. ...

and rob him of his progeny ( Targum Onkelos and

Rashi Shlomo Yitzchaki ( he, רבי שלמה יצחקי; la, Salomon Isaacides; french: Salomon de Troyes, 22 February 1040 – 13 July 1105), today generally known by the acronym Rashi (see below), was a medieval French rabbi and author of a compre ...

on Deut. 26:5)or by an alternate translation, the text states "My father was a wandering Aramean," referring to the fact that Jacob was a penniless wanderer in the land of Aram for twenty years ( Abraham ibn Ezra on Deut. 26:5). The text proceeds to retell the history of the Jewish people as they went into exile in Ancient Egypt and were enslaved and oppressed; following which God redeemed them and brought them to the land of Israel. The ceremony of ''Bikkurim'' conveys gratitude to God both for the first fruits of the field and for His guidance throughout Jewish history (Scherman, page1068).

Modern religious observances

Nowadays in the post-Temple era, Shavuot is the only biblically ordained holiday that has no specific laws attached to it other than usual festival requirements of abstaining from creative work. The rabbinic observances for the holiday include reciting additional prayers, making kiddush, partaking of meals and being in a state of joy. There are however many customs which are observed on Shavuot. A mnemonic for the customs largely observed in Ashkenazi communities spells the Hebrew word ''aḥarit'' (, "last"): * – ''Aqdamut'', the reading of a

piyyut A ''piyyut'' or ''piyut'' (plural piyyutim or piyutim, he, פִּיּוּטִים / פיוטים, פִּיּוּט / פיוט ; from Greek ποιητής ''poiētḗs'' "poet") is a Jewish liturgical poem, usually designated to be sung, ch ...

(liturgical poem) during Shavuot morning synagogue services * – ''ḥalav'' (milk), the consumption of dairy products like milk and cheese * – ''Rut'', the reading of the

at morning services (outside Israel: on the second day) * – ''Yereq'' (greening), the decoration of homes and synagogues with greenery * – ''Torah'', engaging in all-night Torah study. The ''yahrzeit'' of

King David David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...

is traditionally observed on Shavuot.

Hasidic Jew Hasidism, sometimes spelled Chassidism, and also known as Hasidic Judaism (Ashkenazi Hebrew: חסידות ''Ḥăsīdus'', ; originally, "piety"), is a Jewish religious group that arose as a spiritual revival movement in the territory of conte ...

s also observe the ''yahrzeit'' of the

Baal Shem Tov Israel ben Eliezer (1698 – 22 May 1760), known as the Baal Shem Tov ( he, בעל שם טוב, ) or as the Besht, was a Jewish mystic and healer who is regarded as the founder of Hasidic Judaism. "Besht" is the acronym for Baal Shem Tov, which ...

Liturgical poems

''Aqdamut''

The ''Aqdamut'' ( arc, אקדמות) is a liturgical poem recited by Ashkenazi Jews extolling the greatness of God, the Torah, and Israel that is read publicly in Ashkenazic synagogues in the middle oror in some communities right beforethe morning reading of the Torah on the first day of Shavuot. It was composed by Rabbi Meir of Worms. Rabbi Meir was forced to defend the Torah and his Jewish faith in a debate with local priests and successfully conveyed his certainty of God's power, His love for the Jewish people, and the excellence of Torah. Afterwards he wrote the ''Aqdamut'', a 90-line poem in

Aramaic The Aramaic languages, short Aramaic ( syc, ܐܪܡܝܐ, Arāmāyā; oar, 𐤀𐤓𐤌𐤉𐤀; arc, 𐡀𐡓𐡌𐡉𐡀; tmr, אֲרָמִית), are a language family containing many varieties (languages and dialects) that originated i ...

that stresses these themes. The poem is written in a double

acrostic An acrostic is a poem or other word composition in which the ''first'' letter (or syllable, or word) of each new line (or paragraph, or other recurring feature in the text) spells out a word, message or the alphabet. The term comes from the F ...

pattern according to the order of the

Hebrew alphabet The Hebrew alphabet ( he, אָלֶף־בֵּית עִבְרִי, ), known variously by scholars as the Ktav Ashuri, Jewish script, square script and block script, is an abjad script used in the writing of the Hebrew language and other Jewi ...

. In addition, each line ends with the syllable ''ta'' (), the last and first letters of the Hebrew alphabet, alluding to the endlessness of Torah. The traditional melodies that accompanies this poem also conveys a sense of grandeur and triumph.

''Azharot''

There is an ancient tradition to recite poems known as Azharot listing the commandments. This was already considered a well-established custom in the 9th century. These piyyutim were originally recited during the chazzan's repetition of the Mussaf amidah, in some communities they were later moved to a different part of the service. Some Ashkenazic communities maintain the original practice of reciting the Azharot during musaf; they recite "Ata hinchlata" on the first day and "Azharat Reishit" on the second, both from the early Geonic period. Italian Jews do the same except that they switch the piyyutim of the two day, and in recent centuries, "Ata hinchlata" has been truncated to include only one 22-line poem instead of eight. Many

Sephardic Jew Sephardic (or Sephardi) Jews (, ; lad, Djudíos Sefardíes), also ''Sepharadim'' , Modern Hebrew: ''Sfaradim'', Tiberian: Səp̄āraddîm, also , ''Ye'hude Sepharad'', lit. "The Jews of Spain", es, Judíos sefardíes (or ), pt, Judeus sefa ...

s recite the Azharot of

Solomon ibn Gabirol Solomon ibn Gabirol or Solomon ben Judah ( he, ר׳ שְׁלֹמֹה בֶּן יְהוּדָה אִבְּן גָּבִּירוֹל, Shlomo Ben Yehuda ibn Gabirol, ; ar, أبو أيوب سليمان بن يحيى بن جبيرول, ’Abū ’Ayy ...

before the mincha service; in many communities, the positive commandments are recited on the first day and the negative commandments on the second day.

''Yatziv Pitgam''

The liturgical poem ''Yatziv Pitgam'' ( arc, יציב פתגם) is recited by some synagogues in the diaspora on the second day of Shavuot. The author signs his name at the beginning of the poem's 15 linesYaakov ben Meir Levi, better knows as Rabbeinu Tam.

Dairy foods

Dairy foods such as cheesecake, cheese blintzes, and cheese kreplach among

Ashkenazi Jew Ashkenazi Jews ( ; he, יְהוּדֵי אַשְׁכְּנַז, translit=Yehudei Ashkenaz, ; yi, אַשכּנזישע ייִדן, Ashkenazishe Yidn), also known as Ashkenazic Jews or ''Ashkenazim'',, Ashkenazi Hebrew pronunciation: , singu ...

s; cheese

sambusak A samosa () or singara is a fried Indian pastry with a savory filling, including ingredients such as spiced potatoes, onions, and peas. It may take different forms, including triangular, cone, or half-moon shapes, depending on the region. Sam ...

, kelsonnes (cheese ravioli), and atayef (a cheese-filled pancake) among

Syrian Jew Syrian Jews ( he, יהודי סוריה ''Yehudey Surya'', ar, الْيَهُود السُّورِيُّون ''al-Yahūd as-Sūriyyūn'', colloquially called SYs in the United States) are Jews who lived in the region of the modern state of Syri ...

s; kahee (a dough that is buttered and sugared) among

Iraqi Jews The history of the Jews in Iraq ( he, יְהוּדִים בָּבְלִים, ', ; ar, اليهود العراقيون, ) is documented from the time of the Babylonian captivity c. 586 BC. Iraqi Jews constitute one of the world's oldest and mos ...

; and a seven-layer cake called ''siete cielos'' (seven heavens) among

Tunisia ) , image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa , image_map2 = , capital = Tunis , largest_city = capital , ...

n and

Moroccan Jew Moroccan Jews ( ar, اليهود المغاربة, al-Yahūd al-Maghāriba he, יהודים מרוקאים, Yehudim Maroka'im) are Jews who live in or are from Morocco. Moroccan Jews constitute an ancient community dating to Roman times. Jews b ...

s are traditionally consumed on the Shavuot holiday. Yemenite Jews do not eat dairy foods on Shavuot. In keeping with the observance of other

s, there is both a night Seudat mitzvah#Seudat Shabbat and Seudat Yom Tov, meal and a day meal on Shavuot. Meat is usually served at night and dairy is served either for the day meal or for a morning kiddush. Among the explanations given in rabbinic literature for the consumption of dairy foods on this holiday are: *Before they received the Torah, the Israelites were not obligated to follow its laws, which include '' shechita'' (ritual slaughter of animals) and

kashrut (also or , ) is a set of dietary laws dealing with the foods that Jewish people are permitted to eat and how those foods must be prepared according to Jewish law. Food that may be consumed is deemed kosher ( in English, yi, כּשר), fr ...

. Since all their meat pots and dishes now had to be made kosher before use, they opted to eat dairy foods. *The Torah is compared to milk by King

Solomon Solomon (; , ),, ; ar, سُلَيْمَان, ', , ; el, Σολομών, ; la, Salomon also called Jedidiah (Hebrew language, Hebrew: , Modern Hebrew, Modern: , Tiberian Hebrew, Tiberian: ''Yăḏīḏăyāh'', "beloved of Yahweh, Yah"), ...

, who wrote: "Like honey and milk, it lies under your tongue" ( Song of Songs 4:11). *The gematria of the Hebrew word ''ḥalav'' () is 40, corresponding to the forty days and forty nights that

spent on

before bringing down the Torah. *According to the '' Zohar'', each day of the year correlates to one of the Torah's 365 negative commandments. Shavuot corresponds to the commandment "Bring the first fruits of your land to the house of God your Lord; do not cook a kid in its mother's milk" (

Exodus Exodus or the Exodus may refer to: Religion * Book of Exodus, second book of the Hebrew Torah and the Christian Bible * The Exodus, the biblical story of the migration of the ancient Israelites from Egypt into Canaan Historical events * E ...

34:26). Since the first day to bring ''Bikkurim'' (the first fruits) is Shavuot, the second half of the verse refers to the custom to eat two separate mealsone milk, one meaton Shavuot. *The

Psalms The Book of Psalms ( or ; he, תְּהִלִּים, , lit. "praises"), also known as the Psalms, or the Psalter, is the first book of the ("Writings"), the third section of the Tanakh, and a book of the Old Testament. The title is derived ...

call Mount Sinai ''Har Gavnunim'' (, mountain of majestic peaks, Psalm 68:16–17/15–16 ), which is etymologically similar to ''gevinah'' (, cheese).

Book of Ruth

Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld- Ruth im Feld des Boaz

There are five books in

Tanakh The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
'' Megillot'' (Hebrew: , "scrolls") and are publicly read in the synagogues of some Jewish communities on different Jewish holidays. The

(, ''Megillat Ruth'') is read on Shavuot because: #King David, Ruth's descendant, was born and died on Shavuot (

Jerusalem Talmud The Jerusalem Talmud ( he, תַּלְמוּד יְרוּשַׁלְמִי, translit=Talmud Yerushalmi, often for short), also known as the Palestinian Talmud or Talmud of the Land of Israel, is a collection of rabbinic notes on the second-century ...

Hagigah 2:3); #Shavuot is harvest time xodus 23:16 and the events of Book of Ruth occur at harvest time; #The gematria (numerical value) of Ruth is 606, the number of commandments given at Sinai in addition to the

Seven Laws of Noah In Judaism, the Seven Laws of Noah ( he, שבע מצוות בני נח, ''Sheva Mitzvot B'nei Noach''), otherwise referred to as the Noahide Laws or the Noachian Laws (from the Hebrew pronunciation of " Noah"), are a set of universal moral la ...

already given, for a total of 613; #Because Shavuot is traditionally cited as the day of the giving of the Torah, the entry of the entire Jewish people into the covenant of the Torah is a major theme of the day. Ruth's conversion to Judaism, and consequent entry into that covenant, is described in the book. This theme accordingly resonates with other themes of the day; #Another central theme of the book is ''ḥesed'' (loving-kindness), a major theme of the Torah.

Greenery

According to the

Midrash ''Midrash'' (;"midrash"
''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''. he, מִדְרָשׁ; ...

, Mount Sinai suddenly blossomed with Flowers in anticipation of the giving of the Torah on its summit. It is for this reason that, in fact, Persian Jews refer to the Holiday of Shavuot by an entirely different name, namely, "The Mo'ed of Flowers" (موعد گل) in Persian (their daily language), and never as the Hebrew word "Shavuot" (which means "weeks"). Shavuot is one of the three Mo'edim ("appointed times") in the five Books of Moses: The Mo'ed (מועד) of the first month

isan Northeast Thailand or Isan ( Isan/ th, อีสาน, ; lo, ອີສານ; also written as Isaan, Isarn, Issarn, Issan, Esan, or Esarn; from Pali ''īsānna'' or Sanskrit ईशान्य ''īśānya'' "northeast") consists of 20 prov ...

(i.e. Passover), The Mo'ed of Weeks lowers (i.e. Shavuot), and The Mo'ed of Sukkah (i.e., Succot). The conglomerate name for these three "Pilgrimage Festivals" amongst All Jewish communities the world over is "Shalosh Regalim" (שלוש רגלים), literally "the Three Legs" because in ancient times the way people traveled to the "appointed place" (Jerusalem) at the "appointed time" (Mo'ed) was by walking there with their "legs" (regelim). This idea is translated into English as a "pilgrimage". The text of the Kiddush recited over wine is therefore identical, except for the reference to the particular celebration. For this reason, many Jewish families traditionally decorate their homes and synagogues with plants, flowers and leafy branches in remembrance of the "sprouting of Mount Sinai" on the day of the Giving of the Torah, namely the seeing and hearing of the 10Commandments. Some synagogues decorate the bimah with a canopy of flowers and plants so that it resembles a

chuppah A ''chuppah'' ( he, חוּפָּה, pl. חוּפּוֹת, ''chuppot'', literally, "canopy" or "covering"), also huppah, chipe, chupah, or chuppa, is a canopy under which a Jewish couple stand during their wedding ceremony. It consists of a c ...

, as Shavuot is mystically referred to as the day the matchmaker (Moses) brought the bride (the nation of Israel) to the chuppah (Mount Sinai) to marry the bridegroom (God); the ''

ketubah A ketubah (; he, כְּתוּבָּה) is a Jewish marriage contract. It is considered an integral part of a traditional Jewish marriage, and outlines the rights and responsibilities of the groom, in relation to the bride. In modern practice, ...

'' (marriage contract) was the Torah. Some Eastern Sephardi communities read out a ''ketubah'' between God and Israel, composed by Rabbi Israel ben Moses Najara as part of the service. This custom was also adopted by some Hasidic communities, particularly from

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Cr ...

. The Vilna Gaon cancelled the tradition of decorating with trees because it too closely resembles the Christian decorations for their holidays. Greenery also figures in the story of the baby

being found among the bulrushes in a watertight cradle () when he was three months old (Moses was born on 7Adar and placed in the

Nile River The Nile, , Bohairic , lg, Kiira , Nobiin: Áman Dawū is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa. It flows into the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile is the longest river in Africa and has historically been considered the longest riv ...

on 6Sivan, the same day he later brought the Jewish nation to Mount Sinai to receive the Torah).

All-night Torah study

The practice of staying up all Shavuot night to study Torahknown as ''Tiqun Leyl Shavuot'' ( he, תקון ליל שבועות) ("Rectification for Shavuot Night")is linked to a

Midrash ''Midrash'' (;"midrash"
''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''. he, מִדְרָשׁ; ...

which relates that the night before the Torah was given, the Israelites retired early to be well-rested for the momentous day ahead. They overslept and

had to wake them up because God was already waiting on the mountaintop. To rectify this perceived flaw in the national character, many religious Jews stay up all night to learn Torah. The custom of all-night Torah study goes back to 1533 when Rabbi Joseph Caro, author of the ''

Shulchan Aruch The ''Shulchan Aruch'' ( he, שֻׁלְחָן עָרוּך , literally: "Set Table"), sometimes dubbed in English as the Code of Jewish Law, is the most widely consulted of the various legal codes in Judaism. It was authored in Safed (today in ...

'', then living in Ottoman

Salonika Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its metropolitan area, and the capital of the geographic region of ...

, invited Rabbi

Shlomo Halevi Alkabetz Shlomo ha-Levi Alkabetz, also spelt Alqabitz, Alqabes; ( he, שלמה אלקבץ) ( 1500 – 1576) was a rabbi, kabbalist and poet perhaps best known for his composition of the song ''Lecha Dodi''. Biography Alkabetz studied Torah under Rabb ...

and other Kabbalistic colleagues to hold Shavuot-night study vigils for which they prepared for three days in advance, just as the Israelites had prepared for three days before the giving of the Torah. During one of those study sessions, an angel appeared and taught them

Jewish law ''Halakha'' (; he, הֲלָכָה, ), also transliterated as ''halacha'', ''halakhah'', and ''halocho'' ( ), is the collective body of Jewish religious laws which is derived from the written and Oral Torah. Halakha is based on biblical comman ...

. It has been suggested that the introduction of

coffee Coffee is a drink prepared from roasted coffee beans. Darkly colored, bitter, and slightly acidic, coffee has a stimulating effect on humans, primarily due to its caffeine content. It is the most popular hot drink in the world. Seeds of ...

(containing caffeine) throughout the

Ottoman empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University ...

may have attributed to the "feasibility and popularity" of the practice of all-night Torah study. In contrast, the custom of Yemenite Jews is to ingest the fresh leaves of a stimulant herb called Khat (containing

cathinone Cathinone (also known as benzoylethanamine, or β-keto-amphetamine) is a monoamine alkaloid found in the shrub ''Catha edulis'' (khat) and is chemically similar to ephedrine, cathine, methcathinone and other amphetamines. It is probably the mai ...

) for the all-night ritual, an herb commonly used in that region of the world. Any subject may be studied on Shavuot night, although

Mishnah The Mishnah or the Mishna (; he, מִשְׁנָה, "study by repetition", from the verb ''shanah'' , or "to study and review", also "secondary") is the first major written collection of the Jewish oral traditions which is known as the Oral Tor ...

, and

typically top the list. People may learn alone or with a '' chavruta'' (study partner), or attend late-night '' shiurim'' (lectures) and study groups. In keeping with the custom of engaging in all-night Torah study, leading 16th-century kabbalist

Isaac Luria Isaac ben Solomon Luria Ashkenazi (1534Fine 2003, p24/ref> – July 25, 1572) ( he, יִצְחָק בן שלמה לוּרְיָא אשכנזי ''Yitzhak Ben Sh'lomo Lurya Ashkenazi''), commonly known in Jewish religious circles as "Ha'ARI" (mean ...

arranged a recital consisting of excerpts from the beginning and end of each of the 24 books of

Tanakh The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
'' the account of the days of creation,

, the giving of the

Ten Commandments The Ten Commandments (Biblical Hebrew עשרת הדברים \ עֲשֶׂרֶת הַדְּבָרִים, ''aséret ha-dvarím'', lit. The Decalogue, The Ten Words, cf. Mishnaic Hebrew עשרת הדיברות \ עֲשֶׂרֶת הַדִּבְ ...

and the

Shema ''Shema Yisrael'' (''Shema Israel'' or ''Sh'ma Yisrael''; he , שְׁמַע יִשְׂרָאֵל ''Šəmaʿ Yīsrāʾēl'', "Hear, O Israel") is a Jewish prayer (known as the Shema) that serves as a centerpiece of the morning and evening Jewis ...

) and the 63 tractates of Mishnah, followed by the reading of '' Sefer Yetzirah'', the 613 commandments as enumerated by

Maimonides Musa ibn Maimon (1138–1204), commonly known as Maimonides (); la, Moses Maimonides and also referred to by the acronym Rambam ( he, רמב״ם), was a Sephardic Jewish philosopher who became one of the most prolific and influential Torah ...

, and excerpts from the Zohar, with opening and concluding prayers. The whole reading is divided into thirteen parts, after each of which a ''Kaddish d-Rabbanan'' is recited when the ''Tiqun'' is studied with a

minyan In Judaism, a ''minyan'' ( he, מניין \ מִנְיָן ''mīnyān'' , lit. (noun) ''count, number''; pl. ''mīnyānīm'' ) is the quorum of ten Jewish adults required for certain religious obligations. In more traditional streams of Ju ...

. Today, this service is held in many communities, with the notable exception of

Spanish and Portuguese Jew Spanish and Portuguese Jews, also called Western Sephardim, Iberian Jews, or Peninsular Jews, are a distinctive sub-group of Sephardic Jews who are largely descended from Jews who lived as New Christians in the Iberian Peninsula during the ...

s. The service is printed in a book called ''Tiqun Leyl Shavuot''. There exist similar books for the vigils before the seventh day of Pesach and Hosha'ana Rabbah. In

, at the conclusion of the night time study session, tens of thousands of people walk to the

Western Wall The Western Wall ( he, הַכּוֹתֶל הַמַּעֲרָבִי, HaKotel HaMa'aravi, the western wall, often shortened to the Kotel or Kosel), known in the West as the Wailing Wall, and in Islam as the Buraq Wall (Arabic: حَائِط ...

to pray with sunrise. A week after Israel captured the

Old City Old City often refers to old town, the historic or original core of a city or town. Old City may refer to several places: Historical cities or regions of cities ''(by country)'' *Old City (Baku), Azerbaijan * Old City (Dhaka), Bangladesh, also ca ...

during the

Six-Day War The Six-Day War (, ; ar, النكسة, , or ) or June War, also known as the 1967 Arab–Israeli War or Third Arab–Israeli War, was fought between Israel and a coalition of Arab states (primarily Egypt, Syria, and Jordan) from 5 to 10 ...

, more than 200,000 Jews streamed to the site on Shavuot, it having been made accessible to Jews for the first time since 1948.

Modern secular observance

Bikkurim festival in Giv'at Shmuel, Israel, 2009 In secular agricultural communities in Israel, such as most

kibbutz A kibbutz ( he, קִבּוּץ / , lit. "gathering, clustering"; plural: kibbutzim / ) is an intentional community in Israel that was traditionally based on agriculture. The first kibbutz, established in 1909, was Degania. Today, farming h ...

im and moshavim, Shavuot is celebrated as a harvest and first-fruit festival including a wider, symbolic meaning of joy over the accomplishments of the year. As such, not just agricultural produce and machinery is presented to the community, but also the babies born during the preceding twelve months.

Confirmation ceremonies

In the 19th century several Orthodox synagogues in Britain and Australia held confirmation ceremonies for 12-year-old girls on Shavuot, a precursor to the modern Bat Mitzvah. The early Reform movement made Shavuot into a religious school graduation day. Today, Reform synagogues in North America typically hold confirmation ceremonies on Shavuot for students aged 16 to 18 who are completing their religious studies. The graduating class stands in front of an open

ark Ark or ARK may refer to: Biblical narratives and religion Hebrew word ''teva'' * Noah's Ark, a massive vessel said to have been built to save the world's animals from a flood * Ark of bulrushes, the boat of the infant Moses Hebrew ''aron'' * ...

, recalling the standing of the Israelites at

for the giving of the Torah.

Dates in dispute

Since the Torah does not specify the actual day on which Shavuot falls, differing interpretations of this date have arisen in both traditional and non-traditional Jewish circles. These discussions center around two ways of looking at Shavuot: the day it actually occurs (i.e., the day the Torah was given on Mount Sinai), and the day it occurs in relation to the Counting of the Omer (being the 50th day from the first day of the Counting).

Giving of the Torah

While most of the Talmudic Sages concur that the Torah was given on the sixth of Sivan in the

Hebrew calendar The Hebrew calendar ( he, הַלּוּחַ הָעִבְרִי, translit=HaLuah HaIvri), also called the Jewish calendar, is a lunisolar calendar used today for Jewish religious observance, and as an official calendar of the state of Israel ...

, Rabbi Jose holds that it was given on the seventh of that month. According to the classical timeline, the Israelites arrived at the wilderness of Sinai on the new moon () and the

were given on the following Shabbat (i.e., Saturday). The question of whether the new moon fell on Sunday or Monday is undecided (Talmud, tractate Shabbat 86b). In practice, Shavuot is observed on the sixth day of Sivan in

and a second day is added in the

Jewish diaspora The Jewish diaspora ( he, תְּפוּצָה, təfūṣā) or exile (Hebrew: ; Yiddish: ) is the dispersion of Israelites or Jews out of their ancient ancestral homeland (the Land of Israel) and their subsequent settlement in other parts of th ...

(in keeping with a separate rabbinical ruling that applies to all biblical holidays, called ''

Yom tov sheni shel galuyot ''Yom tov sheni shel galuyot'' ( he, יום טוב שני של גלויות), also called in short ''yom tov sheni'', means "the second festival day in the Diaspora", and is an important concept in halakha (Jewish law). The concept refers to th ...

'', Second-Day Yom Tov in the diaspora).

Counting of the Omer

The Torah states that the Omer offering (i.e., the first day of counting the Omer) is the first day of the barley harvest (). It should begin "on the morrow after the

Shabbat Shabbat (, , or ; he, שַׁבָּת, Šabbāṯ, , ) or the Sabbath (), also called Shabbos (, ) by Ashkenazim, is Judaism's day of rest on the seventh day of the week—i.e., Saturday. On this day, religious Jews remember the biblical stori ...

", and continue to be counted for seven Sabbaths. (). The Talmudic Sages determined that "Shabbat" here means a day of rest and refers to the first day of Passover. Thus, the counting of the Omer begins on the second day of Passover and continues for the next 49 days, or seven complete weeks, ending on the day before Shavuot. According to this calculation, Shavuot will fall on the day of the week after that of the first day of Passover (e.g., if Passover starts on a Thursday, Shavuot will begin on a Friday).

The Book of Jubilees and the Essenes

This literal interpretation of "Shabbat" as the weekly Shabbat was shared by the author of the Book of Jubilees, who was motivated by the priestly sabbatical

solar calendar A solar calendar is a calendar whose dates indicate the season or almost equivalently the apparent position of the Sun relative to the stars. The Gregorian calendar, widely accepted as a standard in the world, is an example of a solar calendar. ...

to have festivals and Sabbaths fall on the same day of the week every year. On this calendar (best known from the Book of Luminaries in the Book of Enoch), Shavuot fell on the 15th of Sivan, a Sunday. The date was reckoned fifty days from the first Shabbat after Passover (i.e. from the 25th of Nisan). Thus, Jub. 1:1 claims that Moses ascended Mount Sinai to receive the Torah "on the sixteenth day of the third month in the first year of the Exodus of the children of Israel from Egypt". In Jub. 6:15–22 and 44:1–5, the holiday is traced to the appearance of the first rainbow on the 15th of Sivan, the day on which God made his covenant with Noah. The Qumran community, commonly associated with the Essenes, held in its library several texts mentioning Shavuot, most notably a Hebrew original of the Book of Jubilees, which sought to fix the celebration of this Feast of Weeks on 15 of Sivan, following their interpretation of Exodus 19:1. Joseph Fitzmyer ''Responses to 101 questions on the Dead Sea scrolls'' 1992 p. 87"Particularly important for the Qumran community was the celebration of this Feast of Weeks on III/15, because according to Ex. 19:1 Israel arrived in its exodus-wandering at Mt. Sinai in the third month after leaving Egypt. Later the renewal of the Covenant came to be celebrated on the

Feast of Weeks A banquet (; ) is a formal large meal where a number of people consume food together. Banquets are traditionally held to enhance the prestige of a host, or reinforce social bonds among joint contributors. Modern examples of these purposes i ...

. Qumran community was deeply researched by Flavius Josephus." (See also above, at "Agricultural (wheat harvest)".)

Notes and references

General sources

* * *

External links

Shavuot
at Chabad.org
Jewish Holidays: Shavuot
at the Orthodox Union
Jewish Confirmation
at My Jewish Learning {{Authority control Hallel Hebrew names of Jewish holy days Sivan observances Tabernacle and Temples in Jerusalem