Rosh Chodesh L'Banot
[1]
[2]
(
Hebrew
:
??? ???? ?????
), also known as
Chag HaBanot
[2]
(
?? ?????
, 'Festival of the Daughters',
[3]
sometimes translated as
Girls' Day
), and in
Arabic
as
Eid al-Banat
,
[
clarification needed
]
[2]
is a holiday celebrated by some
Jewish communities in the Middle East
on
Rosh Chodesh
of the Jewish month of
Tevet
, during the Jewish holiday of
Chanukah
. The Jewish community where the holiday was most preserved is in
Tunisia
. But there is also evidence that it was also celebrated in Jewish communities in
Libya
,
Algeria
,
Kushta, Istanbul
,
Morocco
and
Thessaloniki
.
Origins of the holiday
[
edit
]
It is not clear when the holiday was first celebrated.
The holiday is linked to several events throughout Jewish history. The stories of
Judith
, the mother of seven, and the daughter of the
High Priest
are directly linked to the story of Chanukah. Judith tricked and killed the invading general
Holofernes
, allowing the
Maccabees
to get an upper hand.
[4]
[5]
[6]
The mother of seven, sometimes called Hannah or Miriam, was killed along with her seven sons by the
Seleucids
for refusing to give up her Jewish traditions.
[7]
The daughter of the High Priest (sometimes called Channah, daughter of Matiyahu) protested against the invading governor, who demanded that every young woman sleep with him the night before her wedding.
[8]
On the night of her wedding, as she was about to leave to go to governor's residence, she revealed her hair and body to onlookers and demanded that her brothers, the Maccabees, defend her if they were so appalled by her revealing herself, as she would have to reveal herself before the governor otherwise.
[4]
[8]
The brothers agreed, and the family approached the governor's residence with faux celebratory attitudes.
[4]
[8]
They were let into the residence, where the Maccabees then killed the governor.
[4]
[8]
Other connections include the story of
Jephthah's daughter
, the expulsion of the alien women during
Ezra
the Scribe times,
Deborah
and
Jael
,
Serah
daughter of
Asher
,
Hannah and her seven sons
, and
Bruriah
the wife of
Rabbi Meir
. The
Book of Esther
says that
Queen Esther
was crowned in the month of Tevet, and many of the
Rosh Chodesh l'banot
practices are similar to those of Jewish holiday of
Purim
.
Celebrations
[
edit
]
The holiday
Rosh Chodesh l'banot
on 1st
Tevet
, was preserved in Tunisia and the island of
Djerba
[5]
to which the Temple priests were exiled and which preserved many ancient traditions.
[9]
[10]
Many families who traditionally celebrated the holiday stopped after immigrating to Israel, but in recent years Israelis have shown more interest in reviving the holiday.
[11]
The holiday is also celebrated to an extent among Tunisian Jewish communities in
France
.
[11]
Before the menorah candles are lit, a
piyyut
, or liturgical poem, will be sung.
[4]
In some communities, each candle lit on the menorah will be lit in honor of a specific woman or women; in others, an additional candle or candles might be lit in their honor.
[8]
After lighting the candles, the blessing "Mi Shebeirach Imoteinu" is recited.
[4]
Women will gather to sing, dance, and eat food.
[4]
[5]
[6]
[12]
Foods for these gatherings may include
bjawia
,
sfenj
, sweet
almond
balls, and
cheese
.
[4]
[6]
[11]
[13]
Some of these gatherings include a presentation of all the
bat mitzvah
girls from the last year.
[4]
In some communities women would visit
synagogues
, where they kissed
Torah scrolls
, prayed for their daughters' health, and were blessed by the
rabbi
.
[4]
[6]
[12]
Women were sometimes expected to reconcile conflicts with each other on this day.
[6]
[12]
Mothers give gifts to their daughters, and husbands give gifts to their wives.
[6]
[13]
Historically, these gifts from families to their daughters were used to build up the daughter's
dowry
.
[11]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
A Mosaic of Israel's Traditions: Holidays, Feasts, Fasts
,
Esther Shkalim
- ^
a
b
c
Shans, Sapir.
"Eid Al-Banat"
.
Sefaria
.
- ^
Rabbi Jill Hammer (21 August 2010).
"Chag HaBanot: The Festival of the Daughters"
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
i
j
Groner, Rishe (2019-12-26).
"You Need to Know About North Africa's Feminist Hanukkah Tradition"
.
Hey Alma
. Retrieved
2023-01-07
.
- ^
a
b
c
December 20; Taib, 2022 Sapir.
"Celebrate the Heroism of MENA Jewish Women on Chag Habanot"
.
Jewish Women's Archive
. Retrieved
2023-01-07
.
{{
cite web
}}
: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (
link
)
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
Hammer, Jill (2010-08-21).
"Chag HaBanot: The Festival of the Daughters"
.
Ritualwell
. Retrieved
2023-01-07
.
- ^
"Hannah Mother of Seven"
.
Jewish Women's Archive
. Retrieved
2023-01-07
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
Maller, Allen S.
"Another Moroccan Eid spreads among Jews"
.
blogs.timesofisrael.com
. Retrieved
2023-01-07
.
- ^
????? ??? ?'???. ??? ????' ??? ???? ????????. ?????? ?"?-?"?, ???"?
- ^
???? ???? ?? ???? ??????? ??'???
"??????" ??? ?????
- ^
a
b
c
d
Liphshiz, Cnaan (2020-12-10).
"Israelis want to bring back North African Jewry's feminist Hanukkah tradition"
.
Jewish Telegraphic Agency
. Retrieved
2023-01-07
.
- ^
a
b
c
Refael, Tabby (2020-12-16).
"Beyond Gelt: How Mizrahi Jews Celebrate Hanukkah"
.
Jewish Journal
. Retrieved
2023-01-07
.
- ^
a
b
"CHAG HABANOT & MIZRAHI FEMINISM"
(PDF)
.
JIMENA
. Retrieved
7 January
2023
.
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