Hebrew: שבועות or חג השבועות (Ḥag HaShavuot or Shavuos)
Also called
English: "Feast of Weeks"
Observed by
Jews and Samaritans
Type
Jewish and Samaritan
Significance
One of the Three Pilgrimage Festivals. Celebrates the revelation of the Five Books of the Torah by God to Moses and to the Israelites at Mount Sinai, 49 days (seven weeks) after the Exodus from ancient Egypt. Commemorates the wheat harvesting in the Land of Israel. Culmination of the 49 days of the Counting of the Omer.
Celebrations
Festive meals. All-night Torah study. Recital of Akdamut liturgical poem in Ashkenazic synagogues. Reading of the Book of Ruth. Eating of dairy products. Decoration of homes and synagogues with greenery (Orach Chayim, 494).
Begins
6th day of Sivan (or the Sunday following the 6th day of Sivan in Karaite Judaism)
Ends
7th (in Israel: 6th) day of Sivan
Date
6 Sivan
2023 date
Sunset, 25 May – nightfall, 27 May
2024 date
Sunset, 11 June – nightfall, 13 June
2025 date
Sunset, 1 June – nightfall, 3 June
2026 date
Sunset, 21 May – nightfall, 23 May
Related to
Passover, which precedes Shavuot
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Shavuot (listenⓘ), or Shvues (listenⓘ) in some Ashkenazi usage (Hebrew: שָׁבוּעוֹת, romanized: Šāvūʿōṯ, lit. 'Weeks'), commonly known in English as the Feast of Weeks, is one of the biblically-ordained Three Pilgrimage Festivals. It 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.[1]
In the Bible, Shavuot marked the wheat harvest in the Land of Israel.[2] In addition, rabbinic tradition teaches that the date also marks the revelation of the Ten Commandments to Moses and the Israelites at Mount Sinai, which, according to the tradition of Orthodox Judaism, occurred at this date in 1312BCE.[3]
The word Shavuot means "weeks", and it marks the conclusion of the Counting of the Omer. Its date is directly linked to that of Passover; 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.[4]
While Shavuot is sometimes referred to as Pentecost (in Koinē Greek: 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 celebration as the Christian Pentecost, which comes fifty days after Pascha/Easter.[5][Note 1][6]
Shavuot is traditionally celebrated in Israel for one day, where it is a public holiday, and for two days in the diaspora.[7][8][9]
^"Shavuot - Jewish Tradition". yahadut.org. Retrieved April 1, 2024.
^Exodus 34:22
^History Crash Course #36: Timeline: From Abraham to Destruction of the Temple, by Rabbi Ken Spiro, Aish.com. Retrieved 2010-08-19.
^"What Is Shavuot (Shavuos)? – And How Is Shavuot Celebrated?". www.chabad.org.
^"Is Shavuot the Jewish Pentecost?". My Jewish Learning. Retrieved April 22, 2021.
^Neusner, Jacob (1991). An Introduction to Judaism: A Textbook and Reader. Westminster John Knox Press. p. 58. ISBN 978-0-664-25348-6. The Feast of Weeks, Shavuot, or Pentecost, comes seven weeks after Passover. In the ancient Palestinian agricultural calendar, Shavuot marked the end of the grain harvest and was called the 'Feast of Harvest'
^Goldberg, J.J. (May 12, 2010). "Shavuot: The Zeppo Marx of Jewish Holidays". The Forward. Retrieved May 24, 2011.
^Berel Wein (May 21, 2010). "Shavuot Thoughts". The Jerusalem Post. Here in Israel all Israelis are aware of Shavuot, even those who only honor it in its breach... In the diaspora, Shavuot is simply ignored by many Jews...
^Jonathan Rosenblum (May 31, 2006). "Celebrating Shavuos Alone". Mishpacha. Retrieved June 4, 2020. Yet most Jews have barely heard of Shavuos, the celebration of Matan Torah. In Eretz Yisrael, the contrast between Shavuos and the other yomim tovim could not be more stark. Shavuos is only about the acceptance of Torah. For those Israeli Jews for whom Torah has long since ceased to be relevant, the holiday offers nothing.
Cite error: There are <ref group=Note> tags on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=Note}} template (see the help page).
Shavuot (listen), or Shvues (listen) in some Ashkenazi usage (Hebrew: שָׁבוּעוֹת, romanized: Šāvūʿōṯ, lit. 'Weeks'), commonly known in English as the...
after Israel declared independence. Erev Shavuot: 5 Sivan Shavuot: 6 (and outside Israel: 7) Sivan Shavuot (שבועות), the Feast of Weeks, is one of the...
verbal counting of each of the 49 days between the holidays of Passover and Shavuot. The period of 49 days is known as the "omer period" or simply as "the...
captivity. In the Babylonian calendar it was named Araḫ Simanu. 6–7 Sivan – Shavuot 1 Sivan (1096) – Worms Jews massacred as part of the Rhineland massacres...
are especially used in synagogues and homes during the celebration of Shavuot. In the Tanakh, among the various native flowers of ancient Israel three...
sweetened cheese, sometimes with the addition of raisins. They are served on Shavuot. The word blintz in English comes from the Yiddish word בלינצע or blintse...
Tikkun Leil Shavuotqa (Shavuot night fixing) is a study order intended for the eve of the Shavuot holiday, which includes beginnings and endings of Torah...
three major festivals in Judaism—two in spring; Passover, 49 days later Shavuot (literally 'weeks', or Pentecost, from the Greek); and in autumn Sukkot...
practiced for seven weeks until the 50th day, which is the holiday of Shavuot. Nowadays, in addition to the biblical prohibition of owning leavened foods...
biblical times with the wheat harvest. Shavuot customs include all-night study marathons known as Tikkun Leil Shavuot, eating dairy foods (cheesecake and...
with major events in rural life: Passover with the birthing of lambs, Shavuot with the cereal harvest, and Sukkot with the fruit harvest. These probably...
week before Shavuot is a unique festival celebrating the continued commitment Samaritanism has maintained since the time of Moses. Shavuot is characterized...
the Koine translation of the Hebrew Bible, refers to the festival of Shavuot, one of the Three Pilgrimage Festivals, which is celebrated on the fiftieth...
during the festival of Shavuot. The Exodus version is read in parashat Yitro around late January–February, and on the festival of Shavuot, and the Deuteronomy...
Jews have two holiday seasons: the Spring Feasts of Pesach (Passover) and Shavuot (Weeks, called Pentecost in Greek); and the Fall Feasts of Rosh Hashanah...
prayers and celebrated each year during the Jewish holidays of Passover, Shavuot, and Sukkot. The fringes worn at the corners of traditional Jewish prayer...
Similar to other holy days, the Jews of Habban would prepare the day before Shavuot by giving to the poor and preparing the food that would be eaten. Members...
pilgrims from distant lands during the Three Pilgrimage Festivals: Passover, Shavuot, and Sukkot. Construction on the Second Temple began in the aftermath of...
the Talmud Yerushalmi, David was born and died on the Jewish holiday of Shavuot (Feast of Weeks). His piety was said to be so great that his prayers could...
stars are visible in the night sky Three Pilgrimage Festivals: Passover, Shavuot, Sukkot Three matzos on the Passover Seder table The Three Weeks, a period...