Passover songs
Encyclopedia
Passover songs are songs traditionally associated with the end of the seder
, the festive meal associated with the Jewish
festival of Passover
.
seder by the youngest child at the table who is able. The questions are asked as part of the haggadah, after the Yachatz (יחץ), as part of the Maggid (מגיד)aaa.
song, traditionally sung during the celebration of Passover
. The word itself essentially means "It would have been enough for us." "Day" being the Hebrew word for "enough" and the suffix "enu" meaning "our".
The song goes through a series of gifts believed granted by God to the Israelites (such as Torah
or Shabbat
), proclaiming that any of them alone would have been sufficient, to express greater appreciation for them as a whole.
It is 15 verses long, sequentially recounting each divine intervention in the story of the Exodus
. After each divine act, the chorus "(if God had done only this) it would have been enough for us" is sung.
worldwide at the Passover Seder
. It switches rapidly between saying the virtues of God
in an alphabet format (Aleph
, Bet
, Gimmel,...), and expressing hope that God will "rebuild the Holy Temple
speedily." Most of the virtues of God are adjectives (for instance, Holy (Kadosh) is he); however, a few are nouns. (Lord is he).
Adir Hu is sung towards the end of the Seder, and is used by many families to conclude it. The traditional melody is a bouncy, major one. Other melodies, however, have been composed for the alphabetical song.
The song is a plea to the Creator
to rebuild the temple soon in Jerusalem. Each line begins with a consecutive letter of the Hebrew alphabet
.
song describing the food chain from a goat, through a cat, dog, a stick, fire, water, an ox, a butcher, and the angel of death, all the way up to God.
. After singing each new verse, all the preceding verses are repeated in decreasing order back down to one. The pattern is similar to the Christian
songs Green Grow the Rushes, O
(which was originally written in Hebrew) or The Twelve Days of Christmas
.
. This song is also part of the traditional Saturday night Havdalah
service.
This is often sung at the opening of the door for Elijah, upon pouring the fourth cup.
i national anthem, is often sung at the seder. It is found at the back of many haggadahs, though is not formally part of the sedar. Hatikvah is about the hope of returning to Israel, much like the Haggadah's story of the Exodus of Egypt into the Promised Land, and much like the concluding song of the seder, "L'Shana habah bi'Yerushalayim" (see below).
Passover Seder
The Passover Seder is a Jewish ritual feast that marks the beginning of the Jewish holiday of Passover. It is conducted on the evenings of the 14th day of Nisan in the Hebrew calendar, and on the 15th by traditionally observant Jews living outside Israel. This corresponds to late March or April in...
, the festive meal associated with the Jewish
Judaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
festival of Passover
Passover
Passover is a Jewish holiday and festival. It commemorates the story of the Exodus, in which the ancient Israelites were freed from slavery in Egypt...
.
Songs of the main part of the Seder
While most songs are in the second half after dinner, "Ma Nishtanah" and "Dayenu" are sung during the main part of the seder before the meal, called the "Maggid" of the seder. This part of the seder devoted to telling the story of the Exodus.Ma Nishtanah
"Ma Nishtanah" or the "Four Questions" in English, is the four questions sung at the PassoverPassover
Passover is a Jewish holiday and festival. It commemorates the story of the Exodus, in which the ancient Israelites were freed from slavery in Egypt...
seder by the youngest child at the table who is able. The questions are asked as part of the haggadah, after the Yachatz (יחץ), as part of the Maggid (מגיד)aaa.
Dayenu
"Dayenu" is a HebrewHebrew language
Hebrew is a Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Culturally, is it considered by Jews and other religious groups as the language of the Jewish people, though other Jewish languages had originated among diaspora Jews, and the Hebrew language is also used by non-Jewish groups, such...
song, traditionally sung during the celebration of Passover
Passover
Passover is a Jewish holiday and festival. It commemorates the story of the Exodus, in which the ancient Israelites were freed from slavery in Egypt...
. The word itself essentially means "It would have been enough for us." "Day" being the Hebrew word for "enough" and the suffix "enu" meaning "our".
The song goes through a series of gifts believed granted by God to the Israelites (such as Torah
Torah
Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five books of the bible—Genesis , Exodus , Leviticus , Numbers and Deuteronomy Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five...
or Shabbat
Shabbat
Shabbat is the seventh day of the Jewish week and a day of rest in Judaism. Shabbat is observed from a few minutes before sunset on Friday evening until a few minutes after when one would expect to be able to see three stars in the sky on Saturday night. The exact times, therefore, differ from...
), proclaiming that any of them alone would have been sufficient, to express greater appreciation for them as a whole.
It is 15 verses long, sequentially recounting each divine intervention in the story of the Exodus
The Exodus
The Exodus is the story of the departure of the Israelites from ancient Egypt described in the Hebrew Bible.Narrowly defined, the term refers only to the departure from Egypt described in the Book of Exodus; more widely, it takes in the subsequent law-givings and wanderings in the wilderness...
. After each divine act, the chorus "(if God had done only this) it would have been enough for us" is sung.
Songs of the Nirtzah
The following are traditionally sung in the Nirtzah, the last of the 15 subdivisions of the feast, devoted exclusively to singing.Adir Hu
"Adir Hu"(English: Mighty is He, Hebrew אדיר הוּא) is a hymn sung by JewsJews
The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
worldwide at the Passover Seder
Passover Seder
The Passover Seder is a Jewish ritual feast that marks the beginning of the Jewish holiday of Passover. It is conducted on the evenings of the 14th day of Nisan in the Hebrew calendar, and on the 15th by traditionally observant Jews living outside Israel. This corresponds to late March or April in...
. It switches rapidly between saying the virtues of God
God
God is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
in an alphabet format (Aleph
Aleph
* Aleph or Alef is the first letter of the Semitic abjads descended from Proto-Canaanite, Arabic alphabet, Phoenician alphabet, Hebrew alphabet, Syriac alphabet-People:*Aleph , an Italo disco artist and alias of Dave Rodgers...
, Bet
Bet
Bet or BET may refer to:* A wager in gambling* Basic Economics Test * Bet , the second letter in many Semitic alphabets, including Aramaic, Hebrew, Phoenician and Syriac* Brunauer-Emmett-Teller isotherm. See BET_theory...
, Gimmel,...), and expressing hope that God will "rebuild the Holy Temple
Temple in Jerusalem
The Temple in Jerusalem or Holy Temple , refers to one of a series of structures which were historically located on the Temple Mount in the Old City of Jerusalem, the current site of the Dome of the Rock. Historically, these successive temples stood at this location and functioned as the centre of...
speedily." Most of the virtues of God are adjectives (for instance, Holy (Kadosh) is he); however, a few are nouns. (Lord is he).
Adir Hu is sung towards the end of the Seder, and is used by many families to conclude it. The traditional melody is a bouncy, major one. Other melodies, however, have been composed for the alphabetical song.
The song is a plea to the Creator
God
God is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
to rebuild the temple soon in Jerusalem. Each line begins with a consecutive letter of the Hebrew alphabet
Hebrew alphabet
The Hebrew alphabet , known variously by scholars as the Jewish script, square script, block script, or more historically, the Assyrian script, is used in the writing of the Hebrew language, as well as other Jewish languages, most notably Yiddish, Ladino, and Judeo-Arabic. There have been two...
.
Chad Gadya
"Chad Gadya" ("One Kid" 'i.e., baby goat]) is an AramaicAramaic language
Aramaic is a group of languages belonging to the Afroasiatic language phylum. The name of the language is based on the name of Aram, an ancient region in central Syria. Within this family, Aramaic belongs to the Semitic family, and more specifically, is a part of the Northwest Semitic subfamily,...
song describing the food chain from a goat, through a cat, dog, a stick, fire, water, an ox, a butcher, and the angel of death, all the way up to God.
Echad Mi Yodea
"Echad Mi Yodea", (Who Knows One?), a Hebrew song. Starting at one and going up to thirteen, each verse describes a different religious or worldly concept associated with its number. For example, the fifth verse is about the five books of Moses whereas the ninth verse describes the nine months of pregnancyPregnancy
Pregnancy refers to the fertilization and development of one or more offspring, known as a fetus or embryo, in a woman's uterus. In a pregnancy, there can be multiple gestations, as in the case of twins or triplets...
. After singing each new verse, all the preceding verses are repeated in decreasing order back down to one. The pattern is similar to the Christian
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
songs Green Grow the Rushes, O
Green Grow the Rushes, O
Green Grow The Rushes, Ho , is a folk song popular across the English-speaking world. It is sometimes sung as a Christmas carol...
(which was originally written in Hebrew) or The Twelve Days of Christmas
The Twelve Days of Christmas (song)
"The Twelve Days of Christmas" is an English Christmas carol that enumerates a series of increasingly grand gifts given on each of the twelve days of Christmas. Although first published in England in 1780, textual evidence may indicate the song is French in origin...
.
Eliyahu HaNavi
"Eliyahu HaNavi", in English, Elijah the Prophet is A Hebrew song entreating the prophet Elijah, an invited guest at the Passover meal, to return soon with the MessiahMessiah
A messiah is a redeemer figure expected or foretold in one form or another by a religion. Slightly more widely, a messiah is any redeemer figure. Messianic beliefs or theories generally relate to eschatological improvement of the state of humanity or the world, in other words the World to...
. This song is also part of the traditional Saturday night Havdalah
Havdalah
Havdalah is a Jewish religious ceremony that marks the symbolic end of Shabbat and holidays, and ushers in the new week. Shabbat ends on Saturday night after the appearance of three stars in the sky...
service.
| Transliteration | English Translation |
|---|---|
Eliyahu haNavi Eliyahu haTishbi, Eliyahu haGil'adi - Bim'hera v'yameinu yavoh eleinu, im mashiach ben David. (x2) |
Elijah the prophet Elijah the Tishbite Tishbite Tishbite is a word used in the Bible to refer to Elijah . The phrasing can be reworded as "Elijah the Tishbite of Tishbe inGilead." The word is sometimes interpreted as "stranger," so that the verse might read "Elijah the stranger from among the strangers in Gilead." This designation is probably... , Elijah the Giladite Gilead In the Bible "Gilead" means hill of testimony or mound of witness, , a mountainous region east of the Jordan River, situated in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. It is also referred to by the Aramaic name Yegar-Sahadutha, which carries the same meaning as the Hebrew . From its mountainous character... - In haste and in our days may he come to us with the messiah son of David. (x2) |
This is often sung at the opening of the door for Elijah, upon pouring the fourth cup.
Hatikva
"Hatikva" ("The Hope"), the IsraelIsrael
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
i national anthem, is often sung at the seder. It is found at the back of many haggadahs, though is not formally part of the sedar. Hatikvah is about the hope of returning to Israel, much like the Haggadah's story of the Exodus of Egypt into the Promised Land, and much like the concluding song of the seder, "L'Shana habah bi'Yerushalayim" (see below).