Rosh Hashanah 2011: Dates, History, Customs, Jewish New Year Explained

Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, is celebrated in 2011 from sundown on Sept. 28 to nightfall on Sept. 30. The Hebrew date for Rosh Hashanah is 1 Tishrei 5772.

Though Rosh Hashanah literally means "head of the year," the holiday actually takes place on the first two days of the Hebrew month of Tishrei, which is the seventh month on the Hebrew calendar. This is because Rosh Hashanah, one of four new years in the Jewish year, is considered the new year of people, animals and legal contracts. In the Jewish oral tradition, Rosh Hashanah marks the completion of the creation of the world.

Rosh Hashanah is the beginning of the Jewish High Holy Days, or Yamim Noraim (the "Days of Awe"), and is followed 10 days later by Yom Kippur, the "day of atonement." The Mishnah refers to Rosh Hashanah as the "day of judgment," and it is believed that God opens the Book of Life on this day and begins to decide who shall live and who shall die. The days between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are viewed as an opportunity for Jews to repent (teshuvah, in Hebrew) and ensure a good fate.

Jews traditionally gather in synagogues on Rosh Hashanah for extended services that follow the liturgy of a special prayerbook, called a mahzor, that is used during the Days of Awe. At specific times throughout the service, a shofar, or ram's horn, is blown. The mitzvah (commandment) to hear the shofar, a literal and spiritual wake-up call, is special to this time of year.

The new year is the only Jewish holiday that is observed for two days by all Jews (other holidays are observed for just one day within the Land of Israel) as it is also the only major holiday that falls on a new moon.

A common greeting on Rosh Hashanah is shana tovah u'metukah, Hebrew for "a good and sweet new year." Many traditional Rosh Hashanah foods -- apples and honey, raisin challah, honey cake and pomegranate -- are eaten, in part, for this reason.

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Comments

[Ossit]

02:58 AM on 10/18/2011

Very informative. I'm Jewish and all Rosh Hashanah meant was a day off school. Passover was the only holiday that meant anything to me and I loved Cedars except for the brisket and the Manichevitz wine. That stuff is nasty. Burns my belly like acid. Thank goodness during the ceremony Cedar before the actual meal we drank very little of the wine.

[Robson]

08:49 PM on 10/14/2011

Do you think the Jews care about the Chinese New Year or Catholic Communion or Protestant beliefs or the Mormon Tabernacle Choir or the customs of others? Why are some pretending that others should care about Jewish tradition? No one gives a damn.

[Ossit]

03:02 AM on 10/18/2011

You obviously don't care about Jewish holidays, probably not Chinese New Year or anything not of your religion. "No one gives a damn"? Why how unjudemental of you! My neighbor was Catholic and she talked about her Communion. I'm curious about Protestant beliefs and The Mormon Tabernacle Choir are good singers. To learn about others' holidays makes people more open. If people aren't open for other, why should anyone give "a damn" about their beliefs or holidays? You, sir, obviously are either closed minded or you just don't like Jews.

[jipjap]

10:29 AM on 11/08/2011

I love the Jew's, they are GOD'S CHOSEN PEOPLE. Pray for the peace of Israel.

[Acadieman]

09:05 AM on 10/18/2011

I found this article to be very enlightening. I had always though that Rosh Hashanah was a celebration of the day God built the stripper factory next to the beer volcano in heaven but I guess I was mixing up my religions. They're all so very interesting and I wholly accept them all because I'm extremely open-minded and "tolerant." If I could be all religions at once, I would! Although, technically, that would be pretty difficult because they all have different costumes and special hats to wear, etc. Can you imagine wearing a pirate hat on top of a yamaka on top of a Biretta? That would be hard. I guess completely accepting every elses religions might be hard to do!

[lilipilicious]

05:40 PM on 10/14/2011

well you sure got many reasons to celebrate. The US has been waging your wars in the middle east for you for decades....first Iraq, then Libya, Syria and now it looks like they are working up the framework to get to Iran on your behalf - all the while the country is bankrupt and US families are having their sons delivered in caskets back home to them - right in time for their holidays. Indeed a good year. Mazel Tov.

[ThomasTrom]

11:43 AM on 10/03/2011

The other problem I have is that if you went by the lunar calendar, and the barley crop in Israel, one would realize that this year was an earlier year (the farmers in Israel can verify this). So whereas the the Days of Awe was supposed to have taken place about a month ago, the Jews have only just got here. Doesn't it bother any of you that Jews are keeping the Holy Days on the wrong dates and not by Yahweh's calendar and time frame? It does me.

[Ossit]

03:06 AM on 10/18/2011

The 'wrong' dates, ThomasTrom? My how judgemental of you. Are Christian holidays only the 'right' dates? I don't think the Hebrew calendar is Yawhweh's. If that's your picture, ThomasTrom, for a man descended from slaves, who took on the white man's Christian 'God', you're the last to be criticizing us!

[ThomasTrom]

11:21 AM on 10/03/2011

The thing is, the Bible doesn't say that the New Year begins at this time of year. The Bible says the New Year begins in Spring so you won't be getting a Happy New Year from me. Jews should recognise that Abib is the first month of the Biblical lunar calendar, which usually falls in March or April. The first month of the year must be the month in which Barley begins to grow, and the month in which the Passover takes place.

[Stephen Rifkin]

04:05 PM on 10/13/2011

There are 4 new years in the Jewish calendar.

[Stephen Rifkin]

06:38 PM on 10/13/2011

I would also add that crop cycles are not precisely the same as they were 3,000 years ago. After all, they call it 'the fertile crescent' but do you see anything fertile there now?

[kornbluthwasright]

01:07 PM on 10/01/2011

Thank you, unnamed blogger(s) for your informative and timely article!

To all the readers here: May this be a year of goodness, sweetness, growth, discovery, and learning...a NEW year in all the best senses of that word.

L' shana tovah!

[MIKEinNYC]

11:57 PM on 09/30/2011

Happy Newish Jew Year and don't for get to start putting 5772 on your checks.

[kornbluthwasright]

01:08 PM on 10/01/2011

Not to mention signing your name from right to left.

[umish]

01:35 PM on 09/30/2011

One more peace loving godless islamistas reared his hateful head.

[19ArabPatsies]

02:25 PM on 09/30/2011

Here is pure evil

“THOUGHT FOR THE DAY!
"The killing by a Jew of a non-Jew, i.e. a Palestinia­n, is considered essentiall­y a good deed, and Jews should therefore have no compunctio­n about it." -- Yitzhak Ginsburg”

[anton123]

05:11 PM on 09/30/2011

Get the H.ll out of this post.
You wouldn't want that somebody would write hateful posts on your holiday - don't you?
So why you doing it to others? You have no decency nor class.
You are a disgrace

[19ArabPatsies]

01:07 PM on 09/30/2011

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M9fC-r7pKh8&feature=player_embedded

[Jim NLN]

03:18 PM on 09/29/2011

Janeane Garofalo was on with Kieth Olberman last night and while saying goodbye she told Kieth "Happy Rosh Hashanah". Was that a dig at the Christian Kieth and the other Christians that put Xmas in our faces every year! Christians, I get it, kid was born, blah, blah, blah and then Santa Claus forgave use for all of our sins. All of them. Even this one!

[legaleagle4]

01:32 PM on 09/29/2011

!שנה טובה ומתוקה

[Redhunteur]

05:28 AM on 09/29/2011

And here I thought L'Shanah Tovah was Kip's Detroit girlfriend...

[Pro-Reformation]

08:02 PM on 09/28/2011

Since Rosh Hashanah is the "day of judgment," it is fitting that Jews in Israel be reminded of the words of Ezekiel.

The Lord said: “As for you, son of man, my people hear your words, but they ignore their meaning. They speak of love, but their hearts are greedy and covetous for unjust gain. And to them you are nothing more than one who sings songs with a pleasant voice and plays an instrument, so they hear your words but do not put them into practice. But when all this comes true and comes to pass—and it surely will—then they will know that a prophet has been among them." –– Ezekiel 33:31-33

That of course is a modern way of saying what was written in the Masoretic Text of the Hebrew Bible. But it accurately reflects what Ezekiel meant.

I remind you of that because there is a modern prophet who also sings songs telling the honest-to-God truth that people need to hear, but people pretty much ignore him and even reject him, even though he is like Ezekiel in that he sings songs, and like Jacob especially.

But that’s exactly what the prophet Isaiah said would happen.

You can listen to his songs and read a bit of his message at http://www.soundclick.com/ttap

[Stephen Rifkin]

04:07 PM on 10/13/2011

Since Rosh Hashanah is the "day of judgment,"

Except that it's not. Sorry to dent your preachy little soapbox

[myopinion2]

11:43 AM on 09/28/2011

Best wishes for a year filled with joy, fulfillment and good health. Shana Tova, to you and yours.

[Fencik45]

10:09 AM on 09/28/2011

Tonight we're gonna party like it's 5772! Shana Tova baby!