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This is a poetic Birkat haMazon for Pesaḥ, from the Cairo Geniza (CUL T-S H11.88 1v). Much thanks to the work of Dr. Avi Shmidman, whose 2009 doctoral thesis is the foundational work for poetic Birkat haMazon studies. He marks it as Piyyut 64, and his Hebrew-language commentary begins on page 394 of his work. I’ve included two translations of the poetic portions — one literal and one preserving the acrostic and rhyme scheme. . . .  Categories: Barekhשַׁחַר אֲבַקֶּשְׁךָ | Shaḥar Avaqeshkha (At dawn I seek you), a reshut by Shlomo ibn Gabirol (ca. 11th c.) translated by Rabbi David Aaron de Sola (1857)The reshut for praying at dawn, in Hebrew with English translation. . . . Categories: Morning Baqashotשׁוֹמְרוֹן קוֹל תִּתֵּן (אשכנז) | Shomron Qol Titein, a qinah for Tishah b’Av by Shlomo ibn Gabirol (ca. 11th c.)This is a variation of the qinah for Tishah b’Av, “Shomron Qol Titein” in its Ashkenazi nusaḥ. Isaac Gantwerk Mayer first shared this translation via his Facebook page on Tishah b’Av, 2022. . . . Categories: Tishah b'Avשַׁחַר אֲבַקֶּשְׁךָ | Shaḥar Avaqeshkha (At dawn I seek you), a reshut by Shlomo ibn Gabirol (ca. 11th c.) translated by Nina Salaman (1901)The reshut for praying at dawn, in Hebrew with English translation. . . . Categories: Morning Baqashot Tags: רשות reshut, שחר אבקשך Shaḥar Avaqeshkha, Dawn, פיוטים piyyutim, 11th century C.E., 49th century A.M., rhyming translation, Needing Source Images Contributor(s): Nina Davis Salaman (translation), Shlomo ibn Gabirol and Aharon N. Varady (editing/transcription)אֲֽדֹנָי נֶגְדְּךָ כׇל־תַּאֲוָתִי | Adonai Negdekha kol Ta’avati, a piyyut by Yehudah haLevi (early 12th c.) rhyming translation by Alice Lucas (1894)A rhyming English translation of the piyyut Adonai Negdekha kol Ta’avati. . . . Contributor(s): Alice Lucas (translation), Yehudah ben Shmuel haLevi and Aharon N. Varady (editing/transcription)“Avnei Y’qar” is a succint piyyut for Ḥanukkah, traditionally attributed to R. Abraham ibn Ezra, and particularly beloved by the Yemenites. Interestingly, it doesn’t mention the miracle of the oil whatsoever, focusing on the degradation of the land under Greek occupation as well as the Hasmonean victory itself. Included is a poetic acrostic translation into English. . . . Categories: Ḥanukkah Tags: זמירות zemirot, acrostic, פיוטים piyyutim, Yemenite Jewry, 12th century C.E., 49th century A.M., Acrostic signature, rhyming translation Contributor(s): Isaac Gantwerk Mayer (transcription & naqdanut) and Isaac Gantwerk Mayer (translation)חרוז על שחוק האישקקי | Rhymed Poem on Chess (short), by Avraham ibn Ezra (HS. Vatican 171 f.2, oben S. 180)A medieval Jewish poem on the game of Chess by Avraham ibn Ezra.. . . . Categories: Nittel Nacht Contributor(s): Nina Davis Salaman (translation), Avraham ibn Ezra and Aharon N. Varady (editing/transcription)💬 הפטרה לחג השבועות ביום השני | Haftarah reading for the Second Day of Shavuot (Ḥabaquq 2:20-3:19) with its Targum and the piyyut Yetsiv Pitgam by Rabbeinu Tam (ca. 12th c.)The haftarah for the second day of Shavuot, Ḥabakkuk 2:20-3:19, interspersed with a cantillated text of the Targum Yonatan ben Uzziel. Since Targum Yonatan is a bit more drash-heavy than Targum Onkelos, it is translated separately as well. The haftarah reading includes the piyyut Yetsiv Pitgam, with an acrostic rhyming translation of the poem, with the second-to-last verse restored to its rightful place, as well as a concluding paragraph for the meturgeman to recite, as found in the Maḥzor Vitry. . . . Adon Olam is a piyyut that became popular in the 15th century and is often attributed to Solomon ibn Gabirol (1021–1058) and less often to Sherira Gaon (900-1001), or his son, Hai ben Sherira Gaon (939-1038). The variation of the piyyut appearing here is the 12 line version familiar to Sepharadi congregations. (There are also fifteen and sixteen line variants found in Sepharadi siddurim. The Ashkenazi version has ten lines.) The rhyming translation here by David de Aaron de Sola was transcribed from his prayerbook Seder haTefilot vol. 1 (1836), p. 122. . . . Adon Olam is a piyyut that became popular in the 15th century and is often attributed to Solomon ibn Gabirol (1021–1058) and less often to Sherira Gaon (900-1001), or his son, Hai ben Sherira Gaon (939-1038). The variation of the piyyut appearing here is the 10 line version familiar to Ashkenazi congregations. (There are also twelve, fifteen, and sixteen line variants found in Sepharadi siddurim.) The rhyming translation here by George Borrow was shared in his tales in The Bible in Spain (1843), p. 222. (The text in the 1913 edition on page 546 is a bit easier to read.) . . . A rhyming English translation of Adon Olam by Rosa Emma Salaman. . . . The cosmological piyyut, Adon Olam, in its Ashkenazi variation in Hebrew with an English translation. . . . Adon Olam is a piyyut that became popular in the 15th century and is often attributed to Solomon ibn Gabirol (1021–1058) and less often to Sherira Gaon (900-1001), or his son, Hai ben Sherira Gaon (939-1038). The variation of the piyyut appearing here is the 12 line version familiar to Sepharadi congregations. (There are also fifteen and sixteen line variants found in Sepharadi siddurim. The Ashkenazi version has ten lines.) The rhyming translation here by Jacob Waley was transcribed from the prayerbook of his daughter Julia M. Cohen’s The Children’s Psalm-Book (1907), pp. 298-299. . . . The cosmological piyyut, Adon Olam, in its Ashkenazi variation in Hebrew with an English translation. . . . Adon Olam is a piyyut that became popular in the 15th century and is often attributed to Solomon ibn Gabirol (1021–1058) and less often to Sherira Gaon (900-1001), or his son, Hai ben Sherira Gaon (939-1038). The variation of the piyyut appearing here is the 10 line version familiar to Ashkenazi congregations. (There are also twelve, fifteen, and sixteen line variants found in Sepharadi siddurim.) The rhyming translation here by Israel Zangwill was transcribed from the Jewish Quarterly Review vol. 13 (January 1901), p. 321. . . . Tags: אדון עולם Adon Olam, 20th century C.E., פיוטים piyyutim, 57th century A.M., cosmological, 11th century C.E., 49th century A.M., rhyming translation Contributor(s): Israel Zangwill (translation), Shlomo ibn Gabirol and Aharon N. Varady (editing/transcription)Adon Olam is a piyyut that became popular in the 15th century and is often attributed to Solomon ibn Gabirol (1021–1058) and less often to Sherira Gaon (900-1001), or his son, Hai ben Sherira Gaon (939-1038). The variation of the piyyut appearing here is the 10 line version familiar to Ashkenazi congregations. (There are also twelve, fifteen, and sixteen line variants found in Sepharadi siddurim.) The rhyming translation here by Jessie Ethel Sampter was transcribed from Joseph Friedlander and George Alexander Kohut’s The standard book of Jewish verse (1917), p. 394. . . . Tags: cosmological, 11th century C.E., 49th century A.M., rhyming translation, אדון עולם Adon Olam, 20th century C.E., פיוטים piyyutim, 57th century A.M. Contributor(s): Jessie Ethel Sampter, Shlomo ibn Gabirol and Aharon N. Varady (editing/transcription)A rhyming translation in English to the popular piyyut, Adon Olam. . . . The cosmological piyyut, Adon Olam, in its Ashkenazi variation in Hebrew with an English translation. . . . The cosmological piyyut, Adon Olam, in its Ashkenazi variation in Hebrew with an English translation. . . . מָעוֹז צוּר | Maoz Tsur (Stronghold Rock who Rescues Me), complete poetic translation by Isaac Gantwerk MayerA complete poetic translation (all six verses) of Maoz Tsur. As far as the editor knows this is the first translation of Maoz Tsur to both (a) cover all the verses relatively accurately and (b) preserve the strict ABAB-BBCCB rhyme scheme of the original. (Reb Zalman’s comes close but it goes ABAB-CCDDC instead). If it sounds violent, that’s because it *is* violent. Ḥanukkah is a holiday about actively fighting against assimilation and abuse. A lot of Maoz Tsur translations are censored, but it’s a powerful, loud, and even nationalist statement. . . . Categories: ḤanukkahThis is the philosophical-creed-as-piyyut, Yigdal, by Daniel ben Judah Dayyan. Yigdal means “Magnify [O Living God]” and is based on the 13 Articles of Faith formulated by Maimonides (1135-1204). Daniel ben Judah spent eight years improving his piyyut, completing Yigdal in 1404. This was not the only metrical presentment of the 13 Articles of Faith; but it has outlived all others, whether in Hebrew or in the vernacular. The rhymed English translation by Jacob Waley (1818-1873) was published posthumously by his daughter, Julia Matilda Cohen, in The children’s Psalm-book, a selection of Psalms with explanatory comments, together with a prayer-book for home use in Jewish families (1907), pp. 300-303. . . . יִגְדַּל (מנהג הספרדים) | Yigdal, by Daniel ben Yehudah (rhyming translation by Rabbi David de Sola Pool, 1937)The philosophical-creed-as-piyyut, Yigdal, in Hebrew with an English translation. . . . Tags: יגדל yigdal, rhyming translation, זמירות zemirot, פיוטים piyyutim, 15th century C.E., 53rd century A.M., doctrinal Contributor(s): David de Sola Pool, Daniel ben Yehudah Dayyan and Aharon N. Varady (editing/transcription)The philosophical-creed-as-piyyut, Yigdal, in Hebrew with an English translation. . . . Tags: יגדל yigdal, rhyming translation, statements of belief, זמירות zemirot, פיוטים piyyutim, 15th century C.E., 53rd century A.M., doctrinal Contributor(s): Ben-Zion Bokser, Daniel ben Yehudah Dayyan and Aharon N. Varady (editing/transcription)The philosophical-creed-as-piyyut, Yigdal, in Hebrew with a creative English translation. . . . Tags: 53rd century A.M., doctrinal, יגדל yigdal, rhyming translation, statements of belief, interpretive translation, זמירות zemirot, פיוטים piyyutim, 15th century C.E. Contributor(s): Laura Duhan-Kaplan, Daniel ben Yehudah Dayyan and Aharon N. Varady (editing/transcription)יָהּ רִבּוֹן | Yah Ribōn, a piyyut by Rabbi Yisrael Najara (16th c.) translation by Rabbi David Aaron de Sola (1857)This translation by Rabbi David Aaron de Sola of “Yah Ribon” by Rabbi Yisrael Najara was first published in his Ancient Melodies of the Spanish and Portuguese Jews (1857). . . . Tags: 54th century A.M., Acrostic signature, rhyming translation, יה רבון Yah Ribon, זמירות zemirot, acrostic, Aramaic, פיוטים piyyutim, 16th century C.E. Contributor(s): David de Aaron de Sola (translation), Yisrael Najara and Aharon N. Varady (editing/transcription)יָהּ רִבּוֹן | Yah Ribōn, a piyyut by Rabbi Yisrael Najara (16th c.) rhyming translation by Israel Abrahams (1914)The piyyut, yah Ribon Olam, in Hebrew with a rhyming English translation. . . . Tags: rhyming translation, יה רבון Yah Ribon, זמירות zemirot, acrostic, Aramaic, פיוטים piyyutim, 16th century C.E., 54th century A.M., Acrostic signature Contributor(s): Israel Abrahams (translation), Yisrael Najara and Aharon N. Varady (editing/transcription)יוֹם זֶה לְיִשְׁרַאֵל | Yom Zeh l’Yisrael, a piyyut by Rabbi Yitsḥaq Luria (abridged rhymed translation by Alice Lucas, 1898)An abridged rhymed translation of the piyyut Yom Zeh l’Yisrael. . . . Categories: Se'udat Yom Shabbat Tags: זמירות zemirot, פיוטים piyyutim, 16th century C.E., 54th century A.M., Acrostic signature, rhyming translation, יום זה לישראל Yom Zeh l'Yisrael Contributor(s): Alice Lucas (translation), Yitsḥak Luria and Aharon N. Varady (editing/transcription)יְדִיד נֶפֶשׁ | Yedid Nefesh, a piyyut transmitted by Elazar ben Moshe Azikri (ca. 16th c.) translation by Nina Salaman (1897)The piyyut, Yedid Nefesh, in Hebrew with an English translation. . . . יָהּ הַצֵּל יוֹנָה | Yah Hatsel Yonah (Shelter, God, the Dove), complete poetic translation by Isaac Gantwerk MayerYah Hatsel Yonah is a traditional piyyut for Ḥanukkah, of unknown origin (although it spells out the name Yehuda as an acrostic). Beloved in Iraqi Jewish circles, it discusses the hope that Israel, likened to a dove, will be able to celebrate Ḥanukkah during a time of true redemption. Included is a relatively literal (but de-gendered) translation, as well as a poetic singable one. . . . Categories: Ḥanukkah Tags: Acrostic signature, rhyming translation, פיוטים piyyutim, Minhag Iraq, Needing citation references Contributor(s): Isaac Gantwerk Mayer (transcription & naqdanut) and Isaac Gantwerk Mayer (translation)“Brich aus in lauten Klagen” by Heinrich Heine was preserved in a letter he wrote to his friend Moses Moser dated 25 October 1824. The poem is included in Heinrich Heine’s Letters on The Rabbi of Bacharach, the manuscript of which only survived in a fragment, the rest having been lost, according to Heine, in a fire. The English translation here by Nina Salaman was transcribed from her anthology, Apples & Honey (1921) where it appears under the title of “Martyr-Song,” published at an earlier date in The Jewish Chronicle. . . . Tags: German vernacular prayer, German Jewry, rhyming translation, 19th century C.E., English Translation, קינות Ḳinōt, 56th century A.M. Contributor(s): Nina Davis Salaman (translation), Heinrich Heine and Aharon N. Varady (editing/transcription)כִּי אֶשְׁמְרָה שַׁבָּת | Ki Eshmerah Shabbat, a piyyut by Avraham ibn Ezra (trans. Rabbi David Aaron de Sola, 1857)This translation of “Ki Eshmera Shabbat” by Rabbi David Aaron de Sola of a piyyut by Avraham ibn Ezra was first published in his Ancient Melodies of the Spanish and Portuguese Jews (1857). . . . Categories: Se'udat Yom Shabbat Tags: Acrostic signature, rhyming translation, 50th century A.M., כי אשמרה שבת Ki Eshmerah Shabbat, זמירות zemirot, acrostic, פיוטים piyyutim, 12th century C.E. Contributor(s): David de Aaron de Sola (translation), Avraham ibn Ezra and Aharon N. Varady (editing/transcription)This is the poem “פעלד־מעסטען” by Morris Rosenfeld (1862-1923) written before 1898. We have transcribed the poem as it was published in Rosenfeld’s collection of poems Gezamelṭe lieder (1906) pp. 135-136. The poem was romanized and translated into English by Leo Wiener and published under the title, “The Measuring of the Graves” in Songs from the Ghetto (1898), pp. 46-49. A rhyming translation by Rose Pastor Stokes & Helena Frank under the title, “Measuring of the Graves” was published in Songs of Labor and Other Poems (1914), pp. 70-71. If you know the date of the earliest publication of this prayer, please leave a comment or contact us. . . . Categories: Yom Kippurדיא ערשטע טבילה | Die erste Twile | The First Bath of Ablution, a prayer-poem by Morris Rosenfeld (before 1898)This is the poem “דיא זרשטע טבילה” by Morris Rosenfeld (1862-1923) written sometime before 1898. We have transcribed the poem as it was published in Rosenfeld’s collection of poems Gezamelṭe lieder (1906) pp. 167-168. The poem was romanized and translated into English by Leo Wiener and published under the title, “Die erste Twile (The First Bath of Ablution)” in Songs from the Ghetto (1898), pp. 52-55. A rhyming translation by Rose Pastor Stokes & Helena Frank under the title, “The First Bath of Ablution” was published in Songs of Labor and Other Poems (1914), pp. 72-73. . . . A rhyming translation of Elohai Neshamah. . . . Categories: Birkhot haShaḥarA rhyming translation of the evening prayer Hashkivenu. . . . Categories: Hashkivenu Contributor(s): Alice Lucas (translation), Unknown Author(s) and Aharon N. Varady (editing/transcription)צוּר מִשֶּׁלּוֹ אָכַֽלְנוּ | Tsur Mishelo Akhalnu, a paraliturgical Birkat haMazon (rhymed translation by Alice Lucas, 1898)A rhymed translation of Tsur Mishelo, a paralitugical Birkat haMazon. . . . Categories: Blessings After Eating Tags: זמירות zemirot, פיוטים piyyutim, Acrostic signature, rhyming translation, paraliturgical birkat hamazon, צור משלו Tsur Mishelo Contributor(s): Alice Lucas (translation), Unknown Author(s) and Aharon N. Varady (editing/transcription)A rhymed paraliturgical translation of the prayer over sleeping. . . . Categories: Bedtime Shemaהַמַּבְדִּיל בֵּין קֹדֶשׁ לְחֹל | Hamavdil Ben Ḳodesh l’Ḥol, a piyyut attributed to Yitsḥaq ben Yehudah ibn Ghayyat (rhymed translation by Alice Lucas, 1898)A rhymed translation of the piyyut sung following the Havdallah ritual. . . . This translation of Ḥayyim Naḥman Bialik’s “Shabbat ha-Malkah” by Israel Meir Lask can be found on pages 280-281 in the Sabbath Prayer Book (Jewish Reconstructionist Foundation, 1945) where it appears as “Greeting to Queen Sabbath.” The poem is based on the shabbat song, “Shalom Alekhem” and first published in the poetry collection, Hazamir, in 1903. I have made a faithful transcription of the Hebrew and its English translation as it appears in the Sabbath Prayer Book. The first stanza of Lask’s translation was adapted from an earlier translation made by Angie Irma Cohon and published in 1920 in Song and Praise for Sabbath Eve (1920), p. 87. (Cohon’s translation of Bialik’s second stanza of “Shabbat ha-Malkah” does not appear to have been adapted by Lask.) . . . Categories: Ḳabbalat Shabbatכִּי אֶשְׁמְרָה שַׁבָּת | Ki Eshmera Shabbat, a piyyut by Avraham ibn Ezra (rhyming translation by Israel Abrahams, 1914)The piyyut and popular shabbat table song, Ki Eshmera Shabbat, in Hebrew with a rhyming translation. . . . Categories: Se'udat Yom Shabbat Tags: rhyming translation, 50th century A.M., כי אשמרה שבת Ki Eshmerah Shabbat, זמירות zemirot, פיוטים piyyutim, 12th century C.E. Contributor(s): Israel Abrahams (translation), Avraham ibn Ezra and Aharon N. Varady (editing/transcription)“My America (Our New Hymn)” was written by Morris Rosenfeld and published by the Jewish Morning Journal sometime mid-April 1917. On April 2nd, the United States had entered the World War against Germany and its allies. In the xenophobic atmosphere of the United States during World War Ⅰ, Representative Isaac Siegel (1880-1947), R-NY, offered the hymn as evidence of the patriotism of America’s “foreign-born” Jewish immigrants. The poem in its English translation was added to the Congressional Record on 18 April 1917 in an extension of remarks. Xenophobia in the United States though did not ebb. Nearly a year later, on April 4, 1918, a German immigrant, Robert Prager, was lynched in Collinsville, Illinois. . . . עַל נְטִילַת יָדָֽיִם | Blessing on Washing the Hands, a rhyming translation and explanation by Jessie Ethel Sampter (1919)This paraliturgical supplement to the blessing over hand washing was written by Jessie Ethel Sampter and published in her Around the Year in Rhymes for the Jewish Child (1920), p. 81. . . . בּוֹרֵא פְּרִי הָאֵץ | Blessing Over Fruit, a rhyming translation and explanation by Jessie Ethel Sampter (1919)This paraliturgical supplement to the blessing before eating fruit of trees was written by Jessie Ethel Sampter and published in her Around the Year in Rhymes for the Jewish Child (1920), p. 83. . . . Categories: Blessings Before Eatingשֶׁהַכֹּל נִהְיָה בִּדְבָרוֹ | Blessing on Partaking [all other] Food, a rhyming translation and explanation by Jessie Ethel Sampter (1919)This paraliturgical supplement to the blessing before eating all other foods (besides bread, fruits, vegetation and vegetables) was written by Jessie Ethel Sampter and published in her Around the Year in Rhymes for the Jewish Child (1920), p. 85. . . . Categories: Blessings Before Eatingבּוֹרֵא פְּרִי הָאֲדָמָה | Blessing Over Vegetables, a rhyming translation and explanation by Jessie Ethel Sampter (1919)This paraliturgical supplement to the blessing before eating vegetation, vegetables, and fruit of the earth was written by Jessie Ethel Sampter and published in her Around the Year in Rhymes for the Jewish Child (1920), p. 84. . . . Categories: Blessings Before Eatingהַמוֹצִיא לֶֽחֶם מִן הָאֲרֶץ | Blessing on Breaking Bread, a rhyming translation and explanation by Jessie Ethel Sampter (1919)This paraliturgical supplement to the blessing before eating bread was written by Jessie Ethel Sampter and published in her Around the Year in Rhymes for the Jewish Child (1920), p. 82. . . . Categories: Blessings Before EatingThis translation of the blessing sheheḥiyanu was written by Jessie Ethel Sampter and published under the title “Blessing for Rosh-Hashanah” in her Around the Year in Rhymes for the Jewish Child (1920), p. 11. . . . בִּרְכָּת הַזָּן אֶת הַכֹּל | Grace After Meals (for Children), a rhyming translation by Jessie Ethel Sampter (1919)This rhyming translation for the Birkat haMazon (blessing after eating a meal with bread) was written by Jessie Ethel Sampter and published in her Around the Year in Rhymes for the Jewish Child (1920), p. 86. . . . Categories: Blessings After Eatingלְהַדְלִיק נֵר שֶׁל־שַׁבָּת | Blessing the Sabbath Candles, a rhyming translation and explanation by Jessie Ethel Sampter (1919)This paraliturgical supplement to the blessing over kindling the Shabbat candles was written by Jessie Ethel Sampter and published in her Around the Year in Rhymes for the Jewish Child (1920), p. 80. . . . Categories: Erev Shabbatברכת הבנים | Sabbath Blessing, a prayer-poem for children before their parent’s blessing by Jessie Ethel Sampter (1919)This prayer-poem on receiving a parent’s Sabbath Blessing was written by Jessie Ethel Sampter and published in her Around the Year in Rhymes for the Jewish Child (1920), p. 25. . . . Categories: Se'udat Leil Shabbat |
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