Seharane

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Seharane, also spelled Seharaneh, is a multi-day festival celebrated by Kurdish Jews. Although traditionally observed following Passover, in Israel today the festival is observed during the intermediate days of Sukkot.

Etymology[edit]

There are several theories as to the etymology of Seharane. One theory says it derives from the Kurdish word sayran, meaning to see nature.[1][2] Others relate it to sahar, meaning crescent moon.[2]

Origins[edit]

Seharane is thought to derive from Navruz, also called Sayeran, a similar spring festival observed by Kurdish Muslims.[2]

Traditional observance[edit]

The festival was traditionally celebrated for multiple days, with event preparations beginning the first night after Passover ended.[1]

Traditionally, Kurdish Jews would travel to the countryside and set up camps for the festival celebrations.[2] Communities would hire guards to protect the camps for the festival's length.[2] Families would bring food, which they cooked or reheated over campfires and shared with each other.[2] Seharane observances were joyful and social occasions, in which people wore their best clothes and sang, danced (especially in group circle dances), and made music with the zurna and dahola.[1][2][3] Young men and women also were able to spend time more freely with each other, leading to social connections and engagements.[2]

Another aspect of the holiday was to visit the graves of "righteous elders".[3]

Contemporary observance[edit]

The Kurdish Jewish community was almost entirely relocated to Israel in the early 1950s, through Operation Ezra and Nehemiah.[2][4] Following this, observance of Seharane largely stopped for the next twenty years, due to the community being scattered across the country.[2][4] The festival was revived in the 1970s,[5] as part of a larger move to revive cultural traditions and festivals,[4] by the newly formed National Council of the Association of Kurdish Jewry.[2] The council decided to move the festival from its traditional timing after Passover to the intermediate days of Sukkot,[4] in order to avoid conflicts with Mimouna, a Sephardic festival which also takes place after Passover.[1][2][5][6]

A Seharane festival was established in 1972, which has been held annually.[7] The festival offers an opportunity for Israeli politicians to interact with the community, as well as a way for Kurdish Jews to connect to the rest of the Kurdish diaspora; multiple times over the years, non-Jewish Kurds have been invited to participate.[6][7][8]

In the years since, the occasion has led to public celebrations, during which many people choose to picnic.[2]

In popular culture[edit]

In September 2019, the Israel Postal Company issued a series of stamps commemorating Seharane.[9]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d Zylali, Mira. "Seharaneh: A Post-Passover Kurdish Jewish Celebration". My Jewish Learning. Retrieved 2023-11-15.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m "The Seharane". The Jewish Agency. 2005-07-20. Retrieved 2023-11-15.
  3. ^ a b Goren-Kadman, Ayalah (December 31, 1999). "Community Dance Practices in the Yishuv and Israel: 1900-2000". Jewish Women's Archive. Retrieved 2023-11-16.
  4. ^ a b c d "Seharane". Rossing Center for Education and Dialogue. Retrieved 2023-11-15.
  5. ^ a b Tapper, Aaron J. Hahn (2016-06-07). Judaisms: A Twenty-First-Century Introduction to Jews and Jewish Identities. Univ of California Press. pp. 123–124. ISBN 978-0-520-28135-6.
  6. ^ a b Maisel, Sebastian (2018-06-21). The Kurds: An Encyclopedia of Life, Culture, and Society. Bloomsbury Publishing USA. p. 260. ISBN 978-1-4408-4257-3.
  7. ^ a b Baser, Bahar; Atlas, Duygu (2021-10-02). "Once A Diaspora, Always A Diaspora? The Ethnic, Cultural and Political Mobilization of Kurdistani Jews in Israel". Politics, Religion & Ideology. 22 (3–4): 302–328. doi:10.1080/21567689.2021.1975111. ISSN 2156-7689.
  8. ^ Berman, Lazar (September 30, 2013). "Cultural pride, and unlikely guests, at Kurdish Jewish festival". The Times of Israel. Retrieved November 14, 2023.
  9. ^ "Ethnic Festivals in Israel -The Sehrane Festival Stamp Sheet". Israel Post Shop. Retrieved 2023-11-16.

Further reading[edit]

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