Template:Short description Template:Italic title Template:Use dmy dates
A Template:TransliterationTemplate:Efn (plural: kippot), Template:Transliteration, or Template:Transliteration is a brimless Jewish skullcap, usually made of cloth, traditionally worn by Jewish men to fulfill the customary requirement that the head be covered. It is the most common type of head-covering worn by men in Orthodox Jewish communities during prayers and by most Orthodox Jewish men at most other times. Among non-Orthodox Jewish individuals, some wear them at most times, while most wear them only during prayer, while attending a synagogue, or at other ceremonies, and others wear them rarely or never.
EtymologyEdit
The term Template:Transliteration (Template:Langx) literally means "dome" as the kippah is worn on the head like a dome.
The Yiddish term Template:Transliteration (Template:Langx) might be derived from the Polish {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} or the Ukrainian Template:Transliteration and perhaps ultimately from the Medieval Latin {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} ("cowl" or "hood").<ref>Etymonline.com.</ref><ref>Gold, David L. 1987. "The Etymology of the English Noun yarmlke 'Jewish skullcap' and the Obsolescent Hebrew Noun yarmulka 'idem' (With An Addendum on Judezmo Words for 'Jewish Skullcap')". Jewish Language Review 7:180–99; Plaut, Gunther. 1955. "The Origin of the Word 'Yarmulke'." Hebrew Union College Annual 26:567–70.</ref> The word is often associated with the phrase {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} (Template:Transliteration), formed from the Aramaic word for 'king' and the Hebrew root {{#invoke:Lang|lang}}, meaning 'fear'.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Template:Transliteration or Template:Transliteration is another Yiddish term for the same thing.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Jewish lawEdit
Halachic authorities debate as to whether wearing a Template:Transliteration at all times is required.<ref name="Wearing a Kippa">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> According to Maimonides, Jewish law dictates that a man is required to cover his head during prayer.<ref>Mishneh Torah, Ahavah, Hilkhot Tefilah 5:5.</ref>
In non-Orthodox communities, some women also wear Template:Transliteration, and people have different customs about when to wear a Template:TransliterationTemplate:Mdashwhen eating, praying, studying Jewish texts, or entering a sacred space such as a synagogue or cemetery. The Reform movement has historically been opposed to wearing Template:Transliteration, but wearing a kippah during Torah study and/or prayer has become more common and accepted as an option among Reform men and women.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>
According to several authorities, however, the practice has since taken on the force of law because it is an expression of Template:Transliteration ("reverence for Heaven"; i.e., respect for God).<ref>Shulchan Arukh, Orach Chayim 2:6.</ref> The 17th-century authority David HaLevi Segal held that the reason is to enforce the Halachic rule to avoid practices unique to non-Jews. Segal reasons that, as Europeans are accustomed to going bareheaded, and their priests insist on officiating with bare heads, this constitutes a uniquely non-Jewish practice. Therefore, he posits that Jews should be prohibited from behaving similarly and rules that wearing a Template:Transliteration is required by Halacha.<ref name="Wearing a Kippa"/>
Other Halachic authorities, like the Sephardi posek Chaim Yosef David Azulai, hold that wearing a head covering is a Template:Transliteration—an additional measure of piety.<ref name="Wearing a Kippa"/> In a recent responsum, former Sephardic Chief Rabbi of Israel Ovadia Yosef ruled that it should be worn to show affiliation with the religiously observant community.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
The Talmud states, "Cover your head in order that the fear of heaven may be upon you."<ref>Shabbat 156b.</ref> Rabbi Huna ben Joshua never walked four cubits (Template:Convert) with his head uncovered, saying "because the Divine Presence is always over my head."<ref>Kiddushin 31a.</ref> This was understood by Rabbi Yosef Karo in the Shulchan Arukh as indicating that Jewish men should cover their heads and should not walk more than four cubits bareheaded.<ref>Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim, 2:6.</ref> Covering one's head, such as by wearing a Template:Transliteration, is described as "honoring God".<ref>Shaar HaTzion, OC 2:6.</ref> The Template:Transliteration modifies this ruling by adding that the Achronim established a requirement to wear a head covering even when traversing fewer than four cubits,<ref>Be'er Heitev, Orach Chaim 2:6, note 4, who quotes Joel Sirkis, David HaLevi Segal, and Avraham Gombiner.</ref> and even when one is standing still, indoors, or outside.<ref>Mishnah Berurah 2:6, note 9, 10.</ref> Kitzur Shulchan Aruch cites a story from the Talmud (tractate Shabbat 156b) about Rav Nachman bar Yitzchak, who might have become a thief had his mother not saved him from this fate by insisting that he cover his head, which instilled in him the fear of God.<ref name=autogenerated1>KSA 3:6.</ref> In Orthodox communities, boys are encouraged to wear a Template:Transliteration from a young age in order to ingrain the habit.<ref>Be'er Heitev, OC 2:6, note 5.</ref>
The argument for the Template:Transliteration has two sides. The Vilna Gaon said one can make a Template:Transliteration without a Template:Transliteration, for wearing a Template:Transliteration is only a Template:Transliteration ("exemplary attribute"). In the 21st century, there has been an effort to suppress earlier sources that practiced this leniency, including erasing lenient responsa from newly published books.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Isaac ben Moses of Vienna, in the thirteenth century, wrote that "our rabbis in France" customarily made blessings while bareheaded, but he criticized this practice.<ref>Or Zarua 2:43.</ref>
According to 20th-century rabbi Isaac Klein, a male Conservative Jew ought to cover his head when in the synagogue, at prayer or sacred study, when engaging in a ritual act, and when eating.<ref>Klein, Isaac. A Guide to Jewish Religious Practice, New York: Jewish Theological Seminary of America, 1979.</ref> In the mid-19th century, early Reform Jews led by Isaac Mayer Wise completely rejected the Template:Transliteration after an altercation in which Wise's Template:Transliteration was knocked off his head.<ref>Scharfman, Rabbi Harold (1988). The First Rabbi. Pangloss Press.</ref> Nowadays, almost all Conservative synagogues require men to wear a head covering (usually a Template:Transliteration), but in Reform synagogues there is no requirement.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> However, Template:Transliteration may be provided to anybody who wishes to wear them.
The kippah was not always as widely used as it is today: Promotional images used by the Orthodox Yeshiva University show board members bareheaded as late as 1954.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Types and variationEdit
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In the Middle Ages in Europe, the distinctive Jewish headgear was the Jewish hat, a full hat with a brim and a central point or stalk. Originally used by choice among Jews to distinguish themselves, it was later made compulsory by Christian governments in some places as a discriminatory measure.Template:Citation needed In the early 19th century in the United States, rabbis often wore a scholar's cap (large saucer-shaped caps of cloth, like a beret) or a Chinese skullcap. Other Jews of this era wore black pillbox-shaped Template:Transliteration.
Often, the color and fabric of the Template:Transliteration can be a sign of adherence to a specific religious movement, particularly in Israel. Knitted or crocheted Template:Transliteration, known as Template:Transliteration, are usually worn by Religious Zionists and Modern Orthodox Jews.<ref>Boyarin, Jonathan. Thinking in Jewish, University of Chicago Press, 1996, p. 51. Template:ISBN.</ref> They also wear suede or leather Template:Transliteration. Knitted Template:Transliteration were first made in the late 1940s, and became popular after being worn by Rabbi Moshe-Zvi Neria.<ref>The First Knitted Kippah.</ref> Members of most Haredi groups wear black velvet or cloth Template:Transliteration.
More recently, Template:Transliteration in specific colors are sometimes worn to indicate political or community affiliation, such as the LGBT community, or in the colors of sports teams, especially football. In the United States, children's Template:Transliteration featuring cartoon characters or themes such as Star Wars have become popular; in response to this trend, some Jewish schools have banned Template:Transliteration with characters that do not conform to traditional Jewish values.<ref>Lifestyle; "The Yarmulke Is Now a Fashion Item", The New York Times, 23 Sept 1990.</ref> Template:Transliteration have been inscribed on the inside as a souvenir for a celebration (bar/bat mitzvah or wedding). Template:Transliteration for women are also being made and worn.<ref name="GU">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="MAZ">Living Jewish – Jewish Attire!, Mazor Guide. Retrieved 19 December 2010.</ref><ref>"California firm offers kippot for women", The Jerusalem Post, 10 July 2005.</ref> These are sometimes made of beaded wire to seem more feminine.<ref>"Ask the Expert: Can Women Wear Kippot?" My Jewish Learning.</ref> A special baby Template:Transliteration has two strings on each side to fasten it and is often used in a Template:Transliteration ceremony.<ref name="JW">"From baby kippah to Tylenol, Bris Kit has everything but the implement", J. The Jewish News of Northern California, 18 Jun 2004.</ref>
| Image | Type | Movement | |
|---|---|---|---|
| File:Kippa.jpg | Crocheted | Religious Zionism, Modern Orthodox, Conservative Judaism, Reform Judaism | |
| File:Kippa judentum.JPG | Suede | citation | CitationClass=web
}}</ref> Reform Judaism<ref name="myjewishlearning"/> |
| Terylene<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation | CitationClass=web
}}</ref> |
Yeshivish, Hasidic, Haredi, Lubavitch – Popular among Rabbis teaching in yeshivas and seminaries | |
| File:Black Kippah.jpg | Black velvet | Yeshivish, Hasidic, Haredi<ref name="JPK">Barring violenceTemplate:Dead link, The Jerusalem Post, Yigal Grayeff, 9 February 2006.</ref> | |
| File:Casamento judeu1.jpg | Satin | Template:Ubl | |
| File:Na-nach-nachma-yarmulke.jpg | White crocheted | Many Jerusalemites wear a full-head-sized, white crocheted Template:Transliteration, sometimes with a knit pom-pom or tassel on top. The Na Nach subgroup of the Breslov Hasidim, followers of the late Rabbi Yisroel Ber Odesser, wear it with the Template:Transliteration phrase crocheted in or embroidered on it.<ref>On New Year, thousands flock to Rabbi Nachman's grave in UkraineTemplate:Dead link, HaAretz, Yair Ettinger.</ref> | |
| File:Bukharan kippah.jpg | Bukharan<ref name="B">Hats Off To Fashion: Yarmulkes go beyond basic black, Traverse City Record-Eagle, Associated Press, 13 April 2008.</ref> | Popular with children,<ref name="GU"/><ref name="B"/> and also worn by some Sephardi Jews, as well as liberal-leaning and Reform Jews.<ref name="FOR">Kippah Couture, The Forward, Angela Himsel, 29 September 2006.</ref> | |
| File:Yemenite kippah.jpg | Yemenite | Typically stiff, black velvet with a Template:Cvt embroidered strip around the edge having a multi-colored geometric, floral, or paisley pattern. |
Head coverings in ancient Israelite cultureEdit
The Israelites might have worn a headdress similar to that worn by the Bedouins, but it is unknown whether a fixed type of headdress was used. That the headdress of the Israelites might have been in the Template:Transliteration style may be inferred from the use of the noun Template:Langx (the verb Template:Transliteration meaning "to roll like a ball", Isaiah 22:18) and by the verb Template:Langx ("to wind", compare Ezekiel 16:10; Jonah 2:6). As to the form of such turbans, nothing is known, and they may have varied according to the different classes of society. This was customary with the Assyrians and Babylonians, for example, whose fashions likely influenced the costume of the Israelites—particularly during and after the Babylonian Exile.<ref>"Head-dress", Jewish Encyclopedia.</ref> In Yemen, the wrap around the cap was called Template:Langx; the head covering worn by women was a Template:Langx.<ref>"Clothing of the Yemenite Jews" Template:Webarchive, Chayas.com.</ref>
Civil legal issuesEdit
In Goldman v. Weinberger, 475 U.S. 503 (1986), the United States Supreme Court ruled in a 5–4 decision that active military members were required to remove the Template:Transliteration indoors, citing uniform regulations that state only armed security police may keep their heads covered while indoors.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Congress passed the Religious Apparel Amendment after a war story from the 1983 Beirut barracks bombing about the "camouflage Template:Transliteration" of Jewish Navy Chaplain Arnold Resnicoff was read into the Congressional Record.<ref>Congressional Record, 100th Congress, 11 May 1987.</ref> Catholic Chaplain George Pucciarelli tore off a piece of his Marine Corps uniform to replace Resnicoff's Template:Transliteration when it had become blood-soaked after being used to wipe the faces of wounded Marines after the 1983 Beirut barracks bombing.<ref>"Solarz Passes Religious Apparel Amendment", The Jewish Press, 22 May 1987.</ref> This amendment was eventually incorporated into U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) regulations on the "Accommodation of Religious Practices Within the Military Services".<ref>"Accommodation of Religious Practices Within the Military Services", Department of Defense Instruction.</ref>
This story of the "camouflage Template:Transliteration" was re-told at many levels,<ref>Bonko, Larry. "Rabbi's Camouflage Yarmulke Woven With Tragedy, Heroism", Norfolk Ledger-Star, 13 January 1984.</ref> including a keynote speech by President Ronald Reagan to the Baptist Fundamentalism Annual Convention in 1984,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> and another time during a White House meeting between Reagan and the American Friends of Lubavitch.<ref name="top">Template:Cite news</ref> After recounting the Beirut story, Reagan asked them about the religious meaning of the Template:Transliteration.<ref name="top"/> Rabbi Abraham Shemtov, the leader of the group, responded: "Mr. President, the Template:Transliteration to us is a sign of reverence." Rabbi Feller, another member of the group, continued: "We place the Template:Transliteration on the very highest point of our being—on our head, the vessel of our intellect—to tell ourselves and the world that there is something which is above man's intellect: the infinite Wisdom of God."<ref name="top"/>
Passage of the Religious Apparel Amendment and the subsequent DOD regulations were followed in 1997 by the passing of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA). However, the Supreme Court struck down RFRA as beyond Congress' powers to bind the states in the 1997 case City of Boerne v. Flores. RFRA is constitutional as applied to the Federal government, as seen in Gonzales v. O Centro Espirita Beneficente Uniao do Vegetal.
The Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act of 2000 (RLUIPA), 114 Stat. 804, 42 U. S. C. §2000cc-1(a)(1)-(2), upheld as constitutional in Cutter v. Wilkinson, 44 U.S. 709 (2005), requires by inference that Orthodox Jewish prisoners be reasonably accommodated in their request to wear Template:Transliteration.<ref>Benning v. Georgia, 391 F3d 1299.</ref>
The French government banned the wearing of Template:Transliteration, hijabs, and large crosses in public primary and secondary schools in France in March 2004.<ref>French Senate backs headscarf ban, BBC News, 3 March 2004.</ref>
The government of Quebec, Canada passed "An Act respecting the laicity of the State" in June 2019, which prohibits the wearing of "religious symbols" by government employees including teachers, police officers, judges, prosecutors, and members of certain commissions.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Wearing by non-JewsEdit
Though it is not required, when a non-Jew wears a Template:Transliteration in a synagogue, it is considered a sign of respect.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Template:Transliteration are often provided to guests at a Bar or Bat Mitzvah.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> They are also often provided at bereavement events and at Jewish cemeteries. According to the Conservative Committee on Jewish Law and Standards, there is no halakhic reason to require a non-Jew to cover their head, but it is recommended that non-Jews be asked to wear a Template:Transliteration where ritual or worship is being conducted, both out of respect for the Jewish congregation and as a gesture of respect to include the non-Jewish guest.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Template:Transliteration were adopted as a symbol by some of the non-Jewish African American marchers in the 1965 Selma to Montgomery marches,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> most prominently by James Bevel.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
See alsoEdit
- List of hat styles
- Kufi, a similar cap culturally worn by Muslim and African men
- Template:Transliteration, a similar skullcap culturally worn by Muslim men
- Head covering for Jewish women
- Zucchetto
- The Philippi Collection
- Kid Yamaka, Jewish American boxer
- Knit cap
- Template:Transliteration, an Israeli television show named after the knit Template:Transliteration worn by Religious Zionists
NotesEdit
ReferencesEdit
External linksEdit
Template:Sister project Template:Sister project
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