Adar
Encyclopedia
Adar is the sixth month of the civil year and the twelfth month of the ecclesiastical year on the Hebrew calendar
Hebrew calendar
The Hebrew calendar , or Jewish calendar, is a lunisolar calendar used today predominantly for Jewish religious observances. It determines the dates for Jewish holidays and the appropriate public reading of Torah portions, yahrzeits , and daily Psalm reading, among many ceremonial uses...

. It is a winter month of 29 days. In leap years, it is preceded by a 30-day intercalary month named Adar Aleph (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...

 being the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet), Adar Rishon (First Adar) or Adar I and it is then itself called Adar Bet (Bet
Bet (letter)
Bet, Beth, Beh, or Vet is the second letter of many Semitic abjads, including Arabic alphabet , Aramaic, Hebrew , Phoenician and Syriac...

 being the second letter of the Hebrew Alphabet), Adar Sheni (Second Adar) or Adar II. Occasionally instead of Adar I and Adar II, "Adar" and "Ve'Adar" are used (Ve means 'and' thus: And Adar). Adar I and II occur during February–March on the Gregorian calendar
Gregorian calendar
The Gregorian calendar, also known as the Western calendar, or Christian calendar, is the internationally accepted civil calendar. It was introduced by Pope Gregory XIII, after whom the calendar was named, by a decree signed on 24 February 1582, a papal bull known by its opening words Inter...

.

Based on a line in the Mishnah
Mishnah
The Mishnah or Mishna is the first major written redaction of the Jewish oral traditions called the "Oral Torah". It is also the first major work of Rabbinic Judaism. It was redacted c...

 declaring that Purim must be celebrated in Adar II in a leap year (Megillah 1:4), Adar I is considered the "extra" month. As a result, someone born in Adar during a non leap year would celebrate his birthday in Adar II during a leap year. However, someone born during either Adar in a leap year will celebrate his birthday during Adar in a non-leap year, except that someone born on 30 Adar I will celebrate his birthday on 1 Adar in a non-leap year because Adar in a non-leap year has only 29 days, and 30 Adar I is Rosh Chodesh
Rosh Chodesh
Rosh Chodesh or Rosh ḥodesh is the name for the first day of every month in the Hebrew calendar, marked by the appearance of the new moon. The new moon is marked by the day and hour that the new crescent is observed...

, so his birthday will still fall on Rosh Chodesh Adar.

Holidays in Adar

13 Adar (II in leap years) - Fast of Esther
Fast of Esther
The Fast of Esther is a Jewish fast from dawn until dusk on Purim eve, commemorating the three-day fast observed by the Jewish people in the story of Purim...

 – on 11 Adar when the 13th falls on 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...

 - (Fast Day)

14 Adar (II in leap years) - Purim
Purim
Purim is a Jewish holiday that commemorates the deliverance of the Jewish people in the ancient Persian Empire from destruction in the wake of a plot by Haman, a story recorded in the Biblical Book of Esther .Purim is celebrated annually according to the Hebrew calendar on the 14th...



14 Adar I (does not exist in non-leap years) - Purim Katan

15 Adar (II in leap years) - Shushan Purim - celebration of Purim in walled cities existing during the time of Joshua
Joshua
Joshua , is a minor figure in the Torah, being one of the spies for Israel and in few passages as Moses's assistant. He turns to be the central character in the Hebrew Bible's Book of Joshua...


Adar in Jewish history

1 Adar - (1313 BCE) - Plague of Darkness
  • The ninth plague to be cast upon the Egyptians
    Egyptians
    Egyptians are nation an ethnic group made up of Mediterranean North Africans, the indigenous people of Egypt.Egyptian identity is closely tied to geography. The population of Egypt is concentrated in the lower Nile Valley, the small strip of cultivable land stretching from the First Cataract to...

     for their refusal to release the Israelites from slavery was a thick darkness across the entire land so "no man saw his fellow, and no man could move from his place" (Exodus 10:23). This started on the 1st of Adar, six weeks before 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...

    .

1 Adar - (1164) - Passing of the Ibn Ezra
Abraham ibn Ezra
Rabbi Abraham ben Meir Ibn Ezra was born at Tudela, Navarre in 1089, and died c. 1167, apparently in Calahorra....

  • A highly regarded Biblical
    Bible
    The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...

     commentator, Rabbi Avraham ben Meir Ibn Ezra
    Abraham ibn Ezra
    Rabbi Abraham ben Meir Ibn Ezra was born at Tudela, Navarre in 1089, and died c. 1167, apparently in Calahorra....

     (1089?-1164), died on Adar 1.

1 Adar - (circa
Circa
Circa , usually abbreviated c. or ca. , means "approximately" in the English language, usually referring to a date...

 1663) - Passing of the Shach
  • Adar 1 is also the yahrtzeit (anniversary of the death) of the Halachist Rabbi
    Rabbi
    In Judaism, a rabbi is a teacher of Torah. This title derives from the Hebrew word רבי , meaning "My Master" , which is the way a student would address a master of Torah...

     Shabtai Hakohen Katz, who lived from 1621 to around 1663?, and was author of the Siftei Cohen commentary on Rabbi Yosef Karo
    Yosef Karo
    Joseph ben Ephraim Karo, also spelled Yosef Caro, or Qaro, was author of the last great codification of Jewish law, the Shulchan Aruch, which is still authoritative for all Jews pertaining to their respective communities...

    's Code of Jewish Law. He is known as "Shach", which is an acronym of the name of his work, which still to this day serves as a primary source of Halachah (Jewish law).

3 Adar - (515 BCE) - Second Temple
Second Temple
The Jewish Second Temple was an important shrine which stood on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem between 516 BCE and 70 CE. It replaced the First Temple which was destroyed in 586 BCE, when the Jewish nation was exiled to Babylon...

 completed
  • The dedication of the second Holy Temple (Beit HaMikdash) which was built by Ezra
    Ezra
    Ezra , also called Ezra the Scribe and Ezra the Priest in the Book of Ezra. According to the Hebrew Bible he returned from the Babylonian exile and reintroduced the Torah in Jerusalem...

     on the site of the 1st Temple in Jerusalem, was celebrated on the 3rd of Adar of 515 BCE, after four years of work.

4 Adar - (1307) - Maharam
Meir of Rothenburg
Meir of Rothenburg was a German Rabbi and poet, a major author of the tosafot on Rashi's commentary on the Talmud...

's body ransomed
  • The imprisonment of Rabbi Meir ben Baruch ("Maharam") of Rothenburg
    Meir of Rothenburg
    Meir of Rothenburg was a German Rabbi and poet, a major author of the tosafot on Rashi's commentary on the Talmud...

     came to a close when his body was ransomed 14 years after his death by Alexander ben Shlomo (Susskind) Wimpen.

4 Adar - (1796) - Passing of Rabbi Leib Sarah's
  • Adar 4 is the yahrtzeit (anniversary) of the passing of Rabbi Leib Sarah's
    Leib Sarah's
    Rabbi Leib Sarah's was a Chassidic Rebbe and a disciple of the Baal Shem Tov.-External links:*...

     (1730–1796), a disciple of the Rabbi Israel Baal Shem Tov. One of the "hidden tzaddikim," Rabbi Leib spent his life wandering from place to place to raise money for the ransoming of imprisoned Jews and the support of other hidden tzaddikim.

7 Adar - (1393 and 1273 BCE) - Moses
Moses
Moses was, according to the Hebrew Bible and Qur'an, a religious leader, lawgiver and prophet, to whom the authorship of the Torah is traditionally attributed...

' birth and passing
  • Moses
    Moses
    Moses was, according to the Hebrew Bible and Qur'an, a religious leader, lawgiver and prophet, to whom the authorship of the Torah is traditionally attributed...

     was born in Egypt
    Egypt
    Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...

     on the 7th of Adar of the Hebrew year 2368 (1393 BCE) and is said to have died on his 120th birthday, Adar 7, 2488 (1273 BCE)

7 Adar - (1828) - Passing of Rebbe Isaac Taub of Kalov
  • Rabbi Isaac Taub (1744-1828), founder of the Kalover Hasidic dynasty, a student of Rabbi Leib Sarah's, died.

11 Adar- 18th century - Passing of Reb Eliezer Lipman
  • Reb Eliezer Lipman (Elezer Lippe) was the father of the prominent Chassidic Rebbes Rabbi Elimelech of Lizhensk
    Elimelech of Lizhensk
    Elimelech Weisblum of Lizhensk , a Rabbi and one of the great founding Rebbes of the Hasidic movement, was known after his hometown, Leżajsk near Rzeszów in Poland...

     and Rabbi Zusha of Hanipol.

13 Adar - (522 BCE) - war against enemies of the Jews in Persia
  • On the 13th of Adar of the Hebrew year 522 BCE, battles were fought throughout the Persian Empire between the Jews
    Jews
    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...

     and those seeking to kill them in accordance with the decree issued by King Achashveirosh eleven months earlier. (Achashveirosh never rescinded that decree; but after the hanging of Haman
    Haman (Bible)
    Haman is the main antagonist in the Book of Esther, who, according to Old Testament tradition, was a 5th Century BC noble and vizier of the Persian empire under King Ahasuerus, traditionally identified as Artaxerxes II...

     on Nissan 16 of the previous year, and Queen Esther
    Esther
    Esther , born Hadassah, is the eponymous heroine of the Biblical Book of Esther.According to the Bible, she was a Jewish queen of the Persian king Ahasuerus...

    's pleading on behalf of her people, he agreed to issue a second decree authorizing the Jews to defend themselves against those seeking to kill them.) 75,000 enemies were killed on that day, and 500 in the capital, Shushan, including Haman's ten sons (Parshandata, Dalfon, Aspata, Porata, Adalia, Aridata, Parmashta, Arisai, Aridai and Vaizata), whose bodies were subsequently hanged. The Jews did not take any of the possessions of the slain as booty, though authorized to do so by the king's decree. (The Book of Esther
    Book of Esther
    The Book of Esther is a book in the Ketuvim , the third section of the Jewish Tanakh and is part of the Christian Old Testament. The Book of Esther or the Megillah is the basis for the Jewish celebration of Purim...

    , chapter 9).

13 Adar - (161 BCE) - Maccabee victory / Yom Nicanor
  • The Maccabees defeated the Syrian General Nicanor
    Nicanor (Syrian general)
    Nicanor Nicanor Nicanor (born ??? BC - died 161 BC; pronounced ni-ka'-nor, ni'-ka-nor (Nikanor) was a Syrian-Seleucid General under Antiochus Epiphanes and Demetrius Soter.-Early Military career:...

     in a battle fought four years after the Maccabee's liberation of the Holy Land
    Holy Land
    The Holy Land is a term which in Judaism refers to the Kingdom of Israel as defined in the Tanakh. For Jews, the Land's identifiction of being Holy is defined in Judaism by its differentiation from other lands by virtue of the practice of Judaism often possible only in the Land of Israel...

     and the miracle of Hanukkah
    Hanukkah
    Hanukkah , also known as the Festival of Lights, is an eight-day Jewish holiday commemorating the rededication of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem at the time of the Maccabean Revolt of the 2nd century BCE...

    .

13 Adar (5746-1986) - Rabbi Moshe Feinstein passes away.
14 Adar - (1393 BCE) - Moses
Moses
Moses was, according to the Hebrew Bible and Qur'an, a religious leader, lawgiver and prophet, to whom the authorship of the Torah is traditionally attributed...

' brit milah
Brit milah
The brit milah is a Jewish religious circumcision ceremony performed on 8-day old male infants by a mohel. The brit milah is followed by a celebratory meal .-Biblical references:...

  • Moses
    Moses
    Moses was, according to the Hebrew Bible and Qur'an, a religious leader, lawgiver and prophet, to whom the authorship of the Torah is traditionally attributed...

     was born on the 7th of Adar of the Hebrew year 2368 (1393 BCE); accordingly, Adar 14 was the 8th day of his life and the day on which he was circumcised in accordance with the divine command to Abraham.

14 Adar - (522 BCE) - Purim
Purim
Purim is a Jewish holiday that commemorates the deliverance of the Jewish people in the ancient Persian Empire from destruction in the wake of a plot by Haman, a story recorded in the Biblical Book of Esther .Purim is celebrated annually according to the Hebrew calendar on the 14th...

 victory celebrated
  • The festival of Purim
    Purim
    Purim is a Jewish holiday that commemorates the deliverance of the Jewish people in the ancient Persian Empire from destruction in the wake of a plot by Haman, a story recorded in the Biblical Book of Esther .Purim is celebrated annually according to the Hebrew calendar on the 14th...

     celebrates the salvation of the Jewish people from Haman
    Haman
    Haman can be a surname which is a corruption of the German Hamann. It is also a biblical surname as described below. It also refers to:*Haman , appears in the Book of Esther and is the main antagonist in the Jewish holiday of Purim....

    's plot "to destroy, kill and annihilate all the Jews, young and old, infants and women, in a single day." See Timeline.

15 Adar - (522 BCE) - Purim
Purim
Purim is a Jewish holiday that commemorates the deliverance of the Jewish people in the ancient Persian Empire from destruction in the wake of a plot by Haman, a story recorded in the Biblical Book of Esther .Purim is celebrated annually according to the Hebrew calendar on the 14th...

 Victory Celebrated in Shushan 

15 Adar - (1st century CE
Common Era
Common Era ,abbreviated as CE, is an alternative designation for the calendar era originally introduced by Dionysius Exiguus in the 6th century, traditionally identified with Anno Domini .Dates before the year 1 CE are indicated by the usage of BCE, short for Before the Common Era Common Era...

) - Jerusalem Gate Day
  • King Agrippa I
    Agrippa I
    Agrippa I also known as Herod Agrippa or simply Herod , King of the Jews, was the grandson of Herod the Great, and son of Aristobulus IV and Berenice. His original name was Marcus Julius Agrippa, so named in honour of Roman statesman Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa, and he is the king named Herod in the...

     (circa 21 CE
    Common Era
    Common Era ,abbreviated as CE, is an alternative designation for the calendar era originally introduced by Dionysius Exiguus in the 6th century, traditionally identified with Anno Domini .Dates before the year 1 CE are indicated by the usage of BCE, short for Before the Common Era Common Era...

    ) began construction of a gate for the wall of Jerusalem; the day used to be celebrated as a holiday.

20 Adar - (1st century BCE) - Choni the Circle Maker prays for rain
  • "One year, most of Adar went by and it didn't rain. They sent for Choni the Circle Maker. He prayed and the rains didn't come. He drew a circle, stood in it and said: 'Master of The World! Your children have turned to me; I swear in Your great name that I won't move from here until You have pity on Your children.' The rains came down." (Talmud
    Talmud
    The Talmud is a central text of mainstream Judaism. It takes the form of a record of rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, philosophy, customs and history....

    , Taanit
    Ta'anit (Talmud)
    Ta'anit or Taanis is a volume of the Mishnah, Tosefta, and both Talmuds. In Judaism these are the basic works of rabbinic literature.The tractate of Ta'anit is devoted chiefly to the fast-days, their practices and prayers...

     23a)

20 Adar - (1640) - Passing of the "Bach
Yoel Sirkis
Joel ben Samuel Sirkis also known as the Bach - an abbreviation of his magnum opus, Bayit Chadash - was a prominent Jewish posek and halakhist. He lived in central Europe and held rabbinical positions in Belz, Brest-Litovsk and Kraków from 1561-1640.-Biography:Sirkis was born in Lublin in 1561...

"
  • Adar 20 is the yahrtzeit (anniversary of the death) of Rabbi Yoel Sirkes
    Yoel Sirkis
    Joel ben Samuel Sirkis also known as the Bach - an abbreviation of his magnum opus, Bayit Chadash - was a prominent Jewish posek and halakhist. He lived in central Europe and held rabbinical positions in Belz, Brest-Litovsk and Kraków from 1561-1640.-Biography:Sirkis was born in Lublin in 1561...

     (1560?-1640), who authored of the Bayit Chadash ("Bach") commentary on the Halachic work, Beit Yosef
    Beit Yosef
    Beit Yosef may refer to:* Beit Yosef, Israel, a moshav in the Beit She'an Valley* Beit Yosef , a book by Rabbi Joseph Caro...

    .

21 Adar (Adar II in leap years)- (1786) - Passing of Rabbi Elimelech of Lizhensk
Elimelech of Lizhensk
Elimelech Weisblum of Lizhensk , a Rabbi and one of the great founding Rebbes of the Hasidic movement, was known after his hometown, Leżajsk near Rzeszów in Poland...

  • Rabbi Elimelech of Lizhensk
    Elimelech of Lizhensk
    Elimelech Weisblum of Lizhensk , a Rabbi and one of the great founding Rebbes of the Hasidic movement, was known after his hometown, Leżajsk near Rzeszów in Poland...

    , also known as Noam Elimelech was a great Chassidic Rebbe, and a prominent student of Rabbi DovBer, the great Maggid of Mezeritch. Rabbi Elimelech was the brother of Rabbi Zusha of Hanipol- also a prominent Tzaddik and a student of the Maggid. Among the students of Rabbi Elimelech are several prominent Rebbes, including: The Seer- Chozeh of Lublin, Rebbe Menachem Mendel of Rimanov
    Menachem Mendel of Rimanov
    Menachem Mendel of Rimanov was a Hasidic Rebbe and author. Born in Neustadt, Nowe Miasto, he was introduced to Hasidut at the age of 11 when he met Dovber of Mezeritch...

    , The Maggid of Kozhnitz, Rabbi Avraham Yehoshua Heshel- The Apter Rov, Rabbi Naftali Zvi of Ropshitz
    Naftali Zvi of Ropshitz
    Rabbi Naftali Zvi Horowitz of Ropczyce was born on the day that the Baal Shem Tov died, to Rabbi Menachem Mendel Rubin of Linsk. His mother Beila was the daughter of Rabbi Yitzchak Halevi Horowitz. Naftali Tzvi adopted the surname of his maternal grandfather.He was the first Ropshitzer Rebbe...

    , Rabbi Kalynomus Kalman Epstein, Rebbe Dovid Lelover.

23 Adar - (1312 BCE) - Mishkan assembled for the 1st time; "Seven Days of Training" begin.
  • During the week of Adar 23-29, the Mishkan was erected each morning and dismantled each evening; Moses
    Moses
    Moses was, according to the Hebrew Bible and Qur'an, a religious leader, lawgiver and prophet, to whom the authorship of the Torah is traditionally attributed...

     served as the High Priest and initiated Aaron
    Aaron
    In the Hebrew Bible and the Qur'an, Aaron : Ααρών ), who is often called "'Aaron the Priest"' and once Aaron the Levite , was the older brother of Moses, and a prophet of God. He represented the priestly functions of his tribe, becoming the first High Priest of the Israelites...

     and his four sons into the priesthood. Then, on the "eighth day," the 1st of Nissan, the Mishkan was "permanently" assembled (that is, put up to stand until the God-given command would come to journey on), Aaron and his sons assumed the priesthood, and the divine presence came to dwell in the Mishkan.

23 Adar - (1866) - Passing of 1st Rebbe of Ger
Yitzchak Meir Alter
Yitzchak Meir Alter , is considered to be the first Rebbe of the Ger Hasidic dynasty, which he founded in the town of Góra Kalwaria , Poland. He was also known as the Chidushei HaRim for his Torah books...

  • Chassidic Rabbi Yitzchak Meir Altar
    Yitzchak Meir Alter
    Yitzchak Meir Alter , is considered to be the first Rebbe of the Ger Hasidic dynasty, which he founded in the town of Góra Kalwaria , Poland. He was also known as the Chidushei HaRim for his Torah books...

     (1799–1866), author of Chiddushei Harim (a commentary on the Talmud
    Talmud
    The Talmud is a central text of mainstream Judaism. It takes the form of a record of rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, philosophy, customs and history....

     and Shulchan Aruch
    Shulchan Aruch
    The Shulchan Aruch also known as the Code of Jewish Law, is the most authoritative legal code of Judaism. It was authored in Safed, Israel, by Yosef Karo in 1563 and published in Venice two years later...

    ), was a disciple of Rabbi Yisroel Hopsztajn- The Maggid of Koshnitz and Rabbi Simcha Bunim of Peshischa, and the founder of the "Ger" (Gerer) Chassidic dynasty
    Ger (Hasidic dynasty)
    Ger, or Gur is a Hasidic dynasty originating from Ger, the Yiddish name of Góra Kalwaria, a small town in Poland....

    . All his 13 sons had died in his lifetime, and he was succeeded (in 1870) by his young grandson, Rabbi Yehudah Leib Alter
    Yehudah Aryeh Leib Alter
    Yehudah Aryeh Leib Alter , also known by the title of his main work, the Sfas Emes, was a Hasidic rabbi who succeeded his grandfather, Rabbi Yitzchak Meir Alter, as the av beis din and Rav of Góra Kalwaria, Poland , and succeeded the Rebbe, Reb Heynekh of Alexander, as Rebbe of the Gerrer...

     (the "Sefat Emmet").

24 Adar - (1817) - Blood Libel
Blood libel
Blood libel is a false accusation or claim that religious minorities, usually Jews, murder children to use their blood in certain aspects of their religious rituals and holidays...

 declared false
  • On Adar 24, Czar Alexander I of Russia declared the Blood Libel
    Blood libel
    Blood libel is a false accusation or claim that religious minorities, usually Jews, murder children to use their blood in certain aspects of their religious rituals and holidays...

    , the infamous accusation that Jews murdered Christian
    Christian
    A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...

     children to use their blood in the baking of matzah
    Matzo
    Matzo or matzah is an unleavened bread traditionally eaten by Jews during the week-long Passover holiday, when eating chametz—bread and other food which is made with leavened grain—is forbidden according to Jewish law. Currently, the most ubiquitous type of Matzo is the traditional Ashkenazic...

     for 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...

    , for which thousands of Jews were killed through the centuries, to be false. Nevertheless, nearly a hundred years later the accusation was officially leveled against Mendel Beilis
    Menahem Mendel Beilis
    Menahem Mendel Beilis, 1874 – July 7, 1934, was a Ukrainian Jew accused of ritual murder in Kiev in the Russian Empire in a notorious 1913 trial, known as the "Beilis trial" or "Beilis affair". The process sparked international criticism of the antisemitic policies of the Russian Empire...

     in Kiev
    Kiev
    Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....

    .

25 Adar - (561 BCE) - Nebuchadnezzar died
  • Death of King Nebuchadnezzar, the Babylonian emperor who conquered Jerusalem and destroyed the first Holy Temple 26 years earlier, died on the 25th of Adar. (Jeremiah
    Jeremiah
    Jeremiah Hebrew:יִרְמְיָה , Modern Hebrew:Yirməyāhū, IPA: jirməˈjaːhu, Tiberian:Yirmĭyahu, Greek:Ἰερεμίας), meaning "Yahweh exalts", or called the "Weeping prophet" was one of the main prophets of the Hebrew Bible...

     52:31)

25 Adar - (1761) - Passing of Rabbi Abraham Gershon of Kitov
Abraham Gershon of Kitov
Abraham Gershon of Kitov, also known as Rabbi Gershon of Brody, was probably born in or near Kuty , Poland around 1701 and died in Jerusalem in 1761. He is best known as the Baal Shem Tov's brother-in-law.- Rabbinical career :...

  • Rabbi Abraham Gershon of Kitov
    Abraham Gershon of Kitov
    Abraham Gershon of Kitov, also known as Rabbi Gershon of Brody, was probably born in or near Kuty , Poland around 1701 and died in Jerusalem in 1761. He is best known as the Baal Shem Tov's brother-in-law.- Rabbinical career :...

     was the brother-in-law and leading foe-turned-disciple of the Baal Shem Tov. Rabbi Gershon was the recipient of a letter from the Baal Shem Tov describing his heavenly prophecy regarding the coming of the Messiah. Rabbi Gershon's gravestone, which lists 25 Adar as his day of passing, was discovered in the Mount of Olives cemetery in Jerusalem after the Six-day War
    Six-Day War
    The Six-Day War , also known as the June War, 1967 Arab-Israeli War, or Third Arab-Israeli War, was fought between June 5 and 10, 1967, by Israel and the neighboring states of Egypt , Jordan, and Syria...

    .

27 Adar - (561 BCE) - Passing of Zedekiah
Zedekiah
Zedekiah or Tzidkiyahu was the last king of Judah before the destruction of the kingdom by Babylon. He was installed as king of Judah by Nebuchadnezzar II, king of Babylon, after a siege of Jerusalem to succeed his nephew, Jeconiah, who was overthrown as king after a reign of only three months and...

  • Zedekiah
    Zedekiah
    Zedekiah or Tzidkiyahu was the last king of Judah before the destruction of the kingdom by Babylon. He was installed as king of Judah by Nebuchadnezzar II, king of Babylon, after a siege of Jerusalem to succeed his nephew, Jeconiah, who was overthrown as king after a reign of only three months and...

     was the last king of the royal house of David to reign in the Holy Land. He ascended the throne in 597 BCE, after King Nebuchadnezzar
    Nebuchadnezzar
    Nebuchadnezzar was the name of several kings of Babylonia.* Nebuchadnezzar I, who ruled the Babylonian Empire in the 12th century BC* Nebuchadnezzar II , the Babylonian ruler mentioned in the biblical Book of Daniel...

     of Babylonia
    Babylonia
    Babylonia was an ancient cultural region in central-southern Mesopotamia , with Babylon as its capital. Babylonia emerged as a major power when Hammurabi Babylonia was an ancient cultural region in central-southern Mesopotamia (present-day Iraq), with Babylon as its capital. Babylonia emerged as...

     (to whom the Kingdom of Judah
    Kingdom of Judah
    The Kingdom of Judah was a Jewish state established in the Southern Levant during the Iron Age. It is often referred to as the "Southern Kingdom" to distinguish it from the northern Kingdom of Israel....

     was then subject) exiled King Jeconiah
    Jeconiah
    Jeconiah "; ; ), also known as Coniah and as Jehoiachin , was a king of Judah who was dethroned by the King of Babylon in the 6th Century BCE and was taken into captivity. Most of what is known about Jeconiah is found in the Hebrew Bible. After many excavations in Iraq, records of Jeconiah's...

     (Zedekiah's nephew) to Babylonia . In 588 BCE Zedekiah rebelled against Babylonian rule, and Nebuchadnezzar laid siege to Jerusalem (in Tevet
    Tevet
    Tebet is the fourth month of the civil year and the tenth month of the ecclesiastical year on the Hebrew calendar. It follows Kislev and precedes Shevat. It is a winter month of 29 days...

     10 of that year); in the summer of 586 BCE the walls of Jerusalem were penetrated, the city conquered, the (first) Holy Temple destroyed, and the people of Judah exiled to Babylonia. Zedekiah tried escaping through a tunnel leading out of the city, but was captured; his sons were killed in front of him, and then he was blinded. Zedekiah languished in the royal dungeon in Babylonia until Nebuchadnezzar's death in 561 BCE. Meroduch, Nebuchadnezzar's son and successor, freed him (and his nephew Jeconiah) on the 27th of Adar, but Zedikiah died that same day.

28 Adar - (from the 2nd century onwards) - Talmudic holiday
  • In Talmudic times, Adar 28 was established as a minor festival to commemorate the rescinding of a Roman
    Ancient Rome
    Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....

     decree against 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...

     study, ritual circumcision
    Circumcision
    Male circumcision is the surgical removal of some or all of the foreskin from the penis. The word "circumcision" comes from Latin and ....

    , and keeping the 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...

    . The decree was revoked through the efforts of Rabbi Yehudah ben Shamu'a and his colleagues. (Megillat Taanit
    Megillat Taanit
    Megillat Taanit is chronicle which enumerates 35 eventful days on which the Jewish nation either performed glorious deeds or witnessed joyful events. These days were celebrated as feast-days. Public mourning was forbidden on 14 of them, and public fasting on all...

    , a baraita
    Baraita
    Baraita designates a tradition in the Jewish oral law not incorporated in the Mishnah. "Baraita" thus refers to teachings "outside" of the six orders of the Mishnah...

     on this matter can still be found in Ta'anit
    Ta'anit (Talmud)
    Ta'anit or Taanis is a volume of the Mishnah, Tosefta, and both Talmuds. In Judaism these are the basic works of rabbinic literature.The tractate of Ta'anit is devoted chiefly to the fast-days, their practices and prayers...

     18a and Rosh Hashanah
    Rosh Hashanah (Talmud)
    Rosh Hashanah is the name of a text of Jewish law originating in the Mishnah which formed the basis of tractates in both the Babylonian Talmud and the Jerusalem Talmud of the same name. It is the eighth tractate of the order Moed...

     19a)

  • In 1524, the Jews of Cairo
    Cairo
    Cairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life...

     were delivered on the 28th of Adar from the plot of Ahmad Pasha who sought revenge against the Jewish minter Abraham de Castro who had informed Selim II of Ahmad's plan to cede from the Ottoman Empire. To this day, Adar 28th is considered the Purim
    Purim
    Purim is a Jewish holiday that commemorates the deliverance of the Jewish people in the ancient Persian Empire from destruction in the wake of a plot by Haman, a story recorded in the Biblical Book of Esther .Purim is celebrated annually according to the Hebrew calendar on the 14th...

     of Cairo, with festivities including a special Megilah reading.

Other uses

  • Azar or Adhar is the name for the month of March in the Levant
    Levant
    The Levant or ) is the geographic region and culture zone of the "eastern Mediterranean littoral between Anatolia and Egypt" . The Levant includes most of modern Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Israel, the Palestinian territories, and sometimes parts of Turkey and Iraq, and corresponds roughly to the...

    .
  • Adar or Ada is Sindarin for "father"
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