The ''siddur'' and ''macḥzor'' are the two principal types of

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

prayer book A prayer book is a book containing prayers and perhaps devotional readings, for private or communal use, or in some cases, outlining the liturgy of religious services. Books containing mainly orders of religious services, or readings for them are ...

s. In particular: *

Siddur A siddur ( he, סִדּוּר ; plural siddurim ) is a Jewish prayer book containing a set order of daily prayers. The word comes from the Hebrew root , meaning 'order.' Other terms for prayer books are ''tefillot'' () among Sephardi Jews, '' ...

, from a

Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

root meaning "order," refers to the prayer book generally used through the course of the year. The "complete" ''siddur'' will contain prayers for weekdays and Shabbat, for lifecycle events like

weddings A wedding is a ceremony where two people are united in marriage. Wedding traditions and customs vary greatly between cultures, ethnic groups, religions, countries, and social classes. Most wedding ceremonies involve an exchange of marria ...

and circumcisions, and for most major and minor

Jewish holidays Jewish holidays, also known as Jewish festivals or ''Yamim Tovim'' ( he, ימים טובים, , Good Days, or singular , in transliterated Hebrew []), are holidays observed in Judaism and by JewsThis article focuses on practices of mainstre ...

. Less than "complete" editions, such as weekday-only or Shabbat-only ''siddurim,'' can also be found readily. *

Machzor The ''machzor'' ( he, מחזור, plural ''machzorim'', and , respectively) is the prayer book which is used by Jews on the High Holy Days of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. Many Jews also make use of specialized ''machzorim'' on the three pilgr ...

(also ''maḥzor'' or ''mahzor''), from a Hebrew root meaning "cycle", refers to prayer books containing the prayers for the major holidays of the year. :This term is most often encountered as referring to prayer books for the

High Holy Days The High Holidays also known as the High Holy Days, or Days of Awe in Judaism, more properly known as the Yamim Noraim ( he, יָמִים נוֹרָאִים, ''Yāmīm Nōrāʾīm''; "Days of Awe") #strictly, the holidays of Rosh HaShanah ("Jewi ...

, Rosh Hashanah and

Yom Kippur Yom Kippur (; he, יוֹם כִּפּוּר, , , ) is the holiest day in Judaism and Samaritanism. It occurs annually on the 10th of Tishrei, the first month of the Hebrew calendar. Primarily centered on atonement and repentance, the day' ...

. The unique prayers of these days are so extensive that they are almost never found in standard ''siddurim.'' :There are also ''maḥzorim'' for the

Three Pilgrimage Festivals The Three Pilgrimage Festivals, in Hebrew ''Shalosh Regalim'' (שלוש רגלים), are three major festivals in Judaism—Pesach (''Passover''), Shavuot (''Weeks'' or ''Pentecost''), and Sukkot (''Tabernacles'', ''Tents'' or ''Booths'')—when ...

Passover Passover, also called Pesach (; ), is a major Jewish holiday that celebrates the Biblical story of the Israelites escape from slavery in Egypt, which occurs on the 15th day of the Hebrew month of Nisan, the first month of Aviv, or spring. ...

, Shavuot and Sukkot, although prayers for those days can also be found in the standard ''siddur.'' Note that the term machzor originally referred to a book containing prayers for the entire year, including weekdays and Shabbat as well as holidays.See the discussion of this under

. Other books exist for specialized Jewish prayer purposes: * '' Tanakh,'' the bible ("ta"=torah), prophets("na"= nevi'im" ,and writings ( kh= ketuvim). * '' Tehillim,'' psalms -attributed to King David, people say chapters or perakim, for any occasion, during prayer or trouble. * ''

Selichot Selichot ( he, סְלִיחוֹת, səlīḥōt, singular: , ''səlīḥā'') are Jewish penitential poems and prayers, especially those said in the period leading up to the High Holidays, and on fast days. The Thirteen Attributes of Mercy ar ...

,'' containing the penitential prayers said on fast days and during the period around the High Holy Days. * '' Kinot,'' containing the prayers of mourning recited on the fast of

Tisha B'av Tisha B'Av ( he, תִּשְׁעָה בְּאָב ''Tīšʿā Bəʾāv''; , ) is an annual fast day in Judaism, on which a number of disasters in Jewish history occurred, primarily the destruction of both Solomon's Temple by the Neo-Babylonian E ...

. * '' Birchon,'' widely known by its Yiddish name ''"bentscher",'' a small book appropriate for use at the table containing the

Birkat HaMazon Birkat Hamazon ( he, בִּרְכַּת הַמָּזוׂן, The Blessing of the Food), known in English as the Grace After Meals ( yi, ; translit. ''bentschen'' or "to bless", Yinglish: Bentsching), is a set of Hebrew blessings that Jewish ...

, Grace after Meals, and frequently other prayers and songs recited at a Shabbat or holiday table such as Kiddush and ''

Zemirot Zemirot or Z'miros ( he, זמירות ''zǝmîrôt'', singular: zimrah but often called by the masculine zemer) are Jewish hymns, usually sung in the Hebrew or Aramaic languages, but sometimes also in Yiddish or Ladino. The best known are tho ...

.'' *

Haggadah The Haggadah ( he, הַגָּדָה, "telling"; plural: Haggadot) is a Jewish text that sets forth the order of the Passover Seder. According to Jewish practice, reading the Haggadah at the Seder table is a fulfillment of the mitzvah to each J ...

, the service read at the Passover

seder The Passover Seder (; he, סדר פסח , 'Passover order/arrangement'; yi, סדר ) is a ritual feast at the beginning of the Jewish holiday of Passover. It is conducted throughout the world on the eve of the 15th day of Nisan in the Hebrew c ...

References

* Lindsay Jones, ed. (December 2004), Encyclopedia of Religion (2 ed.), Macmillan Reference USA, {{ISBN, 978-0028657332

External links

*
A Historical Map of Jewish Liturgical Influence and Variation
Jewish prayer books Machzorim Siddur