Glossary of Jewish History PDF

Glossary Agranat Named after its chair, Supreme Court justice Shimon Agranat, the commission commission investigated the circumstances of the Yom Kippur War with particular focus on the failures of the Israel Defense Forces. Altalena affair Military clash betwee...

Glossary Agranat Named after its chair, Supreme Court justice Shimon Agranat, the commission commission investigated the circumstances of the Yom Kippur War with particular focus on the failures of the Israel Defense Forces. Altalena affair Military clash between the Israel Defense Forces and the Irgun-commissioned ship, the Altalena, that carried military cargo to Israel in June 1948. Chief of Staff The supreme commanding officer of the Israel Defense Forces. Haganah An armed Jewish self-defence organization that was established in 1920 and served as the main paramilitary force of the Yishuv during the period of the British Mandate. During the Second World War, the Haganah was in favour of aiding the British war effort. Irgun, also (Lit. The National Military Organization) A splinter from the Etzel Hanagah that was established by the more radical revisionist members in 1931. Unlike the Haganah, the Irgun opposed Britain throughout the Second World War. Kahan Named after its chair, Supreme Court President Yitzhak Kahan, the commission commission investigated the circumstances of the massacres at the Sabra and Shatila refugee camps during the First Lebanon War. Palmach The elite unit of the Haganah, established in 1941 and trained by the British administration during the Second World War. Several future military and political leaders of the State of Israel started their career in the ranks of the Palmach, e.g., Yitzhak Rabin. Stern Gang Named after its founder, Avraham Stern, it was a radical underground armed group that split off from the Irgun in 1940. Anitsemitism A movement originating in its modern form in 19th-century Europe advocating political discrimination, social marginalization, and, in its most extreme form, eventually the physical destruction of Jews. Assimilation The process through which members of a minority group give up their community’s distinctive traits and adopt those of the majority. Zionism An umbrella of several parallel movements starting in the 19th century that aimed at the establishment of a Jewish national homeland in the Biblical Land of Israel. Its main variants included  political, pragmatic, synthetic, cultural, territorial, labor, religious, and revisionist Zionism. Territorial Zionism was the only one that gave up the movement’s traditional attachment to the Land of Israel. Aliyah (Literally, “ascent”) The traditional term denoting Jewish immigration to the Land of Israel. Ashkenazi Jews Jews of West and East European ancestry Beta Israel The term designates the Ethiopian Jewish community. Falash Mura The term denotes Ethiopian Jews whose ancestors had converted to Christianity. Ma'abarot Transit camps that provided temporary housing to new immigrants under abject conditions between 1949 and 1952. Mizrahi Jews (Also, Oriental Jews) Jews from the Islamic lands Sephardi Jews Jews who trace their origin to the Spanish exile. Abrahamic The term designates the three monotheistic faiths/religions that faith or share the common Biblical figure of the patriarch Abraham: Abrahamic Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. religion Halakhah (Lit. “walking”) The term denotes the Jewish religious laws and their application to everyday life. Kashrut The term denotes the body of Jewish dietary laws. Rabbinate The highest religious office of the State of Israel. Its leadership is split between the Ashkenazi and the Sephardi Chief Rabbis, who are elected for a 10-year non-renewable term by an electoral college of 150 members who represent religious institutions, communities, as well as the national and local governments. Shabbat The Jewish day of rest; the sixth day of the week. Status Quo A1947 agreement between the leadership of the Jewish Agency, led  by David Ben-Gurion, and the ultra-orthodox community, according to which the former guaranteed the continuity of religious norms (“status quo”) with respect to Jewish dietary laws, religious holidays observed as public holidays, and personal status. Constitutional A process of expanding judicial activism under the leadership of revolution former Supreme Court President Aharon Barak that started with the passage of the Basic Law of Human Liberty and Dignity (1992), Basic Law of Occupation (1994), and the landmark case of the United Mizrahi Bank vs Migdal Cooperative Village (1995). Harari A decision proposed in 1951 by Yizhar Harari, chairman of the compromise Knesset Constitution, Law and Justice Committee, to delay indefinitely the drafting of the Israeli constitution and replace it instead with the passage of Basic Laws. Judicial A committee of nine that selects the judges at all levels in the Appointment Israeli court system. Its membership includes three sitting justices Committee of the Supreme Court, one of them being its president, two representatives of the Israeli Bar Association, two government ministers, one of them being the Minister of Justice, and two members elected to represent the Knesset. Judicial review The power of the courts to invalidate government decisions and strike down laws that were passed by parliament on the ground of their incompatibility with Basic Laws. Justiciability A term denoting matters that can be heard and adjudicated by a court. The constitutional revolution led to a major expansion in the range of matters that are justiciable in Israel.