Simhath Torah

or Sim·hat To·rah, Sim·chath To·rah, Sim·chat To·rah

[ sim-khahs tawr-uh, tohr-uh; Sephardic Hebrew seem-khaht taw-rah; Ashkenazic Hebrew sim-khahs toh-ruh, toi-ruh, -khuhs ]

noun

1. a Jewish festival, celebrated on the 23rd day of Tishri, being the 9th day of Sukkoth, that marks the completion of the annual cycle of the reading of the Torah in the synagogue and the beginning of the new cycle.

Word History and Origins

Origin of Simhath Torah¹

From Hebrew śimḥath tōrāh literally, “rejoicing of the Law”

Example Sentences

Meticulously observant, Mernick attends daily synagogue prayers and declined to visit his South Carolina kingdom last week because it was Simhath Torah, celebrating God's gift of the Law.

From Time Magazine Archive

We were offered a soft drink as the soldiers took time off from the push forward to celebrate the joyful feast of Simhath Torah.

From Time Magazine Archive

I told Father this when I returned home, and he explained to me that their rejoicing during Purim did not mean simply a material satisfaction—it was a spiritual rejoicing, as on Simhath Torah, when the Reading of the Law was started again, so that during Purim and Simhath Torah allowance is made if a little more wine is taken than is usually the case.

From Project Gutenberg