Traditional tools and techniques: the knowledge of materials, methods, and tools used to create objects by hand Skills passed through apprenticeship: often master-to-apprentice, within families or communities, over generations Objects made for daily life, ritual, or symbolic use: clothing, textiles, pottery, jewelry, musical instruments, tools, religious items Understanding materials (wood, clay, metal, fiber, stone), sourcing them sustainably, and adapting techniques over time. CRAFTSMANSHIP Traditional craftsmanship is a recognized domain of intangible cultural heritage. It's about the skills, knowledge, and techniques involved in making them, the living tradition passed from person to person, more than the finished product sitting in a museum. It Covers: Traditional tools and techniques: the knowledge of materials, methods, and tools used to create objects by hand Skills passed through apprenticeship: often master-to-apprentice, within families or communities, over generations Objects made for daily life, ritual, or symbolic use: clothing, textiles, pottery, jewelry, musical instruments, tools, religious items The knowledge behind the craft: understanding materials (wood, clay, metal, fiber, stone), sourcing them sustainably, and adapting techniques over time. Traditional craftsmanship mainly concerns the skills and knowledge involved in craftsmanship and the craft products. Safeguarding attempts are concentrated on encouraging artisans to continue to produce craft and to pass their skills and knowledge onto others, particularly within their own communities. There are numerous expressions of traditional craftsmanship: tools; clothing and jewellery; costumes and props for festivals and performing arts; decorative art and ritual objects; musical instruments and household utensils, and toys, both for amusement and education. The goal of safeguarding is to ensure that the knowledge and skills associated with traditional artisanship are passed on to future generations so crafts can continue to be produced within their communities, providing livelihoods for makers and reflecting creativity. Many craft traditions have age-old systems of instruction and apprenticeship. Local, traditional markets for craft products can be reinforced while also creating new ones. Many people around the world enjoy handmade objects that are imbued with the accumulated knowledge and cultural values of the craftspeople. As technology and globalization advance, dozens of traditional crafts jobs are fighting to survive. This world has dramatically changed since international products entered the Israeli market, and the international online business further changed the industry. A large variety of crafts is produced in the State of Israel, ranging from the production of objects which fulfil a functional role in religious ritual or everyday life to items which serve a purely decorative purpose. As in all major tourist destinations around the world, many of the craft works produced in Israel are aimed at the overseas visitor. The crafts heritage of the Jewish people is particularly strong. According to the teachings of the Talmud, it is not enough to obey the commandments; one should also beautify the ritual with pieces of art. For this reason, Israel has become known for its production of Judaica such as menorot, mezuzot, kippot and other ritual items, superbly crafted in precious metals and sold in specialist jewelry stores in every centre of population. During the early years of the British Mandate period, Israeli metal jewelry became strongly identified with that of the Yemenite community. Since the 1930s, there was an increasing influence of European schools. The foundations of modern ceramic production were laid during the 1930s and 1940s with the influx of a wave of German potters, who set up studios in various cities. Since that time, clay has been used in sculpture and in ceramic murals, as well as performing an important decorative function in urban society. Leading ceramicists include Lidia Zavadsky, Hilda Merom, Magdalena Hefetz, Nora Kochavi, Naomi Bitter, Maud Friedland and Meira Unna. Other important crafts produced amongst Israel's Jewish communities include weaving and textile production, woodwork and leatherwork. Strong traditions of glassware, ethnic embroidery, basketware and olive-wood carving are preserved amongst Israel's Arab communities. All of these craft traditions are represented at the commercially run Khuztot Hayotzer International Arts and Crafts Fair, which takes place outside the walls of the old city of Jerusalem every August.

The domain encompassing oral traditions and expressions is highly varied, incorporating linguistic and performative forms such as proverbs, folktales, legends, epic poetry, invocations, songs, and dramatic enactments. These communicative vehicles serve as the primary mechanisms for the intergenerational transmission of institutionalized knowledge, cultural paradigms, societal values, and collective historical memory. ORAL TRADITIONS The domain encompassing oral traditions and expressions is highly varied, incorporating linguistic and performative forms such as proverbs, folktales, legends, epic poetry, invocations, songs, and dramatic enactments. These communicative vehicles serve as the primary mechanisms for the intergenerational transmission of institutionalized knowledge, cultural paradigms, societal values, and collective historical memory. However, echoing the systemic vulnerabilities shared by other sectors of intangible cultural heritage, oral traditions face acute existential threats. These destabilizing pressures are driven primarily by rapid global urbanization, large-scale demographic migration, widespread industrialization, and localized environmental changes [1] . The primary objective in safeguarding oral traditions and expressions involves preserving their active, functional integration into the daily life of contemporary society. Consequently, maintaining viable structural pathways for direct interpersonal knowledge transmission remains critical. This requires creating deliberately sustained opportunities for elders to engage with younger generations, thereby facilitating narrative transmission within both domestic settings and formal academic environments. Because oral expressions routinely constitute a foundational element of community festivals and cultural celebrations, these events require systemic promotion. Simultaneously, the development of modern performance environments, such as dedicated storytelling festivals, must be actively encouraged. These contemporary platforms allow traditional creative expressions to establish alternative, evolutionary pathways of articulation. Finally, local communities, academic researchers, and cultural institutions can leverage information technology to systematically document and archive the full semantic depth of these traditions, specifically accounting for localized textual variations and distinct performative styles [2] . Oral Traditions Languages Literature Sacred stories Jewish folk tales Haggadot Languages in Israel The Israeli populace constitutes a highly heterogeneous demographic entity characterized by profound linguistic and cultural pluralism, within which approximately thirty-five distinct languages and localized vernacular dialects are actively spoken. Standard Modern Hebrew serves as the primary official language of the nation and functions as the foundational medium for public life, governance, and daily societal interaction. Concurrently, Arabic is heavily utilized, primarily by the Arab-Israeli citizenry who comprise roughly twenty percent—or one-fifth—of the country's total population. Furthermore, English is widely spoken as a proficient secondary language by the vast majority of Israeli citizens, while Russian remains extensively used across the country due to the massive influx of immigrants who arrived from the former Soviet Union[3] . Modern Hebrew emerged through a monumental linguistic revival initiative that commenced during the late nineteenth century. Syntactically and morphologically, it is structurally rooted in various historical dialects of ancient Hebrew, while also exhibiting lexical and stylistic influences from a multitude of foreign tongues. [4 ] The ideological movement dedicated to resurrecting Hebrew as a vernacular, spoken language gained significant traction among the early waves of Jewish Zionist pioneers during the 1880s. Eliezer Ben-Yehuda and his contemporaries pioneered this linguistic transformation by establishing the first Hebrew-medium academic institutions, circulating newspapers, and creating foundational cultural entities. [5 ] Following Ben-Yehuda’s immigration to Eretz Yisrael, and heavily accelerated by the sociolinguistic impetus of the Second Aliyah (1905–1914), Hebrew successfully asserted itself as the singular official and daily spoken language of the Jewish community. Consequently, upon the formal declaration of the State of Israel in 1948, the newly established government designated Hebrew as the nation's de facto official language. [6 ] In contrast to this mainstream linguistic trajectory, Yiddish continues to be routinely spoken within various Ashkenazi Haredi (ultra-Orthodox) communities globally, frequently serving as the primary native tongue for members belonging to specific Hasidic dynasties within those sectors. [7 ] Many other languages are used by large sectors of the Israeli population, including: Arabic is the native language among Israeli-Arabs. Today, the figure stands at about 1.6 million, and although most are proficient in Hebrew, Arabic remains their primary native language. In addition, a significant number of Israeli Jews know spoken Arabic. Arabic is the native language of older generations of Mizrahi Jews who immigrated from Arabic-speaking countries. Arabic lessons are widespread in Hebrew-speaking schools from the seventh through ninth grades. Russian: Over 20% of Israelis are fluent in Russian after mass Jewish immigration from Russia. Some Israeli schools offer Russian language courses. As of 2017, there are up to 1.5 million Russian-speaking Israelis. French is spoken by many Moroccan , Algerian, and Tunisian Jews, either as a native or second language; French is also spoken by the increasing number of new immigrants from France . The French embassy's Institut Français supports French studies in Israeli schools. Tel Aviv University is a member of the Agence universitaire de la Francophonie (AUF). Romanian : It is estimated that 82,300 first-generation and 126,200 second-generation Romanian Jews lived in Israel by 2012 Yiddish : The language of Ashkenazi Jews in Eastern Europe and the second most widely spoken Jewish language, Yiddish is a Germanic language, but incorporates elements of Hebrew. German is spoken natively by around 100,000 Israelis. Amharic : Spoken by most of Israel's 130,000 Ethiopian Jews Georgian /Judaeo-Georgian : Although most Georgian Jewish immigrants speak Russian, they converse among themselves in Georgian. Ladino : The Sephardi Jewish language and the third most widely spoken Jewish language, Ladino is a variant of medieval Spanish, intermixed with Hebrew and with vocabulary from various other languages where Jews emigrated after being expelled from Spain. It is spoken by many Sephardi Jews. Today there is a state-supported authority for preserving the Ladino culture. Polish : Polish was spoken by the large number of immigrants from Poland . Today, most were born and raised in Poland, speak the language fluently amongst themselves, and have made attempts to impart the language to their children. Kurdish Jews are from the region known as Kurdistan in northern Mesopotamia, roughly covering parts of northwestern Iran, northern Iraq, northeastern Syria, and southeastern Turkey. Until they immigrated to Israel in the 1940s and early 1950s, the Jews of Kurdistan lived as closed ethnic communities. The Jews of Kurdistan largely spoke Aramaic and Kurdish dialects, in particular the Kurmanji dialect in Iraqi Kurdistan. Yemenite Hebrew: In the Yemenite dialect, all Hebrew letters have a distinct sound. Yemenite Jews spoke in regional Judeo-Arabic. Ukrainian : While most Ukrainian Jews speak Russian, there is still a segment of Ukrainian speakers. Spanish : Spanish is spoken by Jews from Argentina and other olim from other Spanish-speaking countries, as well as by some Sephardi groups. The popularity of operas from Argentina and Venezuela, broadcast in Spanish with Hebrew subtitles by Viva in the 1990s, has extended the understanding of the language. Italian /Judaeo-Italian : In addition to being spoken by Italian Jews, Italian is also spoken by many Jews from Libya and immigrants from Eritrea , Ethiopia and Somalia as a primary or second language. Hungarian : Hungarian is spoken by approximately 70,000 Hungarian Jews in Israel. Turkish : Turkish is spoken by some of the 77,000 Turkish Jews and their families. Many of the Turkish speakers in Israel also speak Ladino. Persian: Persian is spoken by some of the 135,000 Iranian Jews who immigrated from Iran. Kayla and Qwara : These languages are spoken by Ethiopian Jews in addition to Amharic . Chinese , Filipino , and Thai : Spoken by a few Israeli Jews and non-Jewish immigrants from China, the Philippines , and Thailand . It is estimated that there are 180,000 Marathi : Marathi is the language of Bene Israel – Indian Jews from the Konkan coast of India . They migrated to Israel beginning in 1948. In 1977, they numbered about 20,000. Concentrations of Marathi speakers are found in the towns of Dimona and Beersheba. Malayalam : Judeo-Malayalam is the traditional language of the Jews from Kerala , in South India . Bukhori : Bukhori is spoken by the Bukharian Jews who immigrated from Central Asia. Jewish Neo-Aramaic : Jewish Neo-Aramaic is the native language spoken by Kurdish Jews who immigrated to Israel from Iraq , Turkey , and Iran during the 1940s and 1950s. Greek : Greek is spoken by the Greek Orthodox Church and by several Greek Jews. Adyghe language : spoken by the Adyghe people in two villages in the north of Israel. Abzakh dialect (Adyghe): spoken by Circassians in the village of Rehaniya in Israel Israeli Sign Language is the main language amongst deaf Israelis. It comes from Jewish educators of the Deaf from Germany who relocated to start the first school for the deaf in Israel. Ghardaia Sign Language Al-Sayyid Bedouin Sign Language Source: Oral Traditions and Expressions Guide, UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage. Source: Traditions and Oral Expressions Overview, UNESCO COMPSE Club. Source: Statistical Records of Israel's Languages, GraphicMaps. Source: Linguistic and Cultural Diversity Report, Milestone Localization. Source: Languages Spoken in Israel Study, Polilingua Translation. Source: Comprehensive History of the Hebrew Language, Jewish Language Project. Source: Sociolinguistic Demographics and History of Israel, Wikipedia. Languages in Israel Languages in Israel Play Video Share Whole Channel This Video Facebook Twitter Pinterest Tumblr Copy Link Link Copied Search videos Search video... Now Playing Similarities Between Hebrew and Arabic 22:37 Play Video Now Playing Similarities Between Assyrian Aramaic and Hebrew 13:51 Play Video Now Playing The Good Deeds Day Song in Israeli Sign Language 03:19 Play Video Now Playing דז'יגאן - השחקן הקומי היידי שמעון דז'יגאן משחק בדמויות שונות ומארח חברים | כאן 11 לשעבר רשות השידור 54:55 Play Video Literature The foundations of modern Israeli writing were laid by a group of literary pioneers from the Second Aliyah, including Shmuel Yosef Agnon, the only Nobel Prize winner for literature in Hebrew, Moshe Smilansky, Yosef Haim Brenner, David Shimoni, and Jacob Fichman. In 1921, 70 writers met in Tel Aviv and founded the Hebrew Writers' Association. Great figures were Bialik, Ahad Ha-Am, and Tchernichovsky; they exerted a great influence on younger Hebrew writers. Also Yitzhak Shami and Yehuda Burla, Sephardi Jews whose families migrated to Israel in the 19th and 18th centuries, respectively. Then also the writers Uri Zvi Greenberg and Avraham Shlonsky make their Aliyah. The main experience of this generation of artists lies in the establishment of the State of Israel; among the writers of this generation are: Moshe Shamir, Haim Hefer, S. Yizhar, Mordechai Tabib, David Shachar, Natan Shaham, Aharon Megged, Hanoch Bartov, Shlomo Nitzan, Yehudit Hendel, Yonat and Alexander Sand, Yigal Mossinson, Benjamin Tamuz, Naomi Frankel, Aharon Amir, Ida Zurit, David Shaham and more. In parallel to this generation, there was a smaller group of artists in Israel, led by Yonatan Ratosh, the Canaanites The poets of this generation were: Avraham Shlonsky , Natan Alterman , Amir Gilboa , Zerubavel Gilad , Haim Guri , P. Hillel , Benjamin Galai , Yitzhak Shalev , Abba Kovner , Yechiel Mer , Ozer Rabin , Tuvia Rivner , Avner Trainin , Shlomo Tanai , Nathan Yonatan, and others. The plays featured mainly Nissim Aloni, Yigal Mossinson, Moshe Shamir, Benjamin Galai, Nathan Shaham, Aharon Megged, and others. The waves of immigration at the beginning of the state also produced artists who contributed greatly to Hebrew literature, such as Dan Ben Amotz and Ephraim Kishon, who brought cultural baggage from their country of birth and adapted it to Israeli society. The writers of the sixties of the 20th century, called by critics of literature Dan Miron and Gabriel Moked the generation of the state, were also called the "New Wave" by Aharon Megged and Gershon Shaked. Among the writers of this generation were prominent: Amos Oz , AB Joshua , Amalia Kahana-Carmon , Aharon Appelfeld , Yehoshua Kenaz , Shulamit Hareven , Isaac Orpaz , Kaniuk , Dan Tsalka , Pinhas Sadeh , Rachel Eitan , Amnon the use , Yeshayahu Koren ,Ehud Ben-Ezer , Shulamit Lapid , Sami Michael , Shamai Golan , Shimon Blass , Dan Shavit and more. Among the poets were: Yehuda Amichai , Moshe Dor , Moshe Ben Shaul , Arie Sivan , Andad Eldan , David Avidan , Dan Pagis , Natan Zach , Dalia Ravikovitch , Israel Pinkas , Asher Reich , Yona Wallach , Meir Wieseltier , Yair Horowitz , Eitan Eitan , Yechiel Chazak , Israel Har , Itamar Yaoz-Cast , Jacob Besser , Israel Eliraz, and more . The literature of the new wave tends to follow the changes in Western literature, while favoring avant-garde writing styles in fiction. There is a preference for concentrating on the individual over the human condition, and the hero wears a new figure, an anti-hero figure. During the 1970s, among the writers of this wave were prominent Yaakov Shabtai, Yitzhak Ben-Ner, Haim Be'er, Ruth Almog, Eli Amir, Israel Hameiri, Yaakov Bochan, David Schitz, Arie Samo, Avraham Hefner, Yitzhak Laor, David Grossman, and Meir Shalev. Among the poets are: Maya Bejerano, Yosef Sharon, Roni Someck, Amir Or, Alon Altres, and others. Yehoshua Sobol, Hillel Mittelpunkt, Shmuel Hasfari, and others were prominent in the theater. Yotam Reubeni, Hezi Leskali, Ilan Schoenfeld, and other modern religious poets: Hava Pinhas-Cohen, Miron Isaacson, Admiel Kosman, and others. Writers of the other wave is the title given by Professor Avraham Balaban to the writers of the second half of the eighties of the 20th century and the nineties of the twentieth century in his book "Another Wave," published in 1995. The other wave writers belong to the postmodernist stream, and the differences between them and the previous wave writers were described in Uri Bernstein's book, "The Literature of a Constant Present." Among the writers of this group are Orly Castel-Bloom, Etgar Keret, Dudu Bossi, Moshe Ofir, Dror Burshtein, Ran Yagil, Dan Benaya-Seri, Savyon Liebrecht, Nava Semel, Gabriela Avigur-Rotem, Yitzhak Bar-Yosef Levi, Hannah Bat-Shachar, Yehudit Katzir, Yuval Shimoni, Ronit Matalon, Dorit Abush, Albert Suissa, Ilana Bernstein, Leah Ini, Mira Magen, Gidi Nevo, Hagai Linik, Yael Hadia Rabinian, Eshkol Nevo, Sami Bardugo and others. 'Yiddish writers Apart from Hebrew writers, there is considerable creative productivity in Israel in other languages, notably in Yiddish. Yiddish writing in Israel can be marked by generations, similar to those in Hebrew literature. The first consisted of writers such as David Pinski and Sholem Asch. The second generation, led by Abraham Sutzkever, started its career in Eastern Europe but continued in Israel. The third generation was centered on "Young Israel", a modernist group of poets and prose writers, most of whom are kibbutz members, whose work has been influenced by the avant-garde schools of English and French writing. Yiddish authors in Israel are organized in a Yiddish authors' association. Arabic writers The presence of Arabic-language literature in Israeli society can be initially attributed to Emile Habibi, an Israeli-Palestinian writer and a communist politician. In 1992, he was awarded the Israel Prize for Arabic literature. Habibi helped create the Israeli Communist Party and established Al-Ittihad, a communist daily Arabic-language newspaper published in Haifa. Sacred stories and Holy books The sacred and traditional stories are part of Judaism, while Jewish folklore refers to the folk tales and legends that existed in the general Jewish culture. Initially, folklore was virtually indistinguishable from the Haggada, the rabbinical exegesis of the scriptures. It has subsequently developed within the Jewish people in all places and at all times in its history. The basic history of the Tanakh (the Hebrew Bible) contains the earliest and most sacred Jewish stories about the original creation, the story of the creation of the world in seven days; the creation of Adam and Eve; the miracle of Abraham and Sarah having a son in their old age; the story of Joseph's incredible rise to power in Egypt; the miracle of G‑d dividing the waves of the Red Sea to allow the Hebrews to escape from slaveryin Egypt, and the manna provided by G‑d during the crossing of the desert. In these stories and many others, G‑d speaks or intervenes directly to save or help their ancestors and is among them. He even has a place to live and travel with them, the Ark of the Covenant. The twelve tribes of Israel, like the rest of humanity, trace their lineage to Adam and Eve. The Talmud is the mainstay of the Jewish oral tradition, is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism, and the primary source of Jewish religious law (halakha) and Jewish theology. Until the advent of modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the centerpiece of Jewish cultural life and was foundational to "all Jewish thought and aspirations ", serving also as "the guide for the daily life " of Jews. The Talmud has two components: the Mishnah, a written compendium of Rabbinic Judaism's Oral Torah; and the Gemara, commentary on the Mishnah. The Mishnah is a compilation of legal opinions and debates. Statements in the Mishnah are typically terse, recording brief opinions of the rabbis debating a subject; or recording only an unattributed ruling, representing a consensus view. The rabbis recorded in the Mishnah are known as the Tannaim. Since it sequences its laws by subject matter instead of by biblical context, the Mishnah discusses individual subjects more thoroughly than the Midrash, and it includes a much broader selection of halakhic subjects than the Midrash. Much of the Gemara consists of legal analysis. The starting point for the analysis is usually a legal statement found in a Mishnah. The statement is then analyzed and compared with other statements used in different approaches to biblical exegesis in rabbinic Judaism, in exchanges between two disputants, termed the makshan (questioner) and tartzan (answerer). Another important function of Gemara is to identify the correct biblical basis for a given law presented in the Mishnah and the logical process connecting one with the other: this activity was known as talmud long before the existence of the "Talmud" as a text. The entire Talmud consists of 63 tractates, and in standard print is over 6,200 pages long. It is written in Mishnaic Hebrew and Jewish Babylonian Aramaic and contains the teachings and opinions of thousands of rabbis on a variety of subjects, including Halakha, Jewish ethics, philosophy, customs, history, and many other topics. The Talmud is the basis for all codes of Jewish law, and is widely quoted in rabbinic literature. Originally, Jewish scholarship was oral. Rabbis expounded and debated the Torah and discussed the Tanakh without the benefit of written works. This situation changed drastically, mainly as the result of the destruction of the Jewish commonwealth and the Second Temple in the year 70 and the consequent upheaval of Jewish social and legal norms. As the rabbis were required to face a new reality, there was a flurry of legal discourse, and the old system of oral scholarship could not be maintained. It is during this period that rabbinic discourse began to be recorded in writing The process of "Gemara" proceeded in what were then the two major centers of Jewish scholarship, Galilee and Babylonia. Correspondingly, two bodies of analysis developed, and two works of Talmud were created. The older compilation is called the Jerusalem Talmud or the Talmud Yerushalmi. It was compiled in the 4th century in Galilee. The Babylonian Talmud was compiled about the year 500, although it continued to be edited later. Jewish folk tales Jewish folk tales usually tell stories with supernatural beings and have spread among the people through traditional stories of the ancients. The tales are characterized by the presence of unusual characters (dwarfs, giants, fairies, etc.), by the sudden transformation of men into animals and vice versa, or by other supernatural phenomena (flying horses, sleep of one hundred years, and others). Few specifically medieval Jewish legends can be considered folk tales, such as that of the Jewish Pope (Andreas) and the Golem, or that concerning the wall of the Rashi Chapel which has receded to save the life of a poor woman who was in danger of being run over by a cart passing narrowly. Many of these legends were assembled by Abraham Tendlau in his Sagen und Legenden der Jüdischen Vorzeit (Tales and legends of the Jews of old). Towards the end of the XIXth century, many folk tales gathered by Jews or published manuscripts from Hebrew by Israel Levi in the Journal of Jewish Studies, in the Journal of Popular Traditions, and Melusine; by Moses Gaster in Folklore and in the reports of the Montefiore College and by M. Grunwald in Mitteilungen der Gesellschaft für Jüdische Volkskunde ; by L. Wiener in the same periodical and by Friedrich Salomon Krauss in Urquell. In all, some sixty to seventy folk tales were recovered among the Jews of the time. The first of the stories gathered by L. Wiener is the well-known tale of "The Man in the Bag ", who manages to escape by telling passersby that he was sentenced against his will to marry a princess. Compilations of Haggadot and folklore The Legends of the Jews , by Rabbi Louis Ginzberg, is an original synthesis of a large amount of Haggadot, the Mishnah, and both Talmud and Midrash. The Ein Yaakov is a compilation of the Haggadic material of the Babylonian Talmud with commentaries. The Sefer Ha-Haggadah is a classic aggadot compilation of the Mishnah, the two Talmuds, and the Midrash. It was edited by Haïm Nahman and Yehoshua Hana Ravnitzky. They worked to give an understandable and representative compilation of Haggadot; they spent three years compiling their work. The Sefer Ha-Aggadah was first published in November 1908 in Odessa, in Russia, and then reprinted many times in Israel. It was translated into English in 1992 by William G. Braude as The Book of Legends. Mimekor Yisrael , by Micha Josef Berdyczewski. He was interested in compiling the folklore and legends of the Jewish people from ancient times to the dawn of modern times. His collection includes a large number of Haggadots, although he has limited them to what he considered to be folklore.

Explore Israeli theater as part of intangible cultural heritage, from ancient performances and biblical storytelling to modern Habimah, Cameri, and Arab Theater productions. The history of Hebrew and Yiddish stages, the role of labor theaters like Ohel, and avant-garde venues such as Beit Leissin and Khan Theater. How theater in Israel reflects the traditions, identities, and narratives of communities including Mizrahi, Ashkenazi, and Arab artists, preserving culture through performance. THEATER Intangible cultural heritage includes theatre; it refers to traditional theatre forms that are part of a community's living heritage, which means it includes elements of traditional theatre practices that communities consider part of their cultural heritage and that are being passed down from generation to generation. It gives people a sense of identity and belonging. These can include: Dance-theatre or music-theatre, ritual theatre linked to religious or seasonal events, puppetry and shadow theatre, classical or traditional drama with specific costumes, music, and staging. To realize the performance, one must take care of the stories and scripts, the music and instruments, the costumes, masks, and the skills and knowledge needed to perform and transmit it. All of that together makes up the intangible heritage of theatre in a particular community or country. Each of these is more than just a show. It’s a tradition rooted in a community’s history, beliefs, and way of life. That’s why they are considered theatre-related Intangible Cultural Heritage. The Historical Development and Contemporary Landscape of Israeli Theater The Origins: Foundations and First Experiments (1890–1920s) The origins of organized Hebrew theatrical framework trace back to 1905, when pioneers of the Second Aliyah established an amateur troupe in Jaffa designated as "The Society of Dramatic Art Lovers." This initiative was preceded by earlier sporadic performances, notably a staging of Moshe Leib Lilienblum’s Zerubavel by David Yellin at the Lemel School in Jerusalem during the Sukkot holiday of 1890. Additionally, during Chol Hamoed Pesach in 1894, another amateur vanguard ensemble produced Avraham Goldfaden’s Shulamit at the Leon Stein factory premises in Jaffa. The constituency of "The Society of Dramatic Art Lovers" included several individuals who would subsequently participate in the founding of Tel Aviv, such as Abba Ne'eman and Yehudit Harari. The repertoire generated during this period primarily explored Jewish historical themes, exemplified by productions of Karl Gotzkow’s Uriel d'Acosta, The Hasmoneans, Eliezer Ben-Yehuda’s Yiftach's Daughter, and Jean Racine’s Esther. Concurrently, Yiddish-language productions were also presented to audiences. In a parallel international development, the Habimah Theater was established in Moscow in 1917 under the directorial tutelage of the Russian master Constantin Stanislavsky. Driven by the prominent acting talent of Hanna Rovina—who would subsequently be recognized as the First Lady of Hebrew Theater—Habimah uniquely committed itself to staging productions exclusively in Hebrew. This ideological stance stood in stark contrast to the contemporary Bund Theater, which prioritized the preservation and proliferation of Yiddish language and cultural heritage. By 1920, David Davidov initiated the first formal Hebrew theatrical institution within Tel Aviv, titled "The Hebrew Theater in Eretz Israel." This ensemble featured prominent actors including Miriam Bernstein-Cohen, Ari Kutai, and Meir Teomi. The enterprise subsequently transitioned into the "Dramatic Theater" under the directorship of Bernstein-Cohen; however, due to systemic difficulties in executing classical repertoires successfully, the institution eventually pivoted toward light entertainment. In 1923, a faction of five actors from the Dramatic Theater relocated to Germany to undertake formal training in dramatic arts under the mentorship of Max Reinhardt. Upon returning to the region in 1926, they co-founded "The Eretz Israel Theater" alongside director Menachem Gnessin. Factional shifts continued when, in 1927, several performers defected from this institution to inaugurate a specialized satirical theater named "The Kettle," operating under the stewardship of Avigdor Hameiri. The Rise of Labor Theater and Pre-State Expansion (1925–1940s) The year 1925 marked the establishment of the Histadrut Workers' Theater, known as "Ohel" (Haoel), founded by Moshe Halevi. The explicit socio-cultural mandate of Ohel was to provide high-quality theatrical access to the working class while mounting productions aligned with Zionist-Socialist ideologies. The repertoire incorporated biblical scenes reinterpreted through the lens of socialist morality, as demonstrated by Stefan Zweig’s Jeremiah and Creshnikov’s Jacob and Rachel. Ohel remained culturally active until the 1960s, achieving widespread acclaim for productions such as The Brave Soldier Schweik, which starred the celebrated actor Meir Margalit. Other notable company members included Abraham Halfi and Yaakov Einstein, while Nahum Benari emerged as one of the institution’s most prominent original playwrights. Furthermore, the distinguished poet and writer Nathan Alterman contributed to Ohel by translating classical French stage pieces, including Molière’s The Imaginary Patient. During the 1930s, the demographic influx of the Fifth Aliyah brought a substantial volume of actors, directors, and theater practitioners from the German-speaking world to Eretz Yisrael. This migration catalyzed the proliferation of dozens of performance spaces, ranging from classical dramatic stages to intimate cabarets, though many of these small-scale installations proved short-lived. By 1931, the Habimah Theater company permanently relocated its operations from Moscow to Tel Aviv. Over time, the synthesis of diverse backgrounds among playwrights, actors, directors, and producers facilitated the blending of foreign European traditions with localized elements, culminating in the gradual crystallization of a distinctive Israeli theatrical idiom. In 1944, Moshe Walin established the comedic theater "Li-le-Lu," an enterprise specializing in a varied arrangement of light satirical plays and musical compositions. The lyrical content for these productions was primarily authored by Avraham Shlonsky and Natan Alterman, with performances popularized by Yemenite vocalists, most notably Shoshana Damari. Concurrently, the pre-existing "Broom" (Matateh) satirical theater maintained its operations alongside these newer contemporary reviews. Contemporary Institutional Framework and Major Companies In the modern era, the Israeli theatrical landscape has achieved global integration. Numerous domestic companies routinely tour Eastern and Western Europe as well as the United States, participating in prestigious international forums such as the Edinburgh and Berlin Festivals. Concurrently, localized semi-professional and amateur ensembles serve minority language populations by performing repertoires in English and Russian. The domestic canon is defined by globally recognized playwrights, including the late Hanoch Levine, Yehoshua Sobol, Hillel Mittelpunkt, and the late Ephraim Kishon. Theater Theater Play Video Share Whole Channel This Video Facebook Twitter Pinterest Tumblr Copy Link Link Copied Search videos Search video... Now Playing סופרים מספרים - שלמה ניצן 30:09 Play Video Now Playing קומדיה-סעיד-וסעידה-אהרון-עדן-חלק-1.flv 06:11 Play Video Now Playing הרפתקה בעיירה - המחזמר של בצלאל המספר 46:30 Play Video Now Playing הניצול - דרמה ישראלית - תיאטרון באר שבע 01:18:37 Play Video

This domain encompasses the knowledge, know-how, skills, practices, and representations that communities, groups, and sometimes individuals develop through their interaction with the natural environment and the universe around them. It includes: Traditional ecological/environmental knowledge: understanding of ecosystems, weather patterns, seasons, and natural cycles passed down through generations KNOWLEDGE OF NATURE Knowledge and practices concerning nature and the universe are one of the domains of Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) as defined by UNESCO's 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage. This domain encompasses the knowledge, know-how, skills, practices, and representations that communities, groups, and sometimes individuals develop through their interaction with the natural environment and the universe around them. It includes: Traditional ecological/environmental knowledge: understanding of ecosystems, weather patterns, seasons, and natural cycles passed down through generations Traditional medicine and healing practices: knowledge of medicinal plants and remedies Cosmologies and worldviews: knowledge systems about the universe and celestial bodies Festivals and practices related to nature: ceremonies tied to agriculture or natural phenomena Traditional culinary knowledge: including sustainable foodways tied to local environments Traditional ecological management: methods of land, water, and resource management (irrigation systems, sustainable farming techniques) Astronomy and calendrical knowledge: traditional systems for tracking time and seasons (agricultural calendars or moon cycles) . Israel has several traditions that fall under this domain, reflecting the diverse communities living in the region: Traditional Agricultural Knowledge Terraced farming techniques: ancient agricultural terracing in hilly regions (e.g., around Jerusalem and the Galilee), some dating back thousands of years, used for growing olives, grapes, and vegetables Traditional olive oil production: knowledge of olive cultivation, harvesting timing, and pressing techniques passed down through generations among both Jewish and Arab communities Traditional viticulture and winemaking knowledge: Dryland/desert agriculture techniques, ancient Nabatean-derived methods for water harvesting and desert farming, still studied and partially practiced today Traditional Water Management Ancient cisterns and water harvesting systems: knowledge of rainwater collection techniques used historically across the region Traditional irrigation knowledge: techniques adapted to arid and semi-arid conditions Traditional Medicine and Healing Jewish folk medicine traditions: brought by various Jewish diaspora communities, each with unique herbal and healing practices Arab and Druze traditional herbal medicine: use of local plants for medicinal and health purposes. Traditional Bedouin Knowledge Desert navigation and survival knowledge: reading stars, wind patterns, and terrain in the Negev desert Traditional Bedouin weather forecasting: predicting rain and seasonal changes based on natural signs (animal behavior, plant growth, cloud formations) Camel husbandry knowledge: breeding, herding, and utilizing camels for transport, milk, and other products Traditional herbal medicine: use of desert plants for healing purposes Traditional Bedouin tent-related ecological knowledge: understanding of seasonal migration patterns (following water and grazing sources) Culinary Traditions Tied to Nature Traditional foraging of wild edible plants Traditional bread-making and grain knowledge Calendrical and Astronomical Knowledge Jewish lunar calendar traditions: historical methods of determining the Hebrew calendar based on moon sightings, agricultural festivals (Sukkot, Shavuot, Pesach) tied to harvest cycles Traditional Jewish agricultural laws and practices tied to the Land of Israel: such as Shmita, and other Torah-based agricultural cycles that reflect an ancient knowledge system about land, rest, and sustainability Bedouin and Arab lunar/seasonal calendars for agriculture and pastoralism Sacred Natural Sites Sacred places, events, and seasons: various sites are considered holy and significant for the different religious traditions in Israel .

The Arab сitizens оf Israеl have a diverse сulturаl idеntity rооted in thеir Palеstiniаn-Arab heritage. This grоup encоmpassеs Muslims, Christians, Druze, аnd Bedоuins, with Arаbiс as their primаry lаnguage. In their evеryday lives, family аnd cоmmunity play а vital rоlе. Trаditiоnal wedding cеlebratiоns fеature hennа cеremоniеs, lively music, and thе traditiоnal dabkе dаnce. Rеligiоus hоlidays likе Ramаdan, Eid, Christmas, and Eаster arе marked by family gаtherings and uniquе culinary delights. ARAB-ISRAELI MUSIC Jewish Yemenite music Jewish Mizrahi music Arab Israeli music Klezmer music Sephardic music Jewish Iraqi music The history of the folk music of the Arab population living inside Israel is an oral, community-driven tradition that has served as the primary repository of cultural heritage and social rituals since 1948. This music flourished primarily within the rural villages of the Galilee and the Triangle regions, developing into a vibrant, self-sustaining system of oral transmission centered around family celebrations. Following the mid-20th century, the musical traditions of this community became deeply rooted in rural and agrarian life. Because there was a lack of formal urban conservatories or written notation systems for this specific repertoire, the music survived entirely through oral tradition. Generational knowledge was passed down from elders to youth within families, ensuring that ancient melodies and poetic structures remained intact without institutional intervention. The traditional village wedding served as the primary and most vital venue for folk music. Rather than being simple private parties, weddings were massive communal events where entire villages gathered. These celebrations functioned as living archives, preserving distinct folk music genres: The Zaffa: A public, highly rhythmic musical procession through the village streets to escort the bride or groom. It is characterized by specific call-and-response vocal chants led by a soloist and answered by the crowd. Mahahed: Stylized, poetic songs of praise sung exclusively by elder village women. These pieces focus on family lineage, hospitality, and communal honor. The Sahra: The festive evening celebration held the night before the main wedding. It features the Dabke, a traditional communal line dance driven by energetic, syncopated hand percussion. The creative core of this folk music tradition is Zajal—a centuries-old form of improvised, rhymed, and metered folk poetry sung in the local Levantine Arabic dialect. The performers, known as Zajaleen, possess immense linguistic skill and musical agility. Operating at weddings and community gatherings, Zajaleen engage in musical duels or celebratory chants. They improvise verses on the spot to honor the hosts, tell lighthearted allegorical stories, celebrate local agricultural life, and preserve historical community lore. The distinct acoustic identity of this folklore relies on portable, traditional instruments crafted from natural materials like wood, leather, and reed: The Shabbabah & Mijwiz: Traditional reed and bamboo flutes. The Mijwiz (a double-pipe reed instrument) produces a piercing, microtonal melody essential for establishing the tempo and guiding the steps of the Dabke dancers. The Yarghul: A large, double-pipe reed flute that generates a low, hypnotic drone sound, historically played during harvest seasons. The Darabukkah & Riq: Hand percussion instruments—the goblet drum and the traditional tambourine—responsible for maintaining the intricate, driving rhythmic cycles (iqa'at) passed down through generations. References Oral Apprenticeship and Folk Rhythms: A detailed ethnomusicological study mapping out the informal learning strategies, peer-to-peer networks, and professional pathways of traditional wedding musicians in northern Israel can be explored at Academia.edu: Becoming Musicians in the Galilee. The Structure of Levantine Folk Poetry: Comprehensive research detailing the linguistic structures, poetic meters, and historical development of improvised Zajal within Middle Eastern village culture is documented by the University of Arkansas: Levantine Folk Poetry Traditions. Dabke Dance and Acoustic Frameworks: Anthropological documentation analyzing the musical syncopation, instrument crafting, and communal choreography of the Dabke line dance within rural families can be found in the Smithsonian Folkways Magazine: The Rhythms of Arab Folk Dance. Famous masters, singers, and instrumentalists in the history of Arab folk music in Israel. Because this folklore was historically passed down through oral tradition and village wedding networks, these individuals acted as living archives, preserving the musical identity of the community across generations. The Masters of Zajal (Improvised Folk Poetry) The Role: Zajaleen (folk poets) who engage in rapid, rhymed lyrical duels at village celebrations. They are the absolute foundational figures of rural folklore. Abu Mohammad (Refat al-Asadi) – The Voice of the Galilee: One of the most revered Zajjal singers from Deir al-Asad in the Galilee. Known for his staggering linguistic agility, he can improvise complex Wafir and Rajaz poetic meters for hours, singing about family honor, agrarian life, and community hospitality. Jihad al-Shaer – The Wedding Icon: A prominent figure across the Triangle region. His deep, commanding voice has led village Sahra nights for decades, mastering the fast-paced call-and-response chants that keep entire village crowds synchronized. The Virtuosos of Folk Flutes (Shabbabah & Mijwiz) The Role: Wind instrumentalists responsible for generating the high-pitched, microtonal piercing sounds required to set the tempo for the Dabke line-dance. Abu Marwan (The Master of the Galilee Reed): A legendary village elder and street instrumentalist known for playing the traditional bamboo Shabbabah. He passed down the exact breath-control techniques required to keep continuous folk dance loops going without interrupting the melody. The Local Mijwiz Dynasties: Across villages in the north, family lineages of players engineered unique tuning methods for the double-pipe reed Mijwiz. Their sharp acoustic lines are designed to carry over open-air agricultural spaces during wedding processions. The Custodians of Female Folklore (Mahahed Masters) The Role: Elder village women who hold the exclusive oral monopoly over ancient acapella traditions, keeping life-cycle music intact without any instrumentation. The Village Umm-Ahmad Figures: In traditional Arab folklore, the most crucial female singers are the non-commercial Al-Hajja (respected elder women) figures of individual villages like Kafr Kanna or Arraba. The Artistic Legacy: These women hold the collective memory for the multi-day wedding rituals. They lead the Mahahed (sung poetry of lineage) and the slow, emotional wedding chants designed to escort the bride out of her family home. Multi-Generational Folk Craft & Oud Virtuosos The Role: Artisans and instrumentalists who bridged the gap between raw village folklore and formal string instrumentation. The Joubran Family (Nazareth): A magnificent four-generation lineage of master lute (oud) makers and players originating from Nazareth. The father, Hatem Joubran, meticulously maintained traditional carving techniques using local woods. His sons—who later formed the globally acclaimed Trio Joubran—took the raw acoustic structures of local folk melodies and elevated them into complex, internationally touring classical performances. The Chéhadé Brothers (Jerusalem): Rami and Farid Chéhadé are a celebrated sibling duo from Jerusalem. They spent their careers collecting, recording, and rearranging the vanishing, rustic folk songs of the local countryside. By pairing traditional vocals with ancient folk percussion like the Riq and Katem, they introduced local village structures to massive world music festivals. References The Masters of Zajal (Refat al-Asadi & Jihad al-Shaer) The Galilee and Triangle Wedding Networks: Detailed analysis of local Zajaleen (including the historical prominence of figures like Abu Saud al-Asadi, Refat al-Asadi, and the regional zajal cassette network that bypassed state radio in the 1970s) is published in the ethnomusicological anthology Palestinian Music and Song via the Yplus Palestinian Music Archive. Local Musical Networks: The social mechanics of how these wedding singers lead the community through Zajal poetry and fast-paced call-and-response chants within northern village celebrations are mapped out by the Cambridge University Press Yearbook for Traditional Music. Virtuosos of Folk Flutes (Shabbabah & Mijwiz Dynasties) Dabke Soundscapes: Field research documenting how village elder instrumentalists craft, tune, and play the double-pipe reed Mijwiz and bamboo Shabbabah to sustain the continuous tempo loops of the village line-dances can be explored through the Smithsonian Folkways Magazine: The Rhythms of Arab Folk Dance. Informal Learning Ecologies: The peer-to-peer apprenticeship networks through which wind players in the Galilee pass down breathing and performance techniques are archived at Academia.edu: Becoming Musicians in the Galilee. Custodians of Female Folklore (Mahahed Masters) Ritual Lineage & Domestic Archives: Comprehensive documentation on how non-commercial village women (Al-Hajja figures) act as the sole oral archive for the multi-day Zaffa and Mahahed (acapella praise songs) is preserved by the University of Arkansas: Levantine Folk Poetry Traditions. Multi-Generational Virtuosos (The Joubran Family & The Chéhadé Brothers) The Joubran Family (Nazareth): The four-generation history of the family—including the prominent instrument-making legacy of the father, Hatem Joubran, and the rise of his sons as the first official international oud trio—is verified by the Hebrew University Jewish Music Research Centre: Le Trio Joubran and their global touring biography hosted at Astérios Spectacles: Le Trio Joubran. The Chéhadé Brothers (Jerusalem): The musical background of Rami and Farid Chéhadé, their upbringing in the Old City of Jerusalem, mastering traditional zajal, ghazal, and taqsim, and their transition to global world music festivals are documented in their biographical profile on The Chéhadé Brothers via Lebtivity. Arabic Music Arabic Music Play Video Share Whole Channel This Video Facebook Twitter Pinterest Tumblr Copy Link Link Copied Search videos Search video... Now Playing Le Trio Joubran, Paléo Festival Nyon 2012 (concert complet) 01:21:59 Play Video Now Playing تيسير الياس - تقاسيم نهاوند وسماعي نهاوند، مسعود جميل بك - Taiseer Elias: Taqsim Nahawand 07:07 Play Video Now Playing בוסתן אברהם Bustan Avraham 08:42 Play Video Now Playing Amal Murkus Ensemble - Stranger in a Far City (Berklee Middle Eastern Festival) 06:35 Play Video

Israeli folk dance. Israeli Hora dance. Debka. Yemenite Jewish dance. Hasidic dance. Israeli folk dance. Moshiko Halevy. HaPa'amonim. Kibbutz festival. Jewish Dance Archive. Israeli folklore. Israeli circle dance. Israeli folk dance instructors. Israeli dance choreography and music. Karmiel Dance Festival. Historic Dalia Festivals. FOLK DANCES Folk dance is a form of intangible cultural heritage that encompasses traditional dances performed by communities, often passed down through generations. These dances are expressions of cultural identity, social customs, and historical experiences. Characteristics: Created and performed by specific cultural or ethnic communities; learned and passed down through demonstration and participation, continuously evolving and practiced by communities in contemporary contexts; often tied to celebrations, rituals, social gatherings, and commemorative events, reflecting the values, history, and social structures of the community. Folk dance is thus recognized as an important element of intangible cultural heritage that deserves protection and transmission to future generations. Folk dance elements in intangible cultural heritage: Dances associated with ceremonies, weddings, religious occasions, festivals, seasonal celebrations, community gatherings, and social bonding; dances linked to cultural history and specific dance techniques or styles unique to a culture. Fourteen folk-dance groups appeared at the first Dalia festival, performing international folk dances as well as original Israeli and Biblical ones. A group from Ein Harod, led by Rivka Sturman, performed a dance called “Ha-Goren” (The Barn). The new dance “Mayim, Mayim” (Water, Water), which Elsa Dublon had choreographed to music by Yehuda Sharett for the water pageant for the 1937 Water Festival in Na’an, gained national exposure. The second national folk-dance festival, which took place at Kibbutz Dalia in July 1947, has remained in the collective memory because of the nighttime curfew that the British authorities imposed on the roads. Five hundred dancers and twenty-five thousand spectators remained in the Kibbutz Dalia amphitheater overnight, singing and dancing, transforming national folk dance into one more symbol of the struggle for independence against the British Mandate. Two further folk-dance festivals took place at Kibbutz Dalia, in 1951 and 1958. Gurit Kadman was a pioneer of folk dance in Israel. Dancer, Choreographer, dance teacher, and sports teacher. In 1929, following the request of Dr. Siegfried Lehmann, Gurit Kadman organized two dance festivals at the Ben Shemen Youth Village where she taught. In 1931 began to train in the field of dance sports associations acting in Tel Aviv. In collaboration with director Shimon Refaeli, she founded the band for movement and speech, the first in its field in Israel. Leah Bergstein was a choreographer who, at the beginning of the 1930s, created festival dances at kibbutzim. The unique creation of festival pageants contributed greatly to the development of a genre of rural Israeli festival and holiday celebrations and the creation of the first Erez Israel dances. The first such celebration in which Leah Bergstein participated took place in 1929, organized by the Shepherds’ Group of Kibbutz Bet Alfa in the Jezreel Valley. Bergstein and the poet-composer Mattityahu Shelem, who were members of this group, helped to create a festival to celebrate the end of the sheep-shearing. In cooperation with Shelem, Bergstein continued to choreograph dances and design festival pageants at Kibbutz Ramat Yohanan in the Zevulun Valley, to which she moved in the 1940s. At Bet Alfa, Leah Bergstein encountered the culture of the neighboring Bedouin, which she found both attractive and mysterious. Stemming from a connection to the earth, to nature and its annual cycle, and from the ability to form a strong connection between everyday and festival days, the Bedouin culture had a rich tradition of ceremonies, songs, and dances to express the feelings of a nomadic shepherd society. For Bergstein, this tradition and its adherents symbolized the ancient Land of Israel. For the members of Bet Alfa, shepherds and flocks served both as a connection with the land and its landscape during Biblical times and as a universal symbol of peace. Bergstein and Shelem sought a way to depict the complex relationship between nature, a nation’s cultural tradition, and the new life in pre-state Israel in general and on the kibbutz in particular. Cultural creation, in their opinion, had to be carried out as part of building the national and societal basis of the country. Together, they created ceremonies for nature and labor festivals, of which the sheep-shearing festival at Bet Alfa was the first. Later, at Ramat Yohanan, they created other festival ceremonies, including the Omer, Tu bi-Shevat, the Festival of First Fruits, the Harvest Festival/Water Festival and the Wedding Celebration. Bergstein choreographed fifty-one festival dances, forty of them to music composed by Shelem; the best-known of these are Rov Brakhot (Many Blessings), Hen Yeronan (Thus shall we rejoice), Shibbolet ba-Sadeh (A Sheaf in the Field), and Shiru ha-Shir (Sing the Song). First Dalia Conference in 1944 Gurit Kadman organized the first folk dance festival at the kibbutz Dalia, which became a regular event. In the years 1944 - 1968, attended by hundreds of dancers formed the Israeli folk dance community. The first dance convention in Dalia was held on 14-15 July 1944 in an amphitheater near the kibbutz. Despite the situation in Europe, and despite the fact that the road to the kibbutz was disrupted, about 200 participants arrived, and the audience numbered about 35 thousand spectators. The Festival program included dances of Rivka Shturman performed by schoolchildren from the Kibbutz Ein Harod and Tel Yosef, Sara Levi-Tanai with the Members of Kibbutz Ramat Hakovesh, and the performance of an ethnic-Yemenite dance troupe directed by the choreographer Rachel Nadav. This conference was an important event in the development of the folk Israeli dance. As a result of the conference, the demand for Israeli dance and the Hebrew songs grew, and hundreds of new dances were created. In 1945, the first training course for folk dance instructors was held in Israel. Only five students completed the program, becoming the nation's pioneer folk dance instructors. They started going on to teach in cities and kibbutzim across the country. Even earlier, in 1937, choreographer Elsa Dublon composed the iconic dance "Mayim Mayim," which remains widely popular today. Another influential figure among the early choreographers was Rivka Sturman, who immigrated in 1929. Bringing a rich background in modern dance, she joined the Folk Dance Department established and funded by the Histadrut to foster local dance production. Between 1942 and 1983, Sturman choreographed around 90 folk dances. Many of these have become timeless Israeli classics, including "Dodi Li," "Erev Ba," "Harmonica," "Kuma Echa," "Ma Navu," and "Debka Gilboa." Zvi Friedhaber, who immigrated from Germany, joined the folk dance classes in Tel Aviv under the guidance of Gurit Kadman, and so he said: "As early as 1947, I heard the sentence that affected me so much, but how our fathers danced, we will not know. This sentence led me to begin researching and searching for the sources of our people's dance, from Israel and abroad, records, etc.'' Zvi Friedhaber continued his work for more than 50 years and did so passionately, scientifically studying research (earned the title of Doctor) until the establishment of the Jewish Dance Archive in his home, which is the only one of its kind in the world. The entire archive was transferred to the Israeli dance library at Beit Ariela in Tel Aviv. In the 1950s, when he was a member of the "Ha-Po'el" dance troupe, he began to teach folk dances in schools and youth movements. Zvi Friedhaber: A pioneering scholar of Jewish dance. Prompted in 1947 by the realization that ancestral dance roots were being lost, he spent over 50 years passionately conducting scientific research. He established the unique Jewish Dance Archive at his home, which was later transferred to the Israeli Dance Library at Beit Ariela. He authored definitive books, including "Gurit Kadman - Mother and Founder". Inbal Dance Theater Inbal Dance Theater is Israel's first and oldest modern dance company. In August 2014, Barak Marshall, former house choreographer of the Batsheva Dance Company and son of Margalit Oved, the company's star dancer and artistic director from 1994-1996, was appointed as the new artistic director of both the company and the Inbal World Arts Centre. The company was founded in 1949 by Israel Prize recipient Sara Levi-Tanai. Under the mentorship of Jerome Robbins—who staged many of the company’s largest works—Inbal toured internationally to critical acclaim, performing in prestigious venues such as the Martin Beck Theatre on Broadway, the Sarah Bernhardt Theatre in Paris, London's Drury Lane, Her Majesty’s Theatre in Australia and La Scala de Milano. The company rehearses and performs at the Inbal Theatre, which is located on the campus of the Suzanne Dellal Center for Dance and Theatre in Neve Tzedek, Tel Aviv. Inbal Dance Theater Inbal Dance Theater Play Video Share Whole Channel This Video Facebook Twitter Pinterest Tumblr Copy Link Link Copied Search videos Search video... Now Playing Inbal - Yemenite Wedding (France, 1962) ענבל (video 3) 00:59 Play Video Now Playing Inbal - Yemenite Wedding (France, 1962) ענבל (video 5) 02:26 Play Video Now Playing Ballet Inbal - Ballets israeliens theatre des nations - Yemenite wedding (1962) ענבל 02:04 Play Video Now Playing Inbal - Yemenite Wedding (France, 1962) ענבל (video 1) 00:39 Play Video Moshiko Halevy groups Moshe Itzhak Halevy, known to the folk dancing public as Moshiko, is the son of an old Yemenite family in Israel. He was born in Jaffa, Israel, and his first introduction to the world of dance was at the studio of Mia Arbatoba. In 1954, Moshiko joined Inbal, the Yemenite dance theater, where he was reacquainted with his own origins and, for six years, worked as one of Inbal's principal dancers. He participated in Inbal's two world tours of America and Europe - both of which were crowned with great success. Moshiko fell in love with Oriental folklore, and, while still a member of Inbal, tried his hand at the creation of folk dances. In 1959, Moshiko created his first dances: Debkah Uriah, Debkah Cana'an and Et Dodim Kala, and they were instantly successful. In 1960, Moshiko founded his own group, "Hapa'amonim" - an Israeli group dedicated to folklore, dance, and song. Moshiko continued to create dances, such as Debkah Kurdit, Ein Adir, Hamecholet, Tfilat Hashachar, Ha Helech, etc. In 1966, the Cultural Department of Arabs at the Workers' Federation appointed Moshiko as instructor and artistic advisor for minority groups in Israel such as the Circassians, Druze, and Arabs. In 1968, Moshiko was invited to teach dances for three months under the auspices of NEVO - the folk dance society of Holland. He was also invited to bring 3 groups from Israel with him - Circassian, Druze and Yemenite - so that they could participate in both the Folklore Festival held in Leyden, Holland as well as the one held in Scooten, Belgium. In 1973, Moshiko led the Inbal Dance Theater on their successful United States tour. Moshiko, in his dance creations, is influenced by his work with minority groups, and this is clearly seen in his famous Debkah dances. These dances are based on Oriental - Arab motifs, i.e., Debkah Cana'an, Bedouin Debkah, and Mishal. Moshiko has created at least 260 Israeli dances and also 190 pieces of music for his dances, HaPa'amonim - Moshiko Halevy HaPa'amonim - Moshiko Halevy Play Video Share Whole Channel This Video Facebook Twitter Pinterest Tumblr Copy Link Link Copied Search videos Search video... Now Playing HaPa'amonim להקת הפעמונים - Wedding of Bukharan Jews (live, 1963) 10:37 Play Video Now Playing HaPa'amonim להקת הפעמונים - Israeli folklore (live in France, 1963) - 1 - 02:39 Play Video Now Playing HaPa'amonim להקת הפעמונים - Israeli folklore (live in France 1963) - 9 - 03:22 Play Video Now Playing HaPa'amonim להקת הפעמונים - Israeli folklore (live in France, 1963) - 3 - 02:10 Play Video Slowly, folk dances became a common social practice alongside sing-alongs, which encompass a large population, both large and small, and serve as a refuge from personal and national reality. There are professional dance instructors in Israel who teach folk dancing, and they teach classes in schools and community centers; Israeli dance instructors also work abroad, giving Israeli dance lessons, especially in cities with large communities of immigrants. Most of the dancers are members of the "Dance and Choreographers Organization in Israel and the Diaspora", which serves as their professional association. Israeli Folk Dances Israeli Folk Dances Play Video Share Whole Channel This Video Facebook Twitter Pinterest Tumblr Copy Link Link Copied Search videos Search video... Now Playing Technion dance troupe Haifa להקת הריקודים של הטכניון, חיפה - live in France, 1960 05:35 Play Video Now Playing Israeli folk dance & music - Debka Rafiach דבקה רפיח - (live in France, 1968) 02:20 Play Video Now Playing Technion dance troupe Haifa להקת הריקודים של הטכניון, חיפה - Yemenite dance - live in France, 1960 05:42 Play Video Now Playing Karmon Dancers & The Histadruth Group, live in France, 1965 - video 2 05:27 Play Video The Karmiel Festival Driven by the ambition to create a monumental and lasting celebration of Israeli dance, the Karmiel Dance Festival was established in July 1988. Choreographer Yonatan Karmon and folk dance pioneer Tirza Hodes co-founded the event, receiving crucial backing from Karmiel’s late mayor, Baruch Venger. The festival was envisioned as a modern continuation of the historic Dalia Festivals—the national gatherings organized by Gurit Kadman between 1944 and 1968 that originally shaped the Israeli folk dance movement. By embracing the picturesque landscapes of the Galilean town of Karmiel, Karmon crafted a beautiful and expansive backdrop for this artistic endeavor. Prominent figures in Israeli culture have carefully safeguarded the festival's artistic vision across generations. As its founding Artistic Director, Yonatan Karmon built its global reputation. He was succeeded by Shlomo Maman, who masterfully preserved the balance between traditional heritage and international guest troupes. In 2020, Gadi Bitton assumed leadership, guiding the festival into the modern digital era. Today, the event is recognized as Israel's largest dance celebration and the world's premier Israeli dance festival. Held annually, typically in July or August, it transforms the city of Karmiel for three days and three nights of nonstop dancing During the festival, which draws a crowd of people, viewers can observe a wide variety of shows. Israeli dancers participate in this festival, as do dancers from other countries abroad. With several performances of various dance groups, there are events that are open to the public and to all participants. The dance festival is held in various sports facilities in the city of Karmiel, among them: the amphitheater, the stage, the park, and the pavilion. Many events in the past were dedicated in honor of Israeli composers like Sasha Argov, Naomi Shemer, and Avihu Medina. Up to 250,000 people and 10,000 local and international dancers routinely attend the event. A huge opening parade through the streets, 24-hour public dance circles, and the esteemed Choreography Competitions conducted at the enormous Amphitheatre of the city, which can accommodate up to 25,000 people, are among the main attractions. Karmiel Festival Karmiel Festival Play Video Share Whole Channel This Video Facebook Twitter Pinterest Tumblr Copy Link Link Copied Search videos Search video... Now Playing ENG-TV פסטיבל מחול כרמיאל 2014 - לקט ממופע הפתיחה 35:23 Play Video Now Playing ENG-TV פסטיבל מחול כרמיאל 2017 אביב מחולות 04:57 Play Video Now Playing ENG-TV פסטיבל מחול כרמיאל 2006 - המיטב 01:48:50 Play Video Now Playing ללכת שבי אחרייך - מופע הוקרה למלחינה והיוצרת נורית הירש - פסטיבל כרמיאל 2015 47:25 Play Video Like many types of International folk dance, each Israeli folk dance has a fixed choreography (sequence of steps) and is danced to a specific piece of music. The choreographer selects a piece of music, usually from one of the genres of Israeli music, and arranges a set of steps to fit with that music. Major folk influences include the Hora, which is originally a Romanian folk dance, the Jewish Yemenite music and steps, and the Hasidic dance tradition. There are many debka-type Israeli folk dances; the debka is originally an Arabic folk dance form of the Middle East. For example, the dances Hora Chadera (1972) and Eretz, Eretz (1974) hearken back to the Hasidic dance tradition. Israeli folk dances are a unique phenomenon of contemporary folklore. Despite the many changes in the values, dreams, and ways of life of the Israelis, they still dance the old dances of the 1940s and 1950s—the years during which more new dances were created than in any other culture in the world. Today, the repertoire includes about 3,000 Israeli folk dances. Over the years, folk dance has become a common social practice that is deeply rooted alongside public singing, and encompasses a wide population from young to old. Professional dance instructors teach the field in schools and community centers in Israel, while Israeli instructors working abroad spread Israeli dance among Jewish and immigrant communities around the world. Rikudey am Dances Moshiko Halevy - Debka Dor *1986* מושיקו הלוי - דבקה דור Moshiko Halevy official Play Video Share Whole Channel This Video Facebook Twitter Pinterest Tumblr Copy Link Link Copied Search videos Search video... Now Playing Moshiko Halevy - Debka Dor *1986* מושיקו הלוי - דבקה דור 02:24 Play Video Now Playing Pa'amonei Mizrach - Dance | פעמוני מזרח - ריקוד 06:22 Play Video Now Playing דבקה רמות 08:22 Play Video Now Playing Yenmenite Rap - dance - ראפ תמני ריקוד 02:29 Play Video

Intangible culture includes the performing arts, oral traditions, social practices, religious traditions, natural resources, craftmanship and their history. Within these areas, we can to identify the people, places and bodies of information that are significant and unique to the communities. INVENTORY The inventory is a record of Israel's intangible cultural heritage and the cultural practices associated with its communities. The inventory helps us better understand the communities of Israel and identify specific cultural resources within communities. Intangible cultural heritage includes the performing arts, oral traditions, social practices, religious traditions, knowledge and practices concerning nature and the universe, and craftsmanship and its history. Through the documentation of Intangible Cultural Heritage, we can identify various cultural elements and compile a comprehensive inventory of intangible cultural heritage elements. This includes exploring traditional craftsmanship and its history, which helps to better understand social practices, rituals, festive events, and traditional knowledge of nature. The cultural inventory is a starting point for cultural planning. This inventory process helps us better understand communities and cultural resources. Developing the cultural inventory can be a community tool, a way to get to know community members, to identify their special skills and talents, and to bring them into closer connection with programs and services in the heart of the community. Oral traditions The oral traditions and expressions incorporate linguistic and performative forms such as proverbs, folktales, legends, epic poetry, invocations, songs, and dramatic enactments. Craftsmanship Traditional craftsmanship is about the living tradition and the skills passed from person to person over generations. This includes clothing, pottery, musical instruments, and religious items. Performing arts The performing arts range from traditional vocal and instrumental music to folk dance and theatre. This includes musical instruments, masks, costumes, and other body decorations. Knowledge of nature This includes traditional ecological and environmental knowledge, know-how, skills, practices, and representations that communities develop through their interaction with nature. Social practices Social practices include festive events, religious traditions, religious festivals, culinary traditions, official holidays, rituals, weddings, funerals, traditional games, and Sports. Communities Communities are groups of practitioners who create, maintain, and transmit living traditions, oral expressions, social practices, and traditional craftsmanship from generation to generation

Jewish Yemenite music history. Yemenite Jewish diaspora traditions. The Diwan Yemenite paraliturgical poetry. Rabbi Shalom Shabazi. Judeo-Arabic music. Yemeni-Arabic vernacular. Operation Magic Carpet. Bracha Zefira. Rina Nikova. Aharon Amram. Yemenite liturgical tradition. Shoshana Damari. Ofra Haza. Sara Levi-Tanai. Moshiko Halevy. HaPa'amonim folklore ensemble. JEWISH YEMENITE MUSIC Jewish Yemenite music Jewish Mizrahi music Arab Israeli music Klezmer music Sephardic music Jewish Iraqi music From the beginning of the Babylonian exile in 586 BCE and the subsequent establishment of the Jewish diaspora in the southern Arabian Peninsula, a distinctive Yemenite folkloric musical tradition emerged under severe socioreligious constraints (1) . In accordance with the gezeirah—a rabbinic decree of communal mourning for the Temple—the population voluntarily prohibited the deployment of conventional musical instruments (2) . This internal religious restriction was further reinforced by external legal frameworks under local Islamic governance, which imposed restrictive dhimmi (protected non-Muslim) status regulations on the community, explicitly forbidding public musical performances and excessive noise production (3) . To circumvent these institutional and liturgical prohibitions, Yemenite Jews innovated alternative sonic practices by utilizing the human body and domestic utilitarian objects as primary acoustic instruments (4) . The community engineered a sophisticated, somatic performance methodology characterized by intricate polyrhythmic hand-clapping, synchronized chest percussion, and measured foot-stamping (2,4) . This adaptation effectively preserved their cultural and liturgical heritage through a completely vocalized and corporeal medium. For percussion, they adopted the tanakeh (an empty metal oil tin or kerosene can) and copper trays (sahn), balancing them on their knees or hitting them with rings and coins to create hypnotic, metallic beats that accompanied their dances. At the literary and musicological core of this folk tradition lies the Diwan, a sacred, communal compendium of paraliturgical poetry. Although its stylistic lineage traces back to the medieval Hebrew-Spanish Golden Age, the Yemenite expressive idiom underwent a profound transformation during the seventeenth century under the influence of the poet-rabbi Shalom Shabazi (1) . Shabazi authored hundreds of poems using an innovative, hybrid linguistic framework that combined Hebrew, Aramaic, and Judeo-Arabic. Crucially, these texts were engineered specifically for vocal performance rather than silent scriptural reading(8) . His poetic repertoire addressed a vast thematic spectrum, ranging from rigorous philosophical contemplations on the eschatological return to Zion, to accessible, allegorical vernacular folk narratives. Consequently, Shabazi’s oeuvre remains the structural and foundational framework for the contemporary Yemenite vocal tradition. Operating within rigid socioreligious structures, Yemenite expressive culture bifurcated into two mutually exclusive, gender-segregated pathways, each cultivating a distinct aesthetic and linguistic profile (2) . The Masculine Repertoire: This domain was performed strictly in Hebrew and Aramaic, languages acquired exclusively through formal religious literacy training within the community (cheder). Masculine vocal performance occurred within tightly structured communal and paraliturgical gatherings, progressing structurally from the Nashid—a serious, non-metered, and meditative vocal introduction—to the Shira, a dynamic, metered composition accompanied by rhythmic dancing and percussion (1) . Thematic elements within this sphere remained highly theological, emphasizing divine love, historical exile, and national redemption. The Feminine Repertoire: Conversely, the feminine tradition was composed entirely in the Yemeni-Arabic vernacular and preserved strictly via oral transmission due to the systemic exclusion of women from formal textual literacy (2). Musically, this genre was secular, highly emotional, and structurally fluid. Women used song as a vehicle to articulate personal and social grievances, detailing the hardships of domestic labor, forced marriages, childbirth, and familial mourning (3) . Feminine performance dominated domestic and life-cycle celebrations, producing intricate, multi-day ritual timelines such as the Henna and the Zaffa (bridal procession). The music of Yemenite Jews was particularly influential in the development of Israeli music because it was seen by early new immigrants as a link to their biblical roots. The music of the ancient Hebrews, wrote the musicologist A.Z. Idelsohn, "is preserved in memory and practice in various Jewish centers. There was a Yemenite Jewish community living already in Israel before 1900, and the European pioneers who came in the 1920s were enamored of the Yemenite style. The mass migration of approximately 49,000 Yemenite Jews to the newly established State of Israel during Operation Magic Carpet (1949–1950) radically restructured the region's cultural landscape (7) . Early European Zionist musicologists and composers romanticized Yemenite folklore, ideologically classifying it as a pristine historical time capsule that preserved the "purest," uncorrupted acoustic remnants of ancient biblical antiquity. In the 1930s and 1940s, Yemenite singer Bracha Zefira researched and recorded many Yemenite songs, and also sang original compositions in the Yemenite style. An example is the song "Shtu HaAdarim" (Drink, the Flock), with words by Alexander Penn and music by Nahum Nardi. Bracha Zefira permanently altered the Israeli musical canon by collecting indigenous Yemenite melodies and synthesizing them with Western classical orchestral arrangements. Concurrently, choreographer Rina Nikova deconstructed traditional Yemenite wedding movements to formalize the "Yemenite Step", which became the definitive choreographic backbone of national Israeli folk dance (4) . Aharon Amram became the first to record Yemenite music using instruments from outside its tradition. Among the instruments he accompanied his traditional Yemenite singing with were guitar, violin, qanoun, trumpet, trombone, and percussion instruments. Aharon Amram was a figure who single-handedly researched, recorded, and preserved the entire oral tradition of liturgical Yemenite folklore and chants: archives on Israel Music; his dedicated heritage on Tunes of Yemen App. Shoshana Damari was revered as the "Queen of Hebrew Music"; her majestic voice and theatrical delivery defined the sound of early Israeli folk music and pioneering folklore troupes, including the Jewish Music Research Centre; her historic discography is held by the National Library of Israel . Shoshana Damari was born as Shodia Damari on the eve of Passover in 1923 in Bashar, Yemen. In 1945, Damari joined Li La Lo, a revue theater established by impresario Moshe Wallin. The group performed low-cal entertainment and satire as a counterweight to the sedate theater of the time. Shoshana Damari became noted for her identifiable husky voice and Yemenite pronunciation. She performed some of the songs, "Bat Sheva" and "Hayu Zmanim" ( to the words of Haim Hefer). On the eve of the rise of the State of Israel, with Moshe Wilensky, she made a concert tour in the Cyprus internment camps, where she sang the song "The Home" and also a well-known song in Yiddish, "Raisins and Almonds" ("Razhinkes mit Mandalen"). Her first record was released in 1948, and her song, Kalaniyot (Anemones), by Moshe Wilensky, dates from that period. After the independence of Israel and throughout the early 1970s, Damari performed in the United States, France, England, South Africa, Brazil, Cuba, Mexico, Argentina, Venezuela, Colombia, Canada, Scandinavia, and Japan. In 1988, Shoshana Damari was awarded the Israel Prize for Hebrew song. In 1995, she received an ACUM lifetime achievement award. In 1998, as part of the 60th celebration of the State of Israel, Damari was chosen as the "singer of the 60th" in a vote conducted by Channel 1 and Reshet Gimel. Yemenite music reached a world audience in the 1980s as a result of the efforts of Israeli singer Ofra Haza, whose album Yemenite Songs became an international hit with world music fans. Ofra Haza was an Israeli singer, songwriter, and actress. She famously blended traditional Yemenite-Jewish prayers (Diwan) with contemporary music and styles. Ofra Haza was born in 1957 in the impoverished Hatikva quarter of Tel Aviv as the youngest of nine children in a traditional Yemenite Jewish family. Discovered at the age of 12 by manager Bezalel Aloni, she began performing with the local Hatikva Theatre Workshop, launching a fast internal career. By the early 1980s, she had become Israel's premier female star, winning the "Singer of the Year" award four consecutive times and placing second in the 1983 Eurovision Song Contest with her uplifting anthem "Chai". In 1984, she took an outstanding aesthetic risk to record a profoundly personal album featuring traditional Hebrew and Arabic liturgical poetry taught to her by her mother. Ofra Haza bridged the gap between historical ethnomusicology and global popular media. Her seminal album Yemenite Songs extracted the microtonal vocal ornamentations of the Diwan and layered them over digital drum sequencing. The international success of her single Im Nin'alu successfully integrated historical Yemenite folklore into Western music culture and mainstream global charts. Ofra Haza became a cultural ambassador for her community, both in Israel and internationally. The album's track "Im Nin'alu" became an unexpected planetary sensation in 1988, topping charts across Europe and cementing her status as a pioneer of the World Music genre. Widely praised for her humanitarian efforts, she performed at the 1994 Nobel Peace Prize ceremony in Oslo and lent his voice to the character of Yocheved in Steven Spielberg's 1998 animated film "The Prince of Egypt", where she sang the film's opening track "Deliver Us" in over a dozen languages. She died in February 2000 at the age of 42 from health complications. This event shocked the Israeli public and triggered widespread national mourning. She remains a symbol of internal unity in Israel and a pioneer of the "World Music" genre, opening doors for subsequent Middle Eastern and Mizrahi crossover artists Experts in Yemenite folklore Tsadoq Tsubeiri & Joseph Ozeiri: Crucial 20th-century preservationists who helped document the early oral and rhythmic layers of the Yemenite community. You can stream their seminal field recordings on Spotify via The Yemenite Jews Album or purchase the catalog directly from Smithsonian Folkways Recordings. Sara Levi-Tanai: Born to Yemenite parents in Jerusalem, she was a pioneering composer, lyricist, and choreographer. In 1949, she founded the world-renowned Inbal Dance Theater, a foundational institution that transformed Yemenite vocal traditions, wedding rituals, and field steps into theatrical modern Israeli folklore. Moshiko Halevy and his troupe HaPa'amonim represent a foundational chapter in the staging and preservation of Israel's cultural folklore. Born Moshe Yitzhak Halevi in 1932 in Tel Aviv to Yemenite parents, Moshiko grew up near the historic Yemenite Quarter (Kerem HaTeimanin). He initially trained in classical ballet under Mia Arbatova, and in 1954 he joined the Inbal Dance Theater. In 1962, following a world tour, Moshiko chose to venture out on his own aesthetic path. Alongside female dancer Yona Levy and the traditional musician Yitzhak Eliezerov, he founded HaPa'amonim ("The Bells"), a technical ensemble wholly dedicated to Israeli cultural folklore, song, and dance. As the artistic director and chief choreographer, Moshiko focused intently on transforming raw, true community rituals into dynamic, stagy stage art. The group's backing instrumentation and vocal arrangements featured acclaimed traditional artists, including the iconic Yemenite liturgical master Aharon Amram. HaPa'amonim found immense success both in Israel and throughout Europe, paving the way for ethnic minority folklore to be treated with high prestige. Beyond his work with his own company, Moshiko became uniquely multi-talented. He was hired to guide and build performance repertoires for Arab, Druze, and Circassian regional dance troupes in Israel. Unlike many choreographers who only set steps to existing tracks, Moshiko actually wrote the music, played the instruments, and sang the vocals for many of his own folk dance pieces. Over his lifetime, he created more than 180 original Israeli folk dances (including the famous Debka styles). Moshiko Halevy received the Lifetime Achievement Award for Israeli folk dances in 2019 for his work as choreographer, composer, musical writer, and folklore expert. Moshiko received the Lifetime Achievement Award from The Union of Israeli Artists (EMI) in 2024. The Yemenite Jewish Folklore Troupe was a dedicated performance group focused specifically on theatrical re-enactments of traditional Yemenite weddings, henna ceremonies, and authentic folklore. Gila Bashari was a premier singer and ethnographical researcher who focused on the traditional Diwan and the unique vocal styles of Yemenite women's folklore: her preservation work at the Yad Izhak Ben-Zvi Institute. Idelsohn, A. Z. (1925). Gesaenge der jemenischen Juden [Songs of the Yemenite Jews] (Hebraeisch-orientalischer Melodienschatz, Vol. 1). Benjamin Harz. Herman, M. (1996). The secular music of the Yemenite Jews as an expression of cultural demarcation between the sexes. Journal of the Anthropological Society of Oxford (JASO), 27(2), 113–135. National Library of Israel. (n.d.). Yemenite Jewry: Jews in Islamic countries. Arkin, L. (2021). The Yemenite influence on Israeli dance and music. Congregation Beth Ami. Lithman, Y. (2024). On the Yemeni Jewish tradition of musical storytelling. Literary Hub. National Library of Israel. (2023). Birthing songs of Yemen's Jewish women. NLI Blog. Shiloah, A. (2003). The musical tradition of Jewish communities. Wayne State University Press. Seroussi, E. (2011). Elohim Eshala: The poetry and music of Yemenite Jews. Hebrew University Jewish Music Research Centre. Some famous artists Aharon Amram, singer, songwriter, composer, and major performer of traditional Yemenite Jewish music. He was born in Sana’a in 1939. Hebrew University Jewish Music Research Centre Shlomit Levi, Israeli-Yemeni singer whose music draws on melodies inherited from her Yemenite Jewish ancestors. She also presents lectures and performances about Yemenite Jewish culture. Shlomit & Rebbe Soul Duo, combining traditional Yemenite and Jewish music with world music, rock, folk, and electronic elements. Ofra Haza: Influential Israeli singer of Yemenite Jewish heritage. Her album Yemenite Songs brought traditional Yemenite melodies to an international audience. Official tribute website Bracha Zefira: Pioneer singer and collector of Jewish Yemenite music. Her repertoire included Yemenite Jewish piyyutim and traditional melodies. European Institute of Jewish Music Liron Amram: Singer and musician whose work is strongly influenced by Yemenite music inherited from his father, Aharon Amram.Official website Shalom Keisar, Yemenite Jewish singer documented performing Im Nin’alu while accompanying himself on a drum. Hebrew University Jewish Music Research Centre Yosef Ozeiri, Performer represented on the Smithsonian Folkways recording The Yemenite Jews, a collection of Yemenite Jewish religious, secular, and devotional music. Smithsonian Folkways Zadok Zubeiri, traditional Yemenite Jewish singer featured in archival recordings of the Central Yemenite Jewish diwan tradition.Hebrew University Jewish Music Research Centre Yehiel Adaki, Yemenite Jewish singer who worked to preserve Yemenite singing in Palestine and Israel.Hebrew University Jewish Music Research Centre Yamma Ensemble: Israeli ensemble specializing in Middle Eastern, Hebrew, and Jewish music. Its TEIMAN project focuses specifically on the musical tradition of Yemenite Jews, including Yemenite Jewish women’s songs. Official website Moran Al Yamaniya: Singer specializing in authentic Yemenite singing and traditional Yemenite repertoire. She performs with the Yamma Ensemble. Yamma Ensemble biography Yehuda Cohen, performer listed among the singers in archival recordings of the Yemenite Jewish diwan tradition.Hebrew University Jewish Music Research Centre Menachem Arussi, Yemenite Jewish performer included in archival recordings documenting traditional Central Yemenite Jewish music. Hebrew University Jewish Music Research Centre Yehiel Zabari, traditional performer included in the archival collection With Songs They Respond: The Diwan of the Jews from Central Yemen. Hebrew University Jewish Music Research Centre Jewish Yemenite Songs אדון עולם / ציון גולן, בועז גדקא ומשה שג'דרי The Association For Society and Culture - Yemenite Jewish Tradition Play Video Share Whole Channel This Video Facebook Twitter Pinterest Tumblr Copy Link Link Copied Search videos Search video... Now Playing אדון עולם / ציון גולן, בועז גדקא ומשה שג'דרי 07:05 Play Video Now Playing Tzur Menati - Ofra Haza 03:15 Play Video Now Playing מחרוזת תימנית אם ננעלו אצל דודו טופז ז"ל 1995 - כלל הזמרים 10:12 Play Video Now Playing Yemenite Groove שלומית לוי מאורפנד לנד Orphaned Land/ Shlomit Levi & Boaz Sharabi 05:34 Play Video

Klezmer is a traditional type of Jewish music that began in Eastern Europe. The word klezmer comes from Hebrew and means “musical instrument.” In the past, klezmer musicians usually played at Jewish weddings, festivals, and other celebrations. Klezmer music is special because it can express many different emotions. KLEZMER AND YIDDISH MUSIC Jewish Yemenite music Jewish Mizrahi music Arab Israeli music Klezmer music Sephardic music Jewish Iraqi music Klezmer is a traditional type of Jewish music that began in Eastern Europe. The word klezmer comes from Hebrew and means “musical instrument.” In the past, klezmer musicians usually played at Jewish weddings, festivals, and other celebrations. Klezmer music is special because it can express many different emotions. Some songs are cheerful and energetic, while others are slow and sad. The clarinet is one of the most important instruments in klezmer because its sound can resemble a person’s voice. Other common instruments include the violin, accordion, trumpet, and double bass. Klezmer musicians often played in small groups called klezmorim. Their music was made for dancing, but it also told stories and expressed feelings. In the twentieth century, Jewish immigrants brought klezmer music to the United States. Over time, it influenced jazz, folk music, and other styles. Today, people all over the world still perform klezmer, keeping this important part of Jewish culture alive. History of Yiddish Vocal Traditions The historical evolution of Yiddish vocal music dates back to the fourteenth century, characterized by a clear linguistic and liturgical divergence. While secular folk songs were increasingly performed in the Yiddish vernacular, rabbinic authorities rigidly decreed that sacred, liturgical compositions must be preserved exclusively in Hebrew (Idelsohn, 1929). Within Central and Eastern European Jewish communities, a primary genre of instrumental and dance accompaniment emerged known as Klezmer. Through mass migration, this instrumental legacy was exported globally, primarily to the United States and Israel (Sapoznik, 2011). Ethnomusicologist Henry Sapoznik (2011) observes that historically, vocalized Yiddish songs and theatrical traditions initially maintained a far higher degree of visibility and cultural prominence in Israel than instrumental Klezmer music. While the lullabies and folk ballads of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries remain largely anonymous, subsequent compositions boast clearly documented authorships. A prominent example of this documented transition is the enduringly popular folk-style piece Oyfn Pripetshik ("On the Hearth"), composed by the prominent attorney and songwriter Mark Warshawsky (Slobin, 1982). In the European diaspora, the repertoire of Yiddish theater companies developed along two distinct structural tracks. Compositions were either engineered as incidental music to accompany dramatic works or structured as independent "hit" arias and vocal numbers extracted directly from full-scale Yiddish operettas (Slobin, 1982). Following transcontinental migration, American songwriters and composers heavily utilized this European theatrical material. Alongside traditional synagogue modes and liturgical melodies, Yiddish folk and theater tunes were deeply integrated into the structural fabric of early twentieth-century American commercial music, directly shaping the aesthetic of Tin Pan Alley, Broadway, and Hollywood film scoring (Sapoznik, 2011; Slobin, 1982). The structural adaptability of Yiddish song is exemplified by composers who successfully bridged the gap between vernacular Jewish traditions and mainstream Western popular culture. A premier example is Irving Berlin, who systematically transitioned from writing localized Yiddish ethnic novelty songs to drafting defining elements of the American English songbook (Slobin, 1982). Similarly, the iconic song Bei Mir Bistu Shein stands as a classic case study of an authentic Yiddish theatrical number being recast and translated to achieve status as an international English popular hit. Concurrently, Yiddish music served as a crucial vehicle for socio-political mobilization and historic resistance in Eastern Europe: Political Anthems: The composition Di Shvue ("The Oath"), written in 1902, served as the official anthem for the General Jewish Labour Bund in early twentieth-century tsarist Russia. The same author, S. Ansky (Shloyme Zanvl Rappoport), composed the revolutionary labor song In Zaltsikn Yam ("In the Salty Sea"). Workers' Choral Societies: These worker-centric vocal institutions successfully translated these political traditions into the American diaspora, with prominent groups like the New York Yiddish choral society led by Lazar Weiner enduring well into the 1960s (Slobin, 1982). Songs of Holocaust Resistance: In 1943, during the horrors of the Second World War, poet Hirsh Glick penned Zog Nit Keyn Mol ("Never Say This is the End of the Road") within the Vilna Ghetto. This piece became the universal anthem of the partisan resistance across occupied Europe (Slobin, 1982). Parallel to these popular and folk idioms, a self-consciously "serious" genre of Yiddish art songs emerged in the early twentieth century. This movement was spearheaded by the Society for Jewish Folk Music, founded in St. Petersburg in 1908 (Idelsohn, 1929). The society sought to synthesize traditional Jewish modalities with the complex structural aesthetics of Western classical music. This elite intellectual circle featured composers often referred to as the architects of Jewish national art music, including Michael Gniessin (frequently termed "the Jewish Glinka"), Joseph Achron, Moses Milner, Alexander Krein, and Solomon Rosowsky (Idelsohn, 1929). In the United States, this high-art tradition was further advanced by young immigrant intellectuals, including the pioneer of the American Yiddish art song Lazar Weiner, Solomon Golub, film composer Henech Kon, and Los Angeles cantor Paul Lamkoff. These composers demonstrated a highly sensitive, sophisticated deployment of traditional folk themes within rigorous, classical art song structures. This conscious, high-art approach to the Yiddish vocal repertoire persists into the twenty-first century. A notable contemporary example is found in the A Yiddish Winterreise and Di Sheyne Milnerin song cycles devised by scholar and composer Alexander Knapp. Conceived as a direct, culturally transposed tribute to the classical lieder of Franz Schubert, these intricate arrangements were meticulously crafted for the English bass-baritone Mark Glanville, superimposing the emotional landscape of the Holocaust onto classical Western song structures. References Idelsohn, A. Z. (1929). Jewish music in its historical development. Henry Holt and Company. Sapoznik, H. (2011). Klezmer!: Jewish music from Old World to our world (2nd ed.). Schirmer Trade Books. Slobin, M. (1982). Tenement songs: The popular music of the Jewish immigrants. University of Illinois Press. Klezmer Klezmer Play Video Share Whole Channel This Video Facebook Twitter Pinterest Tumblr Copy Link Link Copied Search videos Search video... Now Playing klezmer Party 03:02 Play Video Now Playing Mazal Tov Wedding songs Medley - famous Jewish Klezmer Music - klezmer clarinet 04:11 Play Video Now Playing Blue Hora - Amsterdam Klezmer Band 05:19 Play Video Now Playing Kroke SPIEL KLEZMER - YIDDISH FREYLEKHS 10:05 Play Video

Israeli folk music heritage. Israeli sing-alongs. Hebrew song preservation. Jewish Yemenite music. Sephardic music. Klezmer music. Mizrahi music. Arab Israeli traditional melodies. Jewish Iraqi musical heritage. Israeli shepherd songs. Jewish ethnomusicology. Hebrew songs. Bedouin music. Kibbutz music heritage. FOLK MUSIC The music of Israel is a combination of Jewish and non-Jewish music traditions that have come together over the course of a century to create a distinctive musical culture. For almost 150 years, musicians have sought original stylistic elements that would define the emerging national spirit. In addition to creating an Israeli style and sound. The works of Israeli classical composers have been performed by leading orchestras worldwide. Music in Israel is an integral part of identity. "Public singalongs were a common pastime, and were for them a force in defining their identity", wrote Nathan Shahar. Jewish immigrants from Europe, Asia, the Middle East and elsewhere brought with them their musical traditions, melding and molding them into a new Israeli sound. The first efforts to create a corpus of music suitable for a new Jewish entity were in 1882. This was the year of the First Aliyah , the first wave of Jewish immigrants seeking to create a national homeland in Palestine. As there were no songs yet written for this national movement, Zionist youth movements in Germany and elsewhere published songbooks, using traditional German and other folk melodies with new words written in Hebrew. An example of this is the song that became Israel's national anthem, "Hatikvah. The words, by the Hebrew poet Naftali Herz Imber , express the longing of the Jewish people to return to the land of Zion. The melody is a popular Eastern European folk melody. In 1895, Jewish immigrants established the first Jewish orchestra in the town of Rishon LeZion , and played light classics and marches. Avraham Zvi Idelsohn , a trained cantor from Russia and a musicologist, lived in Jerusalem in 1906 to study and document the music of the various Jewish communities there. At the time, there were some Jewish enclaves in Jerusalem for Yemenites, Hassids, Syrians, and other Jewish ethnic groups. Idelsohn meticulously documented the songs and musical idioms of these groups. Idelsohn was joined by a few more classically trained musicians and ethnomusicologists, including Gershon Ephros in 1909 and, later, Joel Engel in 1924. Like Idelsohn, Engel worked to disseminate traditional ethnic tunes and styles to the general Jewish public. The Second Aliyah , beginning in 1904, saw an increase in the composition of original songs by Jewish immigrants. Among the earliest composers of folk songs were Hanina Karchevsky ("BeShadmot Beit Lehem") and David Ma'aravi ("Shira Hanoar"). Over the next 30 years, Jewish composers began to seek new rhythmic and melodic modes that would distinguish their songs from traditional European music. Leaders of this musical movement were Matityahu Shelem ("VeDavid Yefe Eynaim", "Shibbolet Basadeh"), Yedidia Admon ("Shadmati"), the composer Menashe Ravina, Marc Lavry ("Shir Ha-Emek", "Kitatenu Balayla Tzoedet"), Mordechai Zeira ("Hayu Leylot", "Layla Layla", "Shney Shoshanim") and others. Emanuel Zamir worked in the 40s and 50s in a genre known as "shirei ro'im" (shepherd songs). He combined Bedouin music with Biblical-style lyrics, often accompanied by the recorder. The movement to create a repertoire of Hebrew songs, which influenced the literature, theater, and graphic arts of the period as well as music, was to seek cultural roots of the new Israeli nation in the culture of the ancient Hebrews of the Bible. The characteristics of the new Hebrew style, contended composer Yitzhak Edel, are "remnants of ancient Hebrew music that have struggled to survive the years of diaspora. The Histadrut Labor Union , which, before the founding of the state of Israel, served many of the functions of a government, created the "Merkaz LeTarbut" (Cultural Center), which published many songbooks, and subsidized the composition of works by Hebrew composers. Public singalongs were actively encouraged. The kibbutz movements distributed songsters and established the singalong as a central daily event in kibbutz life. Public singalongs were also seen as a way of teaching Hebrew to new immigrants from Europe and, later, from Middle Eastern countries. The state radio has also been a powerful force in promoting Hebrew song; the stations initiate special projects for the preservation of the Israeli song heritage and to encourage the writing and recording of 'authentic' music. Jewish Yemenite music Jewish Mizrahi music Arab Israeli music Klezmer music Sephardic music Jewish Iraqi music Songs of Israel Songs of Israel Play Video Share Whole Channel This Video Facebook Twitter Pinterest Tumblr Copy Link Link Copied Search videos Search video... Now Playing Naomi Shemer - "Horchat Eucalyptus" - חורשת האקליפטוס 03:28 Play Video Now Playing Erev shel shoshanim ערב של שושנים (live in France, 1966) 02:45 Play Video Now Playing Shuly Nathan + Shay Tochner - Mi Haish 02:14 Play Video Now Playing Shuly Nathan + Shay Tochner + Shmuel Elbaz - ANA ELI 05:31 Play Video

The performing arts range from traditional vocal and instrumental music, folk dance, and theatre to pantomime, songs, and beyond, including rituals, festive events, and oral traditions. The occasions on which music is performed are varied: festivities, marriages, and all kinds of entertainment, as well as many other social functions.​ In the performing arts, this includes musical instruments, masks, costumes, and other body decorations used in dance, and the scenery and props of theater. PERFORMING ARTS The performing arts range from traditional vocal and instrumental music, folk dance, and theatre to pantomime, songs, and beyond, including rituals, festive events, and oral traditions. The occasions on which music is performed are varied: festivities, marriages, and all kinds of entertainment as well as many other social functions. In the performing arts, this includes musical instruments, masks, costumes, and other body decorations used in dance, and the scenery and props of theater. Performing arts are often performed in specific places; when these spaces are closely linked to the performance, they are considered cultural spaces. Many forms of performing arts are under threat today. As cultural practices become standardized, many traditional practices are abandoned. Music, dance, and theatre are often key features of cultural promotion. While tourism can contribute to the revival of traditional performing arts, it can also have a distorting effect. Often, traditional art forms are turned into commodities in the name of entertainment, with the loss of important forms of community expression. Many music traditions have been adapted to fit Western forms of notation so they may be recorded, or for educational purposes, but this process can be destructive. Safeguarding measures for traditional performing arts should focus mainly on transmission of knowledge and techniques, playing and making instruments, and strengthening the bond between master and apprentice. The subtleties of a song, the movements of a dance, and theatrical interpretations should all be reinforced. Performances may also be researched, recorded, documented, inventoried, and archived. The process of digitisation allows documents to be properly identified and inventoried. Cultural media and institutions can also play a crucial role in ensuring the viability of traditional forms of performing arts by expanding audiences and increasing public awareness. Safeguarding may also involve improvements in training and infrastructure to properly prepare staff and institutions for preserving the full range of performing arts. FOLK DANCE FOLK MUSIC THEATER

We are pleased to offer you a high-level international training to become an Israeli folk dance teacher. The course is provided by Israeli choreographers renowned both in Israel and internationally. The curriculum • The history of Israeli folk dances • Practical studies in the field of dance • A variety of ethnic dance styles • Methodology of teaching dance • Development of personal lesson plans Israeli Folk Dance workshops and courses Israeli folk dance courses project Safeguarding the living traditions of Israel's diverse communities through movement, music, and story. Israel is a country that contains a mixture of different cultures. Every group has its dances that have been handed down across generations. They are much more than dances; they are the living records of history, migration, religion, and identity. Many of these dances are endangered by the passing away of older generations. This course has been designed in order to prevent such an event from happening. Our objective is to train the next generation of folk dance teachers to carry these traditions forward, accurately, respectfully, and with deep cultural understanding. About ICH-Israel ICH-Israel is committed to the protection of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Israel, based on the principles outlined in the UNESCO 2003 Convention, which include oral traditions, performance arts, social customs, rituals, and traditional craftsmanship. Folk dance forms the very core of this mission because it is a living tangible heritage that can be experienced through one’s physicality. This course is one of our leading projects and involves working with masters of folk dance traditions who educate new teachers. What Makes Our Courses and Workshops Unique This program is built around direct transmission from community experts and master dancers, including: Israeli folk dance experts: folk dances of diverse origins, biblical dances, children's dances, partner dances, circle dances, and dances choreographed for festivals. Yemenite dance experts: these dances were historically performed at weddings and religious celebrations and have since become a foundational pillar of Israeli folk dance. Kurdish dance experts: powerful dances reflecting Kurdish-Jewish heritage Circassian dance experts: dance tradition preserved by Israel's Circassian community Arabic dance experts: Dabke and other traditions shared across Israel's Arab, Bedouin, and Druze communities Original Hassidic dances: a unique form of spiritual expression within Orthodox Judaism. And additional communities Each tradition will be taught by those who really live it, not just those who have studied it. Course Structure Format: Course in person in Jerusalem with Israeli Ministry of Education certification (200 hours + self-practical experience) Hybrid course (In-person 50 hours/ online 150 hours + 40 hours of self-practical experience) with CID certification Content : Cultural & Historical Foundation: the story behind each dance tradition Technique Workshops: led by community dancers and choreographers Teaching Methodology: how to instruct diverse age groups and skill levels Music & Rhythm: understanding the instrumentation and songs behind the movement Practicum: supervised teaching sessions and community engagement Certification Project: documenting and presenting a tradition of the student's choice Who Should Join Dancers looking to specialize in Israeli folk heritage Community and youth movement leaders Cultural educators and program coordinators Anyone passionate about preserving intangible heritage through the body and community School teachers No single-tradition background required; diversity of participants strengthens the transmission of knowledge. What Graduates Will Be Able to Do ✔ Teach authentic dances from multiple Israeli cultural communities ✔ Explain the cultural, historical, and social context behind each tradition ✔ Design age-appropriate and community-appropriate lesson plans ✔ Serve as ambassadors of intangible cultural heritage preservation ✔ Receive an ICH-Israel Certified Folk Dance Teacher credential Why This Matters Now Every dance not taught is a dance at risk of disappearing. By training teachers today, we ensure that: Children continue learning the dances their grandparents danced Minority and immigrant communities see their heritage valued and shared Israel's cultural mosaic remains vibrant, visible, and alive on stages, in schools, and at celebrations CONTACT US