Features- - Israel News | Haaretz Daily Newspaper

Features

This day in Jewish history / The founder of modern Hasidism dies

The Baal Shem Tov's power and influence on Judaism are immeasurable, as he empowered the individual and democratized Jewish practice.

By David B. Green | May 22, 2013 | 07:54 AM

This day in Jewish history / Bob Dylan lays down his first track
By David B. Green
This day in Jewish history / Violent public penance for secret Spanish Jews
By David B. Green | 1
This day in Jewish history / Theodor Herzl finishes his novel 'Old-New Land'
By David B. Green | 2

Illustration: Man and wife on wedding day.

For Anglo weddings, register and you shall receive

Israelis don't know about wedding registries. They give cash or checks. Josh Ben-David set about meeting the very different minds.

By Debra Kamin | Apr 28, 2013 | 01:17 PM

Word of the day / Kumzitz

Come gather around the fire for a story about how a Yiddish phrase became a much-loved Israeli tradition.

By David Sarna Galdi | Apr 28, 2013 | 10:04 AM

The cover of Erich Salomon: Portrait of an Age

This day in Jewish history / The first photojournalist is born

News shutterbug Erich Salomon created 'photojournalism' by wedging himself into great events - and shooting their images.

By David B. Green | Apr 28, 2013 | 10:01 AM

Children celebrating Lag Ba'omer in the Mea She'arim neighborhood of Jerusalem.

On Root / On fiery angels and evil twins

Bonfires dot the landscape on Lag Ba'omer as Israelis commemorate the passing of the great 2nd century mystic, Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai. And eat BBQ.

By Jeremy Benstein | Apr 28, 2013 | 07:55 AM

Free Syrian Army fighters on a street in Aleppo’s Salaheddine neighborhood this month.

Beleaguered Syrians in desperate search for common denominator

The story of two sisters who found themselves on opposite sides of the fighting symbolize the swift disintegration of Syrian society, where the conflict cuts through family as well as ethnic and political lines.

By Zvi Bar'el, Zvi Bar'el | Apr 28, 2013 | 12:55 AM

Who's afraid of the Nakba? New research challenges the way history is taught in Israeli high schools

A new study suggests that teaching the narrative from the Palestinian perspective does not weaken the students' national identity, whereas the current approach perpetuates intolerance.

By Or Kashti | Apr 28, 2013 | 12:55 AM | 17

Word of the Day / Hitkarnefut

This word, which literally means turning into a rhino, has come to describe herd mentality.

By Elon Gilad | Apr 26, 2013 | 09:41 AM

The restored Zur Israel synagogue in Recife, Brazil.

This day in Jewish history / Expulsion from Brazil

Fleeing the Inquisition in Portugal, Jews who settled in Brazil got a breath of freedom under the Dutch. Then the Portuguese kicked them out again.

By David B. Green | Apr 26, 2013 | 09:04 AM | 3

Want to learn Yiddish or Arabic? Try Facebook

Israelis and Palestinians who have a fever for foreign languages are teaching fans new words every day, in tongues as obscure and ancient as Akkadian and Aramaic.

By Oded Yaron | Apr 25, 2013 | 11:54 AM | 4

This day in Jewish history / U.S. recalls Jewish consul from Tunisia

U.S. Secretary of State James Monroe said the reason was the discovery of Mordechai Manuel Noah's Jewish identity, but it was more about paying pirates too much.

By David B. Green | Apr 25, 2013 | 10:08 AM

Word of the day / Shnatz

This abbreviated word is the perfect term for an abbreviated post-lunch snooze, otherwise known as an afternoon nap.

By David Sarna Galdi | Apr 25, 2013 | 06:12 AM

David's Harp / Israel with Open Skies and without El Al

Liberalizing aviation will certainly bring more tourists, but don't assume the national carrier will be around to enjoy it.

By David Rosenberg | Apr 24, 2013 | 12:42 PM

When it comes to feminism, is it true breasts are best?

The Ukrainian protest group Femen has gained plenty of press by going topless at their demonstrations. But when it comes to liberating women and promoting feminism, is the bearing of ones chest a weapon, or just another spectacle?

By Tsafi Saar | Apr 24, 2013 | 10:52 AM

Word of the Day / Hashmal

The Hebrew word for electricity made its debut in the book of Ezekiel, in a fantastical depiction of an apparition.

By Elon Gilad | Apr 24, 2013 | 09:26 AM

This day in Jewish history / Bob Dylan lays down his first track

The answer to the recording debut of Bob Dylan came, my friends, by blowin' into a harmonica.

By David B. Green | Apr 24, 2013 | 08:52 AM

On Root

On Root / How a word for religious faith turned into a refrigerator

By Jeremy Benstein | 09:44 AM

On Root / What postcards, incest, and revelation have in common

By Jeremy Benstein | 04:45 PM

On Root / In a pickle about Israel's occupation

By Jeremy Benstein | 08:51 AM

Word of the Day

Word of the day / Hatich

By David Sarna Galdi | 05:43 AM

Word of the day / Stootz

By David Sarna Galdi | 04:08 AM

Word of the Day / Shin gimmel

By Ruth Schuster | 05:18 AM

David's Harp

Outgoing Bank of Israel Governor Stanley Fischer.

David's Harp / Fischer's act of desperation

By David Rosenberg | 09:59 AM | 2

David's Harp / Time to uncork the fiscal champagne?

By David Rosenberg | 05:26 AM

David's Harp / Salam Fayyad: The latest victim of the Arab Spring

By David Rosenberg | 04:53 PM | 8

Where are they now?

Where are they now? / A former slave reclaims her life

By Leora Eren Frucht | 11:55 AM

Where Are They Now? / An Ethiopian refugee who built an Israeli home

By Leora Eren Frucht | 04:35 PM | 3

Where are they now? / The Jackie Robinson of Israeli soccer

By Leora Eren Frucht | 02:39 PM

State of the Union

State of the Union / When Talia met Koby

By Danna Harman | 06:12 PM

State of the Union / When Gon met Edu

By Danna Harman | 06:34 PM

State of the Union / When Zvi met Regina

By Danna Harman | 12:58 PM

Someone Else's Simcha

Someone Else's Simcha / Yoel and Dvorah's engagement party - Pleased to meet you, I'm sure

By Ron Ben-Tovim | 01:00 PM

Someone Else's Simcha / Princess Leah Golovey's simchat bat

By Ron Ben-Tovim | 04:19 PM

Someone Else's Simcha / Independence Day at Yozma kindergartens - Bring-your-soldier-to-school day

By Ron Ben-Tovim | 01:25 PM

Exodus to Tel Aviv

If I forget thee, O Tel Aviv

By Judy Maltz | 09:10 AM

The New Jerusalem: Once I believed in the future. Now I believe in Tel Aviv

By Bradley Burston | 09:09 AM | 16

The White City at the end of the rainbow

By Brian Schaefer | 03:42 AM

Double Take

African migrants looking through the fence at the Egyptian-Israeli border on August 4, 2012.

Double Take / African asylum seekers out of the spolight but not in the clear

By Joel Greenberg | 08:39 AM

Double Take / A month after Gaza war, Hamas still rides a wave of popularity

By Joel Greenberg | 07:22 AM | 4

Double Take / The politics of potholes in East Jerusalem

By Joel Greenberg | 09:41 AM