Pronunciations

Definitions

• n. A calling to read from the Torah or perform hagba or gelilah in synagogue.
  

• n. Ascent of the soul of a deceased person to a higher level, as is believed to happen on their yartzeit.
  

• n. Immigration to Israel.
  

• n. (capitalized) One of the major immigrations of Jews to Israel, such as the First and Second Aliyahs of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
  

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Example Sentences

Languages of Origin

• Textual Hebrew
• Modern Hebrew
• Yiddish

Etymology

• TH עֲלִיָּה aliyá (or עלייה, esp. for 'immigration' sense) > Y עליה alíe
  

Who Uses This

• Religious: Jews who are engaged in religious observance and have some Jewish education
• Israel: Diaspora Jews who feel connected to Israel and have spent time there

Regions

• North America
• Australia / New Zealand
• Great Britain
• South Africa

Dictionaries

• Yiddish and English: A Century of Yiddish in America, by Sol Steinmetz (Tuscaloosa, 1986).
• The JPS Dictionary of Jewish Words, by Joyce Eisenberg and Ellen Scolnic, (Philadelphia, 2001).
• The Joys of Hebrew, by Lewis Glinert (New York, 1992).
• Dictionary of Jewish Usage: A Popular Guide to the Use of Jewish Terms, by Sol Steinmetz (Lanham, MD, 2005).
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Alternative Spellings

alia, alie, aliya, alliyah