ba'al koreh

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Pronunciations

ba'al koreh (ba-ahl KOH-reh) listen

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Definitions

  • n. The individual who chants Torah from the scroll at a synagogue. Sometimes used to refer specifically to a person capable of learning and chanting an entire parsha, or to a professional/paid reader as opposed to an amateur.

Example Sentences

  • "Our baal koreh will be reading the first five aliyot, but the bar mitzvah boy will handle the last two."

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Languages of Origin

  • Textual Hebrew

Etymology

  • בעל קורא ba'al kore 'master reader'

      • Who Uses This

      • Religious: Jews who are engaged in religious observance and have some Jewish education
      • Orthodox: Jews who identify as Orthodox and observe halacha (Jewish law)

      Regions

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

      Dictionaries

      • 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).

      Alternative Spellings

      baal korei, baal-kore, bal koreh, baal koreh, baalat koreh, baalat korei, baalat-kore, balat koreh

Notes

  • Also baal keriah / ba'al k'riyah / bal kriya (Heb. בעל קריאה), which is "correct" according to Hebrew grammar.
    "Ba'alat korei" is the feminine counterpart. (JPS)
    "Ba'alei korei" is the plural masculine counterpart.
    "Ba'altot korei" is the plural feminine counterpart.

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