Seharane

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Definitions

  • n. A Kurdish Jewish festival, lasting a few days after Pesach, traditionally marking the end of winter and the coming of spring.

Example Sentences

  • "The Sephardic Mizrahi Q Network, in partnership with JCC Harlem, invites you to celebrate Mimouna and Seharane - the unique post-Passover festivals of the Jews of Morocco and the Jews of Kurdistan and Assyria." (source)

  • "It is noteworthy that the communal celebrations of Seharane have attracted Kurdish non-Jews living away from Kurdistan." (source)

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Languages of Origin

  • Modern Hebrew
  • Jewish Neo-Aramaic

Etymology

  • סֶהֲרַנֶה Seharane from Jewish Neo-Aramaic, via Modern Hebrew

      • Who Uses This

      • Sephardim: Jews with Sephardi or Mizrahi heritage
      • Kurdistan: Jews with ancestry in the Kurdish region of Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Turkey

      Regions

      • North America

      Dictionaries

      • None

      Alternative Spellings

      Saharane

Notes

  • The term came into usage in Jewish English through Israeli Jews of Kurdish origin moving to English-speaking countries.

    Though the festival was celebrated by Jews in Kurdistan at the end of Passover, in Israel it was moved to during Sukkot to accommodate for the Moroccan Mimouna, also celebrating the end of Passover. There is a movement to restore the festival to its proper time.

    This same night is also celebrated by Persian Jews as "Shab-e Sāl", meaning "night of the year" -- essentially "New Year's Eve", again part of the same Spring New Year celebrations, as the month of Nissan is the first in the Jewish calendar.

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