Magen David

also n.
A six-pointed star, a symbol of Judaism, that is formed by placing two triangles together, one inverted over the other or interlaced. Also called Shield of David, Star of David.

[Hebrew māgēn dāwīd, shield of David : māgēn, shield (from gānan, to cover) + Dāwīd, David.]

(lit. "shield of David"). Hexagram or six-pointed star formed by two superimposed equilateral triangles, which in recent centuries has become a distinctive Jewish symbol. This figure was often used in Europe and the Near East for decoration, possibly with a magical connotation, as early as the Bronze Age. It first appeared on a Jewish seal from the seventh century BCE found at Sidon. Although the hexagram is commonly displayed on artifacts and buildings from the Second Temple period by Jews and non-Jews alike (including the third century CE Capernaum synagogue where it is found next to a pentagram and a swastika), it had no particular Jewish significance and is completely absent as a Jewish symbol during Hellenistic times. It appeared on some synagogues in Germany during the 13th and 14th centuries, and in medieval Hebrew manuscripts, but without indication of a particular name or meaning. It was also widespread on amulets and mezuzot and in magical Hebrew texts of the later Middle Ages.

The term magen david can be traced back to the geonic period, when it is associated with a popular magical alphabet; it reappeared in the 12th century in a Karaite work by Judah Hadassi and among the ḥasidé Ashkenaz. It also occurs as a designation of God in the third benediction after the prophetic reading (Haftarah) in the synagogue. The hexagram is first identified as the "shield of David" in a 14th century kabbalistic work written by the grandson of Naḥmanides. An alternative tradition links the term with the seven-branched candelabrum (Menorah) which became a powerful talisman in the 16th century.

Between the 14th and the 18th centuries, the symbol was widely used by Jewish and non-Jewish printers and found its way into some coats-of-arms. It appeared on the flag of the Jewish community of Prague and on their official seal. Other Jewish communities, including Vienna (1655) and Amsterdam (1671), began to put the symbol on their seals. In Eastern Europe it was found as an ornamentation on ritual objects from 1643 on.

Within kabbalistic circles, the "shield of David" became the "shield of the son of David," the Messiah, and was popular among the followers of Shabbetai Tsevi as their esoteric symbol of the vision of Redemption.

As Jews of the Enlightenment entered the mainstream of society in the 19th century, they chose the magen david as their identifying symbol in contradistinction to the Christian use of the crucifix. From Central and Western Europe, the "Jewish star" traversed the entire Jewish world to become a unifying symbol, appearing on synagogues and Jewish communal institutions, seals and letterheads, ritual objects and personal items.

The magen david was adopted by the Zionist movement during the First Zionist Congress (1897) and appeared that year on the first issue of Die Welt, Theodor Herzl's Zionist journal. Subsequently, it was chosen as the central figure on the blue and white flag of the State of Israel, although the older, more authentic Jewish emblem of the menorah appears on the state seal. For Franz Rosenzweig, the symbol represented his philosophy of Judaism as articulated in The Star of Redemption (1921), in which each point of the star represents an essential element of his thought: Creation, Redemption, Revelation, Humanity, World, and God.

The Nazis used the Jewish star on a yellow "badge of shame" to single out millions in the process of mass murder. A red magen david in Israel corresponds to the Red Cross in Western countries.

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A six-pointed star composed of two equilateral triangles, one superimposed upside down on the other; a symbol of Judaism.

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Note: click on a word meaning below to see its connections and related words.

The noun has one meaning:

Meaning #1: an emblem symbolizing Judaism; hexagram
  Synonyms: Star of David, Mogen David

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