("Weeks"). Second of the three Pilgrim Festivals, known in English as the Feast of Weeks, Pentecost, and Festival of the Giving of the Law; observed in the Diaspora, for two days (6-7 Sivan) and in Israel and by Reform Jews everywhere for one day (6 Sivan).
The name "Weeks" derives from the biblical instruction to count seven weeks from the time of the Passover harvest festival, at the end of which a second harvest festival was to be observed (Ex. 34:22; Lev. 23:15ff.; Deut. 16:9-10). The three days preceding the festival are known as sheloshet yemé ha-hagbalah ("Three Days of Preparation"; see Ex. 19:11-12) during which the Mourning regulations of the Omer period are suspended. Pentecost is the Greek term for "fiftieth," i.e., the festival celebrated on the 50th day (see below); it was the name adopted by Greek-speaking Jews of the first century. Shavu'ot is also called Ḥag ha-Katsir (the Harvest Festival; Ex. 23:16) and Yom ha-Bikkurim (the Day of the First Ripe Fruits; Num. 28:26), when the Israelites were to bring a special thanksgiving offering to the Temple. In talmudic literature the festival is frequently referred to as Atseret (Shev. 1:1; RH 1:2), usually translated as "Solemn Assembly." The term is used in the Bible, where it is also applied to other festivals (Lev. 23:26; Num. 29:35; Deut. 16:8), but in post-biblical sources it is nearly always restricted to Shavu'ot. For the rabbis, Atseret meant "the concluding day of the festival," reflecting their view of Shavu'ot as Atseret shel Pesaḥ, the conclusion of Passover. Shavu'ot not only marks the end of the grain harvest commencing at Passover time but also signifies the culmination of the process of freedom begun with the Exodus at Passover and concluded with the proclamation of the Law at Sinai, traditionally on Shavu'ot. Liturgically, the festival is called Zeman Mattan Toratenu, the Season of the Giving of our Torah, which, as the rabbis determined from Exodus 19:1-16, occurred on 6 Sivan. This name relates to the events described in Exodus 19-20 and recalls the central historical event which post-biblical Judaism ascribes to this day. Shavu'ot is the only festival for which no specific date is given in the Bible. Instead, the people are instructed to count seven weeks "from the morrow of the day of rest [the Sabbath], from the day on which you brought the offering of the sheaf [Omer] of the waving" (Lev. 23:15). The cutting of the 0mer of the new barley marked the beginning of the counting period; on the 50th day, the new-harvest festival was observed. For the rabbis, "the Sabbath" referred to the first day of Passover, and the 50th day was therefore always 6 Sivan. The Sadducees and later the Karaites understood the term "Sabbath" in its literal sense, so that the counting began on the Sunday of Passover week; thus the date was variable but the holiday would always fall on a Sunday. (This is also the tradition among the Samaritans.) It is possible that the controversy centered around the rabbinic view linking Shavu'ot to the great historical event of the Divine Revelation at Mount Sinai, for which there had to be a fixed date. The Sadducees, however, saw no warrant in the Scriptures for such an association and therefore for them Shavu'ot remained a purely agricultural celebration for which a variable date was entirely appropriate. Ethiopian Jews regarded the "morrow" of the day of rest as meaning the day after the Passover festival and thus observe Shavu'ot on 12 Sivan.
In the Temple period, Shavu'ot was the time when the individual farmer would set out with his neighbors in joyous procession to Jerusalem in order to offer a selection of his ripe First Fruits (bikkurim) as a thanksgiving offering. The Mishnah contains a vivid account of the farmer's preparation for this offering and the ceremonies connected with it (Bik. 3).
In post-Temple times, however, the main emphasis shifted to the festival's identification as the anniversary of the giving of the Torah at Sinai, when the Ten Commandments were proclaimed to the assembled Children of Israel.
Shavu'ot is less rich in special laws and customs than the other pilgrim festivals. In many traditional communities the world over, the practice of remaining awake during Shavu'ot night is widely observed. R. Solomon Alkabets and other Sephardi kabbalists of the 16th century originated the custom of
Synagogues are decorated with flowers or plants on the occasion of the festival. Reasons suggested for this widespread custom are that the floral decoration is symbolic of the main summer harvest; that Mount Sinai, where the Divine Revelation occurred, was miraculously covered with vegetation in honor of the great event; that Shavu'ot is thought to be "judgment day" for fruit trees; or that the decorations symbolize the beautifully adorned first-fruit offering brought in Temple days.
Dairy food has long been traditional on Shavu'ot. The simple reason for this may be that Shavu'ot is a summer festival, when light dairy dishes are appropriate. A more traditional explanation is that there was insufficient time to prepare a meat meal on the day of the Giving of the Torah as the entire community was occupied in receiving the Torah. Housewives who baked their own bread customarily made twin loaves for Shavu'ot. The custom probably commemorates the two loaves of bread which, in Temple times, were made from the new wheat of Erets Israel and brought as a communal offering (Men. 8:1).
The prescribed readings for the festival include the Ten Commandments preceded by the liturgical poem Akdamut Millin on the first day and Yetsiv Pitgam before the haftarah on the second day. The Book of Ruth is also read. Various reasons have been suggested for this. The agricultural background to the story makes it an appropriate choice for Shavu'ot, the Harvest Festival; Ruth's commitment to the people and the faith of Naomi constitutes a timely lesson for Shavu'ot, which itself commemorates Israel's acceptance of the Torah; David, who was descended from Ruth, has traditional associations with the festival.
In keeping with the Sinaitic aspect of Shavu'ot, it has been customary since the Middle Ages to begin the formal Jewish education of young children at this time of the year. Nowadays, in many communities (particularly in America), the festival also marks the graduation of teenagers from the formal synagogue educational framework, or Confirmation in Reform congregations. In the State of Israel, many collective settlements hold a "First Fruits" (Ḥag ha-Bikkurim) celebration on Shavu'ot, at which the "fruits" of the kibbutz---including industrial products---are displayed in a festive procession (see Kibbutz Festivals). In Israeli kindergartens, there are special pre-Shavu'ot celebrations to which the children come carrying baskets of fruit and wearing wreaths of flowers on their heads, reminiscent of the harvest festival.
