What languages are spoken in an orthodox synagogue service?

Answer 1

Judaism is a religion. Jews are the people who believe in Judaism. Because Jews live all over the world, they speak many different languages-- depending on what country they are in. If they are living in France, they speak French; if they live in the USA, they speak English, etc. But if you are asking about prayer, many traditional Jewish prayers are in Hebrew, the language of the Bible (what Christians call the Old Testament). In addition to the traditional Hebrew prayers, many Jews also pray in their native language, whether French, or English, or Spanish, or Yiddish, or Luganda (there are several thousand Jews in Africa, many of whom live in Uganda).

There are languages that are known as Judaic dialects, in that they are dialects of other languages and spoken exclusively or nearly exclusively by Jews. Such languages include: Yiddish (based on German), Ladino (based on Medieval Spanish), Yevanic (based on Greek), and Judeo-Arabic (based on Arabic). However, most Jews that speak a Judaic dialect also speak another language in order to communicate with non-Jews.

Answer 2

Orthodox Jews usually speak the language of the country in which they live. Most Orthodox Jews are also somewhat fluent in Classical Hebrew, though often not in Modern Hebrew. Many Orthodox Jews are able to speak Yiddish.

Answer 3

The formal prayers are about 95% Hebrew and about 5% Aramaic.

If any "lesson" is spoken during the service ("preaching", "sermon", etc.), any instructions

as to what page the service is presently on, any announcements regarding community or

social events etc., those would be in the local language understood by everyone in attendance ...

English in the USA, Spanish in Spain, French in France, Arabic in Iraq and Egypt, etc.

Answer 4

The main language in for Jewish prayer in almost all synagogues in the world are Hebrew. Aramaic is used in a few prayers, particularly the Kaddish.

The local languages of the area are also used. Some synagogues only do the sermon, the announcements, and/or the prayer for the country in the local language. Others use a lot more of the local language. Some synagogues call out page numbers in the local language.

If the Ladino language is used, it's often only in one or two prayers or songs, and generally not used regularly.