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It is estimated that only 11-12 million people practice Judaism and that only 16-18 million people have any Jewish cultural connection. Israel has roughly 7 million speakers of Modern Hebrew. I have very little knowlegde of Hebrew but i am looking for easy ways to learn. I am only recently connected with my Jewish character/identity. I have some Polish/Jewish ancestry on my fathers side and i am looking to formally convert to Modern Orthodox Judaism in the comming years but i need to be as knowledgable as possible about all aspects of Jewishness. I feel a need to learn Hebrew and i feel that it is very difficult being an English speaker to learn Hebrew. If i cant learn Hebrew fluently will i have any difficulty formally converting?
Your Rabbi will help you learn, or arrange for lessons. I suppose you could be Jewish without learning Hebrew, but Hebrew is the language of our people, and it's difficult to pray without knowing it. If you're set on becoming Orthodox, I'd say yes, you really need it. You'll be lost without at least knowing prayer Hebrew.
I converted, and cannot carry on a conversation in Hebrew, I'm ashamed to admit, but I can keep up with the prayers and reading it. Learning is a process - it takes time!
Outside of Israel, I'd say (IMHO) 70% can't speak it fluently. If they've been Bar(Bat) Mitzvahed then they can read it and speak it. But from I've seen of those few actually understand what they are reading. From my experience is speaking multiple languages, I've found it necessary to think in that language in order to speak it correctly. Also there are slight differences between American and Israeli Hebrew.
The vast majority if American Jews cannot speak Hebrew, as in carry on a conversation in modern Hebrew as it is spoken in Israel. There is no need for American Jews to be fluent in conversational Hebrew.
Biblical Hebrew is very different from modern Hebrew (compare it to the difference between Shakespearean English and modern conversational American English). While it is not necessary to be able to speak Hebrew, it is certainly useful (although of course not required) to be able to read Hebrew. Most American Jews, if they go to a synagogue with some regularity, can read prayerbook Hebrew, even though they may not have any idea what the words mean in English.
A rabbi once told me it's not necessary to know what the words mean. He said it's the ritual of saying the prayers that's important.
The vast majority if American Jews cannot speak Hebrew, as in carry on a conversation in modern Hebrew as it is spoken in Israel. There is no need for American Jews to be fluent in conversational Hebrew.
Biblical Hebrew is very different from modern Hebrew (compare it to the difference between Shakespearean English and modern conversational American English). While it is not necessary to be able to speak Hebrew, it is certainly useful (although of course not required) to be able to read Hebrew. Most American Jews, if they go to a synagogue with some regularity, can read prayerbook Hebrew, even though they may not have any idea what the words mean in English.
A rabbi once told me it's not necessary to know what the words mean. He said it's the ritual of saying the prayers that's important.
All well-stated and correct, IMO.
The Shulchan Orech states that's it's preferable to daven (pray) in Hebrew, even if you do not know what the words mean, than to pray in your native tongue. However, certainly Hashem can understand all languages, so it's infinitly preferable to daven in your native tongue than to not daven at all. However, I believe the first 4 paragraphs of tefillah (the Shemona Esra which we pray three times a day, every day) should be said in Hebrew, and one MUST understand the meaning of the words.
I've checked out Hebrew language CDs from the Local Library. Learning a foreign language on your own is difficult. I hope the CDs along with all the Hebrew YouTube videos will help me become conversant. I've been told it's not necessary, but I'm left handed and have always wanted to write right to left. It's a thing.
I'm assuming there is such a thing as a Hebrew keyboard for a computer. I've been pondering how to type Hebrew on a computer, or move between typing Hebrew and English on a computer. Is there anyone here who actually deals with this issue?
I've checked out Hebrew language CDs from the Local Library. Learning a foreign language on your own is difficult. I hope the CDs along with all the Hebrew YouTube videos will help me become conversant. I've been told it's not necessary, but I'm left handed and have always wanted to write right to left. It's a thing.
I'm assuming there is such a thing as a Hebrew keyboard for a computer. I've been pondering how to type Hebrew on a computer, or move between typing Hebrew and English on a computer. Is there anyone here who actually deals with this issue?
I'm assuming there is such a thing as a Hebrew keyboard for a computer. I've been pondering how to type Hebrew on a computer, or move between typing Hebrew and English on a computer. Is there anyone here who actually deals with this issue?
Finding a quality Hebrew keyboard in nearly impossible. Most people get the stickers from ebay and stick them onto the corresponding keys. If you are using windows, go to windows search and search for "change keyboards" click thru the the pop up screens and add languages as needed. Just remember not to change your default language.
Once the languages are added, you can either follow the sticker method of typing or bring up on on-screen keyboard by going to "Control Panel--> Ease of Access-->Ease of Access Center" and clicking on "Start On-screen Keyboard".
After the additional languages are added then you'll get a icon in the lower right corner allowing you to quickly change languages.
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