http://www.chabad.org/holidays/JewishNewYear/template_cdo/aid/174683/jewish/New-Year-Greetings.htmThe Jewish new year is not just a time to renew our resolve to lose another fifteen pounds. Rather, it’s the time when our fate stands in the balance as G‑d reviews our past year and decides whether or not to renew our lease on His planet. As such, Jewish greetings for this time of year (the Jewish New Year is in the fall) reflect our prayers for a good, sweet year up ahead.
The catch-all greeting you can use for the entire season is “Shanah tovah,” which means “Good year.” The word “u’metuka” (and sweet) is sometimes appended to the end.
Here are some other greetings that you may hear:
Before Rosh Hashanah, people wish each other “Ketivah v’chatima tovah,” “A good inscription and sealing [in the Book of Life].” On Rosh Hashanah eve, as we return from synagogue service, it is traditional to greet one another with “Leshana tovah tikatev v’tichatem.” When greeting a female, this is modified to“Leshana tovah tikatevee v’tichatemee.” This means, “May you be written and sealed for a good year.”
From noon on Rosh Hashanah, when our fates are already written, until Yom Kippur, when our fates for the coming year are to be sealed, we wish each other “Gemar chatima tovah,” “A good final sealing.”
Now for the Yiddish version: The standard wish is for “A gut gebentsht yohr,” “A good and blessed year.” And since tradition tells us that our fate is not really sealed until Hoshanah Rabba, the customary salutation for that day is “A gutten kvittl,” “A good inscription.”
No matter what we say, the main thing is to wish each other a good, sweet year with all our heart – because that is what G‑d values the most.
Topic: Happy New Year (Read 1196 times)