This July and August I'll be based in Toronto and traveling to speak at synagogues and JCCs throughout North America.

If your community is looking for a Scholar-in-Residence this summer — Hebrew etymology, Jewish history, the hidden stories behind the holidays — get in touch.

More info and booking: https://www.elongilad.com/speaking/

#ScholarInResidence #JewishSpeaker #HebrewEtymology #JewishHistory #Toronto #SummerTour #Synagogue #JCC

I'm Coming to North America This Summer — Book a Talk

In 1908, the writer Brenner needed a Hebrew word for "stretcher." He looked it up in a Russian-Hebrew dictionary. The word he found — alanka — was actually a palanquin, coined by Ben-Yehuda from a Talmudic sedan chair.

The Talmud said "chair." Ben-Yehuda said "palanquin." Kahana wrote "stretcher." Brenner believed Kahana. One catastrophic domino fall of errors — and it became the only word Hebrew has for the thing paramedics carry you on.

#HebrewEtymology #Alunka #אלונקה #BenYehuda #HebrewLanguage #Etymology #JewishHistory #Talmud #IsraeliCulture

This Hebrew Word Exists Because of a Dictionary Mistake

Every spring, Israelis celebrate Mimouna with mufleta, honey, and a mysterious bowl of gold jewelry. Most people say it's about faith — emunah. Others say it honors Maimonides' father. Both are wrong.            
The real story involves a Berber spring festival called Tafsut, a forgotten Jewish tree-blessing ritual, and superstitious neighbors who believed Jewish prayers could make their orchards bloom.
In this video, I trace the origins of Mimouna through 18th-century travel accounts, Talmudic sources (Sukkah 45b, Rosh Hashanah 11b), Lurianic Kabbalah, and the work of scholars like Hirschberg, Ben-Ami, and Einhorn — to show how a minor post-Passover meal became Israel's biggest street party.

hero_title_new

speaking_preview_title

talk1_title

talk2_title

talk3_title

video_sampler_title

I'm Coming to North America This Summer — Book a Talk

This Hebrew Word Exists Because of a Dictionary Mistake

Mimouna Was Never About Faith — Here's What It Really Means

featured_etymology

footer_cta_headline