Traditional Jewish gifts

When one attends a wedding, bar mitzvah or a family engagement, one usually brings whatever pleases him or her or what he or she thinks is appropriate for the person. There are certain traditional gifts that are commonly given in Israel or that family members usually give to the guest and that have special significance.

The most common gifts are books and objects that help the person to become rooted in his or her Jewish roots. That is why you will see that people usually give books of Judaism, such as a siddur (prayer book), a chumash (Torah writings) or objects of Judaica, such as mezuza (the scroll that is hung on the lintels of the doors of the houses), candlesticks (such as the Menorah or the Hannukah), among other objects.

When the child reaches the age of 13, he is given a bar mitzvah, a ceremony in which he is given a tefillin (leather cubes with writings of the Shema or Jewish prayer and some fragments of the Pentateuch). In young newlyweds, the bride usually gives her husband a tallit, a gift of great importance because he must use it daily to pray, reminding his wife every time he puts it on.