Temples and Holiness in the Hebrew Language

There is a special connection between Temples and Holiness in Hebrew. Let’s look at the phrase בֵּית הַמִקְדָשׁ (Beit HaMikdash) the Holy Temple.

The word מִקְדָשׁ temple comes from the root letters ק-ד-ש.

 

Here are several more words that are derived from the same root:

 

מַקְדִישׁ (makdish) dedicates, when a person devotes something for a special purpose.

הַקְדָשָׁה (hakdasha) dedication, assigning or devoting something for a particular purpose. It may be an inscription in a book, the building of a house, or even this newspaper that we devote to the study of the Hebrew language.

הוּקְדַשׁ (hukdash) was dedicated

קְדוֹשִׁים (k’doshim) holy (pl)

קְדוּשָׁה (kedusha) holiness.

 

This is also the name of an important part of the Jewish prayers that shows again the connection of temples and holiness in the Hebrew language.

קַדִישׁ (kaddish) the Mourner’s Prayer. Said in honor of a person who died.

קִידוּשׁ (kiddush) The blessing said over the wine before the Sabbath or holiday meal.

קִידוּשִׁין (kiddushin) The Jewish wedding ceremony, which is sanctified by special blessings.


You can read about another interesting connection between Hebrew words here.

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On our easy to read Hebrew newspaper for beginners- Bereshit Newspaper, you can find more interesting facts about the Hebrew roots: Bereshit Newspaper

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