Kinnot


Kinnot are Hebrew dirges or elegies. The term is used to refer both to dirges in the Hebrew Bible and to latterly-composed poems that Jews traditionally recite on Tisha B'Av.

In the Bible

In the Hebrew Bible, the term kinah or qinah refers to a dirge or lament, especially as sung by Jewish female professional mourners. The Christian Jerusalem Bible refers to Isaiah 47 as a qinah or "lament for Babylon", and to Ezekiel 19 as a qinah or lamentation over the rulers of Israel. A. W. Streane suggests that the prophecy given by Jeremiah in Jeremiah 22:6–7 concerning the 587 BCE destruction of Jerusalem is written "in Ḳinah metre".

Tisha B'Av recitation

On Tisha B'Av, Jews traditionally recite a series of elegiac poems, known as kinnot, after the evening and morning prayers. These poems mourn the destruction of both the First and Second Temple in Jerusalem and other tragedies in Jewish history, including the Crusades, the Expulsion of Jews from Spain, and the Holocaust. The kinnot are generally recited on the night of Tisha B'Av after reciting the Book of Lamentations, which was called Kinnot in the Talmudic era, assuming its more familiar name, ʾĒkhāh, in the Middle Ages. Some communities recite some of the kinnot before beginning the evening service on Erev Tisha B'Av.

Development of the Ashkenazic ''kinnot''

Many kinnot were composed by Rabbi Eleazar ben Kalir, who likely lived during the 6th and 7th centuries. His kinnot resemble the structure and content of the Book of Lamentations. For example, one of his kinnot begins each stanza with the word ʾĒkhāh, the opening word of Lamentations. He often writes stanzas in an alphabetical acrostic, similar to the first four chapters of Lamentations. The style deals primarily with the 70 CE destruction of the Second Temple, similar to Lamentations, which mourns the destruction of the First Temple.
The main impetus for the creation of new kinnot during the Middle Ages was the Crusades, during which Christian mobs decimated many Jewish communities throughout Europe and the Middle East. The kinnot deal with the then-current tragedy of the Crusades, no longer focusing on the destruction of the Temple in the past. The loss of the Torah and its scholars, instead of the loss of the Temple, occupies a central theme. Rabbi Judah Halevi wrote a kinnah of a different nature. In his poem Tziyon Halo Tishali, he expresses a longing to return to Jerusalem rather than expressing pain and despair over the tragedies of the distant or near past. Many later poets copied him.

Sephardic ''kinnot''

The various Sephardic and Mizrachi Jewish communities of North Africa and the Middle East have a rich tradition of kinnot. Below is an extensive list of compositions based on the practices of communities in Morocco and Tunisia:

Evening ''kinnot''

  1. Divrey Nevi'im
  2. Lu Yishqelu Re'ay
  3. Nishmat Shedudim
  4. Shanah BeShanah
  5. Yonah Nikh'avah
  6. Shim'u VeHa'azinu
  7. Nishmat Yeladim
  8. Et Oyveḥa El
  9. Yom Kemo Ned
  10. Ad An Tzvi Muddaḥ
  11. Ashaher Adati
  12. Eftaḥ pi Lehodot
  13. Aryeh Sha'ag
  14. Eykh Mishkani Elyon
  15. HaLanofelim Tequmah
  16. Nishmat Emunim
  17. Nilah lehelil
  18. Heikhal Adonai
  19. Yom Nilḥamu Bi
  20. Qol Aholah Tityapeaḥ
  21. Bore Ad Ana
  22. : Al Naharot Bavel is read from the book of Psalms
Then, Arvit is prayed, with the kinnot continuing after the Amidah:
  1. Lemi Evkeh
  2. : Megillat Eykhah/Lamentations is then read, followed by:
  3. Az Baḥata'enu
  4. Zekhor Adonai Meh Hayah Lanu
  5. Beleyl Zeh Yivkayun
  6. Midey Shanah Qinnah
  7. Al Zeh Hayah Daveh Libenu
  8. Al Leyl Ḥorban Heykhal Miqdash
  9. Oy Ki Yarad Esh Min Hashamayim Liyrushalayim
  10. Zechor Adonai Liyhudah Ulefrayim
  11. Alekhem Edah Qedoshah
  12. Oy Ki Qinat Rabbat, said only at the conclusion of Shabbat
  13. Ani Hagever, said only at the conclusion of Shabbat
  14. Az Baḥata'enu, composed by Eleazar ben Killir
  15. : The years since the destruction of the Temple are then counted
  16. : Some communities then recite the following kinnah:
  17. Al Heykhali Ḥevli KeNahasḥ Noshe, composed by Rabbi Israel ben Moses Najara

    Morning ''kinnot''

See קינות תשעה באב

''Kinnot'' in memory of the Holocaust

Although the fast of Tisha B'Av originated to mourn the destruction of the Temple, over the years, other travails of the Jewish diaspora have been added to its observance and memorialized in kinnot. Despite this, few kinnot have been composed in the last several centuries, and none have entered the standard kinnot service.
After the Holocaust, many people felt that it was inappropriate to mourn on Tisha b'Av for the destruction of cities during the Middle Ages without mourning the even greater tragedy of the Holocaust. For this reason, many people recommended the composition and recitation of new kinnot to commemorate the Holocaust. These people, including many important rabbis, argued that in every generation, kinnot were composed to address the difficulties of that generation. Some added that it was essential to incorporate such kinnot into the Jewish liturgy, lest future generations forget the Holocaust. One popular kinnah on the Holocaust is Eli Eli Nafshi Bekhi, which was composed by Yehuda Leib Bialer.
However, many other rabbis dissented because they could not create new kinnot because the existing kinnot were holy and were composed by the greatest individuals of their respective generations, but today there is nobody who can write like them. Others claimed that any individual community could recite new kinnot as they wished, but only the greatest rabbis would have the authority to institute new kinnot for use by the entirety of world Jewry.
Rabbi Yaakov Ariel claims that the kinnot service, unlike the siddur and Jewish rituals, was not created by the authority of the rabbis, but rather developed based on the acceptance of communities and the decisions of the printers who produced printed copies. Thus, the new kinnot could gradually enter the accepted roster of kinnot. However, since many congregations now recite kinnot to commemorate the Holocaust, this may become an integral part of the service without a formal decision.