Sukkah

For the tractate of the Talmud, see Sukkah (Talmud).
Main article: Sukkot
Canvas-sided sukkah on a roof, topped with palm branches and bamboo s'chach
Sukkah with walls made of cardboard signs in Oakland, California

A sukkah or succah (/ˈsʊkə/; Hebrew: סוכה [suˈka]; plural, סוכות [suˈkot] sukkot or sukkos or sukkoth, often translated as "booth") is a temporary hut constructed for use during the week-long Jewish festival of Sukkot. It is topped with branches and often well decorated with autumnal, harvest or Judaic themes.

The book of Vayikra (Leviticus) describes it as a symbolic wilderness shelter, commemorating the time God provided for the Israelites in the wilderness they inhabited after they were freed from slavery in Egypt.[1] It is common for Jews to eat, sleep and otherwise spend time in the sukkah. In Judaism, Sukkot is considered a joyous occasion and is referred to in Hebrew as Z'man Simchateinu (the time of our rejoicing), and the sukkah itself symbolizes the fragility and transience of life and one's dependence on God.[2]

  1. ^ "Live in sukkot for seven days, so your descendants will remember that I [the Lord] had the Israelites live in wilderness shelters when I brought them out of Egypt." Vayikra (Leviticus) 23:42-43
  2. ^ Gottlieb, David; Tatz, Akiva (15 October 2005). "Shelter of Faith". Retrieved 8 October 2018.