In 2025, Rosh Hashanah begins at sundown on Monday, Sep. 22 and ends at sundown on Wednesday, Sep. 24.
What is Rosh Hashanah?
Rosh Hashanah, literally the “head of the year,” is the Jewish new year. It is a time of introspection and atonement. The central theme and practice not only of Rosh Hashanah, but of the entire fall holiday season, is teshuvah—a word commonly translated as “repentance,” but which more literally means “return.” Rosh Hashanah—and the holiday that follows it by ten days, Yom Kippur—are intensely focused on teshuvah. Many Jews see this as a time to make amends or apologize to those they have wronged in the past year and resolve to do better in the year about to begin.
How Do You Celebrate Rosh Hashanah?
One of the common practices of Rosh Hashanah is attending synagogue services and hearing the blowing of the shofar, or ram’s horn, the central mitzvah of the holiday. Another beloved practice is the Tashlich service, in which one’s sins are symbolically cast into a natural body of running water.
What Are Rosh Hashanah Foods?
The foods most associated with Rosh Hashanah are apples and honey, which are eaten as an expression of hope for a sweet near year. There is also a tradition of eating other symbolic foods at Rosh Hashanah meals, including pomegranates, dates, leeks and a fish head—all of them symbolic of a wish for the year to come.
On the second night of Rosh Hashanah it is customary to eat a new fruit, a symbol of newness. It is also customary to have big feasts on both nights of Rosh Hashanah and there are thus a plethora of customary dishes, including: honey cake, brisket and tzimmes.
In 2027, Rosh Hashanah will begin on Friday October 1 and conclude on Sunday October 3.
In 2028, Rosh Hashanah will begin on Wednesday September 20 and conclude on Friday September 22.
In 2024, Rosh Hashanah was celebrated from October 2 to October 4.
