{{Short description|Haredi Jewish neighbourhood in Jerusalem}} {{Infobox settlement | name = Mea Shearim | native_name = מאה שערים | native_name_lang = he | settlement_type = Neighborhood | image_skyline = Small100shearim.jpg | imagesize = | image_alt = | image_caption = | pushpin_map = Jerusalem | pushpin_label_position = | pushpin_map_alt = | pushpin_map_caption = Location in Jerusalem | coordinates = {{Coord|31|47|13|N|35|13|20|E|display=title}} | coor_pinpoint = | coordinates_footnotes = | subdivision_type = Administered by | subdivision_name = {{flag|Israel}} | subdivision_type1 = | subdivision_name1 = Israel | subdivision_type2 = [[Districts of Israel|Israeli District]] | subdivision_name2 = [[Jerusalem District]] | subdivision_type3 = Israeli Municipality | subdivision_name3 = [[Jerusalem]] | established_title = Founded | established_date = 1874 | founder = | unit_pref = Metric }}
[[File:Jerusalem Mea Shearim posters.jpg|thumb|upright|A wall plastered with [[Pashkvil|pashkevilin]] (announcements) in Mea Shearim]] '''Mea Shearim''' ({{langx|he|מאה שערים||hundred gates}}; contextually, 'a hundred fold', [[Ashkenazi Hebrew]] and [[Yiddish]] pronunciation: '''Meye Shorim''') is a neighborhood in [[Jerusalem]]. It is one of the oldest Ashkenazi neighborhoods in [[Jerusalem]] outside of the [[Old City (Jerusalem)|Old City]]. It is populated by [[Ashkenazi Jews|Ashkenazi]] [[Haredi Judaism|Haredi Jews]], and was built by members of the [[Old Yishuv]].
==Name== The name ''Mea Shearim'' is derived from a verse from [[Book of Genesis|Genesis]], which happened to be part of the [[weekly Torah portion]] that was read the week the settlement was founded: "[[Isaac]] sowed in that land, and in that year, he reaped a hundredfold ({{Script/Hebrew|מאה שערים}}, ''mea shearim''); God had blessed him" ({{bibleverse|Genesis|26:12}}). According to a tradition, the community originally had 100 gates, another meaning of ''Mea Shearim''.<ref name="eisenberg">{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=yqXXD_74yAEC&q=me%27a+she%27 |title=The Streets of Jerusalem: Who, what, why |last=Eisenberg |first=Ronald L. |page=250 |publisher=Devora Publishing |year=2006 |isbn=1-932687-54-8}}</ref>
==History== [[Meir Auerbach]], the chief Ashkenazi rabbi of Jerusalem, was one of the founders of the neighborhood.<ref>Encyclopedia Judaica, vol. 3, p. 848, Meir Ben Isaac Auerbach</ref> [[Conrad Schick]], a German Protestant architect, drew up the first blueprint for Mea Shearim in 1846. Mea Shearim, one of the earliest Jewish settlements outside the walls of the [[Old City (Jerusalem)|Old City]], was established in 1874 by a building society of 100 shareholders.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.eyecomvisual.com/illusisrael/01/Meah-Shearim.htm|title=About Meah Shearim|publisher=Illustrated Israel|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070613210514/http://www.eyecomvisual.com/illusisrael/01/Meah-Shearim.htm|archive-date=2007-06-13}}</ref> Pooling their resources, the society members purchased a tract of land outside the walled city, which was severely over-crowded and plagued by poor sanitation, and built a new neighborhood with the goal of improving their standards of living.
[[Yosef Rivlin]], one of the heads of the Jewish community in Jerusalem, and a Christian Arab from [[Bethlehem]] were the contractors. The work was carried out by both Jewish and non-Jewish workers.<ref name="library"> {{cite web |url=https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Archaeology/jerott.html |title=Jerusalem: Architecture in the late Ottoman Period |last=Eylon |first=Lili |year=2011 |access-date=28 August 2011 |publisher=[[Jewish Virtual Library]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110717052740/http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Archaeology/jerott.html |archive-date=2011-07-17 |url-status=live }} </ref>
[[File:MeaShearim.png|thumb|230px|Street plan in 1927]] Mea Shearim was structured as a [[courtyard neighborhood]]. It was surrounded by a wall, with gates that were locked every evening. By October 1880, 100 apartments were ready for occupancy, and a lottery was held to assign them to families. By the turn of the century, there were 300 houses, a flour mill, and a bakery. Conrad Schick planned for open green space in each courtyard, but cowsheds were built instead. Mea Shearim was the first quarter in Jerusalem to have street lights.<ref name="library"/>
==Haredi lifestyle== Today, Mea Shearim remains an insular neighbourhood in the heart of [[Jerusalem]].<ref name="library"/> With its [[Haredi Judaism|Haredi]], and overwhelmingly [[Hasidic Judaism|Hasidic]], population, the streets retain the characteristics of a pre-war [[Eastern Europe|Eastern European]] [[shtetl]].<ref name="eisenberg"/> Life revolves around strict adherence to [[Halakha|Jewish law]], [[Jewish prayer|prayer]], and the study of [[Sifrei Kodesh|Jewish religious texts]]. Traditions in dress include black frock coats and black hats for men (although there are some other clothing styles, depending on the religious sub-group to which they belong), and long-sleeved, modest clothing for women. In some Hasidic groups, the women wear thick black stockings all year long, even in summer. Married women wear a variety of hair coverings, from wigs to scarves, [[snood (headgear)|snoods]], hats, and berets. The men have [[beard]]s, and many grow long sidecurls, called [[payot|peyos]]. Many residents speak [[Yiddish language|Yiddish]] in their daily lives, and use [[Hebrew language|Hebrew]] only for prayer and religious study, as they believe Hebrew to be a sacred language, only to be used for religious purposes.<ref> [http://www.orianit.edu-negev.gov.il/shafamcm/cp/homepage/PSHONOTAnat17kern.htm ?למה החרדים במאה שערים מדברים אידיש] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131005010019/http://www.orianit.edu-negev.gov.il/shafamcm/cp/homepage/PSHONOTAnat17kern.htm |date=2013-10-05 }} {{in lang|he}} </ref> [[File:Bezoekers van een markt op straat, Bestanddeelnr 255-2485.jpg|The Mea Shearim shuk in the 1960s.|thumb]] [[Hasidic Judaism|Hasidic]] groups with a large number of followers in Mea Shearim include: [[Breslov (Hasidic group)|Breslov]], [[Slonim (Hasidic dynasty)|Slonim]], [[Toldos Aharon]], [[Toldos Avrohom Yitzchok (Hasidic dynasty)|Toldos Avraham Yitzhak]], [[Mishkenos HoRoim]], and [[Satmar (Hasidic dynasty)|Satmar]]. The Pinsk-Karlin dynasty also has its center here. The [[Edah HaChareidis]], which supervises [[kashrut]] certification and runs a Jewish religious court, has its headquarters at the western end of Mea Shearim. Mea Shearim is the stronghold of both factions of the [[Neturei Karta]] movement, which opposes [[Zionism]], as well as the movement from whence they sprang – the descendants of the original [[Perushim]] community, also known as "Yerushalmis". Some Neturei Karta members have asked to live under Arab rule.<ref>{{cite book|title=The Jerusalem Quarterly, Issues 17-20|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9MFVAAAAYAAJ|year=1981|publisher=Middle East Institute|page=58|quote=On the other hand, the leaders of the sect have recently published a manifesto calling for "the laws of the autonomy in Arab territories to be applied in our neighbourhood (Me'a Shearim) too, without dependence on the Zionist regime".}}</ref> Rabbi [[Yosef Shalom Eliashiv]], a [[posek]] of [[Lithuanian Jews|Litvish]] / [[Yeshiva|Yeshivish]] Jewry, lived there.
The oldest Sephardic Haredi dynasty, Levi Kahana of Spain, has a religious cultural center in the neighborhood.{{citation needed|date=April 2022}}
==Neighborhood regulations== [[File:Panneau mea shearim.jpg|thumb|[[Modesty]] sign in Mea Shearim]] [[File:אישור ועדת איכלוס.jpg|A certificate for a building in the neighborhood, confirming that its residents have been inspected and found suitable for the neighborhood's character.|thumb]] "Modesty" posters in Hebrew and English are hung at every entrance to Mea Shearim. When visiting the neighborhood, women and girls are urged to wear what is deemed to be modest dress (knee-length skirts or longer, no plunging necklines or midriff tops, no sleeveless or short-sleeved blouses or bare shoulders); men and boys are urged to avoid wearing shorts and sleeveless shirts; tourists are requested not to arrive in large, conspicuous groups; and in some of the older signs, even non-Jewish men are requested to wear [[Kippah|kippot]]. During [[Shabbat]] (from Friday night at sundown to Saturday night at sundown), visitors are asked to refrain from smoking, photography, driving, or using mobile phones. When entering synagogues, men are asked to cover their heads.<ref name="ynet"> {{cite web |url=http://www.ynet.co.il/english/articles/0,7340,L-3340111,00.html |title=A step away, another world |work=[[Ynetnews]] |last=Sapir-Witz |first=Karmit |date=17 December 2006 |access-date=28 August 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100901094601/http://www.ynet.co.il/english/articles/0,7340,L-3340111,00.html |archive-date=2010-09-01 |url-status=live }} </ref>
===Incidents in the neighborhood=== [[File:Toldos Aharon kids prepare for Shabbat, Mea Shearim, Jerusalem.jpg|thumb|[[Toldos Aharon (Hasidic dynasty)|Toldos Aharon]] children in Mea Shearim, 2007]] Some residents have been criticized for attacking police, and other government officials entering the area, with stones, and blocking the streets, or setting fire to rubbish when they try to do so (otherwise known as Hafganahs).<ref> {{cite news |url=https://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/opinion/the-mea-she-arim-mob-1.289570 |title=The Mea She'arim mob |work=Haaretz |author=Shahar Ilan |date=May 11, 2010 |access-date=2012-11-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121226095325/http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/opinion/the-mea-she-arim-mob-1.289570 |archive-date=2012-12-26 |url-status=dead }} </ref>
A small, violent group called "[[Sikrikim|The Sikrikim]]", of less than 100 families, enforce censorship on bookshops, causing over 250,000 NIS damage to a shop that resisted their demands.<ref> {{cite news |url=https://www.jpost.com/NationalNews/Article.aspx?id=247516 |title=Mea She'arim shop accedes to vandalist demands |newspaper=JPost |author=Melanie Lidman |date=November 30, 2011 |access-date=2012-11-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120928173049/http://www.jpost.com/NationalNews/Article.aspx?id=247516 |archive-date=2012-09-28 |url-status=live }} </ref> [[File:1940 מאה שערים - iדגניi btm11920.jpeg|A Meah Shearim courtyard in the 1940s|thumb]] On 24 June 2010, politicians [[Uri Maklev]] and [[Moshe Gafni]] of the Haredi party [[United Torah Judaism]] were attacked in Mea Shearim, after they had visited the [[Slonim (Hasidic dynasty)|Slonim]] rabbi and had entered his synagogue to pray. When they emerged, they were set upon by young men affiliated with [[Neturei Karta]] who spat at them and physically assaulted them.<ref>{{cite web|title=Haredi MKs attacked in Mea Shearim|url=https://www.jpost.com/Israel/Haredi-MKs-attacked-in-Mea-Shearim|date=24 June 2010|access-date=1 November 2019|publisher=[[The Jerusalem Post]]}}</ref>
In April 2015, an [[Israel Defense Forces|IDF]] officer was attacked by men and women of Mea Shearim who allegedly threatened to kill him, while children blocked his exit. The incident received national attention. The attack was condemned by Prime Minister [[Benjamin Netanyahu]] as "outrageous", and by [[Shas]] leader [[Aryeh Deri]] as "an act of terror".<ref> [http://www.timesofisrael.com/idf-officer-attacked-in-jerusalem-ultra-orthodox-neighborhood/ IDF officer attacked in Jerusalem’s Mea Shearim] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150425124240/http://www.timesofisrael.com/idf-officer-attacked-in-jerusalem-ultra-orthodox-neighborhood/ |date=2015-04-25 }} The Times of Israel, 24 April 2015 </ref>
==See also== *[[Batei Warsaw]] *[[Meah Shearim Yeshiva and Talmud Torah]] *[[Expansion of Jerusalem in the 19th century]]
==Further reading== *Yosef Yoel Rivlin, Mea Shearim, Jerusalem: The Department of Youth Affairs - The Religious Section of the Zionist Organization, 1947 (Hebrew). *Gabriel Barkay and Eli Schiller (eds.), Mea Shearim and Its Surroundings, Ariel, 163-164, 2004, pp. 121–135 (Hebrew). *Binyamin Kluger, My Mea Shearim, 2016 (Hebrew). *Binyamin Kluger, Mea Shearim and Its Neighboring Quarters: The Neighborhoods That Built New Jerusalem, published by HaModia, 2016 (Hebrew). *Binyamin Kluger, Mea Shearim – Its Establishment and Development, published by HaModia, 2022 (Hebrew).
==References== {{Reflist}}
==Further reading== *{{cite book|last=Halper|first=Jeff|title=Between Redemption and Revival: The Jewish Yishuv of Jerusalem in the Nineteenth Century|publisher=Westview Press|year=1991|isbn=0-8133-7855-9}}
==External links== {{Commons category}} *[http://www.gojerusalem.com/items/268/meah-shearim/ Go Jerusalem's Information on Mea Shearim]
{{Neighborhoods of Jerusalem}} {{Authority control}}
[[Category:Mea Shearim| ]] [[Category:Neighborhoods in Jerusalem]] [[Category:Haredi Judaism in Jerusalem]] [[Category:Orthodox Jewish communities in Jerusalem]] [[Category:Jews and Judaism in Ottoman Palestine]] [[Category:Orthodox Jews in Mandatory Palestine]] [[Category:1874 establishments in Ottoman Syria]] [[Category:Populated places established in 1874]]