{{Short description|Place used for communal Jewish prayer}} {{Refimprove|date=May 2017}} [[Image:Stieblach.JPG|thumb|right|250px|"Shtiblach" in Katamon, Jerusalem]] A '''shtiebel''' ({{Langx|yi|שטיבל|shtibl|little room or house}}, pl. {{lang|yi|שטיבעלעך}} ''shtibelekh'') is a place used for communal Jewish prayer. In contrast to a formal synagogue, a shtiebel is far smaller and approached more casually. It is typically as small as a room in a private home or a place of business that is set aside for the express purpose of prayer, or it may be as large as a small-sized synagogue. It may or may not offer the communal services of a synagogue.
Shtiebels were common in Jewish communities in Eastern Europe before the Holocaust. The shtiebel was distinctly characteristic of Hasidic Judaism and played a central and critical role in the life of the Hasidic community.<ref name=":0" /> Shtiebels continue to exist in contemporary Israel and the United States.
==History: In Europe== Shtiebels traditionally served as places for prayer and community gatherings, often centered around a prominent Hasidic rebbe.The shtiebel was cost-effective, helping to spread Hasidism through a grassroots movement that enabled those familiar with it to establish local communities. This allowed Hasidism to reach more areas throughout the 18th and 19th centuries.<ref name=":0" /> They hosted the ''seudah shlishit'', the ritual third meal of Shabbat, and attracted newcomers with their inviting atmosphere for prayer, eating, drinking, and community activities.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal|last=Stampfer|first=Shaul|date=2013-12-01|title=How and Why Did Hasidism Spread?|journal=Jewish History|language=en|volume=27|issue=2–4|pages=201–219|doi=10.1007/s10835-013-9186-6|s2cid=254601093 |issn=0334-701X}}</ref>
==In Israel== In Israel, ''minyans'' are held in storefront ''shtiebelekh'' in major business areas around the clock; whenever ten individuals show up, a new ''minyan'' begins. The Zichron Moshe shtiebel in the Zikhron Moshe neighborhood of Jerusalem (near Geula) is located in a proper synagogue, with many rooms for round-the-clock ''minyans''. This shtiebel is well known as the locale of Friday-night ''mussar'' talks that Rabbi Sholom Schwadron, the "Maggid of Jerusalem," delivered for more than 40 years.{{cn|date=January 2026}}
In the ultra-Orthodox community in Israel, synagogues developed in which several rooms (''shtibelekh'') were concentrated on prayer ''minyanim''. The purpose of the ''shtibelekh'' is to allow a parallel prayer place and a more liberated atmosphere. Unlike a synagogue with regular prayer times, certain seating arrangements, and the like, the ''shtibelekh'' operates at all hours of the day and routinely includes temporary worshipers.{{cn|date=January 2026}} An example is the Itzkovitch Synagogue, Bnei Brak.{{cn|date=January 2026}}
==References== {{Reflist}}
Category:Haredi Judaism Category:Synagogues Category:Yiddish words and phrases