Tiberias, Israel
Tiberias
טְבֶרְיָה Tveria
The lakeside city where the Jerusalem Talmud was finished and the vowel points under Hebrew letters were fixed.
Founded about 20 CE
Visiting Tiberias
- What to wear
- Covered shoulders and knees at the tombs and synagogues. Ordinary summer clothes everywhere else.
- Photography
- Free along the lake. Sparingly, if at all, at the tombs.
- Cost
- The city is free. Hammat Tiberias is a national park with an inexpensive ticket; the tombs take donations.
- When to go
- Autumn to spring. Midsummer afternoons here are punishing.
- Access
- The promenade is flat. The old city climbs steeply away from the water and the tomb sites have steps.
What to wear at every site in Israel
Etiquette
- DoAt the tombs, men and women enter through separate doors and heads are covered. Coverings are provided at the entrance.
- DoPeople pray at these graves over painful things. Keep back from anyone at the stone and let them finish.
- AvoidPhotography at the tombs is often unwelcome even where no sign forbids it.
- DoThe promenade is secular and relaxed. Swimwear on the lakefront and covered clothing at the tombs, and nobody finds the switch strange.
- DoThe city sits about two hundred metres below sea level and summer heat here is serious. Carry water, not opinions about the humidity.
Local tip
The Hammat Tiberias mosaic is a fifteen-minute walk south of the promenade and is nearly always empty. See it before the tombs, not after, while you still have attention left.
Hours, prices, access and security arrangements change: check official sources before you go, and follow the instructions of site and security staff. In an emergency, call the local emergency number (in Israel: police 100, ambulance 101, or 112 from a mobile).
The history of Tiberias
Built by Herod Antipas
Antipas founded the city around 20 CE and named it for the emperor Tiberius. It was laid out over a burial ground, so observant Jews avoided living in it at first.
The centre moves north
After the revolts against Rome, Jewish life in the country regrouped in the Galilee. The Sanhedrin sat here, and the Talmud of the Land of Israel, the Jerusalem Talmud, was completed in Tiberias around the start of the fifth century.
The vowels under the letters
The Masoretes of Tiberias fixed the system of vowel points and cantillation marks used in every printed Hebrew Bible since. The nikkud you are learning is theirs, and it was standardised in this town.
Tombs and hot springs
Pilgrims come to graves traditionally identified with Rabbi Akiva, Maimonides and Rabbi Meir Baal HaNes; the identifications are tradition. South of the centre, the Roman-period synagogue at Hammat Tiberias has a mosaic floor with a zodiac and inscriptions in Greek and Aramaic.
Hebrew for the visit
Phrases
- אֶפְשָׁר לְהִכָּנֵס?efshar lehikanes?May I come in?Ask at the door rather than walking in during prayers. Most communities welcome a respectful visitor.
- אֶפְשָׁר לְקַבֵּל כִּפָּה?efshar lekabel kipa?May I have a kippah?A basket of kippot usually sits by the door. Men and boys cover their heads in almost every synagogue.
- אֶפְשָׁר לְצַלֵּם?efshar letzalem?May I take a photograph?Usually fine outside prayer times, and not on Shabbat or festivals, when observant Jews do not use cameras.
- זֶה רָחוֹק?ze rachok?Is it far?Hebrew needs no verb “to be” in the present, so two words make a whole question.
- מַיִם, בְּבַקָּשָׁהmayim, bevakashaWater, pleaseTap water is safe to drink across Israel. Say מַיִם מֵהַבֶּרֶז (mayim mehaberez) if you would rather not buy a bottle.
Words
- יָםyamseaThe Dead Sea is יָם הַמֶּלַח, the sea of salt.
- מַיִםmayimwaterGrammatically plural in form, so adjectives agree in the plural: מַיִם קָרִים, cold water.
- חַםchamhot; warmFeminine: חַמָּה.
- בֵּית כְּנֶסֶתbeit knessetsynagogueLiterally “house of gathering”. The Knesset, Israel’s parliament, shares the root.
- עַתִּיקatikancientFeminine: עַתִּיקָה, as in הָעִיר הָעַתִּיקָה.
- עִירircity; townFeminine, with an irregular plural: עָרִים.
Visiting a Synagogue: all the phrases · All 157 phrases in the phrasebook
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