What is Rosh Hashanah? What to know about the Jewish holiday

Rosh Hashanah is one of Judaism’s holiest days and begins at sunset on Wednesday.

The two-day celebration marks the start of the Jewish New Year and is filled with traditions, like eating a round challah and saying prayers near a body of water. 

This year, the holiday will start at sunset on Oct. 2 and end at sundown on Oct. 4 The exact date of the holiday varies every year — last year it started on Sept. 15 — but is almost always in September or October.

Here’s everything to know about Rosh Hashanah 2024, including when it will be, what the holiday commemorates and how it is celebrated.

What is Yom Kippur?Here’s what to know about the Jewish holiday

When is Rosh Hashanah 2024?

Since it is based on the Hebrew calendar, Rosh Hashanah begins on the first day of the seventh month, so this year’s celebration will start at sunset on Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024, and continue through sundown on Friday, Oct. 4, 2024.

Rosh Hashanah is the only Jewish holiday that is two days long, both inside and outside Israel. It’s called yoma arichta, translated as “a long day” because the 48-hour celebration may be thought of as one extended day.

Rosh Hashanah is often treated as a time to reflect on the previous year and focus on hopes for the coming year, Jordan Rosenblum, the Belzer Professor of Classical Judaism and Max and Frieda Weinstein-Bascom Professor of Jewish Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, told USA TODAY last year.

What is Rosh Hashanah? Why is it important?

Rosh Hashanah marks the beginning of the Days of Awe, which are 10 days of introspection and repentance that lead into Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement and the most sacred holiday for Jewish people.   

Samira Mehta, the director of undergraduate studies in the program for Jewish studies at the University of Colorado Boulder, previously told USA TODAY that the “Book of Life,” which symbolizes how Jewish people will be judged for the coming year, “opens” on Rosh Hashanah and is “sealed” on Yom Kippur.

Rosh Hashanah is also important for some Jewish people as a celebration of the creation of humanity. It may be referred to as the “birthday of the world,” marking the time when God created – or when the breath of life entered – Adam and Eve. 

How is Rosh Hashanah celebrated? Traditions explained  

Jewish people might take time away from work to attend services with special prayers and songs to mark the new year, although celebrations don’t just take place within the walls of a synagogue. 

Many Jewish communities will blow a Shofar, a curved ram’s horn, during service.  

Some Jews may also pray near a body of water in a Tashlich ceremony, in addition to tossing pieces of bread or other food into the water to symbolize sending off sins. 

What do you say on Rosh Hashanah?

If you’re not sure how to greet someone on Rosh Hashanah, you could just say “Shanah Tovah,” which means “good year” in Hebrew. The word “u’metuka” – meaning “and sweet” – is sometimes added to the end of that phrase as in “good and sweet year.”

USA TODAY Network reporter Dwight Adams contributed to this article.