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AW: orion Second-Temple holidays: 15 of Av



Date: Mon, 4 Jan 1999 20:29:40 +-100
From: Aayko Eyma <ayma@tip.nl>
Reply-To: orion@mscc.huji.ac.il
To: "'orion@mscc.huji.ac.il'" <orion@mscc.huji.ac.il>
Subject: AW: orion Second-Temple holidays: 15 of Av

**If I may address a question not addressed to me:

      >And finally- why do you think that the "Hag Hashem" in Shilo [Judges 21:19]
>is Succot?  It would seem rather depressing for the girls to have to dance
>in the empty vineyards with their browning leave in the middle of Tishrei,
>instead of the height of the grape harvest in the middle of Av!


***Josephus AJ. V,2,12 says it was one of the three Pilgrim Feasts,
and as the girls event is always linked with the vinyards (Judges, cf. 
Jer 31:4-6), Pascha and Shavuoth drop off I would say. Leaving the 
wine feast (AND 'The Festival' par excellance) Succoth as 'obvious' 
candidate (i.e. for three reasons).

If you'll forgive me for speculating a bit: 
* Of course in many cultures, yearly gatherings on a central place
(for economic or religious reasons) often are accompanied by a 
'marriage market'.
* On ANE someone remarked some time ago, that the Misnah link of 
the girls event with Yom Kippur is so 'unlikely', that it was not likely a late
invention (Yom Kippur growing more solemn in time). IF that is so - then 
perhaps the event was at one time moved from Succoth [HB;Judges] to 
the end of Yom Kippur and Av 15 [Misnah]. Actually, if I were a concerned 
father, I would not feel comfortable with my daughter dancing on a feast
that likely has lots of drunk males around! - and thus I would applaud 
such a moving. ;) 

Best wishes,
Aayko Eyma