Dipping apples and challah in honey symbolizes our wish for
sweetness and goodness during the coming year.
This year, we had a new fruit to dip: an Asian pear. I’ve seen them in stores many times, but don’t recall buying one; they cost $1 or more apiece! They look like apples but are crunchy, juicy and sweet like pears. They are also called Apple Pear, Chinese pear, or Sand Pear. Thought to originally come to the United States via Chinese immigrants, most Asian Pears are now grown in California, Oregon, and Washington. Their color may vary from yellow to brown, and their skin may be smooth or speckled. Some of the most popular varieties generally can be described as: Hosui (Golden Russet Brown), Kosui (Golden Russet), Nijiseiki or Twentieth Century (Yellow-Green), Shinseiki (Yellow), Shinsui (Russet Brown).
Each pear comes protected by a lacy hat!
The placement of the dot over “shin” means it’s pronounced “sh.”
The letter “nun” is pronounced with an N-sound.
The letter “he” is called “hay” and is pronounced “ha.”
The letter “tet” is pronounced with a T-sound.
The dot over “vav” indicates that it is a long vowel (in this case “O”).
The letter “bet” is pronounced as a “V” (though if it has a dot in the middle it’s pronounced as a “B”).
Read from right to left: “sh-n-ha . t-O-v-ha”
shana=year; tova=good wishes
Thanks to Mr. Tess for the tutorial and to this site.
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