Torah Trope: Ancient Jewish Symbols

Ta’amei Hamikra, or as it’s called in Yiddish, “trope,” is a millennia-old system of music symbols that determines how each word in the Torah is recited. Although developed over thousands of years, this system is still used regularly today by Jews in synagogues around the world, as a guide to how to chant the Torah portions recited throughout each week. If you listen to the chanting of the Torah today, the nusach, or melody, of the trope may sound different depending on what synagogue you’re sitting in. However, regardless of the nusach, they are all a part of a tradition that dates back to the Second Temple.

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