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According to Rav Wikipedia, the upsherin is a custom that was brought from Muslims to Palestinian Jews to Tzfat Sephardim to Chasidim.

Recently, I've noticed mainstream (non-charedi) Orthodox Jews also holding upsherins. How and when did this come to be standard practice? How widespread is it?

Charles Koppelman
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  • Very related (though not quite a dupe because this one's specifically about contemporary America): http://judaism.stackexchange.com/questions/13106/start-of-the-upsherin-ceremony – Isaac Moses Jan 09 '13 at 17:14
  • @IsaacMoses The accepted answer there are chassidic sources. – Charles Koppelman Jan 09 '13 at 17:17
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    I don't know that this is "standard practice." I went to one 15 years ago and have been to a couple more recently. But I also know people int he community who are not doing it. How is one to determine a standard minhag? Is this aspect of the question answerable? – rosends Jan 09 '13 at 19:36
  • @Dan That's a good question. I think that if you can show it's not standard practice, that would answer the question. "Standard practice" here has a flexible definition, but I guess I mean "When did this become something that people would say 'Jews do this' instead of 'Chasids do this'?" – Charles Koppelman Jan 09 '13 at 22:05
  • Just as a btw, is there any source to back up non-chareidi Orthodox Jews as being the mainstream? Is it clear that there are more non-Chareidi Orthodox Jews than Chareidi Jews? – Shraga Jan 09 '13 at 23:52
  • well, I can't account for what people would say but I have only known "Jews" who do this, not chareidim... – rosends Jan 10 '13 at 00:56
  • Dan, I didn't understand your comment. Can you explain? – Shraga Jan 10 '13 at 07:27
  • simply that my brother is not chareidi but 15 years ago, he had an upsherin for his son. Ditto for my sister in law 5 years ago etc. So I have always said "Jews do this" and not "Chareidim do this" – rosends Jan 10 '13 at 14:19
  • Personally, I think when Rabbi Yehudah Leibush Horenstein emigrated to Palestine in the 19th century, and wrote about how the Arabs had a hair-cutting ceremony and party for their young children, he saw it as a good excuse for a party, as did others. The Biblilcal analogies and Kabbalistic interpretations (found on Chabad's website) came later, and, personally I find them unconvincing. What amazes me is the similarity with upsherin and the 19th century non-Jewish practice to let young boys' hair grow and even to put them in feminine outfits until they were older. E.g. See FDR's baby photos. – Bruce James Jan 10 '13 at 19:52
  • @Bruce upshernishen are older than the 1800s – ertert3terte May 31 '13 at 14:29
  • @ShmuelBrin As I understand it, chassidim have practiced upshernishen that long; but not non-chassidim. – Bruce James May 31 '13 at 15:37
  • "I've noticed mainstream (non-charedi) Orthodox Jews also holding upsherins": did you mean "(non-hasidic)"? – msh210 Jun 02 '13 at 05:42
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    Here is a nice shiur on the history of Upherin, given be Rav Zvi Ron. http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/16106874 – emmlinisrael Jun 09 '13 at 20:14

2 Answers2

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I'll try to explain this (without any sources, sorry!) as best as I can as a practical matter in modern circles in the United States (and elsewhere).

First, many non-charedi Orthodox Jews in America maintain older customs.

Second, some "neo-Hasidic" (or "Modern-Hasidic") Orthodox Jews (I'm not using any accepted nomenclature, just calling it as I see it, but I'm referring to the growing trend of people taking influence from a blend of Hasidic customs and teachings) have also embraced the practice.

Still other have embraced the practice for the symbolism of 'Orlah (not taking fruit from a tree for three years), since both people and the Torah are compared to trees.

Seth J
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  • I understand all of that. I also understand that the growing percent of charedi teachers in MO schools (and of charedi rabbis in congregations of MO-niks) mean that charedi customs seep into MO culture. But I'm wondering when this custom became seen as "it's something we do" where "we" means MO Ashkenazi Jews. This question is entirely sociological, so I don't expect a traditional source here. – Charles Koppelman Jan 09 '13 at 17:34
  • So you want a year/decade/era? – Seth J Jan 09 '13 at 18:05
  • a documented year/decade/era would be sufficient. Better would be a timeline of adoption, but some things are just not fully traceable. – Charles Koppelman Jan 09 '13 at 18:08
  • I mean, I can document a year on this page if you want. What type of documentation are you looking for? – Seth J Jan 09 '13 at 18:27
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Rabbi Menachem Mendel Poliakoff from Baltimore wrote a sefer about the practices in Lithuania and more importantly, in the yeshivas. In the sefer he says that prior to WWII no Ashkenazi Jew had ever heard of it. In fact, he cites the source as being a pagan one (and proves it from a mishna describing idol worshippers only cutting their hair on one of their holidays). It is unfortunate that many MO Jews have begun doing this, thinking that they are acting yeshivish when in fact the real and legitimate yeshivas of old would have shunned this custom.

Litvish Minhagim
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