Bendigamos is a hymn sung after meals according to the custom of Spanish and Portuguese Jews

Spanish and Portuguese Jews

Spanish and Portuguese Jews are a distinctive sub-group of Sephardim who have their main ethnic origins within the Jewish communities of the Iberian peninsula and who shaped communities mainly in Western Europe and the Americas from the late 16th century on...

. It is has also been traditionally sung by the Jews of Turkish decent. It is similar in meaning to the Birkat Hamazon

Birkat Hamazon

Birkat Hamazon or Birkath Hammazon, , known in English as the Grace After Meals, , is a set of Hebrew blessings that Jewish Law prescribes following a meal that includes bread or matzoh made from one or all of wheat, barley, rye, oats, spelt...

 that is said by all Jews

Jews

The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...

. Bendigamos is said in addition to Birkat Hamazon, either immediately before or immediately after it. The text is in Spanish (not, as some think, Ladino

Ladino

Ladino may refer to:*Ladino is the name used primarily in Israel for Judaeo-Spanish, a Sephardic language, primarily spoken among Sephardic Jews, or for the written form used in religious texts and translations; compare to Ashkenazic Jews' language, Yiddish*Ladino is also used for the variety of...

). The prayer was translated by David de Sola Pool

David de Sola Pool

David de Sola Pool was an American rabbi and writer.-Early life and education:He was born in London, England, and later received his rabbinic ordination from the Hildesheimer Rabbinical Seminary, located in Berlin, Germany.-Career:In 1907, de Sola Pool was invited to become the minister of...

. Below is the actual text as well as the translation by de Sola Pool. The melody is one of the best known and loved Spanish and Portuguese melodies, used also for the Song of Moses (in the Sabbath morning service) and in "Hallel" (on the first day of the month and on festivals).

It is currently sung in New York's Congregation Shearith Israel on the holiday of Sukkot, as well as on other occasions and at sabbath meals at the homes of members. Bendigamos can also be heard weekly at communal meals such as the Shabbat morning kiddush at Lincoln Park Jewish Center, in Yonkers, New York. It is sung every sabbath in the Spanish and Portuguese communities of Great Britain and Philadelphia, though it was unknown in London before the 1960. It is also sung on the Jewish communities located in the north of Brazil (Manaus and Belem) with brought the melody from Morocco in the 19th century, on its earliest immigration to the Amazon. The song probably originated among the Spanish-speaking Jews of Bordeaux where the song is still sung in French translation. From France the Bendigamos song was probably transferred to the Dutch West-Indies (Curaçao) in the mid Nineteenth Century and thence to New York and Amsterdam. Alternatively, the song may have originated with Sephardic Jews living in Spain, who then immigrated to Turkey, The Ottoman Empire and the Netherlands. It may have been devised as a way to say Birkat HaMazon, without incurring the wrath of the Spanish Inquisition, which forbad the practice of Judaism.

Castilian (Spanish):

English:

Bendigamos Bendigamos al Altísimo, Al Señor que nos crió, Démosle agradecimiento Por los bienes que nos dió. Alabado sea su Santo Nombre, Porque siempre nos apiadó. Load al Señor que es bueno, Que para siempre su merced. Bendigamos al Altísimo, Por su Ley primeramente, Que liga a nuestra raza Con el cielo continuamente, Alabado sea su Santo Nombre, Porque siempre nos apiadó. Load al Senor que es bueno, Que para siempre su merced. Bendigamos al Altísimo, Por el pan segundamente, Y también por los manjares Que comimos juntamente. Pues comimos y bebimos alegremente Su merced nunca nos faltó. Load al Señor que es bueno, Que para siempre su merced. Bendita sea la casa esta, El hogar de su presencia, Donde guardamos su fiesta, Con alegría y permanencia. Alabado sea su Santo Nombre, Porque siempre nos apiadó. Load al Señor que es bueno, Que para siempre su merced.

Let us bless Let us bless the Most High The Lord who raised us, Let us give him thanks For the good things which he has given us. Praised be his Holy Name, Because he always took pity on us. Praise the Lord, for he is good, For his mercy is everlasting. Let us bless the Most High First for his Law, Which binds our race With heaven continually, Praised be his Holy Name, Because he always took pity on us. Praise the Lord, for he is good, For his mercy is everlasting. Let us bless the Most High, Secondly for the bread And also for the foods Which we have eaten together. For we have eaten and drunk happily His mercy has never failed us. Praise the Lord, for he is good, For his mercy is everlasting. Blessed be this house, The home of his presence, Where we keep his feast, With happiness and permanence. Praised be his Holy Name, Because he always took pity on us. Praise the Lord, for he is good, For his mercy is everlasting.

A final phrase is inserted at the end in Hebrew which is repeated twice:

.הוֹדוּ לַיָי כִּי־טוֹב. כּי לְעוֹלָם חַסְדּוֹ
Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good. His mercy endures forever.

Alternate text

There is also an alternate text, which appears to be attributable to Sephardic Jews of the Caribbean islands such as Jamaica and Barbados. While the pronunciation varies, which may affect the transliteration spelling, the text is the same.

Bendigamos	Let us bless
Bendigamos al Altmsimo, Al Señor que nos creo, Demosle agradecimiento, Por los bienes que nos dio. Alabado sea su Santo Nombre, Porque siempre nos apiadó, (H)Odu The usage of Odu may be attributed to the traditional pronunciation of Jamaican English or Patois which tends to eliminate the initial 'H' sound. The Sephardic pronunciation of the Jews living in Turkey and The Ottoman Empire is to treat the Hebrew letter 'Hey (ה)" as a silent letter. Thus the silent 'H' in Hodu, rendering it as "Odu". This pronunciation applies to both versions of Bendigamos. Ladonai ki tob, Ki leolam jasdoThis use of 'j' in the transliteration is a Spanish transliteration of the 'kh' or 'ch' guttural sound of the ח of Hebrew, as in the popular toast L'chaim, or as pronounced in the name Bach (The musical composer). Bendigamos al Altísimo, Por el pan primeramente, Y después por los manjares, Que comimos juntamente. Pues comimos y bebimos alegremente, Su merced nunca nos faltó, Load al Señor que es bueno, Que para siempre Su merced. Bendita sea la casa esta Que nunca manque en ella fiesta, Tarde, manaña y siesta, A nos y a los hijos de Israel.	Blessed is the one most high, The Lord who created us, Let us give thanks For all of the good things he gave us. Praise be his holy name For he has always had mercy on us. Blessed is the Lord for he is good, For his mercy endures forever. Blessed is the one most high, First for the bread, And then for the other foods We have eaten together. We ate and we drank happily. His mercy has never failed us. Praised is the Lord for he is good, Whose mercy endures forever. Blessed be this house It should never lack celebration, Afternoon, morning, and evening, For us and the children of Israel.