A wimpel is a long, linen

Linen

Linen is a textile made from the fibers of the flax plant, Linum usitatissimum. Linen is labor-intensive to manufacture, but when it is made into garments, it is valued for its exceptional coolness and freshness in hot weather....

 sash used as a binding for the Sefer Torah

Sefer Torah

A Sefer Torah of Torah” or “Torah scroll”) is a handwritten copy of the Torah or Pentateuch, the holiest book within Judaism. It must meet extremely strict standards of production. The Torah scroll is mainly used in the ritual of Torah reading during Jewish services...

 by Jews of Germanic

Ashkenazi Jews

Ashkenazi Jews, also known as Ashkenazic Jews or Ashkenazim , are the Jews descended from the medieval Jewish communities along the Rhine in Germany from Alsace in the south to the Rhineland in the north. Ashkenaz is the medieval Hebrew name for this region and thus for Germany...

 (Yekke

Yekke

The term Yekke is a generally jovial, mildly derogatory term primarily used by Jews to refer to their coreligionists from Germany or who adhere to the Western-European minhag....

) origin. It is made from the cloth used to swaddle a baby boy at his bris milah, uniting the communal world of the synagogue

Synagogue

A synagogue is a Jewish house of prayer. This use of the Greek term synagogue originates in the Septuagint where it sometimes translates the Hebrew word for assembly, kahal...

 with the individual's own life cycle.

The wimpel is an offshoot of a common Jewish practice. In the times of the Tannaim

Tannaim

The Tannaim were the Rabbinic sages whose views are recorded in the Mishnah, from approximately 70-200 CE. The period of the Tannaim, also referred to as the Mishnaic period, lasted about 130 years...

, all Torah scrolls were wrapped only with a cloth, known in Hebrew as a “mappah,” or in German, a “wimpel.” As with other holy Judaic objects, donating a mappah was considered to be a great mitzvah

Mitzvah

The primary meaning of the Hebrew word refers to precepts and commandments as commanded by God...

 and honor, and very often a groom would donate one on the eve of his wedding. Most of these were made from old clothing. While some Rabbis approved of this practice, others did not because they felt that it was not proper respect for the Torah. Unlike these controversial “second-hand” mappot, the cloth used at a baby’s circumcision was undoubtedly holy, and it gradually became the custom to donate these as mappot.

There are many variations as to what takes place at the actual wimpel ceremony. One common approach is to bring it to synagogue when the boy turns three and is toilet-trained. He and his father get the aliyah

Aliyah (Torah)

An aliyah is the calling of a member of a Jewish congregation to the bimah for a segment of reading from the Torah. The person who receives the aliyah goes up to the bimah before the reading and recites a blessing. After the reading, the recipient then recites another concluding blessing...

 of gelilah, and together they wrap the wimpel around the Torah. (Variations include the child's age, the type of aliyah, and the extent of the child's participation in the actual ceremony.) Afterwards, the family invites the community to join them for a kiddush, a small celebratory party.

This custom is still observed today by most members of the German community. It is an extremely joyous occasion, and its main purpose is to instill a love and enthusiasm for shul and Judaism within the child.

Origins

Some attribute the origins of the custom to a story recorded about a time when the Maharil was the sandek

Sandek

Sandak is the term for a person honored at a Jewish brit milah ceremony, traditionally either by holding the baby boy on the knees or thighs while the mohel performs the brit milah or by handing the baby to the mohel...

. It is customary to wrap a baby’s legs after the circumcision to prevent him from moving around and knocking the bandages out of place. On this particular occasion, the circumciser, known as the “mohel

Mohel

A mohel is a Jewish person trained in the practice of brit milah "covenant of circumcision."-Etymology of the Hebrew and Aramaic term:...

,” suddenly realized that he had forgotten to bring along the cloth for the baby's legs. The Maharil felt that this was a life-threatening situation, and he instructed the mohel to use a spare mappah from one of the synagogue’s Torahs as the cloth. The Maharil also told the child’s parents to wash it once they were done with it and return it to the synagogue with a minor contribution. However, there are reasons to believe that the practice of using the cloth from the circumcision predates the Maharil, and the story is only of interest to illustrate that the cloth, even after being sanctified with the holiness of the Sefer Torah, may be used for the wrapping of the baby at the circumcision. See Rabbi Rabbi Binyamin Shlomo Hamburger

Binyamin Shlomo Hamburger

Binyamin Shlomo Hamburger is a rabbi and author who is regarded as an expert on the subject of minhag Ashkenaz, the customs of German and Western European Jews, and their history...

's Shoroshei Minhag Ashkenaz for more details about this discussion.

This incident highlighted the connection between the Torah and circumcision, as both relate to covenants that the Jewish people have with God (the covenants of Torah and circumcision). The custom gradually developed into the one that is practiced today by German Jews: At a baby's circumcision, the mohel places a long swatch of white cloth - the wimpel – under the pillow. Afterwards, the wimpel is beautifully decorated – it can be either painted or embroidered – with the child’s name, date of birth, and the Hebrew phrase which states “Just like he entered the [covenant of] circumcision, so too he should [the covenant of ] Torah, marriage, and good deeds.” Some mothers do the artwork themselves; others retain the services of “wimpel professionals,” e.g., men or women who do this as a side job or hobby.

Another explanation comes from an 80 year old lady who remembers a ceremony from her synagogue in Germany, where the young child was brought to the synagogue once he was free of diapers, and the women would throw the Wimpel on the torah, while the men carried the torah below ezrat nashim.

The Wimpel was then dedicated to the synagogue, symbolizing the fact the child is now pure, and can take part in the service.

Creating the wimpel

The wimpel is created shortly after the brit milah using the swaddling cloth that was used at that ceremony. The cloth is cleaned, cut into strips and sewn into a sash measuring six or seven inches wide and ten or twelve feet long. The child’s Hebrew name and date of birth are painted or embroidered onto the cloth, usually by the mother or grandmother, along with the traditional blessing:

• ה' יגדלהו לתורה ולחופה ולמעשים טובים אמן

• "...may God raise him up to [a life of] Torah, a successful marriage
  Jewish view of marriage
  In Judaism, marriage is viewed as a contractual bond commanded by God in which a man and a woman come together to create a relationship in which God is directly involved. Though procreation is not the sole purpose, a Jewish marriage is also expected to fulfill the commandment to have children. The...
  
  , and good deeds
  Mitzvah
  The primary meaning of the Hebrew word refers to precepts and commandments as commanded by God...
  
  , Amen
  Amen
  The word amen is a declaration of affirmation found in the Hebrew Bible and New Testament. Its use in Judaism dates back to its earliest texts. It has been generally adopted in Christian worship as a concluding word for prayers and hymns. In Islam, it is the standard ending to Dua and the...
  
  ."

Colorful images such as animals, birds and astrological sign

Astrological sign

Astrological signs represent twelve equal segments or divisions of the zodiac. According to astrology, celestial phenomena reflect or govern human activity on the principle of "as above, so below", so that the twelve signs are held to represent twelve basic personality types or characteristic modes...

s, and scenes pertaining to the blessing—such as a bride and groom under the chuppah

Chuppah

A chuppah , also huppah, chupah, or chuppa, is a canopy under which a Jewish couple stand during their wedding ceremony. It consists of a cloth or sheet, sometimes a tallit, stretched or supported over four poles, or sometimes manually held up by attendants to the ceremony. A chuppah symbolizes the...

 and a Sefer Torah— have also adorned modern and old-world wimpels.

Bringing the wimpel

When the child comes of age to begin learning Torah (age 3), he and his family bring the wimpel to the synagogue

Synagogue

A synagogue is a Jewish house of prayer. This use of the Greek term synagogue originates in the Septuagint where it sometimes translates the Hebrew word for assembly, kahal...

 for Shabbat

Shabbat

Shabbat is the seventh day of the Jewish week and a day of rest in Judaism. Shabbat is observed from a few minutes before sunset on Friday evening until a few minutes after when one would expect to be able to see three stars in the sky on Saturday night. The exact times, therefore, differ from...

 morning services. After the Torah reading, the child performs the ritual of gelila, perhaps with the help of his father, by wrapping the wimpel many times around the Torah scroll and tucking the end of the cloth into the folds. In this way, the child’s individual responsibilities to God and His commandments are literally wrapped around his communal responsibilities, a figurative lesson for the child and his family.

Rabbi Shimon Schwab

Shimon Schwab

Shimon Schwab was an Orthodox rabbi and communal leader in Germany and the United States. Educated in Frankfurt am Main and in the yeshivot of Lithuania, he was rabbi in Ichenhausen, Bavaria, after immigration to the United States in Baltimore, and from 1958 until his death at Khal Adath Jeshurun...

, Rav of Khal Adath Yeshurun synagogue in Washington Heights

Washington Heights, Manhattan

Washington Heights is a New York City neighborhood in the northern reaches of the borough of Manhattan. It is named for Fort Washington, a fortification constructed at the highest point on Manhattan island by Continental Army troops during the American Revolutionary War, to defend the area from the...

, New York

New York

New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

, which revived the custom among the younger generation of Yekke congregants, suggested that perhaps the source of the wimpel custom was to avoid knotting and unknotting a tie around the Torah on Shabbat (see the 39 categories of activity prohibited on the Sabbath).

On that first Shabbat

Shabbat

Shabbat is the seventh day of the Jewish week and a day of rest in Judaism. Shabbat is observed from a few minutes before sunset on Friday evening until a few minutes after when one would expect to be able to see three stars in the sky on Saturday night. The exact times, therefore, differ from...

 that the wimpel is presented and used, the child's family makes a kiddush in honor of their son's entering into a life of Torah.

Other uses

The synagogue typically receives many more wimpels than Torah scrolls. The wimpels are often stored in a drawer in the Ark

Ark (synagogue)

The Torah ark or ark in a synagogue is known in Hebrew as the Aron Kodesh by the Ashkenazim and as the Hekhál amongst most Sefardim. It is generally a receptacle, or ornamental closet, which contains each synagogue's Torah scrolls...

. A boy's wimpel would then be placed on the Torah on other special occasions in his life, such as his Bar Mitzvah

B'nai Mitzvah

Bar Mitzvah and Bat Mitzvah are Jewish coming of age rituals. According to Jewish law, when Jewish boys reach 13, they become responsible for their actions and become a Bar Mitzvah . The age for girls is 12...

, Aufruf

Aufruf

Aufruf , which in Yiddish, means "calling up", is the Jewish custom of a groom being called up in the synagogue for an aliyah, i.e., recitation of a blessing over the Torah...

, and other important family events.

Some wimpels were even used as a decorative banner on the chuppah itself.

External links

• Kirschner Wimpels Museum-quality wimpels for your simcha
• Article about revival of wimpel custom for b'nai mitzvah
• Das Schultragen The Presentation at the Synagogue, 1869 By Moritz Daniel Oppenheim
  Moritz Daniel Oppenheim
  Moritz Daniel Oppenheim was a German painter who is often regarded as the first Jewish painter of the modern era. His work was informed by his cultural and religious roots at a time when many of his German Jewish contemporaries chose to convert...
  
  
• Photo of wimpel made in Germany in 1694
• wimpel.org Information and instructions for modern-day wimpel-making