Happy Hebrew Day!

חג עברית שמח!

Hebrew Day falls on the birthday of Eliezer Ben Yehuda, the reviver of the Hebrew language (21st of Tevet, this year it's Tuesday, January 21st)

Eliezer Ben Yehuda at his desk in Jerusalem (1912)

Why did the language need to be revived? Well, in the eyes of many it was considered a dead language, because it wasn't used for speaking, but the truth is that it was used for reading and writing liturgical writings for many years, and it was in the hearts of the people.

Bringing a language back to life is a unique act. Hebrew is the only case in which a language has returned to being used by people in speech, and not just as a sacred language.

Today the situation is different, Hebrew, the official language of Israel, is the mother tongue of over five million people, and over nine million people speak the language.

Want to be part of Eliezer Ben Yehuda's revolution? Well, it's time to start learning Hebrew.