Zeved habat (also written Zebed habat) (Hebrew זֶבֶד הַבָּת) is the mainly Sephardic naming ceremony for girls, corresponding in part to the non-circumcision part of the Brit milah ceremony for boys.

In Ashkenazi Judaism, the formal namegiving ceremony for daughter is traditionally a simple announcement by the father of the newborn daughter in synagogue. Non-Orthodox and modern Orthodox Ashkenazi Jews have recently created various ceremonies for newborn daughters inspired by the Sephardi Zeved habbat ceremony.

The Zeved habat ceremony is usually celebrated within the first month of the girl's birth and may be celebrated privately in the synagogue or in a party at home. The ceremony will often be lead by the ḥakhám (Rabbi) or the hazzan (Cantor).

The Zeved habat ceremony

The main elements of the ceremony are the mother's thanksgiving for deliverance (Birkat gomel); the recital of Song of Songs 2:14 (and, in the case of the first daughter born to the mother, Song of Songs 6:9); and the namegiving prayer itself in the form of Mi sheberakh (imoteinu) (see below). Additional elements may include Psalm 128 and the priestly blessing (Birkat kohanim).

Text of Mi shebberach for naming of daughter

The words in parentheses are included in the Moroccan tradition, but not in the London tradition.

מִי שֶׁבֵּרַךְ (אִמּוֹתֵינוּ) שָׂרָה וְרִבְקָה. רָחֵל וְלֵאָה. וּמִרְיָם הַנְּבִיאָה וַאֲבִיגַיִל. וְאֶסְתֵּר הַמַּלְכָּה בַּת אֲבִיחַיִל. הוּא יְבָרֵךְ אֶת הַיַּלְדָּה הַנְּעִימָה הַזּאת. וְיִקָּרֵא שְׁמָהּ (בְּיִשְׂרָאֵל) פלונית. בְּמַזַּל טוֹב וּבְשַׁעַת בְּרָכָה. וִיגַדְּלֶהָ בִּבְרִיאוּת שָׁלוֹם וּמְנוּחָה. וִיזַכֶּה לְאָבִיהָ וּלְאִמָּהּ לִרְאוֹת בְּשִׂמְחָתָהּ וּבְחֻפָּתָהּ. בְּבָנִים זְכָרִים. עשֶׁר וְכָבוֹד. דְּשֵׁנִים וְרַעֲנַנִּים יְנוּבוּן בְּשֵׂיבָה. וְכֵן יְהִי רָצוֹן וְנאמַר אָמֵן׃

Translation: “The one Who blessed (our mothers,) Sarah and Rivkah, Rachel and Leah, and the prophet Miriam and Abigayil and Queen Esther, daughter of Abichayil — may He bless this beloved girl and let her name (in Israel) be ... [insert first name here] with good luck and in a blessed hour; and may she grow up with good health, peace and tranquility; and may her father and her mother see her joy and her wedding, and sons, riches and honour; and may they be healthy into old age; and may this be the [divine] will, and say ye, Amen!”.

Ashkenazi rituals

In traditional Ashkenazi Judaism, the father is called to the Torah either at the next time it is read in sysnagogue or, for some, on the first Shabbat after the daughter is born, and the name of the daughter is announced which is observed by all groups within Haredi Judaism and Hasidic Jews. Some form private or communal celebration, known as a kiddush ("sanctification") is then held for family and friends either at home or at the synagogue. It is considered an important gesture that many believe will enhance the future mazel ("good fortune") of the newly-named baby girl. People wish the parents: "Tizku legadlah LeTorah (UleBen Torah) LeChupah UleMa'asim Tovim" ("May you merit to raise her to grow up to [be a one of] Torah ([and to marry a] son of Torah), to [become] Married and to [practice] Good Deeds [the Mitzvot]").

Recent innovations

In recent years many Ashkenazi Jews have developed a ceremony for girls which is now known as the Simchat Bat (Celebration for the daughter) or Brit Bat (loosely, welcoming the new daughter into the covenant.) While still evolving, this ceremony has gained acceptance in Jewish communities of all denominations. Different forms of this ceremony exist in Modern Orthodox Judaism, Conservative Judaism, and Reform Judaism. This newer ceremony is rejected by Haredi Judaism.

The celebration typically consists of a communal welcoming, a naming done over a cup of wine with the quotation of appropriate biblical verses, and traditional blessings. Jews do not perform female circumcision, but the ritual that takes place is considered to have an equivalent meaning.

Conservative Judaism

"Moreh Derekh", the Rabbi's manual of the Conservative Judaism movement's Rabbinical Assembly, presents a ceremony based on traditional Jewish forms, with a number of options that parents may choose to perform: (A) Lighting seven candles (symbolizing the seven days of creation) and holding the baby towards them, (B) Wrapping the baby in the four corners of a tallit (Jewish prayer shawl), or (C) Lifting the baby and touching her hands to a Torah scroll.

Reading list

Zeved habat

• Herbert C. Dobrinsky: A treasury of Sephardic laws and customs : the ritual practices of Syrian, Moroccan, Judeo-Spanish and Spanish and Portuguese Jews of North America. Revised edition. Hoboken, NJ (Ktav); New York, NY (Yeshiva Univ. Press), 1988. (Pages 3-29.)
• Book of prayer of the Spanish and Portuguese Jews' Congregation, London. Volume One: Daily and occasional prayers. Oxford (Oxford Univ. Press, Vivian Ridler), 5725 - 1965. (Page 180.)

Ashkenazi customs

• "Namegiving", in A guide to Jewish religious practice, by Isaac Klein. New York (JTS), 1979. (Page 429.)
• "Berit Benot Yisrael", in Ḥadesh Yameinu = Renew our days : a book of Jewish prayer and meditation, edited and translated by Rabbi Ronald Aigen. Montreal (Cong. Dorshei Emet), 1996. (Pages 228-233.)