Tu B'Av 2024

Halachic Framework

Tu B'Av is a customary observance rather than a full festival: there are no work restrictions or special prayer obligations, and Tachanun is generally omitted for the day. The customs below developed through practice and are widely, though not universally, observed.

Customs & Observances

• Weddings and matches — a propitious time for beginning unions
• Tachanun is omitted from Tu B'Av onward
• The cessation of cutting firewood for the Temple altar (Taanit 28a)

Greetings & Blessings for Tu B'Av

Traditional greetings used before, during, and after Tu B'Av:

• Tu B'Av Sameach — "A joyous Tu B'Av"

בעברית:

• ט"ו באב שמח

About Tu B'Av

Tu B'Av (the Fifteenth of Av) is an ancient day of joy. The Talmud says: "There were no better days for Israel than the Fifteenth of Av and Yom Kippur" (Taanit 26b), when the daughters of Jerusalem would go out dancing in the vineyards. It marks the turning of the year toward lengthening days and new beginnings.

Also known as: Fifteenth of Av

Jewish holidays begin at sunset on the evening before the date shown and conclude at nightfall (when three medium stars are visible) on the final day. In the Diaspora, major Torah festivals are observed for two days (Yom Tov Sheni shel Galuyot), while in Israel they are observed for one day.