BAR / BAT MITZVAH

An important life cycle event for a young Jewish boy or girl is the Bar Mitzvah or Bat Mitzvah respectively. A boy is a Bar Mitzvah when he reaches his thirteenth birthday, while girls are Bat Mitzvah when they are twelve. However, the girl’s ceremony can be postponed to their thirteenth birthday as well. The literal meaning of Bar/Bat Mitzvah is “commandment age” or age of majority.