Prayer and Prayerbooks

Jewish prayer as we know it originates in early rabbinic texts, the Mishnah and the Talmud. In those ancient text, the essential recitations and their general forms are defined, but the text itself (unless we are speaking about a biblical quotation) is generally still fluid. Only in the 9th and 10th centuries were the laws of Jewish prayer formulated in detail and more precise texts canonized. Due to the fluidity of prayer before this time, different traditions, reflecting different local customs, developed, leading to the diverse, geographically organized prayer we know today. 

Siddur

A siddur, from the Hebrew word for “ordering,” is a Jewish prayer book, containing the liturgy for daily and special occasions. The canonical ordering of Jewish (= rabbinic in origin) prayer was not completed until the 9th - 10th centuries; before that, the essence was fixed but the prayers themselves were more fluid and even individualized. During the manuscript age, siddurim were relatively rarer, but for Jews who could afford them they were essential, as they made accurate daily prayer possible. Sometimes, a simple, common Jew would obtain, or even himself copy, a basic siddur, in rough print on paper. But most surviving siddur manuscripts are more elaborate, written in scribal hand, with decoration, on parchment. Such examples preserve evidence of Jewish status, wealth, and more.

Mahzor

The word “Mahzor,” means “cycle" and is familiar to most Jews as the term used for the prayer book for the High Holidays and festivals. However, in medieval times, the term Mahzor was used to refer to prayer books that contained the complete cycle of prayers for the entire year.