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Concept
Kippah
Summary
A kippah (plural: kippot), yarmulke, skullcap, or koppel is a brimless cap, usually made of cloth, traditionally worn by Jewish males to fulfill the customary requirement that the head be covered. It is worn by all men in Orthodox Jewish communities during prayers and by most Orthodox Jewish men at all other times. Among non-Orthodox Jewish communities, some who wear them do so at all times, while others wear them only during prayer, while attending a synagogue, or in other rituals.
The term kippah (כיפה) literally means "dome", as the kippah is worn on the head like a dome.
The term yarmulke (יאַרמלקע) might be derived from the Polish jarmułka or the Ukrainian yarmulka, perhaps ultimately from Medieval Latin almutia ("cowl, hood"). It may also be of Turkic origin (akin to yağmurluk, meaning "rainwear"); the word is often associated with the phrase ירא מלכא (yire malka), formed from the Aramaic word for 'king' and the Hebrew root ירא, meaning 'fear'. Keppel or koppel is another Yiddish term for the same thing.
Halachic authorities debate as to whether wearing a kippah at all times is required. According to Maimonides, Jewish law dictates that a man is required to cover his head during prayer.
In non-Orthodox communities, some women also wear kippot, and people have different customs about when to wear a kippahwhen eating, praying, studying Jewish texts, or entering a sacred space such as a synagogue or cemetery. The Reform movement has historically been opposed to wearing kippot, but in recent years it has become more common and accepted for Reform men and women to cover their heads during prayer and Jewish study.
However, according to several prominent authorities, the practice has since taken on the force of law because it is an expression of yir'at Shamayim (reverence for Heaven, i.e. God). The 17th-century authority David HaLevi Segal holds that the reason is to enforce the Halakhic rule to avoid practices unique to Gentiles.
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