Hevreh
(An Israeli Collective)
"Hevreh" is a fundamental concept in Israeli society.
The British and Americans have "Guys" or a "Gang."
Spanish speakers have "Amigos/Amigas" or "Chicos/Chicas."
The French have "Tout le monde" or "Les gars/Les amis."
Arabic speakers have "Shabab" or "Jama'a."
And for Israelis...
Israelis have "the Hevreh," which is not just a word but a unique identity with deep meanings that touch the heart and soul of the Israeli experience, but with its own distinct flavor.
The word "Hevreh" defines a group of Israelis who are together—by chance or by design, whether they know each other or not. From the moment they are "the Hevreh," they share a common ground. You can speak to them from the heart, you can motivate them, you can go with the flow with them.
The word itself stems from the word "Haver" (Friend), and it has a connotation of friendship.
"Hevreh" is a word that expresses the basic human yearning to be part of a group, a tribe, a people. The Israeli experience provides this with "the Hevreh"—in the school classroom, in the youth movement, in yeshiva studies, in the army platoon, at work, on trips in Israel or abroad, at parties, in clubs and gatherings, or in a chance meeting on the street or at an event.
"Hevreh" is a verbal pat on a shared shoulder. It is a connecting thread between the individual and the group.
And it has a clear dynamic: the moment there is "the Hevreh," barriers fall. There is no distance. You can ask, you can offer, you can encourage, you can do silly things. The "Hevreh" don't take orders or instructions. Each one does what everyone else is doing, or what they feel like doing, out of a sense of belonging to "the Hevreh." Out of an understanding that they are part of "the Hevreh."
On the other hand, there are places where the Hevreh can't enter.
The teacher in a classroom would not address his students as "Hevreh," nor would the university lecturer address his students this way. The same goes for a commander addressing their soldiers. Nor in official meetings or business gatherings. In such places, distance is required, and there is no room for "the Hevreh."
If a smart-alecky Israeli, trying to get chummy and address the businessman, the lecturer, or the teacher with the word "Hevreh," they might be met with a response like: "We are not friends... okay?"
The Hevreh have their peak moments.
A meeting of Israelis abroad, for example. In a place where the Hebrew language has a special meaning—a meaning that diminishes the feeling of being a stranger—the Hevreh feel a kind of Israeli camaraderie with it. And the more remote the place and the farther it is from the homeland, the more comfortable you can feel with all the Hevreh. In a community of Israelis abroad, there are local Hevreh—singles or families. They are a small or large group where everyone speaks the same language and uses the same terms and concepts.
Young people who have been discharged from the IDF and are traveling the world on "The Big Trip" after their army service will gather in hotels with other Israeli Hevreh like them. And when a Seder night is held in a remote Chabad House on a distant continent, you can feel bombs of camaraderie in the air. All the Israeli Hevreh who are traveling in the area and came especially for the ceremony sit together around the table and sing the songs of the Passover Haggadah with great elation, feeling part of the great Israeli tribe.
Nostalgia is perhaps the warmest home for the Hevreh, and its peak is a "reunion." When they meet after years of being apart and remember those days..."When we were together" with the Hevreh in high school or yeshiva, at the university, or in the military unit in the IDF.
A close-knit Hevreh can go far and maintain the framework they established for many years. Such Hevreh start as singles—in high school or the army. After their discharge, each one gets married in turn, children are born, there is a steady job—and the framework of the Hevreh still remains. They go out together, dance at each other's weddings, have barbecues with their families, fly abroad together...and this will continue until they retire. Then, each one will find new Hevreh in the neighborhood "parliament" or in assisted living.
The Hevreh at the Chabad House in Playa del Carmen, Mexico
Hevreh on reserve duty
The word "Hevreh" is seamlessly woven into conversations between Israelis in various situations.
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The guide in a youth movement will ask: "C'mon, Hevreh, everyone gather around me, and sit in a semicircle. We'll play a team game."
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The facilitator of a public sing-along evening: "Let's sing together...Hevreh...everyone together. Hey, you in the third row, we can't hear you. C'mon..."
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The instructor in a workshop: "Okay Hevreh...take a deep breath. Please...relax...relax...good."
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The guide on an organized tour: "Pay attention, Hevreh...what you're seeing here is a 19th-century palace."
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The conductor of a pensioners' choir: "Hevreh, we're going to do the performance of the song again, and I ask that you pay attention to my hands and sing at the right pace. Okay?"
There's also:
Group scolding: "C'mon...really...Hevreh...can you be quiet for a second?! Let the person express themselves!"
Group encouragement: "Good job, Hevreh...keep it up. At this rate, you'll go far."
Group contempt: "Believe me, Hevreh, you're not worth anything and you have no chance."
Group nostalgia: "Hevreh, do you remember that crazy neighbor who used to yell at us when we were kids?"
And there are also:
* Hevreh'man, who stands out especially among the Hevreh,
* Hevraya, which is a version for boomers who remember the earlier version of the word Hevreh,
And there's "Hevreh's", which is a clever pluralization of the basic word, And there are "Hevreh Leitzim" (Jokester Hevreh)—also for boomers but from the religious community within Jewish society.
Those with a sharp eye will notice that the Hevreh are associatively linked to male camaraderie, but they can also include female figures.
If it's just a group of girls or women, that's something else - When they are together, they are not Hevreh. Not among themselves, and not between them and others. They have a different kind of female camaraderie and feelings of closeness. There isn't a unique Hebrew definition for this, but Hevreh—it's too masculine for them.
The solo figure in the female group can address her friends with the word "Banot (Girls)," which is soft and cohesive. ("Yalla...Banot, let's prove to them that we can too").
Or in the playful version that tries to be clever with humor: "Bananot." (The play on words here stems from "banot," which means "girls," and "bananot," which means "bananas.") ("C'mon...Bananot. Now let's try to focus on the task for which we have gathered.")
A reunion of the Hevreh from Platoon Three, Battalion 101, Class of 1996
Historical bits
The Hevreh have been in Israel since the early days of the Jewish Yishuv.
They came from Europe, where they spoke Yiddish, and from there also came the word itself, which was known in Jewish communities.
As the pioneers took root in the land of Israel, the figure of the new Jew grew and developed—the "Dugri" (direct, straight-talking), the working pioneer—one who shed European mannerisms and politeness. They were Kibbutz members and Moshav members, boys and girls from youth movements, city dwellers from the neighborhood—who came together in groups with a shared social, ideological, and activity-based common denominator.
At one point, someone tried to brand the uniqueness of the Hevreh, and used the word "Hevraya" with the stress on the last syllable, or "Hevraya"—with an emphasis on the "ya." Writers defined them this way, and older leaders tried to curry favor with them this way. They even called one of the Hevreh: a "Hevreh'man."
But it didn't catch on.
It didn't catch on because it sounded artificial and didn't connect to the Israeli's expectation of being part of a group or tribe that has something unique. So the Hevreh remained with the word that is also easier to pronounce, less formal, and not subject to rules.
The State of Israel, which was established in 1948, accepted the Hevreh as part of the new tribe that was forming in a Jewish state, after two thousand years of exile.
The new state offered meeting points for every age, every generation, and every social layer—school, youth movement, army, neighborhoods, discos, cafes, and clubs. And there, at each of these meeting points, Hevreh grew with a shared common ground, with shared memories, shared outings, shared studies, shared trips and travels.
From Hevreh to Hevreh, another layer was added to the Israeli mosaic, and they are all still here. Even in the 75th year of the state.
A pile of Hevreh on the grass.
The song "Agadat Deshe" (The Legend of the Grass)—an Israeli classic
This is part of "The Israeli Story 1948-2025" project
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