Star of David
Flag of Israel
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The Star of David or Shield of David (Magen David in Hebrew, מָגֵן דָּוִד with nikkud or מגן דוד without, academically transcribed Māḡēn Dāwīḏ by Biblical Hebrew linguists, pronounced in Modern Hebrew and Mogein Dovid [ˈmɔɡeɪn ˈdɔvid] or Mogen Dovid [ˈmɔɡen ˈdɔvid] in Ashkenazi Hebrew and Yiddish) is a generally recognized symbol of and Judaism. It is named after King David of ancient Israel; and its earliest known communal usage began in the Middle Ages, alongside the more ancient symbol of the menorah. In medieval times, the star was known as the Seal of Solomon, and was a popular Islamic symbol. Geometrically it is the hexagram ... a magic Hexagram.
With the establishment of the state of Israel in 1948 the Star of David on the Flag of Israel has also become a symbol of Israel and has become associated with the Zionist movement
Star of David | Flag of Israel |
Magic Hexagram is a 6-pointed magic star, with magic constant egals 26. An n-pointed magic star is a star polygon in which numbers are placed at each of the n vertices and n intersections, such that the four numbers on each line sum to the same magic constant. The magic constant of an n-pointed normal magic star is M = 4n + 2. No star polygons with fewer than 5 points exist, and the construction of a normal 5-pointed magic star turns out to be impossible. The smallest examples of normal magic stars are therefore 6-pointed.
A Star of David, often yellow-colored, was used by the Nazis during the Holocaust as a method of identifying Jews. After the German invasion of Poland in 1939 there were initially different local decrees forcing Jews to wear a distinct sign in the General Government e.g. a white armband with a blue Star of David on it, in the Warthegau a yellow badge in the form of a Star of David on the left side of the breast and on the back. The requirement to wear the Star of David with the word Jude (German for Jew) inscribed was then extended to all Jews over the age of 6 in the Reich and the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia (by a decree issued on September 1, 1941 signed by Reinhard Heydrich) and was gradually introduced in other German-occupied areas, where local words were used (e.g. Juif in French, Jood in Dutch). Jewish inmates in concentration camps were later forced to wear similar Nazi concentration camp badges.
According to Judaic sources, the Star or Shield of David signifies the number seven: that is, the six points plus the center. The earliest known Jewish text to directly mention the symbol is Eshkol Ha-Kofer by the Karaite Judah Hadassi, in the mid-12th century.
The number seven has religious significance in Judaism, e.g., the six days of Creation plus the seventh day of rest, the six working days in the week plus Shabbat, the Seven Spirits of God, as well as the Menorah in the ancient Temple, whose seven oil lamps rest on three stems branching from each side of a central pole. In Kabbalah, the Star of David symbolizes the six directions of space plus the center, under the influence of the description of space found in the Sefer Yetsira: Up, Down, East, West, South, North, and Center. Congruently, under the influence of the Zohar, it represents the Six Sefirot of the Male (Zeir Anpin) united with the Seventh Sefirot of the Female (Nekuva).
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| Seven oil lamps | The Star of David in the oldest surviving complete copy of the Masoretic text, the Leningrad Codex, dated 1008. |