The Last Secret Of The Temple (55 page)

Matmidim
(pl.)
Jewish scholars devoted to the study of the Talmud.

Matzah
Unleavened bread eaten by Jews during the Passover festival.

Mauristan
An area in the Christian Quarter of Jerusalem's Old City.

Mea Sharim
A suburb of Jerusalem, just north of the Old City.

Mendil
Headscarf worn by Palestinian women.

Mengele, Josef
Nazi doctor at Auschwitz. Nicknamed the Angel of Death. Escaped to South America after the war. Died in Brazil in 1979.

Menorah
A seven-branched candelabrum, one of the oldest symbols of Judaism and the emblem of the state of Israel.

Merenptah
Nineteenth Dynasty pharaoh, ruled
c.
1224–1214 BC.

Meshugina
Yiddish for 'crazy person'.

Mezuzah
A small box containing verses from the book of Deuteronomy attached to the doorpost of orthodox Jewish homes.

Midan Tahrir
Literally, 'Liberation Square'. The hub of modern Cairo.

Mishnah
The corpus of Jewish oral law, compiled in the second century AD.

Molochia
Green leafy plant similar to spinach.

Moser
Yiddish for betrayer or traitor.

Mount Moria
Site of the ancient Temple in Jerusalem, where Abraham was supposed to have almost sacrificed his son Isaac.

Mubarak, Hosni
President of Egypt since 1981.

Muezzin
Mosque official who summons the faithful to prayer five times daily.

Nebbish
Yiddish for someone who is weak-willed or timid.

Nemes
headdress
A type of headdress worn by ancient Egyptian pharaohs.

NGO
Non-government organization.

Occitane language
A French dialect, now largely defunct, used in the Languedoc region of southern France. The lingua franca of medieval troubadour poets.

Osiris
Ancient Egyptian god of the underworld.

Oslo Peace Accords
Set of peace proposals between Israelis and Palestinians, negotiated in secret in Oslo and signed in Washington in 1993.

Ostracon (pl. ostraca)
Piece of pottery or limestone bearing an image or text. Effectively the ancient equivalent of the modern-day doodling pad.

Palestinian Authority (PA)
Semi-autonomous Palestinian governing body with authority over the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Created by the Oslo Peace Accords (1993).

Pe'ot
(pl.)
Sidelocks worn by ultra-orthodox Jews.

Peace Now
Main Israeli peace movement. Founded 1978.

Pesah
Passover. Jewish festival commemorating the Exodus from Egypt.

Pilum
Spear or javelin used by Roman soldiers.

Protocols of Zion
Bogus document published in Russia in 1905 purporting to be a Jewish masterplan for world domination. Although it was subsequently proved to be a forgery, it has fuelled anti-semitism ever since.

Pylon
Massive entrance or gateway standing in front of a temple.

Qasr Dush
Site of an ancient Roman temple, near the oasis of Kharga.

Qubbat al-Sakhra
Arab term for the Dome of the Rock, the principal Islamic shrine in Jerusalem.

Quftan
Caftan. A long-sleeved cloak.

Qurei, Ahmed
Palestinian Prime Minister since 2003. Also known as Abu Ala. Born 1937.

Rafah
Palestinian town in the Gaza strip, near the Egyptian border. Scene in 2004 of a heavy-handed Israeli military operation that left many Palestinian civilians dead.

Rats
Foreman.

Rajoub, Jibril
Palestinian activist and politician. Born 1953.

Ramadan War
Arab name for the Yom Kippur war of 1973.

Ramesses II
Third pharaoh of the Nineteenth Dynasty. Ruled c. 1290–1224 BC. One of ancient Egypt's greatest pharaohs.

Ramesses III
Twentieth Dynasty pharaoh. Ruled
c.
1194–1163 BC. His mortuary temple at Medinet Habu is one of the most beautiful monuments in Egypt.

Ramesses VI
Twentieth Dynasty pharaoh. Ruled
c.
1151–1143 BC.

Ramesses IX
Twentieth Dynasty pharaoh. Ruled
c.
1112–1100 BC.

Ramesseum
Mortuary temple of Ramesses II, on the west bank of the Nile, at Luxor.

Rashi
Jewish scholar and commentator, lived AD 1040–1105. Real name Solomon ben Isaac.

Rek'ah
Prayer cycle.

Rodef
Hebrew for traitor.

Romema
A suburb of Jerusalem, in the north-west of the city.

Rosicrucians
An esoteric religious society. Its emblems are the rose and the cross.

Sabra
Nickname for a native Israeli. The
sabra
is a cactus plant and, like the cactus, Israelis are supposed to be prickly on the outside with a soft centre.

Sabra and Chatila
Palestinian refugee camps in West Beirut, scene of an infamous massacre in 1982. Although the atrocity was carried out by Lebanese Christian militiamen, Israel was considered complicit since its army controlled West Beirut at the time.

Saladin
Anglicized form of the name Salah al-Din. Great Muslim military leader. Lived AD 1138–1193.

Saqqara
Necropolis of the ancient Egyptian capital at Memphis. A vast desert burial ground covering almost seven square kilometres, including the famous Step Pyramid of Djoser, 20km south of Cairo.

Schal
Cloth shawl or wrap worn by Egyptian men.

Schlomo Artzi
Israeli musician.

Sephardee
A Jew of Spanish origin.

Seti I
Nineteenth Dynasty pharaoh, father of Ramesses II. Ruled
c.
1306–1290 BC.

Shaaban Abdel-Rehim
Egyptian musician.

Shabbat
Hebrew word for the Jewish Sabbath.

Shabti
Small mummiform figure, usually of wood or faience, placed in a tomb in order to perform tasks for the deceased in the afterlife.

Shaduf
A wooden hoist used to lift water from the Nile.

Shahada
Muslim profession of faith.

Shaheed
An Islamic martyr.

Sharon, Ariel
Controversial Israeli soldier and politician. Prime Minister of Israel since February 2001. Born 1928.

Shebab
Literally, 'youth'. Young Palestinians.

Shema
The central prayer of the Jewish faith, made up of three Biblical passages: Deuteronomy 6:4–9, Deuteronomy 11: 13–21, and Numbers 15: 37–41.

Shin Bet
Israel's internal security service. The equivalent of MI5 or the FBI.

Shisha
pipe
A water pipe. Smoked throughout the Middle East.

Shtetl
Yiddish for 'small town'. Term used for settlements in Eastern Europe with a mainly Jewish population.

Shtreimel
Large fur hat worn by ultra-orthodox Jews.

Shul
Yiddish word for a synagogue.

Shuma
A staff or walking stick.

Siga
An Egyptian board game, also known as
tab-es-siga.
Similar to draughts.

Simon Bar-Giora
One of the leaders of the Jewish revolt against Rome of AD 66–70. Executed after the fall of Jerusalem in AD 70.

Solomon
King of Israel in the tenth century BC. Son of David.

Soujuk
Traditional Armenian dish of spicy sausages.

Star of David
A six-pointed star, one of the primary symbols of Judaism. Known in Hebrew as the Magen David – The Shield of David.

Sura
A chapter of the Koran, the holy book of Islam. Each of the 114
suras
is divided into a number of
ayat,
or sections.

Table of the Shewbread
One of the holy objects in the ancient Temple of Jerusalem. It held the sacred bread used in temple services.

Tallit
A prayer shawl worn by Jews for worship.

Tallit katan
A shirt-like garment with fringes at each of its corners, worn by ultra-orthodox Jews beneath their everyday clothes.

Talmid Hakhamim
(pl.)
Literally, 'Disciples of the Wise'. Those devoted to the study of Jewish law.

Talmud
Collection of scholarly opinons and debates on Jewish law.

Tamar hindi
Refreshing drink made from dates.

Tarboosh
Fez.

Tarha
Cloth worn over the head by traditional Egyptian women.

Taybeh
A Palestinian beer.

Teffilah
(p1.
teffilin
)
Small box containing Biblical passages. Orthodox Jews bind these to their forehead and arm during certain types of prayer.

Tel el-Fara'in
Literally, 'Mound of the Pharaohs'. Archaeological site in northern Egypt.

Termous
Type of bean.

Theban massif
Range of hills on the west bank of the river Nile at Luxor.

Theban Triad
Amun, Mut and Khonsu. The three ancient Egyptian gods to whom Karnak was sacred.

Thobe
Embroidered dress or caftan worn by Palestinian women.

Tish B'Av
Literally, 'The ninth of Av', the date in the Jewish calendar when both the First and Second Temples were destroyed (by the Babylonians and Romans respectively). A time of great mourning for Jews.

Titus
Son of the Emperor Vespasian. Commander of the Roman army that conquered Jerusalem in AD 70. Ruled as emperor AD 79–81.

Torah
The central text of the Jewish faith, comprising the first five books of the Bible. Also referred to as the Pentateuch.

Torly
A traditional Egyptian casserole or stew.

Torshi
A mixture of pickled vegetables. Popular Egyptian snack.

Touria
Hoe.

Tuna el-Gebel
Archaeological site on the west bank of the Nile, near the town of Mallawi.

Tuthmosis II
Eighteenth Dynasty pharaoh. Ruled
c.
1492–1479 BC.

Umm ali
Cake soaked in milk, sugar, raisins and cinnamon. Popular Egyptian dessert.

Umm Kulthoum
Iconic female Egyptian singer. Lived
c.
1904–1975.

Ummah
The Muslim community.

'umra
A pilgrimage to Mecca. Unlike the more important Hajj pilgrimage, it can be made at any time of the year.

Vandals
Germanic tribe who sacked Rome in AD 455.

Vespasian
Roman Emperor AD 69–79.

Via Dolorosa
Literally, the 'Way of Sorrow'. The route through old Jerusalem that Christ supposedly followed on his way to the cross.

Wadi Biban el-Muluk
Literally, 'Valley of the Gates of the Kings'. Arab name for the Valley of the Kings.

Wadi Haifa
Town in northern Sudan. Site of many important archaeological remains from pharaonic times.

Ward-i-Nil
Literally, 'Nile flower'. Common Egyptian water plant.

Western Wall
The remains of the retaining wall of the ancient Temple in Jerusalem, the only part of the building left after the Romans destroyed it in AD 70. Also known as the Wailing Wall and, in Hebrew, the Kotel. The most holy site in the Jewish world.

Yad Vashem
Holocaust memorial and museum in Jerusalem.

Yahrzeit
The anniversary of the death of a relative or loved one.

Yansoon
Popular Egyptian aniseed drink.

Yarmulke
Skullcap worn by Jews during prayer. Orthodox Jews wear one all the time.

Yathrib
Original name of the Arab city of Medina.

Yediot Ahronot
Highest circulation Israeli daily newspaper.

Yehudi
(pl.
Yehudi-een
)
Jew.

Yeshiva
A Jewish religious school devoted to study of the Talmud.

Yutzim
(pl.)
Yiddish for fools, simpletons.

Yuya and Tjuyu
A noble couple, lived in the fourteenth century BC. Great-grandparents of Tutankhamun.

Za'atar
Aromatic Middle Eastern plant. From the mint family.

Zedakah
box
Charity box. A fixture in many Jewish homes.

Zemirot
(pl.)
Literally, 'Songs'. Psalms and hymns sung by Jews during worship.

Zonah
Whore (Hebrew).

I owe a debt of gratitude to a great many people for helping in the research and writing of this book, and what follows is, of necessity, but paltry recognition for the support and assistance they have given.

Huge thanks to my agent, Laura Susijn, for always being there in times of difficulty, and to Simon Taylor of Transworld, whose skills as an editor are matched only by his Herculean levels of patience in waiting for a manuscript to actually edit.

Rudi Eliott Lockhart, Emma Woolerton and Tessa Webber provided invaluable help with the medieval Latin translations; James Freeman did the same with ancient Latin and Greek.

For advice on the nuances of Palestinian Arabic a massive thank-you to Ghassan Kharian and Henrietta McMicking; likewise to my dear friend Mohsen Kamel for correcting my (woeful) Egyptian Arabic. For Hebrew transliterations I am beholden to Rabbi Warren Elf, a teacher in the finest traditions of Judaism.

In no particular order, but with equal gratitude to all, my thanks to Professor Dieter Lindenlaub, Rolf Herget, Gilad Atzmon, Dr Nick Reeves, Bromley Roberts, Nigel Topping, Xan Brooks, Andrew Rogerson, John Bannon, Charlie Smith, Marie-Louise Weighall and Sue and Stanley Sussman.

Finally, three special thank-yous. First, to the staff and officers of the David Police Station in Jerusalem, who were unfailingly kind, helpful and informative during the time I spent researching in Israel.

Secondly, to the many Palestinians who took the time to meet and talk with me, and give me an insight into their world. Because of the current political situation there was understandable nervousness about allowing their names to appear in print. They know who they are, and I will always be grateful.

Last, and most important of all, to my beautiful wife, without whose love, support and strength this book would never have been finished.