thumb|a machzor the mahzor (alternately machzor, plural mahzorim, hebrew ×××××¨,  and , respectively) is the prayer book used by jews on the high holidays of rosh hashanah and yom kippur. many jews also make use of specialized mahzorim on the three "pilgrimage festivals" of passover, shavuot, and sukkot. the prayer book is a specialized form of the siddur, which is generally intended for use in weekday and shabbat services. the word mahzor means "cycle" (the root Ä¦-z-r means "to return"). it is applied to the festival prayer book because the festivals recur annually. ==origins and peculiarities== some of the earliest formal jewish prayerbooks date from the 10th century; they contain a set order of daily prayers. however, due to the many liturgical differences between the ordinary, day-to-day services and holiday services, the need for a specialized variation of the siddur was recognized by some of the earliest rabbinic authorities, and consequently, the first mahzorim were written incorporating these liturgical variations and additions. the mahzor contains not only the basic liturgy, but also many piyyutim, which are liturgical poems specific to the holiday for which the mahzor is intended. many of the prayers in the machzor, including those said daily or weekly on the sabbath, have special melodies sung only on the holidays. most mahzorim contain only text and no musical notation; the melodies, some of which are ancient, have been passed down orally. ==popular versions== * koren sacks mahzor series â a growing body of hebrew-english holiday prayer books that fuses the translation and commentary of chief rabbi jonathan sacks with the unique design and layout of koren publishers jerusalem. the liturgy includes a modern english translation and features prayers for the state of israel, israelâs defense forces, welfare of the government and the safety of the american military forces. the koren sacks rosh hashana mahzor was released in 2011 and was named a 2011 national jewish book award finalist by the jewish book council.the jewish book council. jewishbookcouncil.org. retrieved on 2013-21-03. the koren sacks yom kippur mahzor was released in 2012 and the koren sacks pesah mahzor was released in march 2013. the jewish press calls the introduction to the koren sacks pesah mahzor "a thematic and theological entree to the very essence of passover."the jewish press. thejewishpress.com. retrieved on 2013-21-03. * artscroll machzor - very popular mahzo
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