View source for Shofar

{{Short description|Wind instrument made from an animal horn}}
{{About||the academic journal|Shofar (journal)|the Shofar Organization|Amnon Yitzhak}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2025}}
[[File:Shofar-16-Zachi-Evenor.jpg|thumbnail|Shofar]]
[[File:Frank-oil-shofar (14088680963).jpg|thumbnail|Shofar]]
[[File:Blowing The Shofar on Rosh Hashanah (4974050267).jpg|thumbnail|Blowing the shofar.]]
A '''shofar''' ({{IPAc-en|ʃ|oʊ|ˈ|f|ɑr}}<ref>{{Cite OED|shofar|access-date=30 September 2024}}</ref> {{respell|shoh|FAR}}; from {{Script/Hebrew|שׁוֹפָר}}, {{IPA|he|ʃoˈfar|pron|Shofar.ogg}}) is an ancient musical [[Horn (instrument)|horn]], typically a [[Ram (sheep)|ram]]'s [[horn (anatomy)|horn]], used for [[Judaism|Jewish]] ritual purposes. Like the modern [[bugle]], the shofar lacks [[pitch (music)|pitch]]-altering devices, with all pitch control done by varying the player's [[embouchure]]. The shofar is blown in [[synagogue]] services on [[Rosh Hashanah]] and at the end of [[Yom Kippur]]; it is also blown every weekday morning in the month of [[Elul]] running up to Rosh Hashanah.<ref>{{cite web |title=Jewish prayer-book|url=http://cudl.lib.cam.ac.uk/view/MS-ADD-00662/127 |publisher=Cambridge Digital Library |access-date=25 September 2014}}</ref> Shofars come in a variety of sizes and shapes, depending on the choice of animal and level of finish.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Mitzva of Shofar - Jewish Tradition |url=https://yahadut.org/en/shabbat-and-festivals/rosh-ha-shana/the-mitzva-of-shofar/ |access-date=2024-09-02 |website=yahadut.org |date=19 August 2024 |language=en}}</ref>

== Bible and rabbinic literature ==
[[File:AlphonseLévy Shofar.jpg|left|thumb|Shofar (by {{ill|Alphonse Lévy|fr}} Caption says: "To a good year".]]
The shofar is mentioned frequently in the [[Hebrew Bible]], the [[Talmud]] and [[rabbinic literature]]. In the first instance, in {{bibleverse|Exodus|19|16}}, the blast of a shofar emanating from the thick cloud on [[Biblical Mount Sinai|Mount Sinai]] makes the [[Israelites]] tremble in awe.

The shofar was used to announce the new moon<ref name="Psalms 81:4">{{cite web |title=Psalms 81:4 |url=https://www.sefaria.org/Psalms.81.4?lang=bi&with=all&lang2=en |website=sefaria |publisher=JPS |access-date=September 18, 2025}}</ref> and the [[Jubilee (biblical)|Jubilee year]].<ref>Leviticus 25:9</ref> The first day of [[Tishrei]] (now known as [[Rosh Hashana]]) is termed a "memorial of blowing",<ref>{{langx|he|זכרון תרועה||zikron teruˁah}}, Leviticus 23:24</ref> or "day of blowing",<ref>{{langx|he|יום תרועה||yom teruˁah}}, Numbers 29:1</ref> the shofar. Shofars were used for signifying the start of a war.<ref>Joshua 6:4; Judges 3:27; 7:16, 20</ref> They were also employed in processions<ref>2 Samuel 6:15; 1 Chronicles 15:28</ref> as musical accompaniment,<ref>Psalm 98:6; compare Psalm 47:5</ref> and were inserted into the temple orchestra by [[David]].<ref>Psalm 150:3</ref> Note that the "trumpets" described in Numbers 10 are a different instrument, described by the Hebrew word for 'trumpet' ({{langx|he|חצוצרה|[[Chazozra|ḥaṣoṣrah]]}}), not {{transliteration|he|shofar}} ({{langx|he|שופר}}).<ref>Sidney B. Hoenig, "[https://www.jstor.org/stable/1453499 Origins of the Rosh Hashanah Liturgy]", ''The Jewish Quarterly Review'', New Series, Vol. 57, ''The Seventy-Fifth Anniversary Volume of the Jewish Quarterly Review'' (1967), pp.&nbsp;312–331. • Published by University of Pennsylvania Press. Accessed 31 December 2009</ref>

In the [[Temple in Jerusalem]], the shofar was sometimes used together with the [[trumpet]]. On Rosh Hashana, the principal ceremony was conducted with the shofar, with the instrument placed in the center with a trumpet on either side; it was the horn of a [[Nubian ibex|ibex]] (a type of wild goat) and straight in shape, being ornamented with gold at the [[mouthpiece (brass)|mouthpiece]]. On fast days, the principal ceremony was conducted with the trumpets in the center and with a shofar on either side. On those occasions, the shofarot were [[Domestic Sheep|rams']] horns curved in shape and ornamented with silver at the mouthpieces.<ref>Mishnah Rosh Hashana 3:3</ref>

On Yom Kippur of the [[Jubilee (Biblical)|jubilee year]], the ceremony was performed with the shofar as on New Year's Day.<ref>Mishnah Rosh Hashana 3:4</ref> Shofar first indicated in Yovel (Jubilee Year—Lev. 25:8–13). Indeed, in Rosh Hashanah 33b, the sages ask why the Shofar sounded in Jubilee year. Rosh Hashanah 29a indicates that in ordinary years both Shofars and trumpets are sounded but in the Jubilee Year only the Shofar blasts. The Rabbis created the practice of the Shofar's sounding every Yom Kippur rather than just on the Jubilee Year (once in 50 years).<ref>[https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/3061833/jewish/Why-Blow-Shofar-Following-Neilah-After-Yom-Kippur.htm blowing of the shofar at the end of yom kippur]</ref>

Otherwise, for all other special days, the Shofar is sounded shorter and two special silver Trumpets announced the sacrifice. When the trumpets sound the signal, all the people who were within the Temple complex prostrate themselves, stretching out flat, face down, and on the ground.{{citation needed|date=January 2020}}

The shofar was blown in the times of [[Joshua]] to help him capture [[Jericho]]. As they surrounded the walls, the shofar was blown and the Jews were able to capture the city.<ref>{{Bibleverse|Joshua|6|HE}}</ref> The shofar was commonly taken out to war so the troops would know when a battle would begin. The person who would blow the shofar would call out to the troops from atop a hill. All of the troops were able to hear the call of the shofar from their position because of its distinct sound.{{citation needed|date=February 2012}}

=== Post-Biblical times ===
[[File:Old Jerusalem Yochanan ben Zakai Synagogue Oil and Shofar for the Messiah.jpg|thumb|At Old Jerusalem's [[Rabban Yochanan ben Zakai Synagogue]], a flask of oil and a shofar await the [[Mashiach]].<ref>It has been said that when the Mashiach comes, the Sephardic community will be ready to anoint him and blow the shofar to announce his arrival. Legend has it there is a tunnel from under the Yohanan Ben Zakkai synagogue that leads directly to the [[Temple Mount]].</ref>]]

While the shofar is best known nowadays for its use on [[Rosh Hashana]], it also has a number of other ritual uses. It is blown each morning (and in some communities in the afternoon as well) during the month of [[Elul]],<ref>Kitzur Shulchan Aruch 128:2</ref> and to mark the end of the day of fasting on Yom Kippur, once the services have been completed in the evening.<ref>Kitzur Shulchan Aruch 133:26</ref>

In Talmudic times the shofar was also blown to introduce [[Shabbat]].<ref>[https://www.sefaria.org.il/Shabbat.35b.8?lang=bi&with=all&lang2=en Shabbat 35b]</ref> It was also used both to initiate and dissolve a [[Herem (censure)|Herem]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Brand |first1=Ezra |title=From Admonishment to Excommunication: The Talmudic Laws of Ostracism (Moed Katan 16a-b) - Pt.2 |url=https://www.ezrabrand.com/p/from-admonishment-to-excommunication-563 |website=ezrabrand.com/ |access-date=1 May 2024}}</ref>

At the inception of the [[Jewish diaspora|diaspora]], during the short-lived ban on playing musical instruments, the shofar was enhanced in its use, as a sign of mourning for the destruction of the temple. The declaration of the ban's source was in fact set to the music itself as the lamentation "Al Naharoth Bavel" within a few centuries of the ban. (A full orchestra played in the temple. The ban was so that this would not be taken for granted, hence the wording of the ban, "if I forget thee, O Jerusalem, over my chiefest joy...".){{citation needed|date=January 2020}} The shofar is generally no longer used for secular purposes (see a notable exception in a section [[#National liberation|further down]]).<ref>[[Judith Kaplan Eisenstein]], ''Heritage of Music'', New York: UAHC, 1972, pp.&nbsp;44–45.</ref>

[[Halakha]] (Jewish law) rules that the Rosh Hashana shofar blasts may not be sounded on Shabbat, due to the potential that the {{transliteration|he|ba'al tekiah}} (shofar sounder) may inadvertently carry it, which is in a [[39 Melakhot|class of forbidden Shabbat work]].<ref>Rosh Hashanah 29b</ref> Some explain this prohibition as stemming from the spiritual effects of the shofar which are matched by the spiritual energy of Shabbat, making Shofar blowing unnecessary<ref>{{cite web |title=Why we don't blow the Shofar on Shabbat |url=https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/988699/jewish/Why-No-Shofar-on-Shabbat.htm |website=Chabad.org |access-date=September 21, 2025}}</ref>{{better source needed|date=October 2025}}. Originally, the shofar was sounded on Shabbat in the [[Temple in Jerusalem]]. After the temple's destruction, the sounding of the shofar on Shabbat was restricted to the place where the great [[Sanhedrin]] was located. However, when the Sanhedrin ceased to exist, the sounding of the shofar on Shabbat was discontinued.<ref>Kieval, ''The High Holy Days'', p.&nbsp;114</ref>

=== Mitzvah ===
[[File:Flickr - Government Press Office (GPO) - “Slichot” Prayer (2).jpg|thumb|right|Jewish "[[Slichot]]" prayer service with shofar during the Days of Repentance preceding [[Yom Kippur]] at the [[Western Wall]] in Jerusalem's Old City, 2008.]]
The Sages indicated that the [[mitzvah]] was to hear the sounds of the shofar. The sages received the tradition to derive from the three times the blowing of the Shofar is mentioned in the Torah in association with the high holidays, that the Shofar must be sounded three times. Customarily, each complex sound would be preceeded and succeeded by a simple, straight sound, totalling nine sounds. Due to confusion whether the main complex sound was a series of three shortened sounds, nine staccato blast, or possibly a combination of both, all three were formed into independent series of 9, 9, and 12 sounds respectively. This is the main obligation of Shofar on Rosh Hashanah.<ref>{{cite web |title=Breakdown of the 100 blasts |url=https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/746659/jewish/Why-do-we-blow-the-shofar-so-many-times.htm |website=Chabad.org |access-date=September 21, 2025}}</ref>{{better source needed|date=October 2025}}

There are many reasons cited for this Mitzvah. the most famous list was compiled by the medieval sage [[Saadia Gaon]], cited in [[David Abudarham|Abudraham]].<ref>Abudraham, Rosh Hashanah, Tekiat Shofar, sec. 15</ref>

# 
# To remind us of the creation of the world
# to remind us of the beginning of the new year
# to remind us of the Mt. Sinai experience
# to remind us of the inspiring words of the prophets
# to remind us of the destruction of the Holy Temple
# to remind us of the Binding of Isaac.
# to arouse in us fear and awe of G‑d Al-mighty
# to arouse in us fear and awe for the Day of Judgment
# to arouse our belief in the future ingathering of the exiles and ultimate redemption of Mashiach, and inspire our yearning for it
# to arouse our belief in the future Resurrection of the Dead.<ref>{{cite web |title=10 reasons for blowing the shofar |url=https://www.chabad.org/kabbalah/article_cdo/aid/380098/jewish/Why-Do-We-Blow-the-Shofar.htm |website=Chabad.org |access-date=September 21, 2025}}</ref>{{better source needed|date=October 2025}}

If a shofar was blown into a pit or cave, one fulfilled the mitzvah if they heard the original sound, but not if they heard the echo.<ref>[[Mishnah]] Rosh Hashanah 3:5; [[Mishnah Berurah]] 587:1–3</ref> Thus, most modern halakhic authorities hold that hearing a shofar on the radio or the Internet would not be valid to satisfy the mitzvah because "electronically reproduced sounds do not suffice for mitzvot that require hearing a specific natural sound.... However, one should consult a competent rabbi if an unusually pressing situation arises, as some authorities believe that performing mitzvot through electronically reproduced sound is preferable to not performing them at all."<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20080511204358/http://www.yasharbooks.com/grayexcerpt2.pdf "Fulfilling Mitzvot Through Electronic Hearing Devices"], Chaim Jachter and Ezra Frazer, [https://web.archive.org/web/20110927155806/http://www.yasharbooks.com/Gray.html Gray Matter volume 2] pp.&nbsp;237–244. {{ISBN|1-933143-10-X}}</ref>

According to [[halakha|Jewish law]] women and minors are exempt from the commandment of hearing the shofar blown (as is the case with any positive, time-bound commandment), but they are encouraged to attend the ceremony.

If the {{transliteration|he|ba'al tekiah}} (shofar sounder) blows with the intention that all who hear will perform the mitzvah, then anyone listening—even someone passing by—who intends to hear the Shofar can perform the mitzvah because the community blower blows for everybody. If the listener stands still, it is presumed he intends to hear.<ref>Mishnah Berurah 590:9</ref> If one hears the blast but with no intention of fulfilling the mitzvah, then the mitzvah has not been fulfilled.

=== Qualifications ===
[[File:Shofar for the Sabbath from the Matson Collection, ca. 1934-39 (LOC).jpg|thumbnail|Yemenite Jew blowing the shofar, late 1930s.]]
The expert who blows (or "blasts" or "sounds") the shofar is termed the {{transliteration|he|ba'al tokeah}} or {{transliteration|he|ba'al tekiah}} (lit. "master of the blast"). Being a {{transliteration|he|ba'al tekiah}} is an honor. Every male Jew is eligible for this sacred office, providing he is acceptable to the congregation. The one who blows the shofar on Rosh Hashanah should be learned in the Torah and shall be God-fearing.

The Shulchan Aruch discusses who is fit to blow the shofar on behalf of a congregation:
* Anyone not obligated to fulfill the mitzvah of sounding the shofar cannot fulfill the commandment for (cover) another whose duty it is to perform the mitzvah.
* Although a woman (who is exempt from this mitzvah because it is time-bound) may not blow the shofar for men (whose duty it is to perform the mitzvah), a woman may intone the shofar for herself and other women.<ref name=SAWomen>Shulchan Aruch 589:6.</ref> The Halakhic authorities debate whether a woman may recite a blessing on commandments that they are not commanded to perform; generally, Ashkenazic women recite a blessing and Sephardic women do not.<ref name=SAWomen />
* Only a freeman (not even a slave who will become free in the next month) can be a Ba'al Tekiah.<ref>Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim 589:1–6</ref>

== Shape and material ==
[[File:Anatomy and physiology of animals A horn.jpg|thumb|Cross section of an animal's horn. To make a shofar, the bone (crosshatches) and fleshy sheath (white) are removed, leaving the actual horn.]]

=== Choice of animal ===
According to the Talmud, a shofar may be made from the horn of any animal from the [[Bovidae]] family except that of a cow,<ref>Rosh Hashanah, 26a. Although [[Maimonides]] ruled differently ([[Mishneh Torah]] ''Hilchot Shofar'' 1:1: "…the ''shofar'' with which they make the blast, whether on [[Rosh Hashanah]] or the [[Yovel]], is the curved horn of sheep. Now all [other] horns are invalid, except the horn of a sheep…"), the custom of Israel was to make use of other horns, and not only that of the ram (the male sheep). Some would use the horn of the wild goat (''Walia ibex'') on [[Rosh Hashanah]], while others made use of the long, spiraling horn of the [[Greater kudu|kudu antelope]] because of its deep, reverberating sound. Compare the teaching of Rabbi Isaac b. Judah ibn Giat, who wrote: "All shofars are valid, excepting that of a cow since it is a [solid] horn. Said Rabbi Levi: 'The shofar of ''Rosh Hashanah'' and of ''Yom Kippurim'' are curved, while those of the entire year are straight, and thus is the Halacha.' Why is it that they blow with a shofar of a ram on ''Rosh Hashanah''? Said the Holy One, blessed be He: 'Blow before me the shofar of a ram so that I might remember on your behalf the binding of Isaac the son of Abraham, and I impute it over you as if you had bound yourselves before me.'..." (Rabbi Isaac ibn Giat, ''Sefer Shaarei Simchah (Me'ah She'arim)'', vol. 1, Firta 1861, p. 32 [Hebrew])</ref> although a ram is preferable.<ref>Mishnah Berurah 586:1</ref> Bovidae horns are made of a layer of [[keratin]] (the same material as human toenails and fingernails) around a core of bone, with a layer of cartilage in between, which can be removed to leave the hollow keratin horn. An [[antler]], on the other hand, is made of solid bone, so an antler cannot be used as a shofar because it cannot be hollowed out.

There is no requirement for ritual slaughter ([[shechita]]). Theoretically, the horn can come from a non-kosher animal, because under most (but not all) interpretations of Jewish law, the shofar is not required to be {{transliteration|he|muttar be-fikha}} ('permissible in your mouth'); the [[mitzvah]] is hearing the shofar, not eating the animal it came from.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Navon|first1=Mois|title=The Ḥillazon and the Principle of "Muttar be-Fikha"|journal=The Torah U-Madda Journal|date=2001|volume=10/2001|pages=142–162|url=http://www.yutorah.org/_shiurim/%2FTU10_Navon.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050520051450/http://www.yutorah.org/_shiurim/%2FTU10%5FNavon%2Epdf |archive-date=2005-05-20 |url-status=live|access-date=15 June 2016}} ''see pages 147-148 ff''.</ref> The shofar falls into the category of {{transliteration|he|tashmishei mitzvah}} – objects used to perform a mitzvah that do not themselves have inherent holiness.<ref>Megillah 26b</ref> Moreover, because horn is always inedible, it is considered {{transliteration|he|afra be-alma}} ('mere dust') and not a non-kosher substance.<ref>Avot 67b</ref>

The Elef Hamagen (586:5) delineates the order of preference: 1) curved ram; 2) curved other sheep; 3) curved other animal; 4) straight—ram or otherwise; 5) non-kosher animal; 6) cow. The first four categories are used with a ''bracha'' (blessing), the fifth without a ''bracha'', and the last, not at all.<ref>''Elef Hamagen'', Rabbi Shemarya Hakreti, edited by Aharon Erand, Jerusalem: Mekitzei Nirdamim, 2003</ref>
<gallery widths="250" heights="200">
File:2005 04 27 1582 Dall Sheep.jpg|A [[Dall sheep]] with horns.
File:Greater Kudu, Etosha National Park, Namibia 2.jpg|[[Greater kudu]], Namibia.
</gallery>

=== Construction ===
In practice, two species are generally used: the [[Ashkenazi]] and [[Sefardi]] shofar is made from the horn of a domestic [[sheep|ram]], while a [[Yemenite Jews|Yemeni]] shofar is made from the horn of a [[Greater kudu|kudu]]. A Moroccan shofar is flat, with a single, broad curve. A crack or hole in the shofar affecting the sound renders it unfit for ceremonial use. A shofar may not be painted in colors, but it may be carved with artistic designs.<ref>[[Shulkhan Arukh]], [[Orach Chayim]] 586:17</ref> Shofars (especially the Sephardi shofars) are sometimes plated with silver across part of their length for artistic display purposes, although this invalidates them for use in religious ritual practices.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Silver Shofars |url=https://www.judaicawebstore.com/Silver-Shofars.aspx |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250115151509/https://www.judaicawebstore.com/Silver-Shofars.aspx |archive-date=January 15, 2025 |access-date=July 1, 2025 |publisher=JudaicaWebstore.com}}</ref>

The horn is flattened and shaped by the application of heat, which softens it. A hole is made from the tip of the horn to the natural hollow inside. It is played much like a European [[brass instrument]], with the player blowing through the hole while buzzing the lips, causing the air column inside to vibrate. [[Sephardi]] shofars do usually have a carved mouthpiece resembling that of a European [[trumpet]] or [[French horn]], but smaller. Ashkenazi shofars do not.

Because the hollow of the shofar is irregular in shape, the [[harmonic]]s obtained when playing the instrument can vary: rather than a pure perfect fifth, [[interval (music)|intervals]] as narrow as a fourth, or as wide as a sixth may be produced.
<gallery widths="250" heights="200">
File:Liten askenasisk sjofar 5380.jpg|A small shofar made from a [[Sheep|ram]]'s horn.
File:Jemenittisk sjofar av kuduhorn.jpg|A shofar made from the horn of a [[greater kudu]].
File:Shofar.JPG|A small shofar made from a ram's horn.
</gallery>

== Use in modern Jewish prayer ==
{{Main|Shofar blowing}}
The shofar is used mainly on [[Rosh Hashanah]]. It is customary to blow the shofar 100 or 101 times on each day of [[Rosh Hashanah]]; however, as mentioned, the main obligation is 30 sounds. The remaining seventy consist of 60 during the Mussaf prayer broken down into ten after each of three main themes of the Rosh Hashanah services; crowning God as king, beseeching God to remember us, and bringing up the theme of Shofar blasts from different places in the Bible, and repeated during the repetition of the Mussaf prayer. The last 10 are added after the Mussaf prayer, totalling 100 blasts. The various types of blast are known as ''tekiah'', ''shevarim'', and ''teruah''. The 30 required blasts consist of the sequences ''tekiah''-''shevarim''-''teruah''-''tekiah'', ''tekiah''-''shevarim''-''tekiah'', ''tekiah''-''teruah''-''tekiah'', each sequence repeated three times.

The shofar is also blown in synagogue at the conclusion of [[Yom Kippur]]. Some only blow a ''tekiah gedolah''; others blow ''tekiah''-''shevarim''-''teruah''-''tekiah''.

Because of its inherent ties to the Days of Repentance and the inspiration that comes along with hearing its piercing blasts, the shofar is also blown after weekday morning services (in some communities, also at weekday afternoon services) for the entire month of [[Elul]], the last month of the Jewish civil year, preceding Rosh Hashana. It is not blown on the last day of Elul (in some communities, the last 3 days of Elul), however, to mark the difference between the voluntary blasts of the month and the mandatory blasts of Rosh Hashana. Shofar blasts are also used in some communities during penitential rituals such as [[Yom Kippur Katan]] and optional prayer services called during times of communal distress. The exact modes of sounding can vary from location to location.

In an effort to improve the skills of shofar blowers, an International Day of Shofar Study is observed on [[Rosh Chodesh Elul]], the start of the month preceding Rosh Hashanah.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.shofarcorps.org/ |title=International Day of Shofar Study |access-date=24 June 2011 |archive-date=5 April 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160405052351/https://shofarcorps.org/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>
<gallery widths="250" heights="200">
File:Haredi man blowing a Shofar.jpg|A Jewish [[Haredi]] man blowing a Shofar, 2012.
File:Hasid-Uman (6).JPG|Hasidic Jew, blowing the kudu shofar in [[Uman]], Ukraine, 2010.
File:Flickr - Government Press Office (GPO) - Blowing the Shofar at the Western Wall.jpg|A Jewish [[Israel]]i man blows the shofar at the [[Western Wall]], [[Jerusalem]].
File:Schofar Decke.jpg|alt=Linen schofar cover from the 20th century, in the collection of the Jewish Museum of Switzerland.|Linen schofar cover from the 20th century, in the collection of the [[Jewish Museum of Switzerland]].  
</gallery>

== Shofar campaign ==
{{main|Chabad mitzvah campaigns}}

The Public Shofar Campaign is a [[Chabad|Chabad-Lubavitch]] innovation launched by [[Menachem Mendel Schneerson|the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson]], in 1953, just prior to Rosh Hashanah of that year (September 10). It was introduced as the first [[Chabad mitzvah campaigns|public mitzvah campaign]] designed to bring Jewish observance to individuals "wherever they are". The campaign served as a pilot program and a forerunner for subsequent mitzvah campaigns.

The campaign began on the streets of Brooklyn, N.Y., led by young rabbinical students from the Lubavitcher [[yeshiva]]. These students visited street corners, parks, and Jewish stores throughout Brooklyn. The primary early focus was ensuring those who could not attend synagogue had the opportunity to hear the shofar, especially patients in hospitals like St. John’s and Kings County Hospital.

While initially informal, the campaign came under the aegis of the [[Chabad affiliated organizations|Lubavitch Youth Organization]] of New York after its founding in 1955. Beginning in the late 1950s, the practice spread globally, carried by guests from Israel and around the world traveling to New York. The campaign was subsequently brought to Israel, Miami Beach, Detroit, and Milan. By the early 1970s, Chabad in California was bringing the Shofar Campaign to 15 hospitals. Local Chicago efforts began around 1967 in Skokie, eventually expanding to serve both hospital patients and the homebound. This effort spread beyond adherents of the Chabad movement with young men from other Jewish communities taking to the streets to help out other Jews.

In 1975, the Rebbe expanded the campaign to include the entire month of Elul. Furthermore, he emphasized reaching isolated soldiers (including the Israeli military) and Jews incarcerated in correctional facilities, leading to prisons like Sing Sing and the Federal Correctional Complex at Allenwood, Pa., being added to the itinerary. Today, the Shofar Campaign continues to operate in public parks, prisons, nursing homes, hospitals, and on intersections globally, including Jerusalem, Moscow, Los Angeles, and Brooklyn. In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the practice proved crucial, with Chabad organizing extensive public shofar events, such as 22 street corner blowings in Skokie, Illinois, and several more in other areas of Chicago, such as Rogers park and Lakeview.<ref>{{cite web |title=70 years of the Shofar campaign |url=https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/5642668/jewish/70-Years-of-Bringing-Shofar-to-the-Streets.htm |website=chabad.org |access-date=September 21, 2025}}</ref>{{better source needed|date=October 2025}}

== Non-religious usage ==
=== National liberation ===
[[File:Six Day War. Army chief chaplain rabbi Shlomo Goren, who is surrounded by IDF soldiers, blows the shofar in front of the western wall in Jerusalem. June 1967. D327-043.jpg|thumb|[[Shlomo Goren]] blowing the shofar in front of the Western Wall, June 1967.]]
During the [[Mutasarrifate of Jerusalem|Ottoman]] and the [[Mandatory Palestine|British rule]] of [[Jerusalem]], Jews were not allowed to sound the shofar at the [[Western Wall]].{{Citation needed|date=May 2025}} After the [[Six-Day War]], Rabbi [[Shlomo Goren]] famously approached the Wall and sounded the shofar. This fact inspired [[Naomi Shemer]] to add an additional line to her song "[[Jerusalem of Gold]]", saying, "a shofar calls out from the Temple Mount in the Old City."<ref>[http://www.jerusalemofgold.co.il/ Jerusalem of Gold] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/19991129052748/http://www.jerusalemofgold.co.il/ |date=29 November 1999}} accessed 9 December 2008</ref>

The Shofar has been sounded as a sign of victory and celebration. Jewish elders were photographed blowing multiple shofars after hearing that the Nazis surrendered on 8 May 1945. The shofar has played a major role in the pro-Israel movement and often played in the [[Salute to Israel Parade]] and other pro-Israel demonstrations.

In the inauguration ceremony of the [[President of Israel]], a shofar is blown once the President has been sworn in, followed by a call of "Long live the President".<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/isaac-herzog-officially-sworn-in-as-israels-eleventh-president/|title=Isaac Herzog sworn in as Israel's eleventh president|website=The Times of Israel |date=7 July 2021 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://news.walla.co.il/item/3446564|title = הרצוג הושבע לנשיא ה-11 של ישראל: "הפצעים שנפערו בחברה שותתי דם. עלינו להתחיל לתקן" - וואלה! חדשות|date = 7 July 2021}}</ref>

=== American political use ===
An American group called Shofar Army, described by outsiders as [[Christian nationalism#United States|Christian nationalists]], have adopted the use of the shofar into their activities.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Clarkson |first1=Frederick |title=He's on a mission from God: Pennsylvania GOP candidate Doug Mastriano's war with the world |url=https://www.salon.com/2022/07/04/hes-on-a-mission-from-god-pennsylvania-candidate-doug-mastrianos-with-the-world/ |website=Salon |access-date=6 July 2022 |date=4 July 2022}}</ref>

=== Non-religious musical usage ===
[[File:PikiWiki Israel 4104 Shlomo Bar.JPG|thumb|A musician blows the shofar during a performance by [[Shlomo Bar]], 2009.]]

In pop music, the shofar is used by the Israeli [[Oriental metal]] band [[Salem (Israeli band)|Salem]] in their adaptation of "''Al Taster''" ([[Psalm 27]]). The late trumpeter [[Lester Bowie]] played a shofar with the [[Art Ensemble of Chicago]]. In the film version of the musical ''[[Godspell (film)|Godspell]]'', the first act opens with cast member [[David Haskell]] blowing the shofar. In his performances, Israeli composer and singer [[Shlomo Gronich]] uses the shofar to produce a wide range of notes.<ref>[http://www.abrahamfund.org/main/siteNew/index.php?page=129&action=sidLink&stId=1131 The Abraham Fund Initiatives: Press Clips – Crossing the Middle Eastern Tightrope<!-- Bot generated title -->] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110609190823/http://www.abrahamfund.org/main/siteNew/index.php?page=129&action=sidLink&stId=1131 |date=9 June 2011 }}</ref> Since 1988, Rome-based American composer [[Alvin Curran]]'s project ''Shofar'' features the shofar as a virtuoso solo instrument and in combination with sets of natural and electronic sounds. [[Madonna (entertainer)|Madonna]] used a shofar played by [[Yitzhak Sinwani]] on the [[Confessions Tour]] and the album ''[[Confessions on a Dance Floor]]'' for the song "Isaac", based on [[Im Nin'alu]]. In 2003, The [[Howard Stern Show]] featured a contest called "Blow the Shofar", which asked callers to correctly identify popular songs played on the shofar. Additionally, Stern Show writer [[List of The Howard Stern Show staff#Benjy Bronk|Benjy Bronk]] has repeatedly used a shofar in his antics.<ref>[https://forward.com/culture/music/431948/from-the-planet-of-the-apes-to-the-music-of-madonna-7-surprising-ways/ From ‘Star Wars’ To Madonna: 7 Times Shofars Showed Up Outside Shul]</ref> The shofar is sometimes used in [[European classical music|Western classical music]]. [[Edward Elgar]]'s [[oratorio]] ''[[The Apostles (Elgar)|The Apostles]]'' includes the sound of a shofar, although other instruments, such as the [[flugelhorn]], are usually used instead.

The shofar has been used in a number of films, both as a sound effect and as part of musical underscores. [[Elmer Bernstein]] incorporated the shofar into several cues for his score for [[Cecil B. DeMille]]'s ''[[The Ten Commandments (1956 film)|The Ten Commandments]]''; one of the shofar calls recorded by Bernstein was later reused by the sound editors for ''[[Return of the Jedi]]'' for the Ewoks' horn calls.{{citation needed|date=November 2021}} [[Jerry Goldsmith]]'s scores to the films ''[[Alien (film)|Alien]]'' and ''Planet of the Apes'' also incorporate the shofar in their orchestration.

== See also ==
* [[Adhan]], the Islamic call to prayer
* [[Church bells]]
* [[Conch (instrument)]]
* [[Erkencho]]
* [[Shankha]]
* [[Shofar blowing]]
* [[Bukkehorn]]

== Notes ==
{{Reflist}}

== References ==
* Arthur L. Finkle, ''Easy Guide to Shofar Sounding'', Los Angeles: Torah Aura, 2003
* ''[http://hearingshofar.blogspot.com Hearing Shofar: The Still Small Voice of the Ram's Horn]'' by Michael T. Chusid, a three volume compendium of shofar information.

== Further reading ==
* Arthur l. Finkle, {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091026132651/http://geocities.com/afinkle221 |date=26 October 2009 |title=Shofar Sounders Reference Manual }}, LA: Torah Aura, 1993
* Montagu, Jeremy. 2016. ''The Shofar: Its History and Usage.'' Rowman and Littlefield Publishers.

== External links ==
* {{Commons category-inline|Shofars}}
* {{Cite EB1911|wstitle=Shofar}}
* [http://www.shulchanarach.com/ ''Shulkhan Arukh''] limited English translation includes Rosh Hashanah chapters 585–590 regarding the shofar.
* [http://blog.ideesamkeit.de/schofar-das-signalhorn-gottes/ ''Shofar sounds''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190121064811/http://blog.ideesamkeit.de/schofar-das-signalhorn-gottes/ |date=21 January 2019 }} several videos with shofar sounds and explanations.
* [http://biblicaltrumpets.org/''biblicaltrumpets.org''] - A research site on the use of trumpets in both Old and New Testament.
* [https://judaica101.ajudaica.com/origin-of-the-shofar/ The origins of the Shofar]  - Ajudaica 101.
* [https://www.yadvashem.org/yv/en/exhibitions/rosh_hashana/shofar_terezin.asp A Shofar Blast in the Ghetto] of [[Theresienstadt Ghetto|Terezin]], [[Yad Vashem]] website.
* [https://www.yadvashem.org/yv/en/exhibitions/live_with_honor/shofar.asp Shofar in a forced labor camp] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220105095650/https://www.yadvashem.org/yv/en/exhibitions/live_with_honor/shofar.asp |date=5 January 2022 }} in [[Skarzysko-Kamienna]] during the [[Holocaust]], Yad Vashem website.

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