Maimona (redirected from Maimuna)

Maimona (Maimuna)

Between March 28 and April 25; day after Passover

Jews in North Africa commemorate the philosopher and rabbi, Moses Maimonides (1135 or 1138-1204), on the evening of the last day of Passover and the day that follows. Since the news of Maimonides's death in 1204 reached many Jews during Passover, they were not able to mourn his passing, as custom would normally dictate, by eating bread and an egg. So they postponed it until the following day.
In Libya on this day, each family member receives the maimona (from an Arabic word meaning "good fortune")—a small loaf of bread with an egg baked inside, which they eat with slices of lamb.
In Morocco, people dress up or wear costumes. Special displays of food are arranged on tables, including pitchers of milk and bowls of flour with eggs, broad green beans, stalks of wheat, and dates. Surrounding the bowls are honey, fruit, nuts, cookies, lettuce, wine, and a type of pancake known as muflita . After going to the synagogue, people stop to bless their friends and sample the refreshments at each home. A lettuce leaf, representing prosperous crops, is dipped in honey, symbolizing sweetness, and given to each guest. Wherever possible, people dip their feet in streams, rivers, or the sea.

SOURCES:
DictWrldRel-1989, p. 494
FolkWrldHol-1999, p. 287