Torah (תּוֹרָה) is a Hebrew word meaning "teaching," "instruction," or "law". It is the central and most important document of Judaism revered by Jews through the ages. It is also very important to Christians, as it constitutes part of their bibles. It is written in Hebrew, the oldest Jewish language. It is also called the Law of Moses (Torat Moshe תּוֹרַת־מֹשֶׁה). Torah primarily refers to the first section of the Tanakh–the first five books of the Tanach. The term is sometimes also used in the general sense to also include both Judaism's written law and oral law, encompassing the entire spectrum of authoritative Jewish religious teachings throughout history, including the Mishnah, the Talmud, the Midrash, and more.
The five books and their names and pronunciations in the original Hebrew are as follows:
- Genesis (בראשית, Bereshit: "In the beginning...")
- Exodus (שמות, Shemot: "Names")
- Leviticus (ויקרא, Vayyiqra: "And he called...")
- Numbers (במדבר, Bammidbar: "In the desert...")
- Deuteronomy (דברים, Devarim: "Words", or "Discourses")
The Hebrew names are taken from initial words within the first verse of each book. See, for example, Genesis 1:1.