The Mimouna and its festivities are celebrated by Israel’s Moroccan Jewish community immediately following the conclusion of Passover.
The community opens its doors to all who may decide to enter with warm hospitality and the entire following day is spent in celebration of friendship and peace. Tables are set with special foods and festive costumes are worn. Tents are pitched, and picnics are enjoyed.
The word Mimouna, which contains the Hebrew word, Emunah, faith, and its celebration, can be traced to the anniversary of the death of Rav Maimon, the father of Maimonides.
Modern Israel has seen different ethnic communities continue to observe rites and celebrations that became a tradition of their own diaspora.
Some better-known celebrations include the afore mentioned Mimouna, unique to Moroccan Jewry, on the day after Passover, celebrating the renewal of nature and its blessings; and the Saharana of Kurdish Jewry, after Sukkot, which was the national holiday of the Jews in Kurdistan.
Another event is the Sigd holiday of the Ethiopian Jewish community, in mid-November, a celebration which began in Ethiopia, expressing their yearning for Zion, and continues in Israel today as an expression of their thankfulness