Afikoman: The reason behind its name

Haggadah Section: Tzafun

Afikoman: The Reason For It’s Name According to Rashi, quoted in the The Shirat Miriam Haggadah by: Rabbi Yosef Zvi Rimon, Afikoman is obligatory because of the verse “On the evening you shall eat matzah.” What is the significance of the word Afikoman. What does it mean? We already know that afikoman is dessert, so while you're enjoying your dessert hear this lovely Dvar Torah written by me, which will explain the meaning of the word Afikoman We came up with answers. Even though each haggadah says that Afikoman means dessert they each have a different reason why. The first answer is from the the Shirat Miriam Haggadah. It says that Afikoman means take out the dessert because in Mishnah 119b it states that on the seder night there is no last course, because one does not eat after the Pesach sacrifice. Nowadays we used this term as a foreign word, as one is not allowed to eat after the matzah that is at the end of the meal. That is considered to be the last course and that's why the last matzah of the seder night is now referred to the afikoman. We found the second answer in the Little Midrash Says Haggada. It says that Afikoman is delivered from a Greek word meaning dessert. In the time of the בית המקדש, the “dessert” on Pesach night was the piece of meat of the korban Pesach. ``The Afikoman is a piece of matzah, that reminds us of the korban Pesach. Matzah is the key to a good seder. The third answer is from The Seder Night An Exalted Evening By: Rav Soloveitchik and edited by Rabbi Menachem D. Genack. It’s another commentary from Rashi. Rashi (Pesachim 119b) sees the Afikoman as the core fulfillment of the mitzvah of matzah. The fact that the bracha over the matzah is not recited on that portion, the Afikoman, is only a consequence is the fact that the bracha was recited earlier on the initial eating of the matzah. Rosh (Pesachim 10:34) sees the Afikoman as representing the Korban Pesach. The actual mitzvah of matzah is fulfilled with the initial eating of the matzah earlier in the evening.

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