Prayer and Blessings

What is the origin of the word "daven"? It may be derived from the Latin "divinare"; the Oxford English Dictionary has a quotation in which "divine" refers to "sacred song". Another possibility is that it derives from the Arabic "diwan",…

What is the origin of Tachanun? Basically, Tachanun is a prayer said by an individual after the Shemoneh Esreh. Such a prayer was known in Talmudic times, when it was called “nefilas apayim” because it was said lying face down.…