Yeshiva

Yeshiva (Hebrew: ישיבה‎, lit. "sitting"; pl. ישיבות, yeshivot) is a Jewish educational institution that focuses on the study of traditional religious texts, primarily the Talmud and Torah study. Study is usually done through daily shiurim (lectures or classes) and in study pairs called chavrutas (Aramaic for "friendship" or "companionship"). Chavruta-style learning is one of the unique features of the yeshiva.

In the United States and Israel, the different levels of yeshiva education have different names. In the United States, elementary-school students are enrolled in a yeshiva, post-bar mitzvah-age students learn in a mesivta, and undergraduate-level students learn in a beis medrash or yeshiva gedola (Hebrew: ישיבה גדולה‎, lit. "large yeshiva"). In Israel, elementary-school students are enrolled in a Talmud Torah or cheder, post-bar mitzvah-age students learn in a yeshiva ketana (Hebrew: ישיבה קטנה‎, lit. "small yeshiva"), and high-school-age students learn in a yeshiva gedola. A kollel is a yeshiva for married men which pays stipends to its students. Students of Lithuanian and Hasidic yeshiva gedolas usually learn there for at least a year after marriage.

Historically, yeshivas were attended by males only. Today, all non-Orthodox and many Modern Orthodox yeshivas are open to girls and women.