A male (bar = son) who is required to keep the religious imperatives, or commandments (mitzvah = commandment, plural, mitzvot), of the Torah. Entry into this age of responsibility is at thirteen years. A male who is a bar mitzvah and so responsible for...

A female (bat = daughter) who is responsible for keeping the religious imperatives, or commandments (mitzvah = commandment, plural, mitzvot), of the Torah. In classical Judaism, entry into this age of responsibility for a girl was at twelve years; in...

In Judaism, Bat Mitzvah (Hebrew: בר מצוה, "one (m.) to whom the commandments apply") and Bat Mitzvah (בת מצוה, "one (f.) to whom the commandments apply," or Bas Mitzvah in Ashkenazi pronunciation), are the terms to describe the coming of age...