“Bar mitzvah” is the Hebrew-derived term for a Jewish boy who has reached religious majority.
The expression literally means “son of the commandment,” combining bar, “son” in Aramaic, with mitzvah, “commandment.” In traditional Jewish law, a boy becomes obligated to observe the commandments at age 13, regardless of whether a public ceremony is held. The celebration commonly associated with that transition developed as a communal expression of the new status.
A bar mitzvah may include an aliyah, in which the celebrant is called to the Torah, and may also involve chanting a Torah portion, reading the Haftarah, or delivering a teaching. Exact customs differ between Orthodox, Conservative, Reform, and other Jewish communities.
The term can refer either to the individual or to the event. “Bar mitzvah” should not be confused with brit milah, the Jewish circumcision ceremony traditionally performed for a baby boy.