Amirim Interdisciplinary Honors Program in the Humanities is unique in Israel and the world. The program was established in 1989 by Prof. Ruth Katz, and from then until today, thanks to generations of students, heads of the program over the years and dedicated staff, it is one of the flagship programs of the Hebrew University.
Amirim is unique not only because of the excellence of those admitted to it, but also because of its curriculum, which is largely based on courses constructed specially for the program by experts in their field and taught by them. These courses open a door to worlds of content that present the wonders and riches of the Humanities and of critical humanistic thinking. One of the highlights of this three-year journey is a concluding seminar with a tour abroad, funded by the program (forthcoming: Washington DC 2027, Germany 2028).
The study format, which aims to build a learning community offering a space for ideas, debates but also support, also singles out the Amirim program. Alongside the courses, students initiate and participate in extra-curricular activities such as monthly lectures and workshops, cultural outings in Jerusalem and the end of the year event. These also contribute to consolidate the learning community. Relatedly, in the past year, we revived an initiative to consolidate ties with Amirim Alumni, an activity we wish to further develop.
Amirim in Hebrew are the highest branches of the tree. The connotation to excellence and achievements is clear. But it's worth dwelling on what is beneath the higher branches: the lower branches, the tree trunk and the roots that embody elaborate worlds of knowledge, of deep understanding and of values, all of which allow those branches to soar, where only the sky is the limit.
Some see an affinity between the roots of the Hebrew words high branch (amirאמיר ) and saying or statement (amira אמירה). The medieval grammarian Rabbi David Ben Yosef Kimhi (Radak) thought so, and this affinity also guided those who named the program’s journal Amirot. This journal is home to vibrant and diverse papers by Amirim students, and constitutes an important opportunity to voice a statement. The socially oriented essay contest taking place several times a year, is also such an opportunity. Prizes awarded to the best essays are donated to a social organization, chosen by the winner.
To me, in addition to meeting the formal and informal requirements of the program, it is our duty – students as well as professors – to ponder on what this elusive concept of excellence is, and articulate to ourselves, but also publicly, how excellence and the intellectual statement (אמירה) it entails exist in a world fraught with uncertainty, seeing accelerated technological developments and shifts in political and social paradigms.
I take inspiration from Lea Goldberg’s first essay to appear in Hebrew from 1938, in wishing us courage and patience to dwell on the intricacy of details composing aspects of everyday life, thought, science and art.
Prof. Nora Boneh
Head of the Amirim Honors Program in the Humanities