Ahot Ketana, or little sister, is a hymn that is traditionally sung on Rosh Hashanah. It was composed by Abraham Hazzan Gerondi, a prolific writer of devotional poems who was active in the 13th century in Southern France. This hymn is comprised of eight metrical stanzas, each four to five lines in length, with a repeating refrain: tichle shana ve-kileloteha, may this year and its curses end. The final stanza introduces hope for the new year with a closing refrain, tahel shana u-virkhoteha, may a new year with its blessings begin. This hymn was initially utilized in Sephardic liturgy, but has since been adopted in the Ashkenazi tradition.
