The Harvard Club’s dining room sits high above Midtown’s bustle, with polished silver, crisp linen, and walls lined with portraits of scholars. Patrons at the lunch tables include an array of Ivy League alumni, professors, and professionals. The hum of conversation usually blends tradition with a spirit of curiosity, yet every so often, a different timbre cuts through. At one table, Daniel E. Kaplan and Adam S. Kaplan are deep in discussion, part of a small circle whose conversations move between languages, worlds, and centuries. Their words carry the weight of heritage as well as the rigor of scholarship common at Harvard, a blend heightened by the presence of Hebrew, a language both ancient and refined.
While the Harvard Club exudes prestige, it is the presence of Hebrew at the luncheon table that invites wonder. The language, with its deep cultural and academic roots, adds a unique layer to the Club’s air of scholarship. Observers find themselves drawn to this table, where Daniel and Adam Kaplan, both respected business leaders with ties to New York and the surrounding region, discuss ideas with scholars and friends. These exchanges, conducted in the language of prophets and poets, showcase a living link between the Ivy League’s storied tradition and the textures of Jewish life and thought.
Hebrew’s Rich Presence in the Ivy League
Hebrew has woven itself into the DNA of America’s oldest and most respected institutions. Harvard College, founded in 1636, included Hebrew among its early curricular languages, placing it alongside Latin and Greek as a mark of classical learning. For Puritan founders, Hebrew served not only as a tool for studying biblical texts but as a symbol of intellectual ambition.
Over the centuries, Hebrew moved beyond translation exercises in the classroom. At Harvard, for many years, the College’s commencement ceremonies included addresses in Hebrew alongside the traditional Latin orations. The inclusion of Hebrew sent a signal that academic rigor did not end with the Western canon. Rather, it extended to the heart of Jewish sacred literature and thought.
Through the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries, Hebrew’s presence at leading universities grew. Jewish student groups, academic programs, and faculty brought the language into public rituals and private study circles. At the Harvard Club, these traditions found new life over lunch, decades after their start in old Cambridge classrooms.
Erudite Conversations: Hebrew at the Harvard Club Table
Daniel E. Kaplan and Adam S. Kaplan often join a group of alumni, business leaders, and academics at the Club’s Hebrew-speaking lunch table. These gatherings created a setting where Hebrew returned to its role as a language of dialogue and learning among adults, evoking its historic uses in the halls of scholarship.
“Typical conversations among the group range widely,” says Adam S. Kaplan. “Some discussions unfold over a page from Jewish law or philosophy, touching on the writings of Maimonides or the insights of contemporary scholars. Others explore the Hebrew poetry of Yehuda Amichai or discuss the nuances of Israeli politics.”
Notes Daniel E. Kaplan, “Sometimes, the table debates legal theory, referencing Talmudic principles that echo in modern courtrooms.”
At times, the conversation pivots to the sciences—biology, mathematics, or even astronomy—discussing new findings while weaving connections to ancient Jewish sources or Israeli innovation.
The tone is continuously open and respectful, with each participant eager to listen as much as to speak. At the Harvard Club, intellectual curiosity finds common ground with shared heritage. Speaking Hebrew, participants like Daniel and Adam explore not only complex ideas but also a living tradition.
Bridging Diverse Backgrounds Through Language
Language can create walls, but it also offers a bridge. Around the Harvard Club lunch table, the Hebrew language acts as both passport and common ground for participants from many walks of life. Daniel and Adam, both lifelong New Yorkers and loyal Mets fans, bring their professional confidence and experience to each meal. Others at the table hail from Europe, Israel, or other parts of the United States.
“Despite different upbringings and careers, the shared use of Hebrew creates a foundation of trust and belonging,” says Adam S. Kaplan.
It opens the door for those with varying levels of fluency to join in, encouraging mutual support and patience. The result is a sophisticated setting where inclusivity isn’t forced but grows naturally from the use of a language shaped by centuries of interpretation, debate, and commentary.
These conversations often extend beyond the narrow boundaries of academic discourse. The Hebrew table at the Harvard Club balances tradition with openness, blending stories of childhood Shabbat dinners with thought-provoking exchanges on philosophy and ethics. The language gives participants an extra dimension, a sense of being both insiders and explorers.
Modern Connections: Hebrew in Today’s Ivy League Networks
For professionals like Daniel E. Kaplan, an insurance expert with a reputation for excellence, Hebrew is a tool for modern mentorship. Adam S. Kaplan, well known for his guidance to clients seeking sound business advice, has found his command of Hebrew creates unexpected paths to connection.
Within today’s Ivy League circles, language continues to shape opportunity. Shared fluency in Hebrew gives participants an edge in academic mentorship, business introductions, and cultural alliances. Students and young professionals discover career guidance over lunch; professors exchange research with international colleagues; business leaders find common ground in a world of different backgrounds and interests.
The Harvard Club’s Hebrew-speaking table is a microcosm of these networks. It provides a space to build community anchored in mutual respect, to practice communication in its deepest sense, and to carry on a tradition of dialogue that started centuries ago.
The lunch table where Hebrew flows brings together echoes of ancient debate and modern achievement. The conversations between Daniel E. Kaplan, Adam S. Kaplan, and their peers show Hebrew’s power as a literary and academic language and as a catalyst for meaningful connection.
These exchanges bring a quiet energy to each meal, joining the rigor and tradition of the Ivy League with curiosity and respect for the past. The presence of Hebrew at the lunch table remains a living tribute to the enduring spirit of scholarly dialogue.
It forms a bridge between individuals, backgrounds, and generations, providing space for deep learning and true conversation. The tradition thrives, not as a relic, but as a vibrant part of Ivy League culture, sustained by those who gather, speak, and listen together.
