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Wimpel

In Yiddish, the cloth binder that holds the two sides of the scroll together. The wimpel was often decorated with an inscription that expressed the wish that the child grow up to a life of Torah, and good deeds.

Yad

Torah pointer (literally, hand). The Torah pointer was used to avoid touching the scroll. Yads are made of silver, wood, ivory and even coral.

Yarmulke

A Jewish head-covering. In Hebrew, a "kippah." Customs about what it looks like, who wears it, and when it is worn have varied from time to time and from place to place.

Yibbum, also, Levirate marriage.

The Torah specifies that if a married man dies without children, his brother is supposed to marry the man's widow and their first child is to carry on the line of the dead brother. The act of marrying your sister-in-law to fulfill this obligation is called "yibum."

Yizkor

Memorial prayers recited on the festivals and Yom Kippur.

Yom Tov Sheni

An additional day of Yom Tov (festival) that was traditionally celebrated in the diaspora. Basically, before the calendar was fixed, people far away from Jerusalem wouldn't always know which of two possible dates was the new moon (beginning of the Hebrew month) according to the official Jerusalem declaration. So they didn't know which of two possible dates a festival in any given month was. So they celebrated both dates, just in case. And they kept doing that even after the calendar was fixed and not declared by a court in Jerusalem. The Reform movement decided to follow the Israeli calendar, which celebrates only 1 day of the festivals.