Zionides (Hebrew: צִיוֹנִים) are piyyutim which express the longing of the Jewish nation to see the hill of Zion and the city of Jerusalem shine again in all their former glory.
By far the greater number of these songs unite in voicing a heartfelt desire to see the nation, the city of Jerusalem, Mount Zion, and the Temple restored to their former splendor.
The oldest song of Zion in Jewish literature was written around the fifth century BCE, and is a lamentation that the enemy compels Israel to live on foreign soil; this is the celebrated Psalm 137:1-3.
Notable lamentations for Zion which are sung on Tisha B'Av include: a song beginning with the words בליל זה יבכיון ויילילו בני and giving a vivid description of the destruction of Zion; the well-known song which begins with the words עוני שמרון קול תתן מצאוני, and in which Samaria and Jerusalem try to excel each other in the description of the misfortune which has fallen upon them; and, above all, the Eli Tzion with its refrain: Also notable are several strophes of the song "Lekhah Dodi", which is sung in the Sabbath eve service.
In more modern times Samuel David Luzzatto wrote: Equally well known is Joseph Almanzi's The most prominent Hebrew poets have written Zionides, among the number being M. S. Rabener, Micah Levisohn, Judah Loeb Gordon, S. Mandelkern, M. M. Dolitzky, and N. H. Imber.