Cairo GenizaThe Cairo Geniza, alternatively spelled Genizah, is a collection of some 400,000 Jewish manuscript fragments and Fatimid administrative documents that were kept in the genizah or storeroom of the Ben Ezra Synagogue in Fustat or Old Cairo, Egypt. These manuscripts span the entire period of Middle-Eastern, North African, and Andalusian Jewish history between the 6th and 19th centuries CE, and comprise the largest and most diverse collection of medieval manuscripts in the world.
Rosh yeshivaRosh yeshiva (ראש ישיבה, pl. ראשי ישיבה, ; Anglicized pl. rosh yeshivas) is the title given to the dean of a yeshiva, a Jewish educational institution that focuses on the study of traditional religious texts, primarily the Talmud and the Torah, and halakha (Jewish law). The general role of the rosh yeshiva is to oversee the Talmudic studies and practical matters. The rosh yeshiva will often give the highest shiur (class) and is also the one to decide whether to grant permission for students to undertake classes for rabbinical ordination, known as semicha.
RishonimRishonim (ʁiʃoˈnim; ; sing. ראשון, Rishon) were the leading rabbis and poskim who lived approximately during the 11th to 15th centuries, in the era before the writing of the Shulchan Aruch (שׁוּלחָן עָרוּך, "Set Table", a common printed code of Jewish law, 1563 CE) and following the Geonim (589–1038 CE). Rabbinic scholars subsequent to the Shulchan Aruch are generally known as acharonim ("the latter ones"). The distinction between the and the is meaningful historically; in halakha (Jewish law) the distinction is less important.
Asher ben JehielAsher ben Jehiel (אשר בן יחיאל, or Asher ben Yechiel, sometimes Asheri) (1250 or 1259 – 1327) was an eminent rabbi and Talmudist best known for his abstract of Talmudic law. He is often referred to as Rabbenu Asher, “our Rabbi Asher” or by the Hebrew acronym for this title, the Rosh (). His yahrzeit is on 9 Cheshvan. The Rosh was probably born in Cologne, Holy Roman Empire, and died in Toledo. His family was prominent for learning and piety, his father Yechiel was a Talmudist, and one of his ancestors was Rabbi Eliezer ben Nathan (the RaABaN).
Jewish emancipationJewish emancipation was the process in various nations in Europe of eliminating Jewish disabilities, e.g. Jewish quotas, to which European Jews were then subject, and the recognition of Jews as entitled to equality and citizenship rights. It included efforts within the community to integrate into their societies as citizens. It occurred gradually between the late 18th century and the early 20th century. Jewish emancipation followed after the Age of Enlightenment and the concurrent Haskalah, or Jewish Enlightenment.
BaraitaBaraita (בָּרַיְתָא "external" or "outside"; pl. bārayāṯā or in Hebrew baraitot; also baraitha, beraita; Ashkenazi pronunciation: berayse) designates a tradition in the Oral Torah of Rabbinical Judaism that is not incorporated in the Mishnah. Baraita thus refers to teachings "outside" of the six orders of the Mishnah. Originally, "Baraita" probably referred to teachings from schools outside the main Mishnaic-era yeshivas – although in later collections, individual barayata are often authored by sages of the Mishna (Tannaim).
Nissim of GeronaNissim ben Reuven (1320 – 9th of Shevat, 1376, נִסִּים בֶּן רְאוּבֵן) of Girona, Catalonia was an influential talmudist and authority on Jewish law. He was one of the last of the great Spanish medieval Talmudic scholars. He is also known by his Hebrew acronym, the RaN (), or else with the definite article HaRaN (), as well as by the name RaNbaR (), the Hebrew acronym of his full name, including his father's name, Reuven (), and also by Nissim Gerondi. Nissim was born in Barcelona, Catalonia.
PeshatPeshat (also P'shat, ) is one of the two classic methods of Jewish biblical exegesis, the other being Derash. While Peshat is commonly defined as referring to the surface or literal (direct) meaning of a text, numerous scholars and rabbis have debated this for centuries, giving Peshat many uses and definitions. Peshat is most often defined as "straight," in reference to its tendency to describe the meaning of the text apparent at face value, taking into account idiomatic expressions, and focusing mostly on literal interpretation.
Sura (city)Sura (ܫܘܪܐ) was a city in the southern part of the area called by ancient Jewish sources Babylonia, located east of the Euphrates. It was well-known for its agricultural produce, which included grapes, wheat, and barley. It was also a major center of Torah scholarship and home of an important yeshiva—the Sura Academy—which, together with the yeshivas in Pumbedita and Nehardea, gave rise to the Babylonian Talmud.
Oral lawAn oral law is a code of conduct in use in a given culture, religion or community application, by which a body of rules of human behaviour is transmitted by oral tradition and effectively respected, or the single rule that is orally transmitted. Many cultures have an oral law, while most contemporary legal systems have a formal written organisation. The oral tradition (from the Latin tradere = to transmit) is the typical instrument of transmission of the oral codes or, in a more general sense, is the complex of what a culture transmits of itself among the generations, "from father to son".
