Abraham Ibn Daud's "Dorot ‘Olam" (Generations of the Ages): A Critical Edition and Translation of "Zikhron Divrey Romi", "Divrey Malkhey Yisraʾel", and the "Midrash on Zechariah"

422 Pages·2013·1.685 MB·English, Hebrew

by  Katja Vehlow

Abraham Ibn Daud’s DorotʿOlam
(Generations of the Ages)
The Medieval and Early
Modern Iberian World
(Formerly Medieval Iberian Peninsula)
Editedby
LarryJ.Simon(WesternMichiganUniversity)
GerardWiegers(UniversityofAmsterdam)
ArieSchippers(UniversityofAmsterdam)
DonnaM.Rogers(DalhousieUniversity)
IsidroJ.Rivera(UniversityofKansas)
VOLUME50
Thetitlespublishedinthisseriesarelistedatbrill.com/memi
Abraham Ibn Daud’s Dorot ʿOlam
(Generations of the Ages)
A Critical Edition and Translation of
ZikhronDivreyRomi, DivreyMalkheyYisraʾel,
and the MidrashonZechariah
By
KatjaVehlow
LEIDEN•BOSTON
2013
Coverillustration:frontispieceandtitlepagefromThewonderful,andmostdeplorablehistory,ofthe
latertimesofJosephbenGorion,ha-Kohen(1718[i.e.1722]),AM1722Jos[67380.D]
WithkindpermissionofTheLibraryCompanyofPhiladelphia.
LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData
IbnDaud,AbrahambenDavid,Halevi,ca.1110-ca.1180.
AbrahamibnDaud'sDorot'olam(GenerationsoftheAges)/acriticaleditionandtranslationof
ZikhronDivreyRomi,DivreyMalkhey'Israel,andtheMidrashonZechariahbyKatjaVehlow.
pagescm.– (ThemedievalandearlymodernIberianworld;volume50)
Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindex.
ISBN978-90-04-22790-3(hardback:alk.paper)–ISBN978-90-04-24815-1(e-book)
1. IbnDaud,AbrahambenDavid,Halevi,ca.1110-ca.1180.2. Jews–History–Chronology.3. 
Jews–History–Philosophy.4. Palestine–History–To70A.D.5. Palestine–History–70-638. I.Vehlow,
Katja,translator,writerofaddedcommentary.II.IbnDaud,AbrahambenDavid,Halevi,ca.1110-ca.
1180.Dorot'olam.Selections.III.IbnDaud,AbrahambenDavid,Halevi,ca.1110-ca.1180.Dorot
'olam.Selections.English.IV.Title.
[DNLM:1. IbnDaud,AbrahambenDavid,Halevi,ca.1110-ca.1180.–Politicalandsocialviews.]
DS114.I1692132013
937–dc23
2013002997
Thispublicationhasbeentypesetinthemultilingual“Brill”typeface.Withover5,100characters
coveringLatin,IPA,Greek,andCyrillic,thistypefaceisespeciallysuitableforuseinthehumanities.
Formoreinformation,pleaseseewww.brill.com/brill-typeface.
ISSN1569-1934
ISBN978-90-04-22790-3(hardback)
ISBN978-90-04-24815-1(e-book)
Copyright2013byKoninklijkeBrillNV,Leiden,TheNetherlands.
KoninklijkeBrillNVincorporatestheimprintsBrill,GlobalOriental,HoteiPublishing,
IDCPublishersandMartinusNijhoffPublishers.
Allrightsreserved.Nopartofthispublicationmaybereproduced,translated,storedin
aretrievalsystem,ortransmittedinanyformorbyanymeans,electronic,mechanical,
photocopying,recordingorotherwise,withoutpriorwrittenpermissionfromthepublisher.
AuthorizationtophotocopyitemsforinternalorpersonaluseisgrantedbyKoninklijkeBrillNV
providedthattheappropriatefeesarepaiddirectlytoTheCopyrightClearanceCenter,
222RosewoodDrive,Suite910,Danvers,MA01923,USA.
Feesaresubjecttochange.
Thisbookisprintedonacid-freepaper.
Formyparents,withlove.

CONTENTS
Acknowledgements..................................................... xiii
Abbreviations...........................................................xvii
Introduction............................................................ 1
1. JewsinAndalusia:OppressedorLivingina‘GoldenAge’?..... 3
2. JustHowIberianWereIberianJews?........................... 5
3. WasThereaMedievalJewishHistoriography?................. 6
PARTONE
INTRODUCTION
I.IbnDaudandHisWritings ........................................... 11
1. Historical-CulturalSetting ..................................... 11
2. TheAuthor..................................................... 14
3. IbnDaud’sWritings ............................................ 17
4. DorotʿOlam .................................................... 18
4.1.Seferha-Qabbalah ......................................... 18
4.2.ZikhronDivreyRomi........................................ 19
4.3.DivreyMalkheyYisraʾel..................................... 19
4.4.MidrashonZechariah...................................... 20
4.5.TheUnityofDorotʿOlam .................................. 20
II.Sources............................................................... 25
1. Complications:SharedUseofTexts,Symbols,and
Methodologies ................................................. 25
2. JewishSources ................................................. 28
2.1.IbnDaudandSeferJosippon ............................... 29
3. ChristianSources .............................................. 31
4. IslamicSources................................................. 37
III.TheArgumentofDorotʿOlam....................................... 39
1. ModernReadings .............................................. 39
2. MessianicorNot?Errors,Blunders,andContradictionsin
DorotʿOlam .................................................... 41
viii contents
3. PrinciplesofPoliticalLeadership .............................. 44
4. RomeandItsConnectionstoIberia............................ 50
5. TheEarlyChurchinDorotʿOlam............................... 52
6. TheHispanizationofJewishHistory ........................... 56
IV.TheEarlyModernFascinationwithDorotʿOlam.................... 63
1. DivreyMalkheyYisraʾel ......................................... 63
2. ZikhronDivreyRomi............................................ 71
3. TheMidrashonZechariah...................................... 71
V.PrefacetotheCriticalEdition........................................ 75
1. TheManuscriptsoftheHebrewText........................... 75
2. PrintedHebrewEditions....................................... 83
3. BilingualEditionsandTranslations ............................ 86
4. TheHebrewTextofThisEdition............................... 93
5. TheEnglishTranslationandCommentary..................... 95
Sigla..................................................................... 96
PARTTWO
DOROTʿOLAM
TheChronicleofRomefromtheDayofitsFoundationtotheRiseof
theKingdomofIshmael............................................ 98
1. TheBeginningsofRomeuntilBrutus .......................... 98
2. TheReignofJuliusCaesar...................................... 102
3. FromAugustustoHadrian ..................................... 104
4. TheRebellionoftheSonsofKoziva............................ 110
5. FromHadriantoDiocletian.................................... 112
6. TheEmergenceofChristianity................................. 120
7. TheChristianizationofSpain .................................. 124
8. TheRiseofIslamandChristianityinSpain .................... 128
TheHistoryoftheKingsofIsraelintheSecondTemplePeriod ........ 132
1. IntroductoryRemarks.......................................... 132
2. AlexandertheGreat............................................ 134
3. PtolemyandtheSeptuagint.................................... 136
4. TheEarlyRuleofAntiochus.................................... 144
5. TheBeginningoftheMaccabeanRevolt ....................... 148