The Bible and Jews in Medieval Spain (Studies in Medieval History and Culture)

485 Pages·2021·8.097 MB·English

by  Norman Roth

The Bible and Jews in
Medieval Spain
The Bible and Jews in Medieval Spain examines the grammatical, exegetical,
philosophical and mystical interpretations of the Bible that took place in
Spain during the medieval period.
The Bible was the foundation of Jewish culture in medieval Spain. Follow-
ing the scientific analysis of Hebrew grammar which emerged in al-Andalus
in the ninth and tenth centuries, biblical exegesis broke free of homiletic
interpretation and explored the text on grammatical and contextual terms.
While some of the earliest commentary was in Arabic, scholars began using
Hebrew more regularly during this period. The first complete biblical com-
mentaries in Hebrew were written by Abraham Ibn ‘Ezra, and this set the
standard for the generations that followed.
This book analyzes the approach and unique contributions of these com-
mentaries, moving on to those of later Christian Spain, including the Qimhi
family, Nahmanides and his followers and the esoteric-mystical tradition.
Major topics in the commentaries are compared and contrasted. Thus, a uni-
fied picture of the whole fabric of Hebrew commentary in medieval Spain
emerges. In addition, the book describes the many Spanish Jewish biblical
manuscripts that have remained and details the history of printed editions
and Spanish translations (for Jews and Christians) by medieval Spanish Jews.
This book will appeal to scholars and students of medieval Spain, as well as
those interested in the history of religion and cultural history.
Norman Roth is Professor Emeritus at the University of Wisconsin,
Madison. He is the author of several books and numerous articles, and the
editor of Medieval Jewish Civilization (2003; 2nd ed., 2016). In 2007 he was
awarded the Judaica Bibliography Award of the Association of Jewish L ibraries
for Dictionary of Iberian Jewish and Converso Authors.
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Judy Ann Ford
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Luigi Andrea Berto
Heresy and Citizenship
Persecution of Heresy in Late Medieval German Cities
Eugene Smelyansky
From Justinian to Branimir
The Making of the Middle Ages in Dalmatia
Danijel Džino
The Triumph of an Accursed Lineage
Kingship in Castile from Alfonso X to Alfonso XI (1252–1350)
Fernando Arias Guillén
Franks and Lombards in Italian Carolingian Texts
Memories of the Vanquished
Luigi Andrea Berto
The Bible and Jews in Medieval Spain
Norman Roth
The Cursed Carolers in Context
Edited by Lynneth Miller Renberg and Bradley Phillis
For more information about this series, please visit: https://www.routledge.
com/Studies-in-Medieval-History-and-Culture/book-series/SMHC
The Bible and Jews in
Medieval Spain
Norman Roth
First published 2021
by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
and by Routledge
52 Vanderbilt Avenue, New York, NY 10017
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
© 2021 Norman Roth
The right of Norman Roth to be identified as author of this
work has been asserted by him in accordance with sections 77
and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted
or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic,
mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented,
including photocopying and recording, or in any information
storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from
the publishers.
Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be
trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for
identification and explanation without intent to infringe.
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
A catalog record has been requested for this book
ISBN: 978-0-367-89841-0 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-1-003-02134-6 (ebk)
Typeset in Bembo
by codeMantra
For my son Gil
In memory of Rabbi Abe (Abraham) Lipshitz

Contents
Table ix
Preface xi
List of abbreviations xv
1 The Bible and its interpretation: in Muslim Spain 1
2 Abraham Ibn ‘Ezra 72
3 Ibn ‘Ezra, Part 2 128
4 Christian Spain, Part 1: Provence, Catalonia, Aragón
(to fourteenth century) 157
5 Christian Spain, Part 2: Aragón-Catalonia fourteenth century 273
6 Bible texts in Spain: manuscripts, editions and translations 309
Appendix 1: Sources and names cited by Ibn ‘Ezra, Qimḥi
and Naḥmanides 393
Appendix 2: Commentaries by name of book and of author 403
Bibliography 407
Index 463

Table
6.1 Hebrew Bible Manuscripts and Editions by City or Locale 337