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Menahem Ben Saruq
Menahem ben Saruq (also known as Menahem ben Jacob ibn Saruq, he, מנחם בן סרוק) was a Spanish-Jewish philologist of the tenth century CE. He was a skilled poet and polyglot. He was born in Tortosa around 920 and died around 970 in Cordoba. Menahem produced an early dictionary of the Hebrew language. For a time he was the assistant of the great Jewish statesman Hasdai ibn Shaprut, and was involved in both literary and diplomatic matters; his dispute with Dunash ben Labrat, however, led to his downfall. Early career Menahem was a native of Tortosa of an impoverished family, born around 920 CE, but maybe have been born as early as 910 CE. It is believed that his father was a teacher and that he educated him. At an early age, he went to Cordoba at the behest of Hasdai ibn Shaprut, minister of trade in the court of the Caliph in Córdoba, where he found a patron in Hasdai's father, Isaac ben Ezra.Menahem ben Saruq, ''Maḥberet Menaḥem'' (Manual of Menahem), Jerusalem 19 ...
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Córdoba, Spain
Córdoba (; ),, Arabic: قُرطبة DIN 31635, DIN: . or Cordova () in English, is a city in Andalusia, Spain, and the capital of the Province of Córdoba (Spain), province of Córdoba. It is the third most populated Municipalities in Spain, municipality in Andalusia and the 11th overall in the country. The city primarily lies on the right bank of the Guadalquivir, in the south of the Iberian Peninsula. Once a Roman settlement, it was taken over by the Visigothic Kingdom, Visigoths, followed by the Umayyad conquest of Hispania, Muslim conquests in the eighth century and later becoming the capital of the Umayyad Caliphate of Córdoba. During these Islamic Golden Age, Muslim periods, Córdoba was transformed into a world leading center of education and learning, producing figures such as Maimonides, Averroes, Ibn Hazm, and Al-Zahrawi, and by the 10th century it had grown to be the second-largest city in Europe. Following the Siege of Córdoba (1236), Christian conquest in 1236, it ...
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Dirge
A dirge ( la, dirige, naenia) is a somber song or lament expressing mourning or grief, such as would be appropriate for performance at a funeral. Often taking the form of a brief hymn, dirges are typically shorter and less meditative than elegies. Dirges are often slow and bear the character of funeral marches. Poetic dirges may be dedicated to a specific individual or otherwise thematically refer to death. The English word ''dirge'' is derived from the Latin ''Dirige, Domine, Deus meus, in conspectu tuo viam meam'' ("Direct my way in your sight, O Lord my God"), the first words of the first antiphon (a short chant in Christian liturgy) in the Matins (a canonical hour before sunrise) of the Office for the Dead (a prayer cycle), based on (5:9 in the Vulgate). The original meaning of ''dirge'' in English referred to this office, particularly as it appeared within breviaries and primer prayer books. History In the late Medieval period, it was common for Western Christian lait ...
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Quran
The Quran (, ; Standard Arabic: , Classical Arabic, Quranic Arabic: , , 'the recitation'), also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation in Islam, revelation from God in Islam, God. It is organized in 114 surah, chapters (pl.: , sing.: ), which consist of āyah, verses (pl.: , sing.: , construct case, cons.: ). In addition to its religious significance, it is widely regarded as the finest work in Arabic literature, and has significantly influenced the Arabic language. Muslims believe that the Quran was orally revealed by God to the Khatam an-Nabiyyin, final prophet, Muhammad in Islam, Muhammad, through the archangel Gabriel incrementally over a period of some 23 years, beginning in the month of Ramadan, when Muhammad was 40; and concluding in 632, the year of his death. Muslims regard the Quran as Muhammad's most important miracle; a proof of his prophethood; and the culmination of a series of divine message ...
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Saadia Gaon
Saʻadiah ben Yosef Gaon ( ar, سعيد بن يوسف الفيومي ''Saʻīd bin Yūsuf al-Fayyūmi''; he, סַעֲדְיָה בֶּן יוֹסֵף אַלְפַיּוּמִי גָּאוֹן ''Saʿăḏyāh ben Yōsēf al-Fayyūmī Gāʾōn''; alternative English names: Rabbeinu Sa'adiah Gaon ("our Rabbi heSaadia Gaon"), often abbreviated RSG (RaSaG); Saadia b. Joseph; Saadia ben Joseph; Saadia ben Joseph of Faym; or Saadia ben Joseph Al-Fayyumi; 882/892 – 942) was a prominent rabbi, gaon, Jewish philosopher, and exegete who was active in the Abbasid Caliphate. Saadia is the first important rabbinic figure to write extensively in Judeo-Arabic. Known for his works on Hebrew linguistics, Halakha, and Jewish philosophy, he was a practitioner of the philosophical school known as the "Jewish Kalam". In this capacity, his philosophical work '' The Book of Beliefs and Opinions'' represents the first systematic attempt to integrate Jewish theology with components of ancient Greek ...
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Karaite Judaism
Karaite Judaism () or Karaism (, sometimes spelt Karaitism (; ''Yahadut Qara'it''); also spelt Qaraite Judaism, Qaraism or Qaraitism) is a Jewish religious movement characterized by the recognition of the written Torah alone as its supreme authority in ''halakha'' (Jewish religious law) and theology. Karaites believe that all of the divine commandments which were handed down to Moses by God were recorded in the written Torah without any additional Oral Law or explanation. Unlike mainstream Rabbinic Judaism, which considers the Oral Torah, codified in the Talmud and subsequent works, to be authoritative interpretations of the Torah, Karaite Jews do not believe that the written collections of the oral tradition in the Midrash or the Talmud are binding. When they read the Torah, Karaites strive to adhere to the plain or most obvious meaning (''peshat'') of the text; this is not necessarily the literal meaning of the text, instead, it is the meaning of the text that would have be ...
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Judah Ibn Kuraish
Judah ibn Kuraish ( he, יהודה אבן קריש, ar, يهوذا بن قريش), was an Algerian-Jewish grammarian and lexicographer. He was born at Tiaret in Algeria and flourished in the 9th century. While his grammatical works advanced little beyond his predecessors, he was the first to study comparative philology in Hebrew, Aramaic, and Arabic. He recognized that the various Semitic languages are derived from one source and that although they are different in their development, they are subject to the same linguistic laws. Judah's grammatical researches were original, and he maintained his views regardless of the ''Mishnah'' and the ''Talmud'' so he has been erroneously considered a Karaite. ''Risalah'' His ''Risalah,'' a letter in Arabic but written in the Hebrew script, to the community at Fes (ed. Bargès and Goldberg, Paris, 1857), is the earliest known contribution to the critical study of the Semitic languages. The work is divided into three sections, with an introduct ...
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Jonah Ibn Janah
Jonah ibn Janah or ibn Janach, born Abu al-Walīd Marwān ibn Janāḥ ( ar, أبو الوليد مروان بن جناح, or Marwan ibn Ganaḥ Hebrew: ), (), was a Jewish rabbi, physician and Hebrew grammarian active in Al-Andalus, or Islamic Spain. Born in Córdoba, ibn Janah was mentored there by Isaac ibn Gikatilla and Isaac ibn Mar Saul, before he moved around 1012, due to the sacking of the city. He then settled in Zaragoza, where he wrote ''Kitab al-Mustalhaq'', which expanded on the research of Judah ben David Hayyuj and led to a series of controversial exchanges with Samuel ibn Naghrillah that remained unresolved during their lifetimes. His magnum opus, ''Kitab al-Anqih'', contained both the first complete grammar for Hebrew and a dictionary of Classical Hebrew, and is considered "the most influential Hebrew grammar for centuries" and a foundational text in Hebrew scholarship. Ibn Janah is considered a very influential scholar in the field of Hebrew grammar; his wor ...
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Lucena, Córdoba
Lucena () is a Spanish city and municipality, in the province of Córdoba, autonomous community of Andalusia, 60 km southeast of the provincial capital Córdoba. Its circa 42,000 people makes Lucena the second largest municipality in the province after Córdoba. It is located at the conjunction of important highways in the geographical center of Andalusia. People from Lucena are called ''lucentinos''. The city was originally known as ''Eliossana'', etymologically reinterpreted as deriving from the Hebrew ''Elí hoshanna'', "May God save us". The name in Arabic is ''Al-Yussana''. Geography Lucena is situated on the Lucena River, a minor tributary of the Genil, on an important crossroads at the very center of Andalusia. Over 90 percent of the population lives to the northeast of the city district (''término municipal''). History In early times Lucena was inhabited almost exclusively by Jews who had arrived together with its founders; hence it was called "Jews' City", ...
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Isaac Ibn Gikatilla
Isaac; grc, Ἰσαάκ, Isaák; ar, إسحٰق/إسحاق, Isḥāq; am, ይስሐቅ is one of the three patriarchs of the Israelites and an important figure in the Abrahamic religions, including Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. He was the son of Abraham and Sarah, the father of Jacob and Esau, and the grandfather of the twelve tribes of Israel. Isaac's name means "he will laugh", reflecting the laughter, in disbelief, of Abraham and Sarah, when told by God that they would have a child., He is the only patriarch whose name was not changed, and the only one who did not move out of Canaan. According to the narrative, he died aged 180, the longest-lived of the three patriarchs. Etymology The anglicized name "Isaac" is a transliteration of the Hebrew name () which literally means "He laughs/will laugh." Ugaritic texts dating from the 13th century BCE refer to the benevolent smile of the Canaanite deity El. Genesis, however, ascribes the laughter to Isaac's parents, Abrah ...
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Judah Ben David Hayyuj
Judah ben David Hayyuj (Hebrew: ר׳ יְהוּדָה בֶּן דָּוִד חַיּוּג׳ Arabic: أبو زكريا يحيى بن داؤد حيوج Abu Zakariyya Yahya ibn Dawūd Hayyūj) was a Moroccan Jewish linguist. He is regarded as the father of scientific grammar of the Hebrew language. He was born in Fez, Morocco, about 945. At an early age he went to Cordoba, where he seems to have remained till his death, which occurred about 1000 CE. Career Hayyuj was a pupil of Menahem ben Saruq, whom he later helped to defend against the attacks of Dunash ben Labrat and his followers. Later in life Hayyuj developed his own theories about Hebrew grammar, and was himself obliged to step forward as an opponent of the grammatical theories of his teacher. His thorough knowledge of Arabic grammatical literature led him to apply to the Hebrew grammar the theories elaborated by Arabic grammarians, and thus to become the founder of the scientific study of that discipline. The preceding schol ...
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Parma
Parma (; egl, Pärma, ) is a city in the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna known for its architecture, Giuseppe Verdi, music, art, prosciutto (ham), Parmigiano-Reggiano, cheese and surrounding countryside. With a population of 198,292 inhabitants, Parma is the second most populous city in Emilia-Romagna after Bologna, the region's capital. The city is home to the University of Parma, one of the oldest universities in the world. Parma is divided into two parts by the Parma (river), stream of the same name. The district on the far side of the river is ''Oltretorrente''. Parma's Etruscan name was adapted by Romans to describe the round shield called ''Parma (shield), Parma''. The Italian literature, Italian poet Attilio Bertolucci (born in a hamlet in the countryside) wrote: "As a capital city it had to have a river. As a little capital it received a stream, which is often dry", with reference to the time when the city was capital of the independent Duchy of Parma. Histor ...
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Profiat Duran
Profiat Duran (c. 1350 – c. 1415) (Hebrew: פרופייט דוראן), full Hebrew name Isaac ben Moses ha-Levi; was a Jewish apologist/polemicist, philosopher, physician, grammarian, and controversialist in the 14th century. He was later sometimes referred to by the sobriquet Efodi (האפודי) through association with his two grammars entitled "Ephod." After being forcibly converted in 1391, he also appears in official records under his converso Christian name Honoratus de Bonafide. After escaping Spain, he returned to practicing Judaism openly, and wrote a number of works including polemics against Christianity and grammar. Personal life It is not known whether he was born at Perpignan, where he lived for some years, or in another Catalan town. In his youth he attended a Talmudic school in Germany for a short time, but instead of confining his studies to the Talmud, he took up philosophy and other sciences also, in spite of the interdiction of his teachers. Duran became a tu ...
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