Avot de-Rabbi Nathan (), usually printed together with the

minor tractates The minor tractates (Hebrew: מסכתות קטנות, ''masechtot qetanot'') are essays from the Talmudic period or later dealing with topics about which no formal tractate exists in the Mishnah. They may thus be contrasted to the Tosefta, whose t ...

of the

Talmud The Talmud (; he, , Talmūḏ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law ('' halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the ce ...

, is a Jewish

aggadic Aggadah ( he, ''ʾAggāḏā'' or ''Haggāḏā''; Jewish Babylonian Aramaic: אַגָּדְתָא ''ʾAggāḏəṯāʾ''; "tales, fairytale, lore") is the non-legalistic exegesis which appears in the classical rabbinic literature of Judaism ...

work probably compiled in the

geonic ''Geonim'' ( he, גאונים; ; also transliterated Gaonim, singular Gaon) were the presidents of the two great Babylonian Talmudic Academies of Sura and Pumbedita, in the Abbasid Caliphate, and were the generally accepted spiritual leaders o ...

era (c.700–900 CE). Although Avot de-Rabbi Nathan is the first and longest of the " minor tractates", it probably does not belong in that collection chronologically, having more the character of a late

midrash ''Midrash'' (;"midrash"
''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''. he, מִדְרָשׁ; ...

. In the form now extant it contains a mixture of

Mishnah The Mishnah or the Mishna (; he, מִשְׁנָה, "study by repetition", from the verb ''shanah'' , or "to study and review", also "secondary") is the first major written collection of the Jewish oral traditions which is known as the Oral Tor ...

and

Midrash ''Midrash'' (;"midrash"
''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''. he, מִדְרָשׁ; ...

, and may be technically designated as a homiletical exposition of the Mishnaic tractate

Pirkei Avot Pirkei Avot ( he, פִּרְקֵי אָבוֹת; also transliterated as ''Pirqei Avoth'' or ''Pirkei Avos'' or ''Pirke Aboth''), which translates to English as Chapters of the Fathers, is a compilation of the ethical teachings and maxims from ...

, having for its foundation an older recension (version) of that tractate. It may be considered as a kind of "

tosefta The Tosefta ( Jewish Babylonian Aramaic: תוספתא "supplement, addition") is a compilation of the Jewish oral law from the late 2nd century, the period of the Mishnah. Overview In many ways, the Tosefta acts as a supplement to the Mishnah ( ...

" or " gemarah" to the Mishna Avot, which does not possess a traditional gemarah. Avot de-Rabbi Nathan contains many teachings, proverbs, and incidents that are not found anywhere else in the early

rabbinical literature Rabbinic literature, in its broadest sense, is the entire spectrum of rabbinic writings throughout Jewish history. However, the term often refers specifically to literature from the Talmudic era, as opposed to medieval and modern rabbinic writ ...

. Other rabbinical sayings appear in a more informal style than what is found in Pirkei Avot.

The two existing forms (recensions) of Avot de-Rabbi Nathan

Touching its original form, its age, and its dependence on earlier or later recensions of the Mishnah, there are many opinions, all of which are discussed in

S. Schechter Solomon Schechter ( he, שניאור זלמן הכהן שכטר‎; 7 December 1847 – 19 November 1915) was a Moldavian-born British-American rabbi, academic scholar and educator, most famous for his roles as founder and President of the ...

's introduction. There are two recensions of this work, one of which is usually printed with the

Babylonian Talmud The Talmud (; he, , Talmūḏ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (''halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the cent ...

in the appendix to '' Seder Nezikin'' he sixteenth volume preceding the so-called

Minor Treatises The minor tractates (Hebrew: מסכתות קטנות, ''masechtot qetanot'') are essays from the Talmudic period or later dealing with topics about which no formal tractate exists in the Mishnah. They may thus be contrasted to the Tosefta, whose t ...

, and another, which, until the late 19th century, existed in

manuscript A manuscript (abbreviated MS for singular and MSS for plural) was, traditionally, any document written by hand – or, once practical typewriters became available, typewritten – as opposed to mechanically printed or reproduced in ...

only. In 1887

Solomon Schechter Solomon Schechter ( he, שניאור זלמן הכהן שכטר‎; 7 December 1847 – 19 November 1915) was a Moldavian-born British-American rabbi, academic scholar and educator, most famous for his roles as founder and President of the ...

published the two recensions in parallel columns, contributing to the edition a critical introduction and valuable notes. There were likely other recensions as well, since the medieval rabbis quote from other versions. In order to distinguish the two recensions, the one printed with the Talmud may be called A; and the other, B. The former is divided into forty-one chapters, and the latter into forty-eight. Schechter has proved that recension B is cited only by Spanish authors.

Rashi Shlomo Yitzchaki ( he, רבי שלמה יצחקי; la, Salomon Isaacides; french: Salomon de Troyes, 22 February 1040 – 13 July 1105), today generally known by the acronym Rashi (see below), was a medieval French rabbi and author of a compre ...

knows of recension A only. A Hebrew manuscript of ''Avot de-Rabbi Nathan'' is today housed at the Bodleian Library in Oxford, England, under the classification ''MS Oxford (Bodleiana) Heb. c. 24''. In addition, ''MS Parma ( Palatina) 2785'' (de Rossi 327; Uncastillo/Spain, 1289), being a more precise copy of ''Avot de-Rabbi Nathan'', has been used to correct errors in recension B.

The content of the two recensions differ from each other considerably, although the method is the same in both. The separate teachings of the Mishnah Avot are generally taken as texts, which are either briefly explained—the ethical lessons contained therein being supported by reference to Biblical passages—or fully illustrated by narratives and legends. Sometimes long digressions are made by introducing subjects connected only loosely with the text. This method may be illustrated by the following example: Commenting on the teaching of

Simon the Just Simeon the Righteous or Simeon the Just ( he, שִׁמְעוֹן הַצַדִּיק ''Šīməʿōn haṢadīq'') was a Jewish High Priest during the Second Temple period. He is also referred to in the Mishnah, where he is described as one of the ...

which designates charity as one of the three pillars on which the world rests, Avot de-Rabbi Nathan reads as follows: The chapters of the two recensions of Avot de-Rabbi Nathan correspond with those of the Mishnah Avot as follows: *Chapters 1-11 of recension A and chapters 1-23 of recension B correspond with

1:1-11, dealing with saying of the

Zugoth The ''Zugot'' ( he, הַזּוּגוֹת ''hazZūgōṯ'', "the Pairs"), also called Zugoth or ''Zugos'' in the Ashkenazi pronunciation, refers both to the two-hundred-year period ( 170 BCE – 30 CE, he, תְּקוּפַת הַזּו� ...

. *Chapters 12-19 of A and chapters 24-29 of B correspond with

1:12-18 and chapter 2, dealing with the teachings of Hillel,

Shammai Shammai (50 BCE – 30 CE, he, שַׁמַּאי, ''Šammaʾy'') was a Jewish scholar of the 1st century, and an important figure in Judaism's core work of rabbinic literature, the Mishnah. Shammai was the most eminent contemporary of Hill ...

Yohanan ben Zakkai :''See Yohanan for more rabbis by this name''. Yohanan ben Zakkai ( he, יוֹחָנָן בֶּן זַכַּאי, ''Yōḥānān ben Zakkaʾy''; 1st century CE), sometimes abbreviated as Ribaz () for Rabbi Yohanan ben Zakkai, was one of the Tan ...

and his disciples *Chapters 20-30 of A and chapters 30-35 of B correspond with

chapters 3-4, an independent

mishnaic The Mishnah or the Mishna (; he, מִשְׁנָה, "study by repetition", from the verb ''shanah'' , or "to study and review", also "secondary") is the first major written collection of the Jewish oral traditions which is known as the Oral Torah ...

collection *Chapters 31-41 of A and chapters 36-48 of B correspond with

chapter 5, a collection of anonymous statements related by form

Authorship

Nathan the Babylonian Nathan the Babylonian (Hebrew: רבי נתן הבבלי), also known as Rabbi Nathan, was a '' tanna'' of the third generation (2nd century). Biography He was the son of a Babylonian exilarch. For unknown reasons he left Babylonia, and his brig ...

, whose name appears in the title of the work under treatment, cannot possibly have been its only author, since he flourished about the middle of the 2nd century, or a generation prior to the author of the Mishnah. Besides, several authorities are quoted who flourished a long time after R. Nathan; for instance, Rabbi

Joshua ben Levi Joshua ben Levi (Yehoshua ben Levi) was an amora, a scholar of the Talmud, who lived in the Land of Israel in the first half of the third century. He lived and taught in the city of Lod. He was an elder contemporary of Johanan bar Nappaha an ...

. The designation "De-Rabbi Nathan" may be explained by the circumstance that R. Nathan is one of the first authorities mentioned in the opening chapter of the work (but not the first, that being Yose ha-Galili). Perhaps the school of the tannaite R. Nathan originated the work, however. Probably due to political differences that Rabbi Nathan had with

Shimon ben Gamliel Simeon ben Gamliel (I) ( or רשב"ג הראשון; c. 10 BCE – 70 CE) was a '' Tanna'' sage and leader of the Jewish people. He served as nasi of the Great Sanhedrin at Jerusalem during the outbreak of the First Jewish–Roman War, succeedin ...

, Rabbi Nathan's name does not appear in the version of Avot compiled by redactor of the Mishna

Rebbi Judah ha-Nasi ( he, יְהוּדָה הַנָּשִׂיא‎, ''Yəhūḏā hanNāsīʾ‎''; Yehudah HaNasi or Judah the Prince) or Judah I, was a second-century rabbi (a tanna of the fifth generation) and chief redactor and editor of the ''Mis ...

(the son of the aforementioned Shimon ben Gamliel). However, it is known that Rabbi Nathan made an independent collection , and it is possible that Avot de-Rabbi Nathan derives from that source. It is also called

Tosefta The Tosefta ( Jewish Babylonian Aramaic: תוספתא "supplement, addition") is a compilation of the Jewish oral law from the late 2nd century, the period of the Mishnah. Overview In many ways, the Tosefta acts as a supplement to the Mishnah ( ...

to Avot. The two recensions of the work in their present shape evidently have different authors, but who they were cannot be ascertained. Probably they belonged to the period of the

Geonim ''Geonim'' ( he, גאונים; ; also transliterated Gaonim, singular Gaon) were the presidents of the two great Babylonian Talmudic Academies of Sura and Pumbedita, in the Abbasid Caliphate, and were the generally accepted spiritual leaders of ...

, between the 8th and 9th centuries.

Translations

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

translation of Abot de-Rabbi Nathan was published by Franz Tayler, London, 1654: ''Tractatus de Patribus Rabbi Nathan Auctore, in Linguam Latinam Translatus''. *An English version is given by M. L. Rodkinson in his translation of the

, i. 9, New York, 1900. *''The Fathers According to Rabbi Nathan'', translated by Judah Goldin,

Yale University Press Yale University Press is the university press of Yale University. It was founded in 1908 by George Parmly Day, and became an official department of Yale University in 1961, but it remains financially and operationally autonomous. , Yale Universi ...

, 1955. (reprinted 1990) *'' 'Aboth d'Rabbi Nathan, translated into English with Introduction and Notes'', by Eli Cashdan, in ''The Minor Tractates of the Talmud'', Soncino, 1965. *''Fathers According to Rabbi Nathan: Abot De Rabbi Nathan'', Anthony J. Saldarini, Brill Academic, 1975. *''The Fathers According to Rabbi Nathan'',

Jacob Neusner Jacob Neusner (July 28, 1932 – October 8, 2016) was an American academic scholar of Judaism. He was named as one of the most published authors in history, having written or edited more than 900 books. Life and career Neusner was born in Hartfor ...

, University of South Florida Press, 1986.

Commentaries

Schechter gives the commentaries to Avot de-Rabbi Nathan in his edition. Emendations were made by Benjamin Motal. Commentaries have been written by Eliezer Lipman of

Zamość Zamość (; yi, זאמאשטש, Zamoshtsh; la, Zamoscia) is a historical city in southeastern Poland. It is situated in the southern part of Lublin Voivodeship, about from Lublin, from Warsaw. In 2021, the population of Zamość was 62,021. ...

Zolkiev Zhovkva ( uk, Жовква ; pl, Żółkiew; yi, זאָלקוואַ, translit=Zolkva; russian: Жо́лква, 1951–1992: ''Nesterov'') is a city in Lviv Raion, Lviv Oblast (Oblast, region) of western Ukraine. Zhovkva hosts the administratio ...

, 1723; by Elijah ben Abraham with notes by the Vilna Gaon, by Abraham Witmand, and by Joshua Falk Lisser.''Binyan Yehoshua'',

Dyhernfurth Brzeg Dolny (german: Dyhernfurth) is a town in Wołów County, Lower Silesian Voivodeship in south-western Poland. It is located north-west of Wrocław on the Oder River, and is the site of a large chemical plant complex, PCC Rokita SA. As o ...

, 1788 Lisser's edition is reprinted in the Vilna

References

*. *. The JE cites the following works ** Leopold Zunz, ''Gottesdienstliche Vorträge der Juden,'', 1st ed., pp. 108 et seq.; ** Solomon Taussig, ''Neweh Shalom I'', Munich, 1872, in which pamphlet a part of Abot de-Rabbi Nathan, recension B, was for the first time published, according to a manuscript of the Munich Library; **

, ''Abot de-Rabbi Nathan,'' Vienna, 1887; **''Monatsschrift'', 1887, pp. 374–383; ** Moritz Steinschneider, ''Hebr. Bibl.'' xii. 75 et seq. **Moritz Steinschneider, Cat. Bodl. col. 2034; **

Isaac ben Jacob Benjacob Isaac ben Jacob Benjacob (January 10, 1801, Ramygala – July 2, 1863, Vilnius) was a Lithuanian Jewish Maskil, best known as a bibliographer, author, and publisher. His 17-volume Hebrew Bible included Rashi, Mendelssohn, as well as his own ''M ...

, ''Oẓar ha-Sefarim'', p. 654.

External links