Eliezer ben Yoel HaLevi of Bonn (
Hebrew acronym Ra'avyah; 1140–1225
[To be more precise, it is only known that he died after 1220.]) was a Rabbinic scholar in Germany. He had a significant influence on
Asher ben Jehiel (the ROSH). As a
Rishon, he was prominent amongst the
Tosafists of the middle-ages, and was a signatory to the
Takkanot Shum. In the course of his long life he wandered from place to place:
Bonn,
Worms,
Würzburg,
Mainz,
Cologne,
Regensburg
Regensburg or is a city in eastern Bavaria, at the confluence of the Danube, Naab and Regen rivers. It is capital of the Upper Palatinate subregion of the state in the south of Germany. With more than 150,000 inhabitants, Regensburg is the f ...
, and throughout France and Lombardy.
His maternal grandfather was
Eliezer ben Nathan (Ra'avan). Eliezer studied under his father
Joel haLevi of Bonn, as well as under
Judah HeHasid and Judah ben Kalonymus of Mainz. His brother died a martyr's death in 1216. Eliezer's mourning for him was so great that his vision was impaired and he was compelled to dictate his novellae to his students.
His major work, ''Sefer Avi HaEzri'' (My Father is my Help), which is more commonly known by its author's acronym as ''Sefer Ra'avyah'' (also spelled ''Sefer Rabiah''),
is a compendium of articles that he developed into a book. It contains halakhot and legal decisions.
Notes
References
Further reading
*
{{Judaism-bio-stub
German Tosafists
Levites
1140 births
1225 deaths
12th-century German rabbis
13th-century German rabbis
German male writers
Authors of books on Jewish law