Samuel ben Nathan Ha-Levi Loew (Kelin or Kolin) (also "Lōw" or "Löw", he, שמואל בן נתן נטע הלוי קעלין; c. 1720–1806) was a

Talmudist 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 center ...

and

Halakhist ''Halakha'' (; he, הֲלָכָה, ), also transliterated as ''halacha'', ''halakhah'', and ''halocho'' ( ), is the collective body of Jewish religious laws which is derived from the written and Oral Torah. Halakha is based on biblical commandm ...

, best known for his work ''Machatzit HaShekel'' ( Ashkenazi pronunciation, ''Machatzis HaShekel''). The son of Nathan Naṭe ha-Levi, he was born at

Kolín Kolín (; german: Kolin, Neu Kolin, Collin) is a town in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 32,000 inhabitants. The town centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an urban monument reservation. Administra ...

, Bohemia. For nearly 60 years he headed over a

yeshiva A yeshiva (; he, ישיבה, , sitting; pl. , or ) is a traditional Jewish educational institution focused on the study of Rabbinic literature, primarily the Talmud and halacha (Jewish law), while Torah and Jewish philosophy are st ...

Boskovice Boskovice (; german: Boskowitz) is a town in Blansko District in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 12,000 inhabitants. The area of the historic town centre, Jewish quarter, château complex and castle ruin is well preser ...

(Boskowitz),

Moravia Moravia ( , also , ; cs, Morava ; german: link=yes, Mähren ; pl, Morawy ; szl, Morawa; la, Moravia) is a historical region in the east of the Czech Republic and one of three historical Czech lands, with Bohemia and Czech Silesia. The m ...

, where he died on May 20, 1806. He had the title

Av Beis Din The ''av beit din'' ( ''ʾabh bêth dîn'', "chief of the court" or "chief justice"), also spelled ''av beis din'' or ''abh beth din'' and abbreviated ABD (), was the second-highest-ranking member of the Sanhedrin during the Second Temple period, ...

of Boskowitz. Samuel had 3 sons and 3 daughters: Benjamin Ze'ev Ha-Levi (Wolf) Boskowitz (1746-1818), Jacob (c 1750-1833), Jehuda (c 1751-1800), Sara (Hinda) married Markus (Mordechai Lob) Wassertrilling of Boskovice, Esther married Bernhard Biach. His son Wolf Boskowitz delivered the sermon at his funeral. His descendant in the 5th generation, Dr. Max Anton Löw, a convert to Roman Catholicism, was the attorney of the anti-Semite Francis Deckert.''Mittheilungen der Gesell. zur Abwehr des Antisemitismus,'' 1896, pp. 45, 48; 1897, pp. 190, 216; ''Oest. Wochenschrift,'' 1896, p. 65 His works were published under the name ''Machatzit HaShekel'' as follows; these commentaries appear nowadays in most editions of the ''

Shulchan Aruch The ''Shulchan Aruch'' ( he, שֻׁלְחָן עָרוּך , literally: "Set Table"), sometimes dubbed in English as the Code of Jewish Law, is the most widely consulted of the various legal codes in Judaism. It was authored in Safed (today in I ...

'': * An extensive

super-commentary Exegesis ( ; from the Ancient Greek, Greek , from , "to lead out") is a critical explanation or interpretation (logic), interpretation of a text. The term is traditionally applied to the interpretation of Bible, Biblical works. In modern usage, ...

on Abraham Abele Gombiner’s ''Magen Abraham'' on ''Shulchan Aruch,

Orach Chayim Orach Chayim, (''manner/way of life'') is a section of Rabbi Jacob ben Asher's compilation of Halakha (Jewish law), Arba'ah Turim. This section addresses aspects of Jewish law pertinent to the Hebrew calendar (be it the daily, weekly, monthly, o ...

'' (Vienna, 1807-1808; 2d ed. 1817; several times reprinted) * A super-commentary on the "Shakh" on ''Shulchan Aruch,

Yoreh Deah Yoreh De'ah ( he, יורה דעה) is a section of Rabbi Jacob ben Asher's compilation of halakha (Jewish law), Arba'ah Turim around 1300. This section treats all aspects of Jewish law not pertinent to the Hebrew calendar, finance, torts, marriage, ...

'' '' Hilchot Niddah'' (Lemberg, 1858) and '' Hilchot Melichah'' (ib. 1860)

References

Its bibliography: *

Aaron Walden Aaron Walden (born at Warsaw about 1835, died 1912) was a Polish Jewish Talmudist, editor, and author. Walden, who was an ardent adherent of Ḥasidism, is known especially for his "Shem ha-Gedolim he-Ḥadash" (Warsaw, 1864), a work of the same n ...

, ''Shem ha-Gedolim he-Ḥadash,'' ii.44, Warsaw, 1880 *

Isaac 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 '' ...

, ''Oẓar ha-Sefarim,'' p. 321 *

Julius Fürst Julius Fürst (; 12 May 1805, Żerków, South Prussia – 9 February 1873, Leipzig), born Joseph Alsari, was a Jewish German orientalist and the son of noted maggid, teacher, and Hebrew grammarian Jacob Alsari. Fürst was a distinguished scho ...

, ''Bibl. Jud.'' s.v. Kollin, Samuel *

Joseph Zedner Joseph Zedner (10 February 1804 – 10 October 1871) was a German Jewish bibliographer and librarian. After completing his education, he acted as teacher in the Jewish school in Strelitz (Mecklenburg), where the lexicographer Daniel Sanders wa ...

, ''Cat. Hebr. Books Brit. Mus.'' p. 417 {{DEFAULTSORT:Loew, Samuel ben Nathan 18th-century Bohemian rabbis Writers from Kolín People from Boskovice 1720s births 1806 deaths Authors of books on Jewish law Rosh yeshivas