Samuel ben Jacob ibn Jam or Samuel ben Jacob Jam'a (Hebrew: שמואל בן יעקב אבן ג'אמע) was

rabbi A rabbi () is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi – known as ''semikha'' – following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of ...

of the North-African community of קאבס (

Gabès Gabès (, ; ar, قابس, ), also spelled Cabès, Cabes, Kabes, Gabbs and Gaps, is the capital city of the Gabès Governorate in Tunisia. It is located on the coast of the Gulf of Gabès. With a population of 152,921, Gabès is the 6th largest ...

?) who flourished in the 12th century. He was on intimate terms with Abraham ibn Ezra, who dedicated to him his ''Ḥai ben Meḳiẓ'' and mentioned eulogiously three of his sons — Judah, Moses, and Jacob.

Works

Under the title ''Elef ha-Magen,'' or, perhaps, ''Agur'' (the Hebrew equivalent of his Arabic name, "Jam'"), Samuel wrote a supplement to the ''Aruk,'' of

Nathan ben Jehiel Nathan ben Jehiel of Rome (Hebrew: נתן בן יחיאל מרומי; ''Nathan ben Y'ḥiel Mi Romi'' according to Sephardic pronunciation) ( 1035 – 1106) was a Jewish Italian lexicographer. He authored the Arukh, a notable dictionary of Talmud ...

. Excerpts from this supplement, which is still extant in manuscript, were published by

Solomon Buber Solomon (or Salomon) Buber (2 February 1827 – 28 December 1906) was a Jewish Galician scholar and editor of Hebrew works. He is especially remembered for his editions of Midrash and other medieval Jewish manuscripts, and for the pioneering res ...

in ''Grätz Jubelschrift.'' Samuel is believed to be identical with the author of the same name whose novellæ on

Sanhedrin The Sanhedrin (Hebrew and Aramaic: סַנְהֶדְרִין; Greek: , ''synedrion'', 'sitting together,' hence 'assembly' or 'council') was an assembly of either 23 or 71 elders (known as "rabbis" after the destruction of the Second Temple), ap ...

are mentioned by

Isaac ben Abba Mari Isaac ben Abba Mari (c. 1122 – c. 1193) was a Provençal rabbi who hailed from Marseilles. He is often simply referred to as "Ba'al ha-Ittur," after his ''Magnum opus'', ''Ittur Soferim''. Biography Isaac's father, a great rabbinical authority ...

Marseilles Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Franc ...

in his ''Sefer ha-'Ittur.'' Two Arabic works, ''Risalat al-Burhan fi Tadhkiyat al-Ḥaiwan,'' containing the laws concerning the slaughtering of animals, A. Neubauer, ''Cat. Bodl. Hebr. MSS.'' No. 793 and ''Kitab al-Zahdah lil-Muta'ammilin fi Yaḳaẓat al-Mutaghaffilin,'' on ethics, are also credited to him. According to L. Dukes and other scholars, Samuel was the author also of the grammatical work ''Reshit ha-Leḳaḥ,'' which is found in manuscript in the

Vatican Vatican may refer to: Vatican City, the city-state ruled by the pope in Rome, including St. Peter's Basilica, Sistine Chapel, Vatican Museum The Holy See * The Holy See, the governing body of the Catholic Church and sovereign entity recognized ...

and Paris libraries, and which bears the name of Samuel ben Jacob. This, however, is denied by

Steinschneider Moritz Steinschneider (30 March 1816, Prostějov, Moravia, Austrian Empire – 24 January 1907, Berlin) was a Moravian bibliographer and Orientalist. He received his early instruction in Hebrew from his father, Jacob Steinschneider ( 1782; ...

, who believes this grammar to have been written by another Samuel ben Jacob, of a later day.

References

Jewish Encyclopedia bibliography:

J.L. Rapoport Solomon Judah Löb HaKohen Rapoport ( he, שלמה יהודה כהן רפאפורט; June 1, 1786 – October 15, 1867) was a Galician and Czech rabbi and Jewish scholar. Rapoport was known by an acronym "Shir", שי"ר occasionally שי� ...

, 'Erek Millin, Introduction; L. Dukes, in Ben Chananja, 1861, p. 11; idem, in Orient, Lit. xii. 350; idem, in Oẓar Neḥmad, ii. 199; S. Pinsker, Liḳḳuṭe Ḳadmoniyyot, i. 151;

A. Geiger Abraham Geiger (Hebrew: ''ʼAvrāhām Gayger''; 24 May 181023 October 1874) was a German rabbi and scholar, considered the founding father of Reform Judaism. Emphasizing Judaism's constant development along history and universalist traits, Geige ...

, in Z. D. M. G. xii. 145; Reifman, in ''

Ha-Karmel ''Ha-Karmel'' () was a Hebrew periodical, edited and published by Samuel Joseph Fuenn in Vilna from 1860 to 1880. It was one of the important forces of the Haskalah movement in the Russian Empire. History ''Ha-Karmel'' was founded by Samuel Joseph ...

'', ii. 243; Halberstam, ib. iii. 215; A. Neubauer, in J. Q. R. iii. 619; Kohut, Aruch Completum, Introduction;

, Hebr. Bibl. vi. 10, xiii. 3; idem, Die Arabische Literatur der Juden, § 105. {{DEFAULTSORT:Jacob ibn Jam, Samuel ben 12th-century people of Ifriqiya 12th-century rabbis Jews of Ifriqiya Sephardi rabbis Lexicographers