Aaron Tänzer (, ; also ; January 30, 1871 – February 26, 1937,

Göppingen Göppingen (; or ) is a town in southern Germany, part of the Stuttgart Region of Baden-Württemberg. It is the capital of the Goeppingen (district), district Göppingen. Göppingen is home to the toy company Märklin, and it is the birthplace ...

) was a

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 t ...

in Austria and Germany, chaplain and author.

Biography

He was born in Pressburg,

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe#Before World War I, Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military ...

(present day

Bratislava Bratislava (German: ''Pressburg'', Hungarian: ''Pozsony'') is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the Slovakia, Slovak Republic and the fourth largest of all List of cities and towns on the river Danube, cities on the river Danube. ...

Slovakia Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's m ...

). He studied at the Pressburg Yeshiva, and studied Oriental philology and history at the

University of Berlin The Humboldt University of Berlin (, abbreviated HU Berlin) is a public research university in the central borough of Mitte in Berlin, Germany. The university was established by Frederick William III on the initiative of Wilhelm von Humbol ...

(PhD 1895). In 1896, he was called to

Hohenems Hohenems (High Alemannic German, High Alemannic: ''Ems'') is a town in the Austrian States of Austria, state of Vorarlberg in the Dornbirn (district), Dornbirn district. It lies in the middle of the Austrian part of the Rhine valley. With a populat ...

, Austria as

chief rabbi Chief Rabbi () is a title given in several countries to the recognized religious leader of that country's Jewish community, or to a rabbinic leader appointed by the local secular authorities. Since 1911, through a capitulation by Ben-Zion Meir ...

Tyrol Tyrol ( ; historically the Tyrole; ; ) is a historical region in the Alps of Northern Italy and western Austria. The area was historically the core of the County of Tyrol, part of the Holy Roman Empire, Austrian Empire and Austria-Hungary, f ...

and

Vorarlberg Vorarlberg ( ; ; , , or ) is the westernmost States of Austria, state () of Austria. It has the second-smallest geographical area after Vienna and, although it also has the second-smallest population, it is the state with the second-highest popu ...

; and from 1904 to 1907 he was rabbi of

Meran Merano (, ; ) or Meran () is a (municipality) in South Tyrol, Northern Italy. Generally best known for its spa resorts, it is located within a basin, surrounded by mountains standing up to above sea level, at the entrance to the Passeier Va ...

(

). From 1907 until his death, he served as rabbi of the Jewish community of

Württemberg Württemberg ( ; ) is a historical German territory roughly corresponding to the cultural and linguistic region of Swabia. The main town of the region is Stuttgart. Together with Baden and Province of Hohenzollern, Hohenzollern, two other histo ...

, Germany. His history of the Jews of Göppingen and nearby Jebenhausen is notable as a thorough documentation of a Jewish community from its beginnings. In

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, he served as a ''Feldrabbiner'' (Jewish chaplain) in the German army, primarily on the Eastern front. He looked after German and Austrian Jewish soldiers and took care of Jewish prisoners of war in POW camps like Doeberitz and Sedan. Aron Tänzer's father was a rabbi and his mother worked as a seamstress for the Pressburg Jewish community. At the age of 21, Aron Tänzer enrolled at the University of Berlin. He studied philosophy, German and Semitic philology. Aron Tänzer received his doctorate in 1895 and in October 1896 he successfully applied for the vacant rabbinical position in Hohenems, Austria. The Hohenems rabbinate also supervised nearby Jewish communities in Vorarlberg and, from 1878 to 1914, also formally the Jews living in Tyrol. Tänzer applied his extensive training in history to numerous scientific publications as well as the field of adult education. For example, he often gave lectures on literature and history for the Hohenems Education Club. In 1905 he published the history of the Jews in Hohenems, which is still considered the standard work today. His mindset and religious beliefs were shaped by liberal ideas and cultural openness. From 1905 to 1907 Tänzer was a rabbi of the Jewish community of Meran and from September 1, 1907, became a rabbi at the Göppingen synagogue. He held this position, in which he was responsible for the Jebenhausen district rabbinate, until his death in 1937. Right at the beginning of the First World War, Tänzer volunteered to work as a field rabbi. He served on the Eastern Front for three years. Tänzer looked after the soldiers, helped in the hospital and set up people's kitchens for the needy population. Tänzer was awarded several medals for his work in the field. Tänzer laid the foundation for a public library, later the city library in Göppingen, since 1909. Since 1921 he was an honorary member of the Göppingen veterans and military association "Kampfgemeinschaft". The Rabbiner-Tänzer-Haus (Freihofstrasse 46), the former rabbinate building, in Göppingen was dedicated to the Taenzer family.

Works

* ''Die Religionsphilosophie Josef Albo's'' (doctoral dissertation)'','' Frankfort-on-the-Main, 1896 * ''Der Israelitische Friedhof in Hohenems'' (Jewish Cemetery Hohenems)'','' Vienna, 1901 * ''Judenthum und Entwickelungslehre'' (Judaism and Evolution)'','' Berlin, 1903 * ''Geschichte der Juden in Tirol und Vorarlberg'' (History of the Jews in Tirol and Vorarlberg)'','' vol. i, ib. 1903–4. *''Die Geschichte der Juden in Hohenems und im übrigen Vorarlberg'' (History of the Jews in Hohenems and all of Vorarlberg) 1905 * ''Die Geschichte der Juden in Jebenhausen und Göppingen'' (The history of the Jews in Jebenhausen and Göppingen)''.'' Reprint of the 1927 edition. Konrad, Weißenhorn 1988, (published by the Göppingen City Archives. Volume 23)

References

* Doris Kühner: ''Der Rabbiner Dr. Aron Tänzer und die jüdische Gemeinde in Göppingen''. Zulassungsarbeit zur Ersten Dienstprüfung für das Lehramt an Grund- und Hauptschulen an der PH Schwäbisch Gmünd, Schwäbisch Gmünd 1981 (beim Staatsarchiv Ludwigsburg: EL 251 II Bü 1130) icht ausgewertet(Approval work for the first service examination for the teaching post at primary and secondary schools at the PH Schwäbisch Gmünd, Schwäbisch Gmünd 1981 (at the Ludwigsburg State Archives: EL 251 II Bü 1130) * Karl Heinz Burmeister (Hrsg.): ''Rabbiner Dr. Aron Tänzer. Gelehrter und Menschenfreund. 1871−1937'', Fink, Bregenz 1987 (Rabbi Dr. Aron Tänzer. Scholar and philanthropist) (Schriften des Vorarlberger Landesarchivs Nr. 3) (Online-Ausgabe) * Uri R. Kaufmann: Die Hohenemser Rabbiner Abraham Kohn und Aron Tänzer und die jüdischen Bestrebungen ihrer Zeit, in: Eva Grabherr (Hg.), ''"… eine ganz kleine Gemeinde, die nur von den Erinnerungen lebt". Juden in Hohenems'' (Katalog des Jüdischen Museums Hohenems), Hohenems 1996, S. 45–57 (The Hohenems rabbis Abraham Kohn and Aron Tänzer and the Jewish endeavors of their time, in: Eva Grabherr (ed.), "... a very small community that lives only from memories". Jews in Hohenems (catalog of the Jewish Museum Hohenems), Hohenems 1996, pp. 45–57) * Karl-Heinz Rueß: ''Rabbiner Dr. Aron Tänzer: Stationen seines Lebens''. Stadt Göppingen, Göppingen 2003, icht ausgewertet (Rabbi Dr. Aron dancer: stations in his life. City of Göppingen, Göppingen 2003, ) *

External links

Biographie bei der Stadt Göppingen, mit vielen Fotos

bei Alemannia Judaica
Stolperstein zur Erinnerung an Berta Tänzer
* * *
Guide to the Papers of Arnold Tänzer (1871-1937)
at the

Leo Baeck Institute, New York The Leo Baeck Institute New York (LBI) is a research institute in New York City dedicated to the study of German-Jewish history and culture, founded in 1955. It is one of three independent research centers founded by a group of German-speaking J ...

. {{DEFAULTSORT:Taenzer, Aaron 1871 births 1937 deaths Rabbis from Bratislava 20th-century Austrian rabbis Rabbis from Austria-Hungary Chief rabbis Rabbis in the military People from Hohenems People from Merano Recipients of the Iron Cross (1914), 2nd class Knights of the Order of Franz Joseph German Jewish military personnel of World War I 20th-century German rabbis People from Göppingen