Albert Löwy (8 December 1816 – 21 May 1908) was a Moravian-born English Hebrew scholar and

Reform Reform refers to the improvement or amendment of what is wrong, corrupt, unsatisfactory, etc. The modern usage of the word emerged in the late 18th century and is believed to have originated from Christopher Wyvill's Association movement, which ...

rabbi.

Biography

He was born Abraham Löwy in Aussee,

Moravia Moravia ( ; ) is a historical region in the eastern Czech Republic, roughly encompassing its territory within the Danube River's drainage basin. It is one of three historical Czech lands, with Bohemia and Czech Silesia. The medieval and early ...

(now Úsov,

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...

), the eldest son of thirteen children of Leopold and Katty Löwy. He was named after his ancestor Rabbi Abraham Leipnik, who wrote in

Hebrew Hebrew (; ''ʿÎbrit'') is a Northwest Semitic languages, Northwest Semitic language within the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family. A regional dialect of the Canaanite languages, it was natively spoken by the Israelites and ...

an account of the destruction of the synagogue in Aussee in 1720. In 1822 his father left Aussee for Friedland, on the border of Silesia, where he owned a brewery. In 1829 Albert left home for schools in

Leipzig Leipzig (, ; ; Upper Saxon: ; ) is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Saxony. The city has a population of 628,718 inhabitants as of 2023. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, eighth-largest city in Ge ...

, Jagendorf, and Olmütz, and eventually attended the

University of Vienna The University of Vienna (, ) is a public university, public research university in Vienna, Austria. Founded by Rudolf IV, Duke of Austria, Duke Rudolph IV in 1365, it is the oldest university in the German-speaking world and among the largest ...

, where he began a systematic study of Hebrew and

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

. Among his friends and fellow students there were

Moritz Steinschneider Moritz Steinschneider (; 30 March 1816 – 24 January 1907) was a Moravian bibliographer and Orientalist, and an important figure in Jewish studies and Jewish history. He is credited as having invented the term ''antisemitism.'' Education Mo ...

and

Abraham Benisch Abraham Benisch (; 1811 – 31 July 1878, London) was an English Hebraist, editor, and journalist. He wrote numerous works in the domain of Judaism, Biblical studies, biography, and travel, and during a period of nearly forty years contributed ...

, with whom in 1838 he founded 'Die Einheit,' a

proto-Zionist Proto-Zionism (or Forerunner of Zionism; , pronounced: ''Mevasrei ha-Tzionut'') is a concept in historiography describing Jewish thinkers active during the second half of the 19th century who were deeply affected by the idea of modern nationali ...

secret society of some two hundred students of the University, most of them Jews, who were endeavouring to promote the welfare of the Jews, one of their aims being to establish Jewish settlements in

Palestine Palestine, officially the State of Palestine, is a country in West Asia. Recognized by International recognition of Palestine, 147 of the UN's 193 member states, it encompasses the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and th ...

. In 1840 Löwy visited

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

to promote the society's aims (encountering mainly indifference), and there he settled for life. On the opening on 27 January 1842 of the

reform Reform refers to the improvement or amendment of what is wrong, corrupt, unsatisfactory, etc. The modern usage of the word emerged in the late 18th century and is believed to have originated from Christopher Wyvill's Association movement, which ...

West London Synagogue of British Jews The West London Synagogue, abbreviated WLS, and fully the West London Synagogue of British Jews () is a Reform Jewish congregation and synagogue, located near Marble Arch, at 34 Upper Berkeley Street, in the City of Westminster, in Central Lond ...

, Löwy became one of the first two ministers;

David Woolf Marks David Woolf Marks (22 November 1811 – 3 May 1909) was a British Hebrew scholar and minister. He was the first religious leader of the West London Synagogue, which seceded from the authority of the Chief Rabbi, where he advocated a quasi- Kar ...

was the other. He ran the congregation's school, and with his colleague he edited the prayer-book of the new congregation, which he served until 1892. In 1870, under the guidance of Löwy and Benisch, the

Anglo-Jewish Association The Anglo-Jewish Association (AJA) is a British organisation. It was formed in 1871 for the 'promotion of social, moral, and intellectual progress among the Jews; and the obtaining of protection for those who may suffer in consequence of being Je ...

was formed in London to champion the cause of persecuted Jews and to promote

Jewish education Jewish education (, ''Chinuch'') is the transmission of the tenets, principles, and religious laws of Judaism. Jews value education, and the value of education is strongly embedded in Jewish culture. Judaism places a heavy emphasis on Torah ...

in the

Middle East The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq. The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...

. In 1874 Löwy, after attending a Jewish conference at

Königsberg Königsberg (; ; ; ; ; ; , ) is the historic Germany, German and Prussian name of the city now called Kaliningrad, Russia. The city was founded in 1255 on the site of the small Old Prussians, Old Prussian settlement ''Twangste'' by the Teuton ...

on the Russo-Jewish question, was sent by the Anglo-Jewish Association on a secret mission to

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

. His report on the position of the

Russian Jews The history of the Jews in Russia and areas historically connected with it goes back at least 1,500 years. Jews in Russia have historically constituted a large religious and ethnic diaspora; the Russian Empire at one time hosted the largest po ...

was published as an appendix to the ''Annual Statement of the Anglo-Jewish Association'' for 1874. He also undertook a fact-finding mission to

Constantinople Constantinople (#Names of Constantinople, see other names) was a historical city located on the Bosporus that served as the capital of the Roman Empire, Roman, Byzantine Empire, Byzantine, Latin Empire, Latin, and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empire ...

in 1889, and stimulated Western Jewry's interest in the

Bene Israel The Bene Israel (), also referred to as the "Teli, Shanivar Teli" () or "History of the Jews in India, Native Jew" caste, are a community of Jews in India. It has been suggested that they are the descendants of one of the Ten Lost Tribes via t ...

community of

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

. Lowy was secretary of the Association from 1875 until his resignation in 1889. On 31 October 1892 he resigned his ministry at the West London Synagogue, but he took part in public affairs until his death in London on 21 May 1908. He was buried at the

Balls Pond Road Cemetery Balls Pond Road Cemetery, also known as Jewish (West London Reform) Cemetery, Kingsbury Road Cemetery, Balls Pond Burial Ground and The Jewish Burial Ground, is a Jewish cemetery on Kingsbury Road, Canonbury, London N postcode area, N1. It was ...

of the West London Synagogue.

Work

Löwy's knowledge of Samaritan literature enabled him to collect and catalogue in 1872 the

Samaritan Samaritans (; ; ; ), are an ethnoreligious group originating from the Hebrews and Israelites of the ancient Near East. They are indigenous to Samaria, a historical region of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah that ...

manuscripts belonging to the

Earl of Crawford Earl of Crawford is one of the most ancient extant titles in Great Britain, having been created in the Peerage of Scotland in 1398 for David Lindsay, 1st Earl of Crawford, Sir David Lindsay. It is the premier earldom recorded on the Union Roll. ...

, and in 1891 he completed his chief task as a scholar, the ''Catalogue of Hebraica and Judaica in the Library of the Corporation of the City of London''. He engaged in the controversy over the

Mesha Stele The Mesha Stele, also known as the Moabite Stone, is a stele dated around 840 BCE containing a significant Canaanite and Aramaic inscriptions, Canaanite inscription in the name of King Mesha of Moab (a kingdom located in modern Jordan). Mesha tel ...

at the

Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is a national art museum in Paris, France, and one of the most famous museums in the world. It is located on the Rive Droite, Right Bank of the Seine in the city's 1st arrondissement of Paris, 1st arron ...

, the genuineness of which he contested. In 1903 he printed for private circulation ''A Critical Examination of the so-called Moabite Inscription in the Louvre''. Löwy also won repute as a teacher of Hebrew, and among his pupils were Archibald Tait,

archbishop of Canterbury The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the Primus inter pares, ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the bishop of the diocese of Canterbury. The first archbishop ...

, the

Marquess of Bute Marquess of the County of Bute, shortened in general usage to Marquess of Bute, is a title in the Peerage of Great Britain. It was created in 1796 for John Stuart, 4th Earl of Bute. Family history John Stuart was the member of a family that ...

, and

Thomas Chenery Thomas William Chenery (1826 – 11 February 1884) was an English scholar and editor of ''The Times''. His diplomatic background and choice of capable reporters helped to revive the paper's reputation for international news. Biography Chenery w ...

, editor of ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...

''. He was a member of the council of the Society of Biblical Archaeology, and founded in 1870 the Society of Hebrew Literature (continued until 1877), and edited its publications. In 1893 the

University of St Andrews The University of St Andrews (, ; abbreviated as St And in post-nominals) is a public university in St Andrews, Scotland. It is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, oldest of the four ancient universities of Scotland and, f ...

conferred upon him the

honorary degree An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or '' ad hon ...

LL.D. A Doctor of Laws (LL.D.) is a doctoral degree in legal studies. The abbreviation LL.D. stands for ''Legum Doctor'', with the double “L” in the abbreviation referring to the early practice in the University of Cambridge to teach both canon law ...

Partial bibliography

* * With

. * With

. * * * * Published in German as ''Die Echtheit der moabitischen Inschrift im Louvre''. * Translated from the German of

Leopold Zunz Leopold Zunz (—''Yom Tov Tzuntz'', —''Lipmann Zunz''; 10 August 1794 – 17 March 1886) was the founder of academic Judaic Studies ('' Wissenschaft des Judentums''), the critical investigation of Jewish literature, hymnology and ritual. Nah ...

References

* *

Footnotes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Löwy, Albert 1816 births 1908 deaths 19th-century English rabbis 19th-century English male writers Emigrants from the Austrian Empire to the United Kingdom Jews from Bohemia British Hebraists British Reform rabbis Burials at Balls Pond Road Cemetery Clergy from London Jewish English writers English orientalists Jewish orientalists People from the Margraviate of Moravia University of Vienna alumni Fellows of the Royal Geographical Society