The myth of the golem (Hebr.; “unformed substance,” “doll”), a human-like being created by magic, goes back to Jewish antiquity. The stories about the golem were initially limited to religious contexts, and the act of its creation was the epitome of piety. From the 16th century onward, the golem tradition divided in two: the Jewish one preserved the image of the golem as a superhuman figu…
Golem(2,835 words)
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Yair, Gad and Soyer, Michaela, “Golem”, in: Encyclopedia of Jewish History and Culture Online, Original German Language Edition: Enzyklopädie Jüdischer Geschichte und Kultur. Im Auftrag der Sächsischen Akademie der Wissenschaften zu Leipzig herausgegeben von Dan Diner. © J.B. Metzler, Stuttgart/Springer-Verlag GmbH Deutschland 2011–2017. Consulted online on 29 September 2023 <http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/2468-8894_ejhc_COM_0270>
First published online: 2017
First print edition: 20200106
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