Encyclopedia of Jewish Book Cultures Online

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Being an encyclopedia on book cultures rather than book contents, this work places textuality and materiality of the book in the center of its investigation. The singularity of the Jewish book can only be understood in full if it is studied in its broader cultural and intercultural context. This encyclopedia does that by focusing on the paleographic features, intended function, cultural significance, readership, acceptance, and design of particular books and genres, as well as the producer-consumer relations involved in the making and circulating of books. It covers more than 2000 years of Jewish book cultures from all corners of the earth.

The Encyclopedia of Jewish Book Cultures Online will appear before the print edition and features full-text searchable, richly illustrated articles. The print edition will be released after all online content is complete and will include one introductory volume, dealing with the fundamental research questions in the wide field of Jewish Book History, followed by three alphabetically organized volumes, offering a classic entry-by-entry encyclopedia, with articles of greatly varying length. The online work reflects this framework and presents the introductory essays as a separate, but strongly intertwined, section.

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Maḥzor

(636 words)

Author(s): Reif, Stefan
1. General The word maḥzor (מחזור) currently describes a prayer book designed for use on one or a number of Jewish festivals. This usage is relatively recent in Jewish literary history. The word maḥzor originated as a noun form, derived from an Aramaic root ḥzr חזר)) that also occurs widely in mishnaic Hebrew and bears the meaning of “going around,” “going back,” and “repeating.” The form is used in talmudic-midrashic texts to describe an annual cycle, such…
Source: Encyclopedia of Jewish Book Cultures Online
Date: 2023-01-31

Maḥzor Viṭry

(1,538 words)

Author(s): Isserles, Justine
Maḥzor Viṭry is considered the major source of the liturgical rite, laws, and customs of the lost northern French Jewish communities. Compiled by Simḥah ben Samuel of Vitry (d. 1105), one of Rashi's closest disciples, the original work is now lost. However, 13 medieval copies of the work are extant. The only surviving compilation from the school of Rashi to combine liturgy and law, this dual-natured work can be regarded as a liturgical-halakhic compendium.⸙In Jewish tradition and scholarship, the compendium known as Maḥzor Viṭry (hereafter: MV; Maḥzor) is considered the main sou…
Source: Encyclopedia of Jewish Book Cultures Online
Date: 2023-11-20

Mantua Book Lists

(1,593 words)

Author(s): Kogman-Appel, Katrin
In 1596 and 1605 the Jewish households of Mantua were ordered to deliver lists of their books to the censors of the Inquisition authorities for inspections. The lists survived in the archives of the Jewish community of Mantua and are a valuable source for the study of Jewish reading trends and the dynamics of book collecting. ⸙On August 27, 1595, Francesco Gonzaga, the Bishop of Mantua appointed three censors (Censorship and Censors), most famously among them the convert Domenico Hierosolomitano (or Domenico Yerushalmi), to examine Jewish books for f…
Source: Encyclopedia of Jewish Book Cultures Online
Date: 2023-01-31

Mapping the History of the Jewish Book

(15,709 words)

Author(s): Wiesemann, Falk
The geographical aspect represents a constitutive and important element of Jewish book history. In conjunction with the factor of time, the mapping of Jewish book history allows conclusions to be drawn about the changing processes of production, distribution, and consumption. ⸙ Mapping in General and Jewish Book History The geographical aspect represents a constitutive and important element of Jewish book history. In conjunction with the factor of time, the mapping of Jewish book history allows conclusions to be drawn about the …
Source: Encyclopedia of Jewish Book Cultures Online
Date: 2023-05-05