Nathan ben Abraham, known also by the epithetPresident of the Academy (Hebrew:רבינו נתן אב הישיבה) in theLand of Israel (died ca. 1045 – 1051),[1] was an 11th-century rabbi andexegete of theMishnah who lived inRamla, in theJund Filastin district of theFatimid Caliphate. He was the author of the first known commentary covering the entire Mishnah.
A critical analysis of the time-frame in which the author of the Judeo-Arabic Mishnah commentary lived places him in the early 11th century. Assaf suggests that he was Rabbi Nathan the second, the son of Rabbi Abraham who was calledthe Pious, a contemporary of RabbiAbiathar, who served in thegeonate of the Land of Israel in 1095 CE.[2] This view has been rejected by more recent scholars, such as Gil (1983), Friedman (1990), Danzig (1998), Amar (2011) and Fox (1994), who put him two generations earlier. In around 1011, Nathan travelled toQayrawan, to attend to his family inheritance, and while there he studied under the illustriousRabbi Hushiel ben Elhanan, one of the greatest Jewish scholars of the time.[3] During this time he would travel toFustat (Old Cairo), in Egypt, where he had certain business engagements, and where it was that he'd meet his future wife, the daughter of Mevorakh ben Eli, a wealthy citizen of Fustat. Nearing the age of forty, he returned to his native Palestine and, after settling inRamleh where he vied with theGaonSolomon ben Judah of Jerusalem between the years 1038 and 1051 over the position ofgaon, he was eventually appointed theAv Beit Din (President of the court) inPalestine, a position only second to that of thegaon,[4] and which post he held until his death.[5] During his years of public service, Rabbi Nathan had garnered the support and backing of Diaspora communities, although Solomon ben Judah had secured the backing of the local community, as well as theFatimid governor of Ramleh.[6] In Palestine, he compiled a commentary on the Mishnah, which commentary enjoyed widespread circulation in the Jewish world in the late 12th and early 13th centuries.[7]
Rabbi Nathan's work is one of the first known commentaries of the Mishnah, ranking with that of RabbiHai Gaon's commentary onSeder Taharot in the Mishnah (and is the oldest existing commentary encompassing the entire Six Orders of the Mishnah).[8] Scholars have ascribed this commentary a unique significance, saying that by virtue of its composition in the Land of Israel, its interpretations are believed to embody an unbroken Palestinian-Jewish tradition on the meanings of difficult words. The treatise also sheds light on thediachrony of Hebrew words.
The entire work was rendered into a Hebrew translation by RabbiYosef Qafih, with an abridged first edition being published between the years 1955 and 1958, and the second edition in 1965. Even so, the work has not seen widespread circulation.[9]
Nathan's originalJudeo-Arabic commentary of the Mishnah served as the basis for a laterrecension made by a 12th-century anonymous author and copyist,[10][11] believed to be ofYemenite Jewish provenance.[12][13] It is doubtful that his work would have survived, had it not been for the faithful copyist, whose innovation was to interweave in the existing text the divergent views held by severalgeonim and the explanations given by them for words and passages in the Mishnah. The author's introduction reads: "I found the commentaries of Rabbi Nathan, the President of the Academy, [which he made] for explicating the different language usages in the Mishnah, and I have seen fit to add thereto others besides, drawn from the commentaries of Israel's sages."[14]The anonymous copyist is said to have lived between 1105 – 1170 CE, making him a contemporary with RabbiIsaac Alfasi andNathan ben Jehiel of Rome, the author ofSefer Arukh.[15] He is the first to introduce the work as being a commentary of the Mishnah, written by "Rabbeinu Nathan,Av ha-Yeshiva" (the President of the Academy), whom he calls "the son of Abrahamha-Ḥasīd" (Abraham the Pious). This last epithet is believed to have been an error by the copyist, who mistook its true author, Nathan ben Abraham (of the 11th century), with Nathan ben Abraham II, the grandson of the former.[16] He then proceeds to bring down a long introduction wherein he spans the history of the written and oral Laws, writing inJudeo-Arabic and commencing with the words,qāl ğāmiʿuh (= "So said the gatherer [of the sayings of the fathers]," etc.), covering the Torah's reception at Sinai and how it was transmitted down throughout successive generations, naming some thirteen generations from the time of Israel's return from theBabylonian exile to the time of RabbiJudah HaNasi who compiled the Mishnah in 189 CE. In all this, he never once mentions his own name, but chooses to remain anonymous. He also explains some of the terminology used in the Talmud, such as when a saying is meant to be understood as an external teaching (Baraitta) outside of the Mishnah, and when it is to be understood as a teaching strictly derived from the Mishnah compiled by Rabbi Judah HaNasi. He then mentions the redaction of theBabylonian Talmud underRav Ashi as occurring in the year 841 ofSeleucid era (corresponding with 530CE), and names the great exegetes that followed this period, namely: the author ofHalakhot Ḳetu'ot andHalakhot Pesuḳot, RabbiYehudai Gaon; the author ofHalakhot Gedolot, RabbiShimon Kiara; the author of theBeramot (a term applied to the bookSheëltot of Rav Aḥai, the Gaon of Shabḥa); RabbiHai Gaon; RabbiIsaac ibn Ghiyyat ofLucena; RabbiNissim, the author ofSefer ha-Mafteaḥ, RabbiSamuel ben Ḥofni, RabbiHananel, and RabbiIsaac Alfasi. A certain book entitledKitāb al-Ḥāwī ("the Compendium") is cited four times, composed by a certain R. David b. Saadiah.[17]
Three of the author's more extensive commentaries exist for the tractatesBerakhot,Shevu'ot andAvot. Since the anonymous copyist makes use of other sources in the original work bequeathed by Rabbi Nathan, it is not uncommon for him to give one explanation for a word in one tractate, but in a different tractate give a different explanation for the same word. The anonymous copyist deviated from the set order of the Mishnah, bringing down the order as follows: (Seder Zera'im) Berakhot, (Seder Mo'ed) 'Eruvin, Pesahim, Sheqalim, Kippurim, Sukkah, Betzah, Rosh Ha-Shannah, Ta'anith, Megillah, Hagiggah, Mo'ed Qatan, etc. Occasionally, the explanation given for a certain word or phrases found in one Mishnaic verse is explained by the author in one of the subsequent verses, such as the teaching about the dried figs andfig-cakes ofMishnahTerumah 2:4 being explained in MishnahTerumah, chapter 3.
An early reference to Nathan ben Abraham's Mishnah commentary is brought down by RabbiMoses ben Nahman (1194–1270), who cites the commentary in his own Talmudic commentary,[18] saying: "Likewise, I found written in the glosses of old copies of the Mishnah composed in the Land of Israel where they explained the meaning ofsippūq (Heb.ספוק) as having the connotation ofadā, in the Arabic tongue, [meaning], he that grafts a tree upon a tree." The referent here is to Nathan's commentary in TractateOrlah (1:5).
Rabbi Nathan's method of elucidating Hebrew words is mostly similar to that ofMaimonides' Mishnah commentary - the two often complementing each other, but differing in several key areas. A comparative study gives readers a glimpse into words that carried different connotations in that period, with occasional words whose identification can have a significanthalachic bearing, depending on how they are explained.[19] There are above one-hundred entries of plants mentioned in the Mishnah that have been identified by Rabbi Nathan. In some entries, two different explanations are given for one word, the one perhaps under the authority of another rabbinic sage.
“herbs with which one fulfills his obligation at Passover, and which sprout around the date-palm tree, and [which] RabbiHai Gaon explained as meaning `a very thick plant, having that which resembles needle points`”[186]
Occasionally, Nathan ben Abraham relates to the practical usages of plants in the Land of Israel and in theregion of Syria, writing, for example, that either Judas tree florets (Cercis siliquastrum) (Judeo-Arabic:דאד'י)[287] [variant: St. John's wort (Hypericum spp.)][288] or violets (Viola odorata) (Judeo-Arabic:אלבנפסג) were placed in flagons of wine to impart their flavor, while rose florets (Rosa) were used to impart flavor toolive oil and to sesame seeds.[289][290][291]
InModern Hebrew nomenclature, some of the plant identifications have changed sincemedieval times. For example, the Modern Hebrew word for cucumber ismelafefon (a word formerly used for "melon"). The wordkishū’īm (formerly "cucumbers") is now applied tozucchini squash (Cucurbita pepo var. cylindrica), a plant native to theNew World. In modern colloquial Hebrew, the wordḥazeret (formerly "lettuce") is now used to denote horseradish (Armoracia rusticana).Karkūm, formerly used in Hebrew to denote onlysaffron, is now used also forturmeric.Lūf (formerlyArum palaestinum) is now used in modern colloquial Hebrew to denote the broadleaf wild leek (Allium ampeloprasum). Modern botanists in Israel now call Clover (Trifolium) by the nametiltan, which word formerly meant "fenugreek" (Trigonella foenum-graecum).[292] Modern Hebrew now calls cork (Quercus suber) by the name "sha'am," although in Rabbi Nathan's day it had the meaning of "bamboo."Afūnna (der. ofafūnnin) is now used in Modern Hebrew as a generic word for all kinds ofgarden peas, when formerly it was used strictly for chickpeas (Cicer arietinum).[293] Cauliflower is now calledkrūvīt in Modern Hebrew, but which formerly was known astherūḇtor. In many cases, Arabic names are used to identify plants. Most Hebrew speakers will call the frothy relish made fromfenugreek by its Arabic name,ḥilbah. So, too, the biblical hyssop,eizoḇ, is now popularly called by its Arabic name,zaatar.[294] The Arabic wordsabōn which is now used for soap (borit) is related to the Aramaic wordṣap̄ona = ܨܦܘܢܐ (soap). In other cases,Eliezer Ben-Yehuda invented new words, such asḥatzilīm (egg-plants; aubergines), to take the place of Hebrew words long forgotten, but what Nathan ben Abraham understood as being calledqīnras.
Some referents of Hebrew words have become so entrenched in rabbinic disputes that it is now difficult to ascertain what their original meanings may have been, such as the adjectiveqamūr (Hebrew:קמור /קמורה), in MishnahOhalot 3:7,op. cit. 5:1 andEruvin 8:10. Rabbi Nathan (Ohalot) explains the word as meaning "plastered," (such as with gypsum and which repels water), butMaimonides explained the same word as meaning "dome-shaped." For one, the mouth of anearthenware oven which projected outside the house would be protected from the elements by virtue of its dome-like structure, while, for the other, because of its plastering. R.Hai Gaon explained it differently, saying thatqamūr was an opening [of the oven or drain pipe] built at its base near to the ground so that the influx of air will cause the fire to burn well, in the case of the oven, or allow for a drainage pipe to air out.[295]
The manuscript was retrieved in ca. 1927 by RabbiYihya al-Qafih, from the place used by the Jewish community inSana'a to bury old and worn-out sacred literature (genizah), within the Jewish cemetery itself on the outskirts of the city.[296] Three copies were made of the original manuscript, before it was sold to a certain Shelomo Halevi Busani (later of Tel-Aviv), who, in turn, sold the manuscript to the Schechter Library in New York. Today, the original manuscript is housed at theJewish Theological Seminary of America, under JTS Rab.1492.[297] One of the three remaining copies, copied in 1930 by Qafih's grandson, was acquired by theHebrew University library,[298] from which a comprehensive study was made of the text by Professor Simcha Assaf who published his findings in the periodicalKiryat Sefer, in 1933.
TheBritish Museum possesses a partial copy of Nathan ben Abraham's Judeo-Arabic commentary of the Mishnah (with only the Mishnaic Orders ofZera'im,Mo'ed andNeziqin).[299]
Among the manuscripts and incunabula collected byDavid Solomon Sassoon is a two-pageJudeo-Arabic copy of the Introduction taken from Rabbi Nathan's commentary, believed to have been singled-out because of its more profound nature.[300] Rabbi Yosef Qafih has provided a Hebrew translation of the Introduction in the Mishnah published byEl ha-Meqorot.
The earliest modern-day printing of Rabbi Nathan's work came in 1955, when theEl Meqorot publishers of Jerusalem printed the Hebrew translation of Rabbi Nathan's commentary, yet only as a supplement to other commentaries. In 1958, the same publishers published a single edition, edited by Mordechai Yehuda Leib Sachs. A third edition was published by them in 1965. TheHarry Fischel Institute in Jerusalem published the Mishnaic order ofZera'im. In 1973,Me'orot publishers of Jerusalem published an edition of the commentary, although it too was not an exclusive edition, but incorporated other commentaries.
^Assaf, S. (1933–1934), p. 383;Encyclopaedia Judaica (3rd edition), vol. 12, Jerusalem 1974, s.v. Nathan Ben Abraham II;Pirushei ha-Rishonim (Tamid - part 1), Benei Barak 2001
^Besides theHarry Fischel Institute that has reprinted sections of the invaluable work, namely, the entire Mishnaic Order known asZera'im (Seeds), the commentary is relatively unknown among the Yeshivas.
^Assaf, Simcha (Kiryat Sefer 1933) presumes that the copyist and redactor lived between the years 1105 CE and 1170 CE, based on the fact that the last of the exegetes mentioned by the copyist is RabbiIsaac Alfasi (1013–1103), while not mentioning at all in his work the explanations given byMaimonides (born 1135), who also compiled a Judeo-Arabic commentary on the Mishnah (see: Nathan ben Abraham (1955), vol. 1, Preface written by Mordecai Yehudah Leib Sachs, appended at the end of the book).
^Such is the opinion of RabbiYosef Qafih and others, based on the author's choice of Arabic words and which tend to show a dialect of Arabic used in Yemen, as well as the manuscript's place of discovery, viz. Yemen. However, this conclusion is not agreed upon by all, since many of the words brought down by Qafih to prove this point and which, according to him, are of a "pure" Yemeni dialect, are also Arabic words used in Iraq. Simcha Assaf, however, has presumed that the copyist was originally from Egypt.
^Such is the conclusion reached by a host of scholars, as mentioned by Zohar Amar (2011).
^Assaf, S. (1955), pp. 319–322 (=Kiryat Sefer, X [1934], 542–545); Friedman, Mordechai A. (1990a), p. 41 [13]–42 [14]. Simcha Assaf and Mordechai A. Friedman are in dispute over whether it was Rabbi Nathan or his Yemenite copyist who quotes from R. David.
^See:Amar, Z. & Kapah, E. (2011b), p. 13 (note 24), who brings down the classic example of one of the five grains,shibbolet shu'al (Heb.שבולת שועל), mentioned in MishnahPesahim 2:5 and in MishnahMenahot 10:7, whose leaven is prohibited during Passover. While the Talmudic exegete,Rashi, holds this to be oats, and Maimonides holds it to be a type of "wild barley," Nathan ben Abraham (1955) called it by its Arabic namesunbulat al-tha'alib (Fox's spike). Another one of the five grains whose leaven is prohibited at Passover is theshiffon (Heb.שיפון), which Nathan ben Abraham (1955) explains in MishnahMenahot 10:7 as meaningal-sāfeh (Judeo-Arabic:אלסאפה) and which word, according to Amar, is synonymous with the Arabic worddowsir (Ar.دوسر) - i.e. either one of the cultivated oats (Avena sativa) or Ovate goatgrass (Aegilops geniculata). Rashi, in his commentary on theBabylonian Talmud (Pesahim 35a), thought that the Hebrew wordshiffon meantשיגל"א (=seigle), or what is actuallyrye (Secale cereale), a grain crop that is not endemic to Israel.
^The wordal-’inğāṣ (Judeo-Arabic:אלאנג'אץ) is now commonly used to describe a "pear tree." In Yemen, however, the wordal-’inğāṣ was used solely for plum (Prunus domestica). See RabbiYosef Qafih's comment on this matter inMaimonides (1963–1967), vol. 1, s.v.Kila'im 1:4, note 34.
^Schlossberg, Eliezer (1993), p. 148, brings down the words of RabbiIsaac ben Melchizedek ofSiponto (c. 1090–1160), one of the earliest commentators on the Mishnah (onlySeder Zera'im survives), who wrote: "’Iğûs [Pear], the Arabic word is written with aṣâd (ץ) at the end, but when people ceased to distinguish between the stressed consonant (צ) and the vowelshuraq that is sounded-out before thesemakh (ס), it has caused the interchanging of these consonantal sounds one with the other."
^Ibn al-'Awwam, the 12-centuryAndalusian author ofThe Book on Agriculture (Kitāb al-Filāḥa), vol. 1, chapter 7, article 42, like Maimonides, explains that plums were called in Arabic by the nameal-’inğāṣ [sic], adding that this fruit was also known by them under the nameʻiyūn al-baqar, meaning, "bull's eye." Cf.Rabbeinu Hananel's commentary (11th-century) onBabylonian Talmud (Berakhot 39a), where he uses the same description to describe the Damascene plum (damson). Ibn al-'Awwam, however, clearly disagreed with Maimonides' identification of this fruit as being called "al-barqūq," writing in the above work (1802, p. 336 of vol. 1, chapter 7, article 40) that "al-barqūq" had the connotation ofapricot (Spanish: albaricoque), also known as the "Armenian apple tree," or what is also called "meshmesh" in Arabic.
^In the abovediachronic analysis, Maimonides informs his readers that, in theMaghreb, the name of this fruit tree had changed in meaning over the years. In the Maghreb,אגס was understood as meaning Plum (Prunus domestica) [variant:Apricot]. This view, however, stands in direct contradiction to an oldmidrashic work,Alpha Beta la-Ben Sira, where it lists thirty or so trees that were planted by the First Man in Babylonia; ten of which fruits are eaten whole, ten of which are eaten only in their outer fleshy part (mesocarp), but whose inner kernels (endocarp) are discarded, and ten of which fruits are eaten only in their inner, fleshy parts, but whose outer husks are discarded. There, it states explicitly that theאגס was among the fruit eaten whole; hence: "pear" as explained by most commentators. Had theאגס been a plum, as Maimonides alleges, it would have been named in themidrashic work in a different category.
^Amar, Z. (2015), pp. 44–45. Amar (ibid.) thinks that the original Judeo-Arabic word may have been related, etymologically, to theIris plant:sisan (= iris) +bar (= wild). In any rate, according to Amar, Maimonides held the "erus" to be a type of "wide-leaved mint," rather than the iris plant itself, since the upper stem of the "erus" plant exists in both winter and summer, unlike the iris that exists for the most part only in winter. According to Amar, the Arabic wordsayasnabir was used in the Middle-Ages to describe various plants of the familyLamiaceae. In some Arabic dictionaries, the name is applied to wildbergamot mint (Mentha aquatica var.citrata).
^RabbiSolomon Sirilio, in his commentary on theJerusalem Talmud (Kila'im 5:7[8]), explains: “Erusa. In theArukh it has been explained assusimbro (Sisymbrium officinale ?), in a foreign language, they being kinds of condiments that are put in the cooked dish, although others explain that it is an herb; whenever it yields seed the seed rattles as a sort of bell, this being the principal [opinion].” Cf.Smith, William (1872), p. 899, who writes on thesisymbrium (σισύμριον): "...there can be no doubt that it was a species of mint, probably theMentha sylvestris, as Anguillara contends. The other species is unquestionably theNasturtium officinale, or Water-cress."Ibn al-Baitar (1989), p. 186, wrote that this plant was the water-cress (Nasturtium officinale). Cf.Geoponika (1806), p.131, who brings down a description of the plantsisymbrium.
^Hai Gaon (1924), s.v.Ohelot 8:1. Rabbi Hai Gaon's explanation follows the explanation given in theJerusalem Talmud (Kila'im, end of chapter 5), which, in the Leiden MS. of the Jerusalem Talmud, is written asאירסיה. The Vatican MS. of a late 13th-century, early 14th-century copy of the Jerusalem Talmud (Vat. ebr. 133) [folio 88v], however, writes in the margin for the same wordאירוסה.
^The sense here is to a concoction made from boiling the stripped leaves and stalks of vegetables (still in the ground), used medicinally, but especially for warding off the effects of drunkenness. Not to be confused with the vegetableAsparagus officinalis, although derived from its Greek name.
^See frame f.6r inSefer ῾Arukh - A talmudic lexicon[permanent dead link], s.v.אספרגוס, British Library (Add MS 26881). The author of theArukh brings down this teaching in the name of RabbiHai Gaon. Compare theTosefta (Demai 4:5) which states: "Rabbi Jose says:Karūb whose stripped edges were taken up to make thereofasparagos and to be discarded thereafter are permitted (i.e. without the necessity of separating therefrom theDemai tithe)."
^The original source is now unknown, but cited by the author ofSefer Arukh, RabbiNathan ben Jehiel, s.v.אספרגוס.
^Hai Gaon (1924), p. 114 (note 25), on MishnahNiddah 9:6. According toJastrow's Dictionary, this is an Aramaic word meaning "an alkali used for cleansing."
^According to Mordechai Yehuda Leib Sachs, one opinion states that the first man, Adam, and his wife, Eve, had eaten from the fruit of the banana tree, and that it is alluded to in the Talmud (end ofBerakhot 40a) when it speaks of "figs" being the fruit that they were commanded not to eat, insofar that many years ago they used to call bananas by the name of "figs of Eve" (A Commentary of the Six Orders of the Mishnah, vol. 1, p. 48, note 1). According to Feliks, Jehuda (1973:175), "banot-shūaḥ" have a ripening period of three-years. Andrew Watson, in his workThe Arab Agricultural Revolution (1974), proposed that bananas were only lately introduced into the Mediterranean regions by the Arabs between the 8th and 12th centuries CE, but there is no real evidence for this claim.
^In yet another place, Maimonides explains the fruitbanoth shuaḥ as "a kind of white figs who produce fruit once in every three years" (Amar, Z. (2015), p. 165).
^Rabbi Nathan's description of this word follows that of theBabylonian Talmud,Berakhot 40b, where it is described as “the very last (late-ripening) grapes on the vine.” The same view is held by the great commentator on the Jerusalem Talmud, RabbiMoses Margolies.
^Amar thinks that the sense here is to Florence fennel (Foeniculum vulgare), being the identification given for this plant in theJerusalem Talmud (Demai 1:1). The same view is held by the great commentator on the Jerusalem Talmud, RabbiSolomon Sirilio, who calls it "fennel" (Sp.hinojo).
^Widespread vine species inEmilia, which produces a black grape with a sour taste, with which the homonymous red or rosé wines are obtained
^It stands to reason from Rabbi Nathan's explanation that although this fruit is merely a cultivar of melon, it was facetiously called in the Hebrew tongue an "Egyptian gourd," or "Egyptian pumpkin," by way of belittling the fruit's outward appearance. The teaching in MishnahKila'im 1:5 comes to warn about the "Egyptian gourd" being a diverse kind with the Grecian gourd (Lagenaria vulgaris), although they are similar in taste
^According to this opinion, "ḥuzrad" is another cultivar of pear. While the Mishnah in Kila'im 1:4 mentionsgrafting a cultivar of pear known as "krustemelo" with the native pear, it says nothing about the allowance of other pear cultivars. TheJerusalem Talmud (Kila'im 1:4) questions what would happen if the scion of a different cultivar of pear were grafted onto the native pear. The question was answered by bringing down a case where the people in the vicinity of Arieh were grafting a scion of apples onto a cultivar of pear known as "ḥuzrad," and when they were confronted by a certain disciple who said that they were not permitted to do so, they immediately cut down the tree. Upon inquiry, they learnt that they did right in cutting down the tree, since their grafting was done with diverse kinds, in direct violation of the Torah. However, to take the scion of the tree "ḥuzrad," and to graft it onto therootstock of a native pear (Hebrew:אגס), it is permissible and does not come under the biblical prohibition of diverse kinds.
^Identity uncertain. The Mishnah seems to be referring to the root of such a plant, and which root is not used as livestock fodder, nor for human consumption. In ToseftaKila'im 3:12 a teaching states that it is forbidden to maintain this plant in a vineyard, because of the prohibition of diverse kinds.Zohar Amar, inRabbi Yosef Kafiḥ's Notebook on the Plants of the Mishna (Jerusalem 2005, p. 43, note 47), writes in the name of 'Aissa, p. 89, that the nameal-rāziq is "one of the names given for thecotton plant." The wordrāziq, in some dialects of Arabic, refers to the leaves of a plant that are said to resemblesage, with the same medicinal properties, but more bitter, used as an infusion in teas and drunk to help soothe upset stomachs. The leaves are said to be thick like those of sage (Salvia).
^In theJerusalem Talmud (Shevi'it, ch. 7) it was asked: "What areḥalbiṣin (חלביצין)?" To which question, the answer was given: "They are the eggs ofneṣ ḥalab (נץ חלב)." This too is explained bySolomon Sirilio as meaning, "the egg-shaped roots of theneṣ ḥalab."
^A word synonymous withהרגילה of MishnahShevi'it 7:1.
^The reference here probably to the yellow inflorescence ofPortulaca oleracea.
^Modern Arab lexicographers have explainedal-ḥandaqūq /al-ḥindaqūq as being of the Legume family of plants (Fabaceae, also calledLeguminosae), and which word in Arabic applies to various species of clover. See: Kapah, E. (2007), p. 48.
^It is important to note, in the case of this herb, that there are two different stages of development: the young stage in which the leaves are green and large and edible, and the mature stage in which the plant becomes thorny without any resemblance to its first appearance.
^abCites Hebrew sources, without explaining what the vegetable is.
^The species of safflower which is most common in the Land of Israel isCarthamus tenuis
^Amar, Z. (2011b), pp. 14–15, thinks that there may have been a copyist error here, where instead of writingכ'רנע, the word for Safflower in the Yemenite dialect, the copyist wroteכ'רוע, meaning, castor bean plant.
^The Mishnah specifically speaks about ירבוזין השוטין, literally, "wildyarbūzīn," to distinguish from the cultivated variety. In any case, both areyarbūzīn. Rabbinic literature brings down conflicting opinions as to the identification of this one herb.Rashi, inSukkah 39b (s.v. הירבוזין) opines that it is הנפל"ש, meaning sorrel (Rumex), and that what all other commentaors understood to mean "wild" (Heb. שוטין) was understood by Rashi to mean "asparagus". Maimonides explainsyarbūzīn as meaning a type of wild Goosefoot (Blitum virgatum andChenopodium murale), to be distinguished from the cultivated variety, Amaranthus blitum var. silvestre.Sefer Arukh andMoses Margolies, in his commentary on theJerusalem Talmud (Shevi'it 9:1;Ma'aserot 5:3), have explained theyarbūzīn to mean "wild asparagus" (Asparagus aphyllus).
^Amar, Z. (2000), p. 278. Amar citesIbn al-Baitar's “Tafsīr Kitāb Diāsqūrīdūs”, who writes that the Greek term for this same herb isblita = (Modern Greek: βλίτα), (Amaranthus blitum var. silvestre). Today, the name is also applied to Goosefoot (Blitum virgatum andChenopodium murale).
^The intent here is to the cultivated variety, although MishnahShevi'it 9:1 refers specifically to "wild asparagus" (Asparagus aphyllus), endemic to the Land of Israel.
^Also in MishnahKila'im 1:1;Kila'im 1:9;Peah 8:5;Hallah 1:1, et al.
^Amar, Z. (2011a), pp. 45–48. According to Amar, the word may also apply to Spelt (Triticum spelta). Amar (ibid.) brings down a description of the grain inIbn Sidah's 11th century Arabic classical vocabulary,Kitāb al-Muḫaṣṣaṣ (Cairo 1901), the translation of which follows: “Al-'alas ---- a fine wheat whose color is dark brown; very difficult to separate its husks [from the grain] and it cannot be separated except in a mortar. The bread made therefrom is tasty and its flour is like untoqurshiyah (?). The flour produced therefrom is fine, and its spike is fragile; despite which, it produces meager fruit. Some say that the kernels of [grain known as]ʿalas are joined together two by two; they are not separated one from the other until they are pounded in a mortar, being themahārīs; meaning, one cannot separate the husks from the grain [with ease], or pound it [with ease]. It is like unto wheat in terms of its foliage and stalk.” According toIbn al-Baitar (1989), pp. 174–175 (item no. 75), the grain known asal-ʿalas may apply to bothTriticum dicoccum andTriticum monococcum.
^This word followsSaadia Gaon's Judeo-Arabic translation of the wordכסמת in Exodus 9:32, which he translated asאלכרסנה (= vetch). The 15th-century Bible exegete, Sa'id ben David al-Adeni, who wrote one of the earliest commentaries on Maimonides'Mishneh Torah, has cautioned his readers about confusingכוסמין, i.e. the grain known aswild emmer (Arabic:al-`alas), withאלכרסנה (vetch), saying in chapter 3 ofHil. Berakhot thatכוסמין isal-`alas, but it is notאלכרסנה (vetch).
^The sense here is to the resinous pitch which exudes from the Storax tree (Styrax officinalis); not to be confused with the modern-Arabic word forcamphor.
^Maimonides' view here mirrors that of RabbiSaadia Gaon in his Judeo-Arabic translation ofSong of Songs 1:14, who explains "a cluster ofkofer" as meaning a "cluster ofhenna."
^Also mentioned in MishnahTerumot 11:4;Uktzin 3:2.
^The sense here is to the flower from which is extracted thestigmas which are dried and used as a spice. The kind of saffron which is endemic to the Land of Israel isCrocus hyemalis.
^According to Amar, most scholars today hold that the "luf" of the Mishnah also refers to Arum (Arum palaestinum), which is endemic to the Land of Israel and of the same family as colocasia. The Arum is also called "luf" in the Arabic dialect, of which there are several varieties. See:Amar, Z. (2015), p. 107 (note 494).
^According to Amar, in Maimonides' earlier writings he identified this plant withColocasia antiquorum, but in his later writings he simply wrote that it was "one of the species of onions."
^Nathan ben Abraham (1955), who makes note elsewhere in his work that the לטום was believed to be a cross-breed between an oak tree and a terebinth tree. In any rate, from an etymological standpoint, the word has undergone changes in meaning over the years. According toJastrow, M. (2006), s.v.לטום, the word may have formerly meant a type of tree resin, such as gum-mastic or rosin, although by the 5th-century CE it was understood as being a fruit, and which fits the Talmudic description inNiddah 8a which alludes to all the named products being fruits of trees, exceptingקטף. TheAramaic Targum ofOnkelos, on Genesis 43:11, translatesלט asלטום, and which same biblical word is explained by the Greek LXX as being "stacte," a Greek word meaning any gum resin that exudes in drops from certain trees, such as rosin.
^Nathan ben Abraham (1955), elsewhere in his seminal work, explainsleʿunīn as "a variety ofchard." Talmudic exegete,Solomon Sirilio, thinks that this may have been spinach.
^It is worthy of noting that Talmudic exegeteSolomon Sirilio, in his commentary onJerusalem Talmud (Kila'im 1:3) explains that Maimonides understood the meaning ofלעונין as implying the Spanish wordarmuelle, meaningOrache.
^Kapah, E. (2007), p. 74. The Hebrew word used here is a Greek loanword,מלפפון (melephephon). TheJerusalem Talmud (Kilayim 1:2) relates an ancient belief that if one were to take a seed from a watermelon and a seed from an apple, and then place them together in an impression made in the earth, the two seeds would fuse together and becomediverse kinds. "It is for this reason," says the narrator of the Talmud, "that they call it (i.e. the fruit) by its Greek name,melephephon. The old Greek word for "melon" was actually μήλο =mêlo(n) apple + πεπόν =pépōn melon, meaning literally "apple-shaped melon" (see:Random House Webster's College Dictionary, s.v. melon). This fruit, muskmelon (Cucumis melo), was thought to be a cross-breed between a watermelon and an apple. Maimonides, however, calls "melephephon" inMishnahKilayim 1:2 andTerumah 8:6 by the Arabic name,al-khiyyar, meaning "cucumbers" (Cucumis sativus) – far from being anything related to apples and watermelons. On the etymology of this word, seeDalman (2020), pp. 250–251, 334. Today, inModern Hebrew, the wordmelephephon is now used to denote "cucumbers," based on Maimonides' identification.
^Talmudic exegete,Solomon Sirilio (1485–1554), mentions in his commentary on theJerusalem Talmud (Kila'im 1:2) thatMaimonides explainedmelephephon to mean in Spanishpepinos = cucumber (Cucumis sativus), which, in the opinion of an early Mishnaic exegete, Rabbi Isaac ofSiponto (c. 1090–1160), was really to be identified as “small, round melons” (Cucumis melo), since Rabbi Yehudah in our Mishnah holds that it is a diverse kind in relation tokishūt (a type of cucumber). Moreover, had themelephephon simply been a subspecies ofkishūt, explained by Maimonides as having the meaning ofal-fakous (Egyptian cucumber = Cucumis melo var. chate), they would not have been considered diverse kinds with respect to each other, similar to a black ox and a white ox that plough together are not considered diverse kinds.
^Although Rabbi Nathan ben Abraham identifiesnefos as beingal-jazar (Arabic forcarrot /parsnip), he may have actually been referring here toBrassica napus, which vegetable has roots similar to those of carrots (See next two entries under Maimonides andSefer Arukh).
^Although the vegetable known asnefos was called by Maimonides by its idiom, "Syrian radish," it was actually not a radish at all, since it is listed in MishnahKilaim 1:5 as being a diverse-kind (kila'im) in relation to the true radish (Heb.צנון).Zohar Amar suggests that it may have actually beenBrassica napus (seeAmar, Z. (2015), p. 113). One is to bear in mind thatBrassica napus has roots resembling those of carrots, for which reason medieval Hebraists and philologists would have classified the vegetable as a carrot. In foliage,Brassica napus and turnip (Brassica rapa) have similar leaves, for which reason they are not considered diverse-kinds with respect to each other.
^Rabbi Hai Gaon explainsneṣ ḥalav (Hebrew:נץ חלב)) as being what is called in Arabicḥarshuf, variantḥurfesh, which means artichoke, whose cultivated species (Cynara scolymus) is now allotted to people asḥurfesh beni adam, while its wild variety (Cynara syriaca) asḥurfesh el-ḥamir is left for donkeys.
^Amar, Z. & Kapah, E. (2011b), p. 19. Such explanation is also found in the Judeo-Arabic lexicon compiled by Rabbi Tanḥum ben Joseph Ha-Yerushalmi (c. 1220–1291), entitledMurshid al-Kafi, where he explainsנקלבס as meaning "a very precious type of grass used in worship," but adds that some say that it is "a thing mixed with spices, while others explain its meaning asגוארשן (i.e. millet)."
^TheArukh explains that members of theNasi's family would send this kind of produce to certain of their friends who would leave it to be eaten after the main course of the meal, in which case they would then make a blessing over it before eating it, and another blessing over it after eating it (End Quote). Other rabbis, namely,Solomon Sirilio andElijah of Fulda (renowned scholars of theJerusalem Talmud), thought that this produce was none other than "highly-valued dates" from the date-palm tree. See Jerusalem Talmud (Ma'aser Sheni 4:1, p. 34a inOz ve-Hadar edition).
^Identity uncertain. However,si'ah (Heb.סיאה) is explained in theBabylonian Talmud (Shabbat 128a) as having the connotation of the Aramaic wordצתרי. This word, in turn, is explained byPayne Smith, J. (1903) in herThesaurus Syriacus (p.485, s.v. ܨܬܪܐ) as having the meaning ofsatureia thymbra, a view shared byMarcus Jastrow (Dictionary of the Targumim, s.v.צתרי), who, citingImmanuel Löw andWilliam Smith, writes that the word has the meaning ofSatureia (=savory).
^Cf.Rashi's commentary onBabylonian Talmud (Niddah 51a), s.v.סיאה, where he explains this herb as meaning in Old Frenchpoliol (=pouliot), or what is in Englishpennyroyal (Mentha pulegium).Isaac ben Melchizedek, likewise, in his commentary on MishnahShevi'it 8:1, explainsסיאה as having the Italian meaning ofPòlio, but the Greek meaning ofβλήχων (=pennyroyal), although not conclusive. In addition, Ben Melchizedek wrote that others suggest that it isSalvia (Sage), while others say "susimbro".
^According toPliny the Elder (Natural History, Book XX, ch. XCI), the wordSisymbrium was related to a kind of savory (Latin:thymbraeum). Cf.Smith, William (1872), p. 899, who writes on thesisymbrium (σισύμριον): "...there can be no doubt that it was a species of mint, probably theMentha sylvestris, as Anguillara contends. The other species is unquestionably theNasturtium officinale, or Water-cress."Ibn al-Baitar (1989), p. 186, wrote that this plant was the water-cress (Nasturtium officinale).
^Being a play on words. Where most commentators acknowledge the sense ofsinnariyot (Hebrew:סנריות) in the Mishnah, plural forsinnaria, to be a kind of wild vegetable, Rabbi Nathan ben Abraham digresses and explains the sense as meaning the outfitsīnar worn by women, and which was enacted by decree ofEzra the Scribe to be worn by all women (Baba Kama 82a). According to this explanation, when women who wear such outfits cease to be seen harvesting wild vegetables in theBeit Netofa Valley during theSeventh Year, that is when all other vegetables gathered during that same year must be discarded from the house, under the Seventh Year laws of removal.
^The great mishnaic exegetesIsaac ben Melchizedek,Solomon Sirilio andShlomo Adeni have all cited theArukh and its explanation of this Hebrew word. German orientalistGustaf Dalman (2013:350) notes that an edible wild thistle, known to the Arabs by the namesinnāria, and which in modern taxonomy is calledScolymus maculatus (Spotted golden thistle), grows in Palestine and was sometimes eaten raw.
^According to Z. Amar,al-aqṭan in the Yemeni dialect is mung bean.
^SeeDalman (2020), pp. 377–378, who writes of theʻakkābiyyōt mentioned in MishnahUktzin 3:2 that "the Hebrew name points to [the] Arabicʻakkūb, thus toGundelia tournefortii, which inPalestine is also namedkaʻūb." It is a wild, edible thorn that is still widely eaten in Palestine (aka Israel) today.
^Also in MishnahRosh Hashanah 2:3. The words,עץ שמן, not only appear in the Mishnah, but also in the Hebrew Bible, in three places: Isaiah 41:19, I Kings 6:23, and Nehemiah 8:15.
^The Arabic word,al-ṣanawbar, may also refer to any of the otherpine nut bearing trees, such as thePinus pinea. Some Talmudic scholars thought thatעץ שמן was to be identified with oleaster (Elaeagnus angustifolia), based on an earlier Greek translation of one of the Apocryphal books, butAmar, Z. (2012), pp. 167–168, contends that this identification is in error, since the tree is very rare in Israel, and can only be found in a valley near Akko and in the Mount Hermon region. Moreover, Amar cites a reference to theעץ שמן in theJerusalem Talmud (Rosh Hashanah 2:3), where it says that the tree is the same as thedadanim, a Greek loan-word said to have the meaning ofPinus.
^Sefer Arukh, s.v.עץ, British Library (Add MS 26881).
^Amar, Z. (2015), p. 122, who writes that this plant is Hart's tongue, having the taxonomic name ofPhyllitis sagittata, which is a synonym forScolopendrium hemionitis. Amar's identification follows that ofIbn al-Baitar (1989), chapter 3, section 129 (p. 258), who identifies theasplênos mentioned inDioscorides'Materia Medica (Book 3, § 121) with what is called in Arabicʿaqrabān, which is hart's tongue (Scolopendrium vulgare).Ishtori Haparchi (1280–1355), in his seminal workKaftor Vaferach (vol. 3), Chapter 48, Jerusalem 1999, p. 172, also brings down the Spanish name for the plantעקרבן, which he callsסקולו פנדריון (Scolo pendrion).
^Sefer Arukh[permanent dead link], s.v.אצווה, British Library (Add MS 26881). In the printed edition ofSefer Arukh, published in Venice in year 1531, the words, "beingaṭan in the Arabian tongue," were added by a later hand at the end of its description, a plant identified with the Creeping Thistle (Cirsium arvense), and other related thistles, such as the Silver Thistle (Carduus argentatus).
^The author's opinion here is supported also by aCairo Geniza document where "peragin" are said to have a growing period of six-months before they become edible; See Feliks, Jehuda (1973:165), where Prof. Jehuda Feliks argues effectively in favor of this identity, saying that the Mishnah (Shevi'it 2:7) clearly states that "peragin" are able to take root beforeRosh Hashanah, which would mean that the "peragin" are a summer crop, rather than a winter crop. Moreover,peragin are mentioned alongside of rice, millet and sesame, and that all of them are plants that grow in the summer months, which would rule outperagin as being poppy seeds (Papaver somniferum) since the genus known asPapaver grow in the winter months. Moreover, he notes that in the Syriac language, the wordperaga =ܦܪܓܐ means "a type of millet" (cf. Payne-Smith, Syriac Lexicon, p. 457), and since the growing season forperagin in the Genizah manuscript is given at six-months, it would eliminate ordinary millet (Panicum miliaceum) andSetaria italica whose growing seasons are merely at two months.Sorghum vulgare does, however, have a growing season of six months.
^Andrew Watson, in his workThe Arab Agricultural Revolution (1974), proposed that sorghum was only lately introduced into the Mediterranean regions by the Arabs between the 8th and 12th centuries CE, but there is no real evidence for this claim.
^Literally: "desert wick," and which is explained in the Babylonian Talmud (Shabbat 20b) as having the meaning in Aramaic ofשברא (Aramaic:shavra), and which word has been explained inJ. Payne Smith's Syriac Dictionary as: "Peganum harmala,Syrian rue used for wicks,a wick."
^Amar, Z. (2015), p. 134, and which Amar suggests could have been one of many herbal wicks, such as mullein (Verbascum spp.) and lampwick plant (Phlomis ssp.). Elsewhere, Zohar Amar and Avivit Shwiky write inBamme Madlikin (Bar-Ilan University, 2003, pp. 54–55), that certain of thegeonim have identified the plant withשברא, said to be harmal (Peganum harmala).
^By Maimonides' writing that "some of the commentators having explained it as meaning safflower," it is evident that he was uncertain of its identification. Elsewhere (MishnahKila'im 2:8), Maimonides wrote thatחריע was the Hebrew word for "safflower". There seems to have been great confusion concerning this one word.Rashi gives two different explanations for the word: In theBabylonian Talmud (Baba Kama 101b andNiddah 50a), he wrote of the dyestuffקוצה that it isg(u)esde (= guède), meaning Dyer's woad (Isatis); inShabbat 68a, Rashi wrote thatקוצה isWarance (Old French), or what is now calledgarance (= Dyer's madder).
^Identity uncertain. Thought by many to refer to a kind ofThyme (Solomon Sirilio). The Hebrew word (qūrnīth) and the Arabic word used in Israel/Palestine (qūrniyya) are cognate words, from which latter word's meaning one may learn about the former. In the Arabic language spoken in Palestine the name is applied to the herb White-leaved Savory (Micromeria fruticosa).See Witztum, A. (1992), p. 149.
^Amar, Z. thinks that Maimonides may have been referring to thyme.
^The anonymous copyist writes in this case: "Thekofer is like a gum resin (Ar.as-samigh), while theqaṭaf (oleoresin of theStyrax officinalis) itself is the most important of all the chief aromatics, and its manner is to harden and form into [smaller] pieces, and when it spoils it no longer hardens but remains in the liquid-state, and is called `the oil ofal-kāffūr`." Earlier, in the same tractate, either by the authority of Rabbi Nathan, the President of the Academy, or by the authority of the copyist himself, the same wordqaṭaf is explained asbalsān (balsam).
^Sefer Arukh, s.v.עכביות, explains, at the end of chapter 'He that brings flagons of wine' (Betza 34a), that it has been cited: "...but they make palatable thekinras and theʿakaviyyot, meaning, vegetables that are bitter and require being made palatable by the fire, [or] through boiling, for although they are unfit for eating before they are made sweeter, he is [still] permitted to carry them in order to make them palatable for eating." RabbiSamson of Sens, in his commentary on MishnahUktzin 1:6, also cites from theSefer Arukh on the meaning of the wordkinras and its preparation before eating. The sense here ofאבאדנגאן (aubergine) may have been to the "wild aubergine" (Solanum elaeagnifolium) which is also native to the Middle East. However, the vast majority of Talmudic exegetes explain the sense of this word as meaningCynara (= artichoke), derived from the Greekκινάρα. Andrew Watson, in his workThe Arab Agricultural Revolution (1974), proposed that artichoke (Cynara scolymus) was only an Islamic introduction to the Mediterranean regions, but this view has largely been rejected byDecker, Michael (2009). "Plants and Progress: Rethinking the Islamic Agricultural Revolution".Journal of World History.20 (2). University of Hawai'i Press on behalf of World History Association:201–202.doi:10.1353/jwh.0.0058.JSTOR40542757.
^The Judeo-Arabic wordלבלאר is also used for ivy (Hedera). Zohar Amar has written that the Arabic wordלבלאר is a generic word for many different climbing vine-like plants, which would include the common ivy (Hedera helix) and the lablab bean (Dolichos lablab). SeeAmar, Z. (2015), pp. 143–144. At least sixteen species of Convolvulus are known to grow in Israel, one of the more common beingConvolvulus arvensis.
^Al-ʿalfiq is a provincial Arabic name given for a plant similar totreebine (Cissus rotundifolia) and which grows in the area ofTaiz, in Yemen.
^The Judeo-Arabic wordלבלאר is also used for ivy (Hedera).Zohar Amar has written that the Arabic wordלבלאר is a generic word for many different climbing vine-like plants, which would include the common ivy (Hedera helix) and the lablab bean (Dolichos lablab). SeeAmar, Z. (2015), pp. 143–144.
^Printed editions erroneously readsהילבאנא. Corrected here to readחולבאנא. So explained byHai Gaon (1924), s.v.Ohelot 8:1
^Also in MishnahMaaser Sheni 2:1,Nedarim 6:9, et al.
^Rabbi Nathan ben Abraham's commentary brings down two different explanations, one thought to be his own, and the other by the anonymous copyist. Since the Mishnah mentionsאגסים andקרוסטמלין as not being heterogeneous to each other, and sinceאגס is largely recognized as being a pear, it follows thatקרוסטמלין must also be a kind of pear, hence:כמתרי = "wild Syrian pear." This view is supported by theJerusalem Talmud (Kila'im 1:4), where it citesToseftaKila'im 1:4, saying that, in the marketplace ofSepphoris, they hadgrafted "krustemelo" onto a native pear, but when told by a certain disciple that it was wrong to do so, they immediately cut down the tree. Upon inquiry of the matter atYavne, they learnt that it was not necessary to cut it down, since "krustemelo" was accounted as another kind of pear.Solomon Sirilio, inJerusalem Talmud (Ma'aserot 1:3 andKila'im 1:4) explains the same episode by saying that "krustemelo" was a cultivar of "apple" made by grafting the scion of a wild variety of "apple" that had no belly onto therootstock of a native apple whose fruit was round-bellied. Its name, he said, is of Greek origin, having the connotation of κάστρο + μήλο = "town-apple." In any rate, based on theparent-text in the Tosefta, it is evident that one is permitted to take the scion of a hybrid "krustemelo", in this case a pear cultivar, and graft it onto the rootstock of a native pear. Rabbi Nathan ben Abraham, speaking of "krustemelo" (Heb.קרוסטמלין), says that this fruit tree was called in the Land of Israel by the nameal-faṭūmī.Ishtori Haparchi (1999:263), citing an oldJudeo-Arabic commentary on the fruits mentioned in MishnahKila'im, chapter 1, says of the "krustemelo" (Heb.קרוסטמלין) that it is a "pear" and that it also bears the colloquial nameal-farṭemī, and that it is only to be found in the land of Canaan, rather than inBabylonia.
^According toBen Melchizedek, Isaac (1975), p. 79, the fruit which is here intended isPere calaprice, also known as "mandolin pear". Schlossberg, Eliezer (1993), pp. 150–151, commenting on this early commentary of the Mishnah written by Rabbi Isaac ben Melchizedek ofSiponto (c. 1090–1160), wrote that "krustemelo" was "an exquisite type of pear which was customary to graft onto a local pear."
^Kapah, E. (2007), p. 106. This second explanation is thought to be that of the anonymous copyist of our manuscript. The explanation ofal-barqūq here follows the use of this word inYemen, where it had the connotation of "apricot." See RabbiYosef Qafih's commentary inMaimonides (1963–1967), vol. 1,Kila'im 1:4, note 34. According toAmar, Z. (2015:39–40), in theMaghreb and inAndalusia the same wordal-barqūq had a different connotation and meant "plum".Ibn al-'Awwam, the 12-century Andalusian author ofThe Book on Agriculture (Kitāb al-Filāḥa), clearly disagreed with Amar's identification of this fruit as a plum, writing in the above work (see Ibn al-'Awwam 1802, p. 336 of vol. 1, chapter 7, article 40) that "al-barquq" had the connotation ofapricot (Spanish: albaricoque), also known as the "Armenian apple tree," or what is also called "meshmesh" in Arabic, whereas the plum he describes in a different section.
^Maimonides explains that in the colloquial Arabic of his time the same fruit known asal-kummathra (pear) was also called in the Maghrebאלאנג'אץ (al-’inğās = pear).
^According toDalman (2020), p. 250, thequththā is the same plant as thefaqqūs.
^Maimonides (1963), s.v.Kila'im 1:2 andTerumot 2:6. See:Amar, Z. (2015), pp. 111, 149
^Maimonides (1967), s.v.Uktzin 2:1 (being also a type of cucumber).
^On this plant and its description, as well as sowing season, seeDalman (2020), pp. 244–245, 335. "This species of cucumber is long and thin, 24 cm long and 3½ cm thick, but up to 80 cm long, always bent, sometimes almost curled, light green with 10–17 darker stripes, [...] slightly juicy."
^Thus explained bySefer Arukh, s.v. כשות (although here corrected from the copyist's error, who wroteאלנואר instead ofאלכיאר, when explaining MishnahUktzin 2:1).
^Also in MishnahKila'im 1:4,et al. MishnahKil'ayim 1:4 mentions different pairs of trees, such as the peach tree (Prunus persica) and the almond tree (Amygdalus communis; syn.Prunus amygdalus), and the trees known in Hebrew asshizǝfīn (Ziziphus jujuba) andrīmmīn (Ziziphus spina-christi), saying that "although they are like each other, they are considered diverse kinds (kila'im)."
^The sense here is to Christ's thorn (Jujube), not to be confused with another species, called simply Jujube (Ziziphus jujuba).
^Nathan ben Abraham (1955), s.v. Demai 1:1, which is another Arabic word fornabaq (Jujube)
^Literal translation of the Arabic. Possibly what the Bedouins in Israel callshaʿir eḥṣeinī (Fox's barley), beingHordeum spontaneum K.Koch. SeeDalman (2020), p. 300 who names the same specie of wild barley. In tractateKila'im, either Nathan ben Abraham or the anonymous copyist explains: "Barley (השעורים) andfox's spike (שבולת שועל), [being]al-shaʿir andsunbulat al-thaʿalib, respectively, are permitted to be sown together, since all of them are barley, only that the one is pointed at its two sides, while the other at its four sides."Note: In Modern Hebrew, the wordsshibbolet shuʿal are now used for oats (Avena), which is a carry-over fromRashi's explanation of this grain in his commentary of theBabylonian Talmud (Pesahim 35a), where he wroteאביינ"א (=avoine), oats. Maimonides and Nathan ben Abraham, disputing Rashi's view, say thatשיפון (shiffon) is rather to be understood as oats (Avena) or goatgrass (Aegilops).
^Thus is it explained byIsaac ben Melchizedek in his commentary onMishnahKila'im 5:8, in the name of theArukh. The word "shoshannah" having the meaning of the Greek word κρίνου, meaning "lily."
^Sefer Arukh, s.v.ששן, British Library (Add MS 26881).
^Amar, Z. (2015), p. 160. Amar notes that in Modern Hebrew, the wordשעועית is now used for "beans" (Phaseolus) and which were mostly endemic to the American continent. David ben Yeshaʿ Halevi, in his 15th-century lexicon,al-Ǧāmaʿ (ed. Shalom Gamliel, Jerusalem 1988), explains Maimonides' use of the legumeאללוביא forשעועית as having the connotation ofדגרה (= Vigna sinensis).
^Although an edible herb, the Arabic word used here is largely unidentified. The Arabic wordshaylam (Ar.الشَيْلَم) is often used to refer to darnel (Lolium temulentum), but it is thought to have been a generic word for tares or weeds. See:Amar, Z. (2011a), p. 56. TheJerusalem Talmud (Pesahim 2:5 [18a]) calls theתמכה by the nameגנגידין (Gingidium), which, according toDioscorides (Book II-167) - as explained by late horticulturalists - is said to be a kind of chervil, and can apply to any of the following genera: Chaerophyllum, Anthriscus, Chaetosciadium and Scandix. Of these, the most commonly grown chervil in Israel isChaetosciadium trichospermum.Ibn al-Baitar (1989), p. 189, citingGalen, explainsGingidium as rather meaning a species ofwild carrot (e.g.Daucus gingidium, or something similar), and rejected the opinion of Aṣṭifan ben Basil who said that the wordGingidium meantShah atarj ("the king's herb"), in Arabic, or what is known as fumitory (Fumaria officinalis). In any rate, chervil and wild carrots are both umbels (Umbelliferae) and bear similar foliage, which may have added to the confusion. A sixth-century drawing of theGingidium in Dioscorides'De Materia Medica (theJuliana Anicia Codex of 512), now in the Austrian National Library in Vienna, shows what appears to be the wild carrot (Daucus gingidium), also known as the Cretan carrot.Pliny the Elder (1951), book XX, ch. XVI, wrote: "InSyria very great pains are taken over kitchen-gardens; hence the Greek proverb: 'Syrians have plenty of vegetables.' They sow a vegetable called by somegingidion that is very likestaphylinus (=parsnip; carrot), only it is slighter and more bitter, though its properties are the same. It is eaten, cooked or raw, with great advantage to the stomach, for it dries up all its humours, however deep these may lie."
^Although inconclusive, the reference here may have been toScolymus maculatus, an edible plant eaten either raw or cooked, and known ascardogna macchiata in Italian,cardo borriquero in Spanish.
^The author ofTosafot Yom Tov (c. 1579–1654) thought this word to meancren, or what is known in English ashorseradish (Armoracia rusticana).
^Also in MishnahTerumot 10:11;Orlah 3:7;Uktzin 1:4
^On this plant and its season of planting inPalestine, seeDalman (2020), p. 336.
^Amar, Z. (2015), p. 172. Amar notes that, according to Maimonides' description, he may have been referring to the regular headed cabbage (Brassica oleracea var. capitata), and that it is only called "wild cabbage" insofar as the cultivar was less favorable than the leafy variety, especially kale (Ar.karnub). [Alternatively, Maimonides may have simply been referring to cauliflower, and which formerly was far less cultivated than cabbage (Brassica oleracea var. capitata)].
^Nathan ben Abraham (1955), vol. 1, s.v.Shevi'it, ch. 7, p. 26a [51]
^The actual procedure of using aromatics to flavor wine, though not described by Nathan ben Abraham, has been laid down in a different ancient work, entitledApicius: De Re Coquinaria, where it describes the flavoring process as follows: "...rose-petals, the lower white part removed, were sewn into a linen bag and immersed in wine for seven days. Thereupon, add a sack of new petals which allow to draw for another seven days. Again, remove the old petals and replace them by fresh ones for another week, then strain the wine through the colander... Take care that only the best petals free from dew be used for soaking. In a similar-way as above like the rose wine,violet wine is made of fresh violets, etc." (Apicius, Book I - The Careful Experienced Cook,4. Rose Wine).Geoponica,Agricultural Pursuits (vol. 1, book VIII, ch. 1), adds that rose petals were first dried and pounded before being placed in a cloth and inserted into the wine. The process of applying an aromatic scent to oil differs, and is described by Geoponica,Agricultural Pursuits, vol. 1, Book IX, chapter XX; (pp.289–290), where he writes: "Eightsextarii of sweet wine (calledmust) and a good quantity of poundediris [bound in a cloth], and twosextarii of [olive]-oil are put into a jar and allowed to remain there for ten days. Afterwards, when oil has been percolated, take-up and use."
^The actual process of imparting flavor to sesame seeds is not described by Nathan ben Abraham. However,Al-Tamimi the physician (10th century) describes the process with respect to the florets ofspiny broom (Arabic: القندول) as follows: After collecting the yellow florets of the spiny broom, they were spread out over thickly woven sackcloth which lay out in the hot sun. Upon the florets was poured hulled sesame seeds and covered with linen sheets. They were left in this condition until the moisture in the florets had evaporated. In this manner, the sesame seeds would absorb the sweet fragrance of the florets. After one or two days, the florets and sesame seeds were then separated, the sesame placed on clean linen garments, being allowed to further dry-out from the moisture absorbed by the florets. This process was repeated up to 3 or 4 times, with a fresh batch of florets set out to dry, until at length the pungent flavor of the florets (resembling the taste of vanilla) had been fully imparted to the sesame seeds.
^The first to propose thattiltan may be clover (Trifolium) seems to have been Ephraim Rubinovich (Plant Names of Ereẓ Israelשמות צמחי ארץ ישראל, Jerusalem 1917, p. 20), who presumably based his identification on the Hebrew root,tiltan = "consisting of three" and which was believed by him to be the three-leaf clover, albeit, with disregard to the early rabbinic tradition on the plant's identification.
^Nathan ben Abraham (1955), s.v.MishnahShabbat 21:3. See alsoAmar, Z. (2015), pp. 47–48;Sefer Arukh, s.v. אפונין;Isaac ben Melchizedek, s.v. Peah 3:3;Maimonides (1963), s.v.Peah 3:3 andShabbat 21:3, who writes that the word meansgarbanzo beans (Cicer arietinum), and who uses the Judeo-Arabic wordאלחמץ (garbanzo beans) for this plant.
^Based on theJudeo-Arabic translation of the word in the works of RabbiSaadia Gaon (in hisTafsir, a translation of the Pentateuch, Exo. 12:22);Al-Fasi, D. (1936), vol. 1, s.v. אזוב;Ibn Ǧanāḥ, Yonah (1896), s.v. אזב -aleph,zayn,bet;Maimonides (1967), s.v.Nega'im 14:6; and Nathan ben Abraham (1955) in MishnahUktzin 2:2. The problems with identification arise from Jewish oral tradition where it expressly prohibits Greek hyssop, and where the biblical plant is said to have been identical to the Arabic word,zaatar (Origanum syriacum), and which word is not to be associated with otherezobs that often bear an additional epithet, such aszaatar farsi = Persian-hyssop (Thymbra capitata) andzaatar rumi = Roman-hyssop (Satureja thymbra). See:The Mishnah (ed.Herbert Danby), Oxford University Press: Oxford 1977, s.v.Negai'im 14:6 (p. 696);Parah 11:7 (p. 711).
^Likewise, the wordaspethei (Hebrew:אַסְפְּתֵי) in MishnahOhalot 13:4, is another disputed term. According to R.Isaac of Siponto and R.Shimshon of Sens, the word was used for a weaver's stave; derived from the Greek wordσπάθη, and being no more than the sword-likebatten (beater) used in the weaver's loom for packing of theweft yarn (filling yarn). Since the batten in many cultures is a flat board of wood that is tapered to a thin edge all along its broad side, it is actually called in some countries "sword." Maimonides thought the wordaspethei to mean "nail," while his disputant, RabbiAbraham ben David, thought the same word to mean a "pair ofsconces" used as an accessory to a candlestick that hung from a wall. Cf.Abraham ben David's gloss in Maimonides'Mishne Torah (Tum'eoth ha-Met 14:7)
^RabbiYosef Qafih, recalling the event, describes it as follows: "There is a custom had among most of the people who assume oversight over the synagogues in Yemen that any book that has become worn-out or become very old they'd store it away in the vault situated beneath thehekhal (Ark) and this is itsgenizah. From time to time, when a sufficient quantity of books, fragments of books, pages and worn-out leaves [of books] has been amassed there, they collect them, place them inside earthenware jars and bury them in the cemetery, near one of the righteous men, and occasionally there are buried books, pages and leaves of valuable worth, which the same person who is meant to oversee [the affairs of the synagogue] has not fully appreciated their worth. To our happiness, many times the grave diggers are too lazy to dig deep, well beneath the earth. Wherefore, occasionally, after the rainy season, especially in the years that are blessed with plenty of rain, the heads of these jars are exposed because of rain erosion, where it eroded and made thin the upper layer of earth. My grandfather who is now deceased, the Rabbi Yihya Qafih, of blessed memory, would complain about the overseers of the synagogues and reprimand them over burying in thegenizah things which contain pearls of great beneficial use, and of invaluable worth, without allowing for a man who is more adept [than he] and who knows how to examine them first and to determine what is worthy of being buried and what is still worthy of being used by the coming generations, so as to give some merit to the congregation. He commanded one of the caretakers of the cemetery that, in the event that the heads of the jars such as these should ever be exposed, he was to inform him, before he proceeded to dig deeper in order to bury them once more. I remember when I was about ten years old, the man came to inform my grandfather, of blessed memory, that such [a jar] that had been buried was now exposed. I remember that it was on a Thursday, before nightfall. On the next day, on Friday morning, my grandfather took me with him, and we went out together to the place of thegenizah, according to where the informant had directed us. Now since my grandfather, of blessed memory, was already old, above eighty years in age, and it was difficult for him to bend down, I was the one who took out books and fragments of books, and ordinary pages that were wet and moldy, dusty and muddy, both hand-written manuscripts and printed texts; my grandfather, of blessed memory, sitting throughout all this time upon a stone, examining them and sorting them, one by one, until the early afternoon, and then we returned the rest inside the jar and covered it up. We took with us what we had sorted and returned to the city. At the departing of the Sabbath, my grandfather sat down to sort through his spoils, to take-apart the pages [of books] that had already stuck together because of the wetness from the rains that had penetrated within the jar. In thisgenizah we found hand-written pages from the Babylonian Talmud, and also fragments from Maimonides'Guide for the Perplexed, from Mishnah commentaries, from the commentaries of RabbiSaadia Gaon, from theMidrash Hagadol, and many more. Whatsoever our hook brought up on that blessed day is today in my possession. Some of them still show upon them the vestiges of the soil and clay to this very day. Among the spoils, we found an old hand-written book, the majority of whose pages were already sticking together, clumps upon clumps. My grandfather sat a long time, slowly soaking them in water and with great patience, after he had checked and saw to his satisfaction that the letters were not being erased by soaking them in water. I still remember how the pages were strewn across the entire room of my grandfather's workshop, of blessed memory, so that they could dry. After drying and arranging the pages, it was clear that this was the very Mishnah commentary which we now present before our readers. This book was the only surviving sort of its kind in the world, which, had it not been for this action, it would have been lost to the world. The book was missing a few pages, in the Order known asMoed, at the introduction to TractateShabbat, it was missing perhaps one page, and in TractatePesahim it was again missing perhaps one page, as also in TractateYoma it was missing perhaps one page, but the remainder of the book, to our delight, was found altogether complete, from beginning to end" (See Nathan ben Abraham (1955), vol. 1, s.v. Appendix:Perush Shishah Sidrei Mishnah [Introduction], p. 6).
^Jewish Theological Seminary of America, Microfilm 6008. A microfilm of the same is available at the Hebrew University National Library (Manuscripts Department), listed as Microfilm no. F-35334. The pages of the MS., however, show some disorder.
^A Judeo-Arabic copy of the original; three microfilm copies can be seen at theNational Library of Israel in Jerusalem: microfilm #F-4850,F-72437 andJER_NLI_593=38. See library'sPermanent Link
^British Library, Or. 11117. A microfilm of the same is available at the Hebrew University National Library (Manuscripts Department), listed as Microfilm no's. F-6639 and F-8333. Unlike the disordered pagination in the Yemenite MS., the British Library MS. is collated in its proper order, although part of the Introduction is missing.
^Sassoon, D.S. (1932), pp. 1061–1062. Sassoon dated the copy to the 15th-century, but not knowing the full nature of the work, thought it to be an Introduction to the Talmud, and which he surmised was written by Joseph ben Judah ibn ʿAḳnin.
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