Chananel ben Chushiel orḤananel ben Ḥushiel (Hebrew:חננאל בן חושיאל), an 11th-centuryKairouananrabbi andTalmudist, was in close contact with the lastGeonim. He is best known for his commentary on theTalmud. Chananel is often referred to asRabbeinu Chananel –Hebrew for "our teacher, Chananel" (in Hebrew, רבנו חננאל, or abbreviated, ר"ח).
Rabbeinu Chananel (c. 980–1055) was probably born in Southern Italy,[1] likelyBari,[2] an important rabbinic center in the lategeonic period. Around the year 1005, his fatherChushiel travelled to North Africa with the intention of making his way to Egypt.[3] While waiting for his son to join him, Chushiel settled instead inKairouan (modern Tunisia), at the time under the rule ofZirid Emirs on behalf of the Fatimids. R. Chananel studied under his father, who became head of the Kairouanyeshiva, and through correspondence withHai Gaon. He is closely associated withNissim Ben Jacob in the capacity of rabbi andRosh yeshiva of Kairouan. His most famous student isIsaac Alfasi. According toR. Abraham Ibn Daud, R. Chananel was also successful in business and was said to be very wealthy and had nine daughters.[4] It is rumored that Rabbeinu Chananel was buried in or near the Grand Mosque of Kairouan.[5]
R. Chananel wrote the first extant systematic commentary on theTalmud, today included in theVilna edition Talmud page on certaintractates. The commentary, only parts of which survive, addresses sections of the Talmud relevant to legal practice at the time of writing: the ordersMoed,Nashim, andNezikin. Some fragments have been recovered from theCairo Genizah and are published in B. M. Levin'sOtzar ha-Geonim, though certain fragments may in fact represent geonic material from which R. Chananel copied,[6] in particular the work ofHai Gaon. R. Chananel's commentary presents a paraphrased summary and explanation of the main arguments in thegemara, omitting most of the non-legal sections (Aggada) as well as sections that R. Chananel considered too simple to warrant further explanation. A distinctive feature of the commentary is the presentation of the parallel passages from theJerusalem Talmud. He is one of the most widely quoted commentaries by all the rishonim includingRashi,Tosafot and theRif. His opinion is highly regarded in halacha and correct versions of the texts which is used as a basis for Maimonides and many other later halachic authorities. In places where we don't have his commentary, his opinion is usually known from other sources due to mass quotation from all theRishonim.[7] An edition of the commentary published by Vagshal covers tractate Berachot and order Moed, which also includes theSefer ha-Mafteaḥ of his colleagueNissim Gaon.
R. Chananel also authored acommentary on theTorah, cited by many later Biblical commentators, chieflyBahya ben Asher. This commentary is to some extent directed against theKaraites.[8] While no full copy of this work survives, we possess many fragments of it; it has recently been published by theMosad Ha-Rav Kook as a separate work, as well as in theTorat HayyimTorah edition with commentaries.
Other works by Rabbeinu Chananel includeresponsa; a number ofRishonim attribute to him the anonymous "Sefer ha-Miktzo'ot,"decisions onritual law.
| רבנו חושיאל | |||||||
| חננאל בן חושיאל | |||||||
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{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)| Rosh Yeshiva | ||
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| Preceded by | Rosh Yeshiva ofKairouan With:Nissim ben Jacob | Succeeded by None |
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