Chazal orḤazal (Hebrew:חז״ל)^[a] are theJewish sages of theMishnaic andTalmudic eras, spanning from the final 300 years of theSecond Temple period until the7th century, orc. 250 BCE – c. 625 CE. Their authority was mostly in the field ofHalakha (Jewish law) and less regardingJewish theology.^[1]

Chazal are generally divided according to their era and the major written products thereof:^[2]

• Soferim ("Scribes"): Sages from the period precedingEzra and up to the era of theZugot, including the men of theGreat Assembly.^[2] Traditionally, the era of the Soferim is assumed to have stretched from thereceipt of the Torah by Moses on Sinai to the era of the earliest halakha, including the times ofSimeon the Just.
• Zugot ("Pairs"): Five pairs of sages from consecutive generations who lived during a period of roughly 100 years toward the end of theSecond Temple period. (142 BCE – c. 40 BCE)
• Tannaim ("Teachers"): The sages of theMishnah who lived in theLand of Israel until 220 CE. In addition to the Mishnah, their writings were preserved in theMidrash. Key figures among the Tannaim includeYohanan ben Zakkai,Rabbi Akiva, andJudah ha-Nasi.
• Amoraim ("Expounders"): The sages of theTalmud active during the codification of the Mishnah and until the finalization of the Talmud (220 CE – 500 CE). TheAmoraim were active in two areas:Palestine andLower Mesopotamia (called "Babylonia"). In addition to theBabylonian Talmud and theJerusalem Talmud, their writings were preserved inmidrashim such as theMidrash Rabba.
• Savoraim ("Reasoners"): The sages of thebatte midrash or houses of Torah study in Babylonia from the end of the era of the Amoraim (5th century) to the earlyGeonim (from the end of the 6th century or the midst of the 7th century).

Until the end of theSavoraim era, Chazal had the authority to comment on the Torah according to the standards ofTalmudical hermeneutics as defined by theLaw given to Moses at Sinai—sometimes even expounding a word or phrase outside its plain and ordinary sense.^[3] Nowadays inOrthodox Judaism, the authority of Chazal is not delegated to the current generation's sages; thus, theTorah cannot be commented upon in matters concerningHalakha if it contradicts Chazal's commentary.

Until the middle of theTannaim era, when there was aSanhedrin (a high court of Jewish law), Chazal had also the authority to decree restrictions and to enact new religious regulations—in any matter they saw fit—concerning issues that were not included in the Torah, written or oral. The Rabbinicmitzvot (commandments) include the holidays ofPurim andHanukkah, the laws ofmuktzeh ("set-aside items") onShabbat, theritual washing of one's hands (netilat yadayim) before eating bread, the construction oferuvim (liminal gateways), and the institution of the current schedule of daily prayer services:shacharit (morning prayer),mincha (afternoon prayer), andma'ariv (evening prayer).

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