Eleazar Ben Killir
Encyclopedia
Eleazar ben Killir was a Hebrew
poet whose classical liturgical verses, known as piyut, have continued to be sung through the centuries during significant religious services, including those on Tisha B'Av
and on the sabbath after a wedding.
, documentation regarding details of the life of Eleazar ben Killir has been lost to history, including the exact year and circumstances of his birth and death. He is said to have been the disciple of another 6th century composer of piyut, Yannai
who, according to legend, grew jealous of Eleazar and caused his death by inserting into his shoe a scorpion whose sting proved to be fatal.
and in the Near East. He made radical innovations in diction
and style, while employing the full range of post-biblical Hebrew. It may be that the stories of Yannai growing jealous of him are based in fact, for the patterns of rhyme
, acrostic
, repetition, and refrain
in his piyut are much more complex than those of his master.
His use of neologisms and other oddities has earned him a reputation as an enigmatic writer, to the point where some have criticized him for being obscure, and having a corruptive influence on the Hebrew language. Ben Kallir, however, was capable of writing in simple and direct language, as poems like his Epithalamiumhttp://www.poetry-chaikhana.com/B/benKallirEle/Epithalamium.htm demonstrate.
Hebrew language
Hebrew is a Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Culturally, is it considered by Jews and other religious groups as the language of the Jewish people, though other Jewish languages had originated among diaspora Jews, and the Hebrew language is also used by non-Jewish groups, such...
poet whose classical liturgical verses, known as piyut, have continued to be sung through the centuries during significant religious services, including those on Tisha B'Av
Tisha B'Av
|Av]],") is an annual fast day in Judaism, named for the ninth day of the month of Av in the Hebrew calendar. The fast commemorates the destruction of both the First Temple and Second Temple in Jerusalem, which occurred about 655 years apart, but on the same Hebrew calendar date...
and on the sabbath after a wedding.
Biographical details
Although his poems have had a prominent place in printed ritual and he is known to have lived somewhere in the Near EastNear East
The Near East is a geographical term that covers different countries for geographers, archeologists, and historians, on the one hand, and for political scientists, economists, and journalists, on the other...
, documentation regarding details of the life of Eleazar ben Killir has been lost to history, including the exact year and circumstances of his birth and death. He is said to have been the disciple of another 6th century composer of piyut, Yannai
Yannai
-Surname:* Michal Yannai* Alexander Jannaeus* Yanai * R. Yannai...
who, according to legend, grew jealous of Eleazar and caused his death by inserting into his shoe a scorpion whose sting proved to be fatal.
Poetic style
The "Kallir style" had a profound influence on the poets who succeeded him in PalestinePalestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
and in the Near East. He made radical innovations in diction
Diction
Diction , in its original, primary meaning, refers to the writer's or the speaker's distinctive vocabulary choices and style of expression in a poem or story...
and style, while employing the full range of post-biblical Hebrew. It may be that the stories of Yannai growing jealous of him are based in fact, for the patterns of rhyme
Rhyme
A rhyme is a repetition of similar sounds in two or more words and is most often used in poetry and songs. The word "rhyme" may also refer to a short poem, such as a rhyming couplet or other brief rhyming poem such as nursery rhymes.-Etymology:...
, acrostic
Acrostic
An acrostic is a poem or other form of writing in which the first letter, syllable or word of each line, paragraph or other recurring feature in the text spells out a word or a message. As a form of constrained writing, an acrostic can be used as a mnemonic device to aid memory retrieval. A famous...
, repetition, and refrain
Refrain
A refrain is the line or lines that are repeated in music or in verse; the "chorus" of a song...
in his piyut are much more complex than those of his master.
His use of neologisms and other oddities has earned him a reputation as an enigmatic writer, to the point where some have criticized him for being obscure, and having a corruptive influence on the Hebrew language. Ben Kallir, however, was capable of writing in simple and direct language, as poems like his Epithalamiumhttp://www.poetry-chaikhana.com/B/benKallirEle/Epithalamium.htm demonstrate.