Israel Yeivin
Encyclopedia
Israel Yeivin (born January 7, 1923 in Berlin
– died December 19, 2008) was an Israel
i linguist, scholar of Masorah
and the Hebrew language
.
. His family immigrated to Palestine
when he was seven, and he grew up in Tel Aviv
. His father, Yehoshua Yeivin, was a conceptual philosopher of the Revisionist Zionism
movement and founder of the radical Zionist group Brit HaBirionim
. His mother was Miryam Atara Margolin.
He got his elementary schooling at Ahad Ha'Am School and completed his secondary schooling at Gimnasia Balfour in 1940. Soon after, he began to study Hebrew Language & Literature (לשון וספרות עברית) and Universal Philosophy at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem
. He received his M.A degree in 1958. His thesis dealt with "Hakafat HaTevot HaZeirot BaMikra (21 Sfarim)". The same year he married Batya Heifetz. They had 2 sons.
In 1968 he received his doctorate for his research on "Babylonian point vocalization".
While studying at the University, Yeivin worked at a printing shop as type setter and proof reader in order to support his extended family. Then he became proof reader on the editorial staff of the Hebrew Encyclopedia. He also worked in the preparatory stage of the Encyclopedia Judaica and as Editorial Secretary of the "Tarbitz" quarterly. In addition, he worked in the Bible Project of the Hebrew University. There he became expert in deciphering ancient manuscripts of the Bible, including "The Aleppo Codex", following which his book on the codex was published.
With the project to create the Historic Dictionary of the Hebrew Language by the Academy of the Hebrew Language
in 1959, Yeivin was one of its first scientific staff. He worked on the Dictionary's editorial board for more than 30 years as Head of Ancient Hebrew research.
From 1968 Israel taught in the Hebrew University Language Department, later on becoming a professor and Head of the Hebrew Language Faculty. In 1990 he retired. He continued interest in further research of the subjects he had taught: The Masorah; The Bible Accentuation (Ta'amei HaMikra); The traditional language as revealed in the Babylonian Vocalization; Rabbinical Hebrew, "the language of the Sages" (Leshon Hachamim); The Liturgical Poetic Language (Leshon HaPiyyut); and Lexicology. He published 3 books and more than 50 research papers.
In 1975 Yeivin spent several months at Cambridge, England helping to unravel and classify documents from the Cairo Genizah. Professors Ezra Fleischer
and Jacob Sussmann shared in this work with Yeivin.
In 1989, he was awarded the Israel Prize
, for the study of the Hebrew language. Among the reasons for their decision, the judges stated that "…he is one of the greatest world authorities in the study of the Masorah and Accentuation (Teamim) and the greatest scholar of the Hebrew Masorah in Babylonian Vocalization."
Yeivin was a member of the Academy of the Hebrew Language
from 1987 and member of the Israel National Academy of Sciences since 1991. He transferred his private collection of micro-films of vocalizations, including parts of hidden archives of Genizah, in vocalization and accentuation to the Institute of Microfilmed Hebrew Manuscripts of the National Library in Jerusalem in memory of his son Dov, who died in 1986. Further in memory of his son Dov, a large part of his rare scholarly collection has been donated to the Ariel University Center of Samaria Library.
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
– died December 19, 2008) was an Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
i linguist, scholar of Masorah
Masoretic Text
The Masoretic Text is the authoritative Hebrew text of the Jewish Bible and is regarded as Judaism's official version of the Tanakh. While the Masoretic Text defines the books of the Jewish canon, it also defines the precise letter-text of these biblical books, with their vocalization and...
and the Hebrew language
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...
.
Biography
Israel Yeivin was born in BerlinBerlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
. His family immigrated to Palestine
Palestine
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....
when he was seven, and he grew up in Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...
. His father, Yehoshua Yeivin, was a conceptual philosopher of the Revisionist Zionism
Revisionist Zionism
Revisionist Zionism is a nationalist faction within the Zionist movement. It is the founding ideology of the non-religious right in Israel, and was the chief ideological competitor to the dominant socialist Labor Zionism...
movement and founder of the radical Zionist group Brit HaBirionim
Brit HaBirionim
Brit HaBirionim was a clandestine, self-declared fascist faction of the Revisionist Zionist Movement in the British Mandate of Palestine, active between 1930 and 1933. It was founded by the trio of Abba Ahimeir, Uri Zvi Greenberg and Dr...
. His mother was Miryam Atara Margolin.
He got his elementary schooling at Ahad Ha'Am School and completed his secondary schooling at Gimnasia Balfour in 1940. Soon after, he began to study Hebrew Language & Literature (לשון וספרות עברית) and Universal Philosophy at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Hebrew University of Jerusalem
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem ; ; abbreviated HUJI) is Israel's second-oldest university, after the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology. The Hebrew University has three campuses in Jerusalem and one in Rehovot. The world's largest Jewish studies library is located on its Edmond J...
. He received his M.A degree in 1958. His thesis dealt with "Hakafat HaTevot HaZeirot BaMikra (21 Sfarim)". The same year he married Batya Heifetz. They had 2 sons.
In 1968 he received his doctorate for his research on "Babylonian point vocalization".
While studying at the University, Yeivin worked at a printing shop as type setter and proof reader in order to support his extended family. Then he became proof reader on the editorial staff of the Hebrew Encyclopedia. He also worked in the preparatory stage of the Encyclopedia Judaica and as Editorial Secretary of the "Tarbitz" quarterly. In addition, he worked in the Bible Project of the Hebrew University. There he became expert in deciphering ancient manuscripts of the Bible, including "The Aleppo Codex", following which his book on the codex was published.
With the project to create the Historic Dictionary of the Hebrew Language by the Academy of the Hebrew Language
Academy of the Hebrew Language
The Academy of the Hebrew Language was established by the Israeli government in 1953 as the "supreme institution for scholarship on the Hebrew language."-History:...
in 1959, Yeivin was one of its first scientific staff. He worked on the Dictionary's editorial board for more than 30 years as Head of Ancient Hebrew research.
From 1968 Israel taught in the Hebrew University Language Department, later on becoming a professor and Head of the Hebrew Language Faculty. In 1990 he retired. He continued interest in further research of the subjects he had taught: The Masorah; The Bible Accentuation (Ta'amei HaMikra); The traditional language as revealed in the Babylonian Vocalization; Rabbinical Hebrew, "the language of the Sages" (Leshon Hachamim); The Liturgical Poetic Language (Leshon HaPiyyut); and Lexicology. He published 3 books and more than 50 research papers.
In 1975 Yeivin spent several months at Cambridge, England helping to unravel and classify documents from the Cairo Genizah. Professors Ezra Fleischer
Ezra Fleischer
Ezra Fleischer was a Romanian-Israeli Hebrew-language poet and philologist.- Biography :...
and Jacob Sussmann shared in this work with Yeivin.
Awards and honours
In 1986, Yeivin was awarded the Friedenberg Prize for his book "The Hebrew Language Tradition as Reflected in the Babylonian Vocalization".In 1989, he was awarded the Israel Prize
Israel Prize
The Israel Prize is an award handed out by the State of Israel and is largely regarded as the state's highest honor. It is presented annually, on Israeli Independence Day, in a state ceremony in Jerusalem, in the presence of the President, the Prime Minister, the Knesset chairperson, and the...
, for the study of the Hebrew language. Among the reasons for their decision, the judges stated that "…he is one of the greatest world authorities in the study of the Masorah and Accentuation (Teamim) and the greatest scholar of the Hebrew Masorah in Babylonian Vocalization."
Yeivin was a member of the Academy of the Hebrew Language
Academy of the Hebrew Language
The Academy of the Hebrew Language was established by the Israeli government in 1953 as the "supreme institution for scholarship on the Hebrew language."-History:...
from 1987 and member of the Israel National Academy of Sciences since 1991. He transferred his private collection of micro-films of vocalizations, including parts of hidden archives of Genizah, in vocalization and accentuation to the Institute of Microfilmed Hebrew Manuscripts of the National Library in Jerusalem in memory of his son Dov, who died in 1986. Further in memory of his son Dov, a large part of his rare scholarly collection has been donated to the Ariel University Center of Samaria Library.
Selected works
- The Aleppo Codex of the Bible: a study of its vocalization and accentuation, 1968
- The Hebrew Language Tradition as Reflected in the Babylonian Vocalization, 1985
- The Biblical Masorah, 2003
See also
- List of Israel Prize recipients