Nathan ben Moses Hannover
Encyclopedia
Nathan ben Moses Hannover (Hebrew: נתן נטע הנובר) was a Ruthenian
Jewish historian, Talmudist, and kabbalist; he died, according to Leopold Zunz
(Kalender, 5623, p. 18), at Ungarisch-Brod, Moravia
, July 14, 1663. Jacob Aboab, however, in a letter to Unger
(Wolf, Bibl. Hebr. iii., No. 1728), gives Pieve di Sacco, Italy
, as the place of Hannover's death, without indicating the date. The place of his birth is equally uncertain. According to Graziadio Nepi-Mordecai Ghirondi
, (Toledot Gedole Yisrael, p. 270) he was born at Cracow, but Steinschneider says that Nathan Hannover and Nathan of Cracow were two different persons.
, Volhynia
, and when this town was attacked by the Cossacks he fled from Poland
. He went first to Prague
, then to Venice
, where he studied Cabala
under Hayyim Cohen, Moses Zacuto, and Samuel Aboab
. Later he became rabbi of Iaşi
, Moldavia
, and afterward, according to Jacob Aboab, he returned to Italy
.
in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth from a Jewish perspective. Hannover in this work gives a brief description of the Polish government of the time and of the relations between the Poles, Jews and Cossacks, and the causes which led to the uprising. He also gives a very vivid picture of Jewish life in Poland and the yeshivot.
This work, owing to its literary value, was translated into Yiddish (1687), into German
(1720), and into French
by Daniel Levy
(published by Benjamin II., Tlemçen, 1855). This last translation was revised by the historian J. Lelewel, and served as a basis for Meyer Kayserling
's German translation (also published by Benjamin II., Hanover, 1863). Kostomarov, utilizing Salomon Mandelkern
's Russian
translation, gives many extracts from it in his Bogdan Chmielnicki (iii. 283-306).
Yeven Mezulah came under criticism in the late 20th century, due to its severe overstating of casualties during the Bogdan Chmielnicki rebellion in 1648 and 1649, and it is no longer considered a reliable historical source in spite of its literary qualities. Yeven Mezulah was ctiticized in particular by Joel Raba in his monograph "Between Remembrance and Denial", as well as "Jewish History 17 (2) (2003)", and also by Orest Subtelny
's "A History of Ukraine", and Paul Robert Magocsi
's "Ukraine: A History".
Ruthenians
The name Ruthenian |Rus']]) is a culturally loaded term and has different meanings according to the context in which it is used. Initially, it was the ethnonym used for the East Slavic peoples who lived in Rus'. Later it was used predominantly for Ukrainians...
Jewish historian, Talmudist, and kabbalist; he died, according to Leopold Zunz
Leopold Zunz
Leopold Zunz was a German Reform rabbi and writer, the founder of what has been termed "Jewish Studies" or "Judaic Studies" , the critical investigation of Jewish literature, hymnology and ritual...
(Kalender, 5623, p. 18), at Ungarisch-Brod, Moravia
Moravia
Moravia is a historical region in Central Europe in the east of the Czech Republic, and one of the former Czech lands, together with Bohemia and Silesia. It takes its name from the Morava River which rises in the northwest of the region...
, July 14, 1663. Jacob Aboab, however, in a letter to Unger
Unger
Unger may refer to:* Unger , bishop of Poland, since 1000 bishop of Poznań* Unger, West Virginia* Unger Island, a small, ice-free island of AntarcticaUnger is a surname of German derivation, and may refer to:...
(Wolf, Bibl. Hebr. iii., No. 1728), gives Pieve di Sacco, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, as the place of Hannover's death, without indicating the date. The place of his birth is equally uncertain. According to Graziadio Nepi-Mordecai Ghirondi
Mordecai Ghirondi
Mordecai Samuel ben Benzion Aryeh Ghirondi was an Italian Jewish author and chief rabbi of Padua....
, (Toledot Gedole Yisrael, p. 270) he was born at Cracow, but Steinschneider says that Nathan Hannover and Nathan of Cracow were two different persons.
Biography
Hannover lived for a time at ZaslavIziaslav, Ukraine
Iziaslav or Zaslav is one of the oldest cities in Volhynia. Situated on the Horyn river in western Ukraine, the city dates back to the 11th century.- Monuments :* Starozaslavsky Castle* Novozaslavsky Castle* St. John Cathedral* Great Synagogue...
, Volhynia
Volhynia
Volhynia, Volynia, or Volyn is a historic region in western Ukraine located between the rivers Prypiat and Southern Bug River, to the north of Galicia and Podolia; the region is named for the former city of Volyn or Velyn, said to have been located on the Southern Bug River, whose name may come...
, and when this town was attacked by the Cossacks he fled from Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
. He went first to Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
, then to Venice
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
, where he studied Cabala
Cabala
Cabala may refer to one of several systems of Mysticism:* Kabbalah, the religious mystical system of Judaism...
under Hayyim Cohen, Moses Zacuto, and Samuel Aboab
Samuel Aboab
Samuel Aboab , son of Abraham Aboab, was a very prominent rabbi of the seventeenth century.He was born at Venice, and began the study of rabbinical literature at an early age. When thirteen years old, he became the pupil of David Franco. From him Aboab received the intellectual tendency which he...
. Later he became rabbi of Iaşi
Iasi
Iași is the second most populous city and a municipality in Romania. Located in the historical Moldavia region, Iași has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Romanian social, cultural, academic and artistic life...
, Moldavia
Moldavia
Moldavia is a geographic and historical region and former principality in Eastern Europe, corresponding to the territory between the Eastern Carpathians and the Dniester river...
, and afterward, according to Jacob Aboab, he returned to Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
.
Yeven Mezulah
Hannover is chiefly known for his work entitled Yeven Mezulah (Venice, 1653), describes the course of the Khmelnytsky UprisingKhmelnytsky Uprising
The Khmelnytsky Uprising, was a Cossack rebellion in the Ukraine between the years 1648–1657 which turned into a Ukrainian war of liberation from Poland...
in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth from a Jewish perspective. Hannover in this work gives a brief description of the Polish government of the time and of the relations between the Poles, Jews and Cossacks, and the causes which led to the uprising. He also gives a very vivid picture of Jewish life in Poland and the yeshivot.
This work, owing to its literary value, was translated into Yiddish (1687), into German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
(1720), and into French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
by Daniel Levy
Daniel Levy
Daniel Levy may refer to:*Daniel Levy , Chairman of the British football club Tottenham Hotspur*Daniel Levy , Israeli political analyst, active in the joint non-governmental Israeli-Palestinian Geneva Initiative...
(published by Benjamin II., Tlemçen, 1855). This last translation was revised by the historian J. Lelewel, and served as a basis for Meyer Kayserling
Meyer Kayserling
Meyer Kayserling was a German rabbi and historian.-Life:He was educated at Halberstadt, Nikolsburg , Prague, Würzburg, and Berlin. He devoted himself to history and philosophy...
's German translation (also published by Benjamin II., Hanover, 1863). Kostomarov, utilizing Salomon Mandelkern
Salomon Mandelkern
Salomon Mandelkern was a Ukrainian Jewish poet and author.He was educated as a Talmudist. After his father's death he went to Dubno , where he continued his Talmudical studies...
's Russian
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
translation, gives many extracts from it in his Bogdan Chmielnicki (iii. 283-306).
Yeven Mezulah came under criticism in the late 20th century, due to its severe overstating of casualties during the Bogdan Chmielnicki rebellion in 1648 and 1649, and it is no longer considered a reliable historical source in spite of its literary qualities. Yeven Mezulah was ctiticized in particular by Joel Raba in his monograph "Between Remembrance and Denial", as well as "Jewish History 17 (2) (2003)", and also by Orest Subtelny
Orest Subtelny
Orest Subtelny is a Canadian historian. Born in Kraków, Poland, he received his Ph.D. from Harvard University in 1973. Since 1982 he has been a professor in the departments of History and Political Science, York University, Toronto, Canada.-Career:...
's "A History of Ukraine", and Paul Robert Magocsi
Paul Robert Magocsi
Paul Robert Magocsi is an American professor of history, political science, and Chair of Ukrainian Studies at the University of Toronto. He has been with the University since 1980, and became a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada in 1996...
's "Ukraine: A History".
Other works
Hannover's other works are:- Ṭa'ame Sukkah, a homiletic explanation of the Feast of Tabernacles (Amsterdam, 1652)
- Safah Berurah, a dictionary of the Hebrew, German, Italian, and Latin languages, and arranged in Hebrew alphabetical order (Prague, 1660) – in a second edition, by Jacob Koppel ben Wolf (Amsterdam, 1701), French was included
- Sha'are Ẓiyyon, a collection of mystical prayers, religious customs, and ascetic reflections; it was taken chiefly from cabalistic works, and was very popular among the Eastern Jews. It appeared first in Prague in 1662, and enjoyed such popularity that it was several times reedited (see Benjacob, Oẓar ha-Sefarim, p. 604).
- Reference is also made by Hannover in his books to the following three unpublished works:
- Neṭa' Sha'ashu'im, homilies on the Pentateuch
- Neṭa' Ne'eman, a cabalistic work
- A commentary on the Otiyyot de R. Aḳiba.
Jewish Encyclopedia bibliography
- Hannover, Sha'are Ẓiyyon, Preface;
- Moritz SteinschneiderMoritz SteinschneiderMoritz Steinschneider was a Bohemian bibliographer and Orientalist. He received his early instruction in Hebrew from his father, Jacob Steinschneider , who was not only an expert Talmudist, but was also well versed in secular science...
, Cat. Bodl. cols. 2044-2047; - Julius FürstJulius FürstJulius Fürst , was a Jewish German orientalist.Fürst was a distinguished scholar of Semitic languages and literature...
, Bibl. Jud. i. 361.