Norman Golb
Encyclopedia
Norman Golb is the Ludwig Rosenberger Professor in Jewish History and Civilization at the Oriental Institute
of the University of Chicago
. He earned his PhD
from Johns Hopkins University
in 1954. He joined the faculty of the Hebrew Union College
, Cincinnati in 1958 before settling at the University of Chicago
, where he has worked since 1963. Golb has also been a visiting scholar
at the University of Wisconsin (1957-58), Harvard University
(1966), and Tel Aviv University
(1969-70).
Golb has been a key proponent of the viewpoint that the Dead Sea Scrolls
found in Qumran
were not the product of the Essenes
, but rather of many different Jewish sects and communities of ancient Israel, which he presents in his book Who Wrote The Dead Sea Scrolls?: The Search For The Secret Of Qumran
. In the 1990s, Golb was an advocate for the freeing of the Scrolls for academic pursuit.
Golb was also the discoverer, in 1962, of the Kievan Letter, the earliest document attesting to Jewish habitation of Kiev
. He also identified Obadiah the Proselyte as the author of the oldest known manuscript of Hebrew music (12th century), the earliest extant legal record of the Jews of Sicily, a new document dealing with the First Crusade and new manuscript materials relating to the Jews of Rouen. Finally, he recovered a genizah document describing a European convert to Judaism (11th century) and an original manuscript of the Khazars.
Oriental Institute
Oriental Institute may refer to a number of institutes of Oriental studies:United States* Oriental Institute, Chicago, part of the University of ChicagoEngland* Oriental Institute, Oxford, part of the University of Oxford...
of the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
. He earned his PhD
PHD
PHD may refer to:*Ph.D., a doctorate of philosophy*Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*PHD finger, a protein sequence*PHD Mountain Software, an outdoor clothing and equipment company*PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
from Johns Hopkins University
Johns Hopkins University
The Johns Hopkins University, commonly referred to as Johns Hopkins, JHU, or simply Hopkins, is a private research university based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States...
in 1954. He joined the faculty of the Hebrew Union College
Hebrew Union College
The Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion is the oldest extant Jewish seminary in the Americas and the main seminary for training rabbis, cantors, educators and communal workers in Reform Judaism.HUC-JIR has campuses in Cincinnati, New York, Los Angeles and Jerusalem.The Jerusalem...
, Cincinnati in 1958 before settling at the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
, where he has worked since 1963. Golb has also been a visiting scholar
Visiting scholar
In the world of academia, a visiting scholar or visiting academic is a scholar from an institution who visits a host university, where he or she is projected to teach , lecture , or perform research on a topic the visitor is valued for...
at the University of Wisconsin (1957-58), Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
(1966), and Tel Aviv University
Tel Aviv University
Tel Aviv University is a public university located in Ramat Aviv, Tel Aviv, Israel. With nearly 30,000 students, TAU is Israel's largest university.-History:...
(1969-70).
Golb has been a key proponent of the viewpoint that the Dead Sea Scrolls
Dead Sea scrolls
The Dead Sea Scrolls are a collection of 972 texts from the Hebrew Bible and extra-biblical documents found between 1947 and 1956 on the northwest shore of the Dead Sea, from which they derive their name...
found in Qumran
Qumran
Qumran is an archaeological site in the West Bank. It is located on a dry plateau about a mile inland from the northwestern shore of the Dead Sea, near the Israeli settlement and kibbutz of Kalia...
were not the product of the Essenes
Essenes
The Essenes were a Jewish sect that flourished from the 2nd century BCE to the 1st century CE which some scholars claim seceded from the Zadokite priests...
, but rather of many different Jewish sects and communities of ancient Israel, which he presents in his book Who Wrote The Dead Sea Scrolls?: The Search For The Secret Of Qumran
Who Wrote The Dead Sea Scrolls? (book)
Who Wrote The Dead Sea Scrolls?: The Search For The Secret Of Qumran is a book by Norman Golb which intensifies the debate over the origins of the Dead Sea scrolls, furthering the opinion that the scrolls were not the work of the Essenes, as other scholars claim, but written in Jerusalem and moved...
. In the 1990s, Golb was an advocate for the freeing of the Scrolls for academic pursuit.
Golb was also the discoverer, in 1962, of the Kievan Letter, the earliest document attesting to Jewish habitation of Kiev
Kiev
Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
. He also identified Obadiah the Proselyte as the author of the oldest known manuscript of Hebrew music (12th century), the earliest extant legal record of the Jews of Sicily, a new document dealing with the First Crusade and new manuscript materials relating to the Jews of Rouen. Finally, he recovered a genizah document describing a European convert to Judaism (11th century) and an original manuscript of the Khazars.
Selected bibliography
- (1998) The Jews in medieval Normandy: A social and intellectual history New York: Cambridge University Press.
- (1997) Judaeo-Arabic studies: proceedings of the Founding Conference of the Society for Judaeo-Arabic Studies Amsterdam: Harwood Academic Publishers. (Conference Proceedings from the Founding Conference of the Society for Judaeo-Arabic Studies)
- (1995) Who wrote the Dead Sea scrolls?: The search for the secret of QumranQumranQumran is an archaeological site in the West Bank. It is located on a dry plateau about a mile inland from the northwestern shore of the Dead Sea, near the Israeli settlement and kibbutz of Kalia...
New York: Scribner. - (1994) "The Dead Sea Scrolls and the Ethics of Museology" (Journal Article in The Aspen Institute quarterly: AQ : issues and arguments for leaders )
- (1992) "The Freeing of the Scrolls and Its Aftermath" (Journal Article in The Qumran chronicle)
- (1992) "The Qumran-Essene Hypothesis: A Fiction of Scholarship" (Journal Article in The Christian century)
- (1990) "Khirbet Qumran and the Manuscripts of the Judaean Wilderness: Observations on the Logic of their Investigation" (Journal Article in Journal of Near Eastern studies)
- (1989) "The Dead Sea Scrolls: A New Perspective" (Journal Article in The American scholar)
- (1985) Les Juifs de Rouen au Moyen Age: Portrait d'une culture oubliée Rouen: Université de Rouen. (Book in the series Publications de l’Université de Rouen )
- (1984) "A Marriage Document from Wardunia de-BaghdadBaghdadBaghdad is the capital of Iraq, as well as the coterminous Baghdad Governorate. The population of Baghdad in 2011 is approximately 7,216,040...
" (Journal Article in Journal of Near Eastern studies) - (with Omeljan PritsakOmeljan PritsakOmeljan Pritsak was the first Mykhailo Hrushevsky Professor of Ukrainian History at Harvard University and the founder and first director of the Harvard Ukrainian Research Institute.-Career:Pritsak began his academic career at the University of Lvov in interwar Poland where he...
. (1982) Khazarian HebrewHebrew languageHebrew 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...
documents of the tenth century Ithaca: Cornell University Press. - (1980) "The Problem of Origin and Identification of the Dead Sea Scrolls" (Journal Article in Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society held at Philadelphia for promoting useful knowledge)
- (1976) Toledot hayehudim be'ir rouen bimé habenayim Tel Aviv, Israel: Dvir Publishing House.
- (1973) A Judaeo-Arabic Court Document of SyracuseSyracuse, ItalySyracuse is a historic city in Sicily, the capital of the province of Syracuse. The city is notable for its rich Greek history, culture, amphitheatres, architecture, and as the birthplace of the preeminent mathematician and engineer Archimedes. This 2,700-year-old city played a key role in...
, A.D. 1020 (Journal Article in Journal of Near Eastern studies ) - (1972) Spertus College of Judaica YemeniteYemeniteYemenite may refer to:*Yemenite, a person from Yemen*Yemeni Arabic, dialect of the Arabic language*Yemenite step, an Israeli folk dance step originating from Yemen*Yemenite Jews...
manuscripts Chicago: Spertus College of Judaica Press. - (1967) The Music of Obadiah the Proselyte and his Conversion (Journal Article in The Journal of Jewish studies)
- (1965) Notes on the Conversion of Prominent European Christians to Judaism During the Eleventh Century (Journal Article in The Journal of Jewish studies)
- (1957) "Literary and Doctrinal Aspects of the Damascus Covenant in the Light of Karaite Literature" (Journal Article in The Jewish Quarterly Review: New Series)
- (1957) "Sixty Years of Genizah Research" (Journal Article in Judaism)