Tannaim
Encyclopedia
The Tannaim were the Rabbi
nic sages whose views are recorded in the Mishnah
, from approximately 70-200 CE. The period of the Tannaim, also referred to as the Mishnaic period, lasted about 130 years. It came after the period of the Zugot ("pairs"), and was immediately followed by the period of the Amora
im ("interpreters")
The root tanna is the Talmudic Aramaic
equivalent for the Hebrew
root shanah , which also is the root-word of Mishnah. The verb shanah literally means "to repeat [what one was taught]" and is used to mean "to learn".
The Mishnaic period is commonly divided up into five periods according to generations. There are approximately 120 known Tannaim.
The Tannaim lived in several areas of the Land of Israel
. The spiritual center of Judaism
at that time was Jerusalem, but after the destruction of the city and the Second Temple
, Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakai
and his students founded a new religious center in Yavne
. Other places of Judaic learning were founded by his students in Lod
and in Bnei Brak
.
Some Tannaim worked as laborers (e.g., charcoal burners, cobblers) in addition to their positions as teachers and legislators. They were also leaders of the people and negotiators with the Roman Empire
.
. During this time, the Kohanim
(priests) of the Temple
became increasingly corrupt and were seen by the Jewish people as collaborators with the Romans, whose mismanagement of Iudaea province
(composed of Samaria
, Idumea and Judea
proper) led to riots, revolts and general resentment.
Until the days of Hillel
and Shammai
(the last generation of the Zugot), there were few disagreements among Rabbinic scholars. After this period, though, the "House of Hillel
" and the "House of Shammai
" came to represent two distinct perspectives on Jewish law
, and disagreements between the two schools of thought are found throughout the Mishnah
, see also Hillel and Shammai
.
The Tannaim, as teachers of the Oral Law
, were direct transmitters of an oral tradition passed from teacher to student that was written and codified as the basis for the Mishnah, Tosefta
, and tannaitic teachings of the Talmud
. According to tradition, the Tannaim were the last generation in a long sequence of oral teachers that began with Moses
.
(plural Nesi'im) was the highest ranking member and presided over the Sanhedrin
. Rabban was a higher title than Rabbi, and it was given to the Nasi starting with Rabban Gamaliel Hazaken
(Gamaliel the Elder). The title Rabban was limited to the descendants of Hillel, the sole exception being Rabban Yochanan ben Zakai
, the leader in Jerusalem during the siege
, who safeguarded the future of the Jewish people after the Great Revolt
by pleading with Vespasian
. Rabbi Eleazar ben Azariah
, who was also Nasi, was not given the title Rabban, perhaps because he only held the position of Nasi for a short while and it eventually reverted to the descendants of Hillel. Prior to Rabban Gamliel Hazaken, no titles were used before someone's name, based on the Talmud
ic adage "Gadol miRabban shmo" ("Greater than the title Rabban is a person's own name"). For this reason Hillel has no title before his name: his name in itself is his title, just as Moses
and Abraham
have no titles before their names. (An addition is sometimes given after a name to denote significance or to differentiate between two people with the same name. Examples include Avraham Avinu (Abraham our father) and Moshe Rabbeinu (Moses our teacher).) Starting with Rabbi Judah haNasi
(Judah the Nasi), often referred to simply as "Rabbi", not even the Nasi is given the title Rabban, but instead, Judah haNasi is given the lofty title Rabbeinu HaKadosh ("Our holy rabbi [teacher]").
.
The generations of the Tannaim included:
Rabbi
In Judaism, a rabbi is a teacher of Torah. This title derives from the Hebrew word רבי , meaning "My Master" , which is the way a student would address a master of Torah...
nic sages whose views are recorded in the Mishnah
Mishnah
The Mishnah or Mishna is the first major written redaction of the Jewish oral traditions called the "Oral Torah". It is also the first major work of Rabbinic Judaism. It was redacted c...
, from approximately 70-200 CE. The period of the Tannaim, also referred to as the Mishnaic period, lasted about 130 years. It came after the period of the Zugot ("pairs"), and was immediately followed by the period of the Amora
Amora
Amoraim , were renowned Jewish scholars who "said" or "told over" the teachings of the Oral law, from about 200 to 500 CE in Babylonia and the Land of Israel. Their legal discussions and debates were eventually codified in the Gemara...
im ("interpreters")
The root tanna is the Talmudic Aramaic
Jewish Babylonian Aramaic
Jewish Babylonian Aramaic was the form of Middle Aramaic employed by Jewish writers in Babylonia between the 4th century and the 11th century CE. It is most commonly identified with the language of the Babylonian Talmud and of post-Talmudic literature, which are the most important cultural...
equivalent for the Hebrew
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...
root shanah , which also is the root-word of Mishnah. The verb shanah literally means "to repeat [what one was taught]" and is used to mean "to learn".
The Mishnaic period is commonly divided up into five periods according to generations. There are approximately 120 known Tannaim.
The Tannaim lived in several areas of the Land of Israel
Land of Israel
The Land of Israel is the Biblical name for the territory roughly corresponding to the area encompassed by the Southern Levant, also known as Canaan and Palestine, Promised Land and Holy Land. The belief that the area is a God-given homeland of the Jewish people is based on the narrative of the...
. The spiritual center of Judaism
Judaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
at that time was Jerusalem, but after the destruction of the city and the Second Temple
Second Temple
The Jewish Second Temple was an important shrine which stood on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem between 516 BCE and 70 CE. It replaced the First Temple which was destroyed in 586 BCE, when the Jewish nation was exiled to Babylon...
, Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakai
Yochanan ben Zakai
Johanan ben Zakai , also known as Johanan B. Zakkai was one of the tannaim, an important Jewish sage in the era of the Second Temple, and a primary contributor to the core text of Rabbinical Judaism, the Mishnah. He is widely regarded as one of the most important Jewish figures of his time...
and his students founded a new religious center in Yavne
Council of Jamnia
The Council of Jamnia or Council of Yavne is a hypothetical late 1st-century council at which it is postulated the canon of the Hebrew Bible was finalized....
. Other places of Judaic learning were founded by his students in Lod
Lod
Lod is a city located on the Sharon Plain southeast of Tel Aviv in the Center District of Israel. At the end of 2010, it had a population of 70,000, roughly 75 percent Jewish and 25 percent Arab.The name is derived from the Biblical city of Lod...
and in Bnei Brak
Beneberak
Benebarak was a biblical city mentioned in the Book of Joshua. According to the biblical account it was allocated to the Tribe of Dan....
.
Some Tannaim worked as laborers (e.g., charcoal burners, cobblers) in addition to their positions as teachers and legislators. They were also leaders of the people and negotiators with the Roman Empire
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
.
Origin
The Tannaim operated under the occupation of the Roman EmpireRoman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
. During this time, the Kohanim
Kohen
A Kohen is the Hebrew word for priest. Jewish Kohens are traditionally believed and halachically required to be of direct patrilineal descent from the Biblical Aaron....
(priests) of the Temple
Second Temple
The Jewish Second Temple was an important shrine which stood on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem between 516 BCE and 70 CE. It replaced the First Temple which was destroyed in 586 BCE, when the Jewish nation was exiled to Babylon...
became increasingly corrupt and were seen by the Jewish people as collaborators with the Romans, whose mismanagement of Iudaea province
Iudaea Province
Judaea or Iudaea are terms used by historians to refer to the Roman province that extended over parts of the former regions of the Hasmonean and Herodian kingdoms of Israel...
(composed of Samaria
Samaria
Samaria, or the Shomron is a term used for a mountainous region roughly corresponding to the northern part of the West Bank.- Etymology :...
, Idumea and Judea
Judea
Judea or Judæa was the name of the mountainous southern part of the historic Land of Israel from the 8th century BCE to the 2nd century CE, when Roman Judea was renamed Syria Palaestina following the Jewish Bar Kokhba revolt.-Etymology:The...
proper) led to riots, revolts and general resentment.
Until the days of Hillel
Hillel the Elder
Hillel was a famous Jewish religious leader, one of the most important figures in Jewish history. He is associated with the development of the Mishnah and the Talmud...
and Shammai
Shammai
Shammai was a Jewish scholar of the 1st century, and an important figure in Judaism's core work of rabbinic literature, the Mishnah....
(the last generation of the Zugot), there were few disagreements among Rabbinic scholars. After this period, though, the "House of Hillel
House of Hillel
The House of Hillel , also known as the Academy of Hillel, founded by the famed Hillel the Elder, is a school of Jewish law and thought that thrived in 1st century B.C.E.Jerusalem. The House of Hillel is most widely known for its hundreds of disputes with the Beit Shammai, founded by Shammai, a...
" and the "House of Shammai
House of Shammai
The House of Shammai was the school of thought of Judaism founded by Shammai, a Jewish scholar of the 1st century...
" came to represent two distinct perspectives on Jewish law
Halakha
Halakha — also transliterated Halocho , or Halacha — is the collective body of Jewish law, including biblical law and later talmudic and rabbinic law, as well as customs and traditions.Judaism classically draws no distinction in its laws between religious and ostensibly non-religious life; Jewish...
, and disagreements between the two schools of thought are found throughout the Mishnah
Mishnah
The Mishnah or Mishna is the first major written redaction of the Jewish oral traditions called the "Oral Torah". It is also the first major work of Rabbinic Judaism. It was redacted c...
, see also Hillel and Shammai
Hillel and Shammai
Hillel and Shammai were two leading rabbis of the early 1st century CE who founded opposing schools of Jewish thought, known as the House of Hillel and House of Shammai...
.
The Tannaim, as teachers of the Oral Law
Oral law
An oral law is a code of conduct in use in a given culture, religion or community application, by which a body of rules of human behaviour is transmitted by oral tradition and effectively respected, or the single rule that is orally transmitted....
, were direct transmitters of an oral tradition passed from teacher to student that was written and codified as the basis for the Mishnah, Tosefta
Tosefta
The Tosefta is a compilation of the Jewish oral law from the period of the Mishnah.-Overview:...
, and tannaitic teachings of the Talmud
Talmud
The Talmud is a central text of mainstream Judaism. It takes the form of a record of rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, philosophy, customs and history....
. According to tradition, the Tannaim were the last generation in a long sequence of oral teachers that began with Moses
Moses
Moses was, according to the Hebrew Bible and Qur'an, a religious leader, lawgiver and prophet, to whom the authorship of the Torah is traditionally attributed...
.
Titles
The NasiNasi
Nāśī’ is a Hebrew title meaning prince in Biblical Hebrew, Prince in Mishnaic Hebrew, or president in Modern Hebrew.-Genesis and Ancient Israel:...
(plural Nesi'im) was the highest ranking member and presided over the Sanhedrin
Sanhedrin
The Sanhedrin was an assembly of twenty-three judges appointed in every city in the Biblical Land of Israel.The Great Sanhedrin was the supreme court of ancient Israel made of 71 members...
. Rabban was a higher title than Rabbi, and it was given to the Nasi starting with Rabban Gamaliel Hazaken
Gamaliel
Gamaliel the Elder , or Rabban Gamaliel I , was a leading authority in the Sanhedrin in the mid 1st century CE. He was the grandson of the great Jewish teacher Hillel the Elder, and died twenty years before the destruction of the Second Temple in Jerusalem...
(Gamaliel the Elder). The title Rabban was limited to the descendants of Hillel, the sole exception being Rabban Yochanan ben Zakai
Yochanan ben Zakai
Johanan ben Zakai , also known as Johanan B. Zakkai was one of the tannaim, an important Jewish sage in the era of the Second Temple, and a primary contributor to the core text of Rabbinical Judaism, the Mishnah. He is widely regarded as one of the most important Jewish figures of his time...
, the leader in Jerusalem during the siege
Siege of Jerusalem (70)
The Siege of Jerusalem in the year 70 AD was the decisive event of the First Jewish-Roman War. The Roman army, led by the future Emperor Titus, with Tiberius Julius Alexander as his second-in-command, besieged and conquered the city of Jerusalem, which had been occupied by its Jewish defenders in...
, who safeguarded the future of the Jewish people after the Great Revolt
First Jewish-Roman War
The First Jewish–Roman War , sometimes called The Great Revolt , was the first of three major rebellions by the Jews of Judaea Province , against the Roman Empire...
by pleading with Vespasian
Vespasian
Vespasian , was Roman Emperor from 69 AD to 79 AD. Vespasian was the founder of the Flavian dynasty, which ruled the Empire for a quarter century. Vespasian was descended from a family of equestrians, who rose into the senatorial rank under the Emperors of the Julio-Claudian dynasty...
. Rabbi Eleazar ben Azariah
Eleazar ben Azariah
Eleazar ben Azariah , was a 1st-century CE Palestinian tanna . He was of the second generation and a junior contemporary of Gamaliel II, Eliezer b. Hyrcanus, and Joshua b. Hananiah, and senior of Akiba...
, who was also Nasi, was not given the title Rabban, perhaps because he only held the position of Nasi for a short while and it eventually reverted to the descendants of Hillel. Prior to Rabban Gamliel Hazaken, no titles were used before someone's name, based on the Talmud
Talmud
The Talmud is a central text of mainstream Judaism. It takes the form of a record of rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, philosophy, customs and history....
ic adage "Gadol miRabban shmo" ("Greater than the title Rabban is a person's own name"). For this reason Hillel has no title before his name: his name in itself is his title, just as Moses
Moses
Moses was, according to the Hebrew Bible and Qur'an, a religious leader, lawgiver and prophet, to whom the authorship of the Torah is traditionally attributed...
and Abraham
Abraham
Abraham , whose birth name was Abram, is the eponym of the Abrahamic religions, among which are Judaism, Christianity and Islam...
have no titles before their names. (An addition is sometimes given after a name to denote significance or to differentiate between two people with the same name. Examples include Avraham Avinu (Abraham our father) and Moshe Rabbeinu (Moses our teacher).) Starting with Rabbi Judah haNasi
Judah haNasi
Judah the Prince, or Judah I, also known as Rebbi or Rabbeinu HaKadosh , was a 2nd-century CE rabbi and chief redactor and editor of the Mishnah. He was a key leader of the Jewish community during the Roman occupation of Judea . He was of the Davidic line, the royal line of King David, hence the...
(Judah the Nasi), often referred to simply as "Rabbi", not even the Nasi is given the title Rabban, but instead, Judah haNasi is given the lofty title Rabbeinu HaKadosh ("Our holy rabbi [teacher]").
Nesi'im
The following were Nesi'im, that is to say presidents of the SanhedrinSanhedrin
The Sanhedrin was an assembly of twenty-three judges appointed in every city in the Biblical Land of Israel.The Great Sanhedrin was the supreme court of ancient Israel made of 71 members...
.
- HillelHillel the ElderHillel was a famous Jewish religious leader, one of the most important figures in Jewish history. He is associated with the development of the Mishnah and the Talmud...
- Rabban Shimon ben HillelShimon ben HillelAbout Shimon ben Hillel very little is known. He was the son of Hillel the Elder, and when Hillel died, Shimon took over his place as Nasi. It is assumed that Shimon did not live long after this, and was quickly succeeded by his son, Gamaliel I....
, about whom very little is known - Rabban Gamaliel HazakenGamalielGamaliel the Elder , or Rabban Gamaliel I , was a leading authority in the Sanhedrin in the mid 1st century CE. He was the grandson of the great Jewish teacher Hillel the Elder, and died twenty years before the destruction of the Second Temple in Jerusalem...
(Gamaliel the Elder) - Rabban Shimon ben GamlielShimon ben GamlielSimeon ben Gamliel was a Tanna sage and leader of the Jewish people. He succeeded his father Gamliel I as the nasi of the Sanhedrin after his father's death in 50 CE and just before the destruction of the Second Temple...
- Rabban Yochanan ben ZakaiYochanan ben ZakaiJohanan ben Zakai , also known as Johanan B. Zakkai was one of the tannaim, an important Jewish sage in the era of the Second Temple, and a primary contributor to the core text of Rabbinical Judaism, the Mishnah. He is widely regarded as one of the most important Jewish figures of his time...
- Rabban GamalielGamaliel IIRabban Gamaliel II was the first person to lead the Sanhedrin as Nasi after the fall of the second temple, which occurred in 70 CE. Gamliel was appointed nasi approximately 10 years later. Gamaliel II was the son of Shimon ben Gamaliel, one of Jerusalem's foremost men in the war against the...
of YavneYavneYavne is a city in the Central District of Israel. According to the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics , at the end of 2009 the city had a population of 33,000.-History:... - Rabbi Eleazar ben AzariahEleazar ben AzariahEleazar ben Azariah , was a 1st-century CE Palestinian tanna . He was of the second generation and a junior contemporary of Gamaliel II, Eliezer b. Hyrcanus, and Joshua b. Hananiah, and senior of Akiba...
, who was Nasi for a short time after Rabban Gamliel was removed from his position - Rabban Shimon ben GamlielShimon ben Gamliel IISimeon ben Gamliel II was a Tanna of the third generation and president of the Great Sanhedrin. Shimon was a youth in Betar when the Bar Kokhba revolt broke out, but when that fortress was taken by the Romans he managed to escape the massacre...
of Yavne - Rabbi Judah haNasiJudah haNasiJudah the Prince, or Judah I, also known as Rebbi or Rabbeinu HaKadosh , was a 2nd-century CE rabbi and chief redactor and editor of the Mishnah. He was a key leader of the Jewish community during the Roman occupation of Judea . He was of the Davidic line, the royal line of King David, hence the...
(Judah the Nasi), known simply as "Rabbi", who compiled the Mishnah
Generations
The Mishnaic period is commonly divided into five periods according to generations of the Tannaim.The generations of the Tannaim included:
- First Generation: Rabban Yohanan ben Zakkai's generation (c. 40 BCE-80 CE).
- Second Generation: Rabban Gamliel of Yavneh, Rabbi Eliezer and Rabbi YehoshuaJoshua ben HananiahJoshua ben Hananiah was a leading tanna of the first half-century following the destruction of the Temple. He was of Levitical descent , and served in the sanctuary as a member of the class of singers . His mother intended him for a life of study, and, as an older contemporary, Dosa b. Harkinas,...
's generation, the teachers of Rabbi Akiva. - Third Generation: The generation of Rabbi Akiva and his colleagues.
- Fourth Generation: The generation of Rabbi MeirRabbi MeirRabbi Meir or Rabbi Meir Baal Hanes was a Jewish sage who lived in the time of the Mishna. He was considered one of the greatest of the Tannaim of the fourth generation . According to legend , his father was a descendant of the Roman Emperor Nero who had converted to Judaism. His wife Bruriah is...
, Rabbi YehudaJudah ben IlaiJudah bar Ilai, also known as Judah ben Ilai, Rabbi Judah or Judah the Palestinian , was a tanna of the 2nd Century and son of Rabbi Ilai I. Of the many Judahs in the Talmud, he is the one referred to simply as "Rabbi Judah" and is the most frequently mentioned sage in the Mishnah.Judah bar Ilai...
and their colleagues. - Fifth Generation: Rabbi Judah haNasiJudah haNasiJudah the Prince, or Judah I, also known as Rebbi or Rabbeinu HaKadosh , was a 2nd-century CE rabbi and chief redactor and editor of the Mishnah. He was a key leader of the Jewish community during the Roman occupation of Judea . He was of the Davidic line, the royal line of King David, hence the...
's generation. - Sixth Generation: The interim generation between the Mishnah and the Talmud: Rabbis Shimon ben Judah HaNasi and Yehoshua ben LeviJoshua ben LeviJoshua ben Levi or Yehoshua ben Levi was an amora who lived in the land of Israel of the first half of the third century. He headed the school of Lydda in the southern Land of Israel. He was an elder contemporary of Johanan bar Nappaha and Resh Lakish, who presided over the school in Tiberias...
, etc.
Before the destruction of the Temple
- HillelHillel the ElderHillel was a famous Jewish religious leader, one of the most important figures in Jewish history. He is associated with the development of the Mishnah and the Talmud...
- ShammaiShammaiShammai was a Jewish scholar of the 1st century, and an important figure in Judaism's core work of rabbinic literature, the Mishnah....
- Rabban Gamaliel HazakenGamalielGamaliel the Elder , or Rabban Gamaliel I , was a leading authority in the Sanhedrin in the mid 1st century CE. He was the grandson of the great Jewish teacher Hillel the Elder, and died twenty years before the destruction of the Second Temple in Jerusalem...
(Gamaliel the Elder)
Generation of the destruction
- Rabban Shimon ben GamlielShimon ben GamlielSimeon ben Gamliel was a Tanna sage and leader of the Jewish people. He succeeded his father Gamliel I as the nasi of the Sanhedrin after his father's death in 50 CE and just before the destruction of the Second Temple...
- Rabban Yochanan ben ZakaiYochanan ben ZakaiJohanan ben Zakai , also known as Johanan B. Zakkai was one of the tannaim, an important Jewish sage in the era of the Second Temple, and a primary contributor to the core text of Rabbinical Judaism, the Mishnah. He is widely regarded as one of the most important Jewish figures of his time...
- Rabbi Yehuda ben BabaJudah ben BabaJudah ben Baba was a rabbi in the 2nd century who ordained a number of rabbis at a time when the Roman government forbade this ceremony. The penalty was execution for the ordainer and the new rabbis. The rabbis ordained by Rabbi Judah ben Baba include Judah ben Ilai. Rabbi Judah ben Baba was killed...
Between the destruction of the Temple and Bar Kokhba's revolt
- Rabbi Joshua ben Hannania
- Rabbi Eliezer ben HurcanusEliezer ben HurcanusEliezer ben Hurcanus or Eliezer ben Hyrcanus , a Kohen, was one of the most prominent tannaim of the 1st and 2nd centuries, disciple of R. Johanan ben Zakkai and colleague of Gamaliel II, whose sister he married , and of Joshua ben Hananiah...
- Rabban GamalielGamaliel IIRabban Gamaliel II was the first person to lead the Sanhedrin as Nasi after the fall of the second temple, which occurred in 70 CE. Gamliel was appointed nasi approximately 10 years later. Gamaliel II was the son of Shimon ben Gamaliel, one of Jerusalem's foremost men in the war against the...
of YavneYavneYavne is a city in the Central District of Israel. According to the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics , at the end of 2009 the city had a population of 33,000.-History:... - Rabbi Eleazar ben ArachEleazar ben ArachEleazar ben Arach was one of the tannaim of the second generation . Being first among the disciples of Yochanan ben Zakai , he delighted his master with his wisdom and penetration, so that the most extravagant encomiums were lavished upon him...
Generation of Bar Kokhba's revolt
- Rabbi Akiba
- Rabbi TarfonTarfonRabbi Tarfon or Tarphon, , a Kohen, a member of the third generation of the Mishnah sages, who lived in the period between the destruction of the Second Temple and the fall of Bethar .-Origins and character:...
- Rabbi Ishmael ben ElishaIshmael ben ElishaRabbi Ishmael or Ishmael ben Elisha was a Tanna of the 1st and 2nd centuries . A Tanna is a rabbinic sage whose views are recorded in the Mishnah.-Disposition:...
- Rabbi Eleazar ben AzariahEleazar ben AzariahEleazar ben Azariah , was a 1st-century CE Palestinian tanna . He was of the second generation and a junior contemporary of Gamaliel II, Eliezer b. Hyrcanus, and Joshua b. Hananiah, and senior of Akiba...
- Rabbi Yose HaGeliliJose the GalileanJose the Galilean was a Jewish sage who lived in the 1st and 2nd centuries of the common era. He was one of the Tannaim, the rabbis whose work was compiled in the Mishna. Jose was a contemporary and colleague of Rabbis Akiba, Tarfon, and Eleazar ben Azariah...
- Elisha ben AbuyahElisha ben AbuyahElisha ben Abuyah was a rabbi and Jewish religious authority born in Jerusalem sometime before 70 CE. After he adopted a worldview considered heretical by his fellow Tannaim and betrayed his people, the rabbis of the Talmud refrained from relating teachings in his name and referred to him as the...
(the "Other" or apostate)
After the revolt
- Rabban Shimon ben GamlielShimon ben Gamliel IISimeon ben Gamliel II was a Tanna of the third generation and president of the Great Sanhedrin. Shimon was a youth in Betar when the Bar Kokhba revolt broke out, but when that fortress was taken by the Romans he managed to escape the massacre...
of Yavne - Rabbi MeirRabbi MeirRabbi Meir or Rabbi Meir Baal Hanes was a Jewish sage who lived in the time of the Mishna. He was considered one of the greatest of the Tannaim of the fourth generation . According to legend , his father was a descendant of the Roman Emperor Nero who had converted to Judaism. His wife Bruriah is...
- Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, who, according to traditional lore, wrote the ZoharZoharThe Zohar is the foundational work in the literature of Jewish mystical thought known as Kabbalah. It is a group of books including commentary on the mystical aspects of the Torah and scriptural interpretations as well as material on Mysticism, mythical cosmogony, and mystical psychology...
- Rabbi Yose ben HalaftaJose ben HalaftaRabbi Jose ben Halafta or Yose ben Halafta was a Tanna of the fourth generation . Jose was a student of Rabbi Akiba and was regarded as one of the foremost scholars of halakha and aggadah of his day...
- Rabbi Yehuda ben IlaiJudah ben IlaiJudah bar Ilai, also known as Judah ben Ilai, Rabbi Judah or Judah the Palestinian , was a tanna of the 2nd Century and son of Rabbi Ilai I. Of the many Judahs in the Talmud, he is the one referred to simply as "Rabbi Judah" and is the most frequently mentioned sage in the Mishnah.Judah bar Ilai...
- Rabbi NehemiahRabbi NehemiahRabbi Nehemiah was an Israelite, circa AD 150 .He is attributed as the author of the Mishnat ha-Middot , making it the earliest known Hebrew text on geometry, although other historians assign to a later period by an unknown author...
Compilers of the Mishnah
- Rabbi YoseJose ben HalaftaRabbi Jose ben Halafta or Yose ben Halafta was a Tanna of the fourth generation . Jose was a student of Rabbi Akiba and was regarded as one of the foremost scholars of halakha and aggadah of his day...
- Rabbi YishmaelIshmael ben ElishaRabbi Ishmael or Ishmael ben Elisha was a Tanna of the 1st and 2nd centuries . A Tanna is a rabbinic sage whose views are recorded in the Mishnah.-Disposition:...
- Rabbi Shimon
- Rabbi NathanRabbi NathanNathan the Babylonian , also known as Rabbi Nathan, was a tanna of the third generation , the son of a Babylonian exilarch. For unknown reasons he left Babylonia, and his bright prospects there, to settle in the land of Israel, where he was made chief of the school at Usha...
- Rabbi Hiyya
- Rabbi Yehuda Ha-NasiJudah haNasiJudah the Prince, or Judah I, also known as Rebbi or Rabbeinu HaKadosh , was a 2nd-century CE rabbi and chief redactor and editor of the Mishnah. He was a key leader of the Jewish community during the Roman occupation of Judea . He was of the Davidic line, the royal line of King David, hence the...
(known simply as Rabbi or Rebbi); compiled the Mishnah
External links
- JewishEncyclopedia
- Biographies of the Tannaim
- Tannaim entry in historical sourcebook by Mahlon H. Smith