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Regular expressions
The Princeton Geniza Project database allows for search expressions containing certain 'regular expressions'. Regular expressions are codes that can be inserted in search queries to match patterns of text.
| ^string | Matches the text at the beginning of the string |
| string$ | Matches the text at the end of the string |
| . | Matches any single character (including special characters) |
| a* | Matches the sequence of zero or more of the specified character |
| a+ | Matches the sequence of one or more of the specified character |
| a? | Matches zero or one occurrence of the specified character |
| abc|def | Matches either one of the specified strings |
| [abc] | Matches any one of the specified characters |
Boolean Search
The Princeton Geniza Project database uses a boolean full-text search. This type of search allows users to combine keywords with operators to refine searches. Possible operators and examples of their use:
| מולאנא מולאי | Search for rows that contain either of two words by simply typing them consecutively. In this case, the search will find documents that contain either מולאי or מולאנא. |
| כתאבי +מולאי+ | Use a + sign before word to search for rows that contain all of them (in this case the words כתאבי and מולאי) |
| כתאבי AND מולאי כתאבי OR מולאי | The keyword AND indicates that both search terms must be present in the results. OR matches either search term. |
| כתאב –כתאבה | Use a - sign to exclude a term from your results (in this case, the search will include כתאב but exclude כתאבה) |
| *כתאב ?כתאב |
Use an asterisk or a question mark as a wildcard. An asterix matches any number of characters. A question mark matches any single character |
Yevr.-Arab. II 1467
Recto: Letter from Shemuel(?) to Hārūn. The writer may be the husband of the addressee's paternal aunt. In Judaeo-Arabic. Locations unknown; the writer mentions someone who arrived from Cairo with news. Dating: 15th century or later, based on the mention of the currency ashrafī. Much of the letter consists of expressions of condolence. The writer reports that the addressee's paternal aunt is crying and screaming due to the death of the family member as well as due to her separation from the addressee. She is fasting and has not eaten fatty foods (zafar) in 12 days, and refuses to do so until news arrives of the addressee's health. Verso: Letter fragment, probably. In Judaeo-Arabic. Describes scenes of horrific violence around the synagogue in Fustat inflicted by 'the youths' (al-shubbān). Umm ʿAbd al-Ghaffār was beaten. Others were rounded up and tortured. Much of it is a lament that would almost be appropriate for a Tisha b'Av service were it not for the specific details (a synagogue in Fustat/Cairo, the individuals named). Needs further examination.
Library: NLR
Type: Letter
