Geniza Lab

Letter from Minyat Zifta to Fustat. The writer had been sent to Minyat Zifta to deliver an instruction to the judge Shabbetay b. Avraham (active 1135-78), it seems to summon him to Fustat. Upon arriving in Minyat Zifta, he found an epidemic that had caused a large number of deaths in the Jewish community. The writer emphasizes Shabbetay's willingness to obey but awaits instruction on whether he still needs to come in light of the circumstances. The writer also conveys the complaint of various locals that every other town in the Rif has a synagogue, but they do not. (Information from Mediterranean Society, V, pp. 113, 537). EMS; ASE.

Letter from a sick man, complaining about illness in general and death among the population. Information from CUDL. Dated: Kislev 1528 Seleucid, which is 1216 CE. The month of Kislev began on November 13, 1216. See also T-S NS 321.93 (likely from the same period) and T-S 16.305 (March 1217), two other letters regarding the great epidemic of that year, discussed by Goitein in Med Soc V, pp. 114 and 538, notes 375 and 376. When Goitein referred to T-S Ar.54.91 as being written in Kislev 1528, he probably intended T-S 6J6.20 instead. Incidentally, the handwriting of this letter resembles that of Meir b. Yakhin (Bū l-Majd b. Thābit). ASE.

Letter by a Karaite woman to three different family members. The language is opaque in many places. (1) To her mother, she opens with her sadness at her mother's departure. "Your love did not overcome [your desire to leave]." She then lists all the people who have died (mātū yā ummī māt. . .): the elderly Dāwudiyya (female descendant of David); the wife of al-Kāzarūnī who was the paternal aunt of the wife of Yehuda; the son of Ibrahim the Deaf—no one has been able to bury him for two days, "they say he is ḥashrī," probably meaning "without heirs" rather than "verminous" (see Lecker, "Customs Dues at the Time of Muhammad," al-Qantara, XXII, 2001, p. 33). (Unless the concentration of deaths means it was plague time, and some corpses were regarded as hazardous?) As for the writer's own news, she swears by the Sabbath day that she has had financial trouble with her landlord, who seems to have given her a loan and to have come on Friday to demand a payment. She had to pawn her daughter's ring. "Do not ask what trouble I had with Maʿānī yesterday. Tell him (the landlord?), 'He (Maʿānī?) is not hiding. It is just that he has had ophthalmia (ramad) for 20 days. Be patient. He will soon work and repay you in installments just like he took (the loan) in installments.'" The bottom of the letter may be missing. On verso, she addresses (2) Abū Manṣūr, and exhorts him, "Be diligent in your work, and everything will turn out well for you (yajīk kull shay' mustawī)." She makes some cryptic statements, which may mean, "As for what Umm Yehuda said, pay no mind. I have told you that the Rabbanite should pay the debt of the Samaritan on your behalf. This would be good luck and an end to the setbacks." (It is from this line that Goitein deduced that the writer was a Karaite.) She says she is working as hard as she can for the sake of "the dowry" (? al-mahr) and has already paid ʿUbayd a qadaḥ and a half of flour and some honey and two pieces of firewood and a qadaḥ of vetch (julubbān) and lye (? ghāsūl). She mentions an underfilled (? muṭaffafa) clay vessel (burniyya) and asks the addressees to send it back to her properly filled (lā tuṭaffūhā). Finally, she addresses (3) her brother Abū Thābit. "I have no counsel for you except that they are your guests. Do not be heartsick on your brother's account. Do not spurn (? tufqir) my advice, and you will overcome much misfortune (?). Do good deeds. He who digs the hole (al-zūbīya) falls in it. Do not lay a hand on him. . . You will regret it very much and say, 'That old woman (al-qaḥba) my sister was right.'" ASE.

Goitein's note card describes a letter from Moshe b. al-Ashqar, who wished to travel to Safed but heard that there was an epidemic (dever) in Damascus. Dated 1560 CE. NB: This does not describe T-S 8J16.30; needs further investigation to find the correct shelfmark.

Letter from Mevorakh b. Yiṣḥaq from Alexandria to his father in law, Seror (Surur) b. Ḥayyim b. Sabra in Fustat. Written a month after another letter: CUL Or.1080 J264 (Doc. #100 in Frenkel). He mentions pillaging in Maḥalla (the writer hopes that Abū l-Ḵayr Mubārak is safe), an epidemic (dever) in Fusṭāṭ and that the writer himself had been robbed. Also mentions Ibn Naḥum the cantor. Probably written in the 1060s. The scribe gives his name too: Musa b. Da'ud b. Ezra. Information from CUDL. ASE.

Letter from Yaʿaqov the physician (known as 'the effective'), in Shamṭūniyya, near Kūfa, Iraq, to his pupil and perhaps son-in-law Yūsuf, in Jūma Mazīdat (unidentified location; Gil suggests that it is also in Iraq, near Sūra). Dating: Probably beginning of the 11th century. Yaʿaqov reports that he arrived safely in Baghdad on the 15th of Tammuz. He looked for Mājid but was told that he had already come and gone before Shavuot, and he looked for Abū l-Riḍā b. al-Ṣadr al-Tājir al-Baghdādī but was told that he had traveled to Hamadān. Yaʿaqov is optimistic that these men will return with the ḥajj caravans. As for the two yeshivot, Yaʿaqov declined to join either one of them so as not to offend the other. He told them that he had made a vow to visit the graves of holy men (Gil suggests specifically the grave of Ezekiel). He then traveled to Shamṭuniyya, where he found everyone sick from an epidemic disease. The writer himself became ill with a swelling, probably an abscess, on his leg, from which he developed a fever and was bedbound for 17 days. His son Abū l-Barakāt then became ill with a very high constant fever ("like a blazing fire"). Yaʿaqov sent to Baghdad for materia medica and mixed the medicinal syrup (sharāb) for his son himself, which he gave him each day together with barley water (mā' al-shaʿīrūn). His son is now feeling better. At first they were staying in the house of Abū Saʿd 'the paqid' b. Khalaf (probably a relative, at least by marriage, see verso lines 4–5), but when he and his family became ill, they 'cut off' their guests, "and you know that the people of Shamṭuniyya, even when they are healthy, do not care for foreigners." The saving grace for Yaʿaqov was that the people of Shamṭuniyya needed his services as a physician. The geography of Shamṭūniyya/Shamṭūnya is also described by Golb as follows: "[T]his locality is now a ruin known as Tell el-Shamṭūnī, located to the south of Baghdad on the western side of the Tigris near Ctesiphon (al-Madāʾin)." Norman Golb, "A Marriage Deed from 'Wardūniā of Baghdad,'" JNES 43 no. 2 (1984), 154. VMR. ASE.

Business letter from Natan b. Nahray, in Alexandria, to Nahray b. Nissim, in Fustat. Dated: ca. 1063 CE. Natan's son, and his son's eldest daughter, came down with an illness (ʿāriḍ). He despaired of them and went out of his mind, until God sent some improvement. But they are still weak. He interjects, "By God, watch out for the smallpox (iyyāka al-juddarī)!" The son and granddaughter have erupted in "jarab" and "ḥabba" (skin conditions). Hopefully with this suffering something worse has been averted from them. Please pray for them (r13–19).

Letter of appeal addressed to a Jewish dignitary (ha-dayyan ha-maskil). The introduction is in Hebrew and the body is in Judaeo-Arabic. The writer prays that the addressee will be spared "the diseases of this year." He states that he is impoverished and suffering from an illness. "If I live, you will see my gratitude for you in public." He asks the addressee to send a messenger to the Nagid on his behalf. The letter contains the interesting oath "wa-ḥaqq al-yiḥud," where yiḥud = tawḥīd. He also writes that al-ḥūrma (his wife?) is as sick as can be. Information in part from Baker/Polliack catalog.

Family letter in Judaeo-Arabic. The addressee is in Sammanūd. On recto, there are greetings and expressions of longing, "We have not enjoyed a day of health or well being since the day you left us. . . no sooner does one illness end than another begins (אלא מן מרץ נפרג ופי מרץ נבדא). . . ." The sender complains about the epidemic(s) this year and the inflation (ואנת תערף מרץ הדה אלסנה וגלאהא). On verso, gives instructions or a request mentioning flax and an item called מרארה(?) כרכי(?). Greetings to various people in the addressee's location, and greetings from Sitt al-Ḥusn. The address is written in an unusual location, in the margin of verso: يصل هذا الكتاب الى سمنود الى ("may this letter reach Sammanūd, for [...]."). AA. ASE.

Family letter written by Abū l-Faraj to Abu ʿImran in Fustat at the time of R. Ḥananel (early 13th century). The writer reports that he inquired about Muhadhdhab from two Jews who arrived from Minyat Zifta and learned that he has recovered from his illness. He is now well (fī ʿāfiya) & left his house (kharaj al-ṭarīq) & returned to work (taṣarraf). The writer also inquires four times after al-ṣaghīra, 'the little one,' referring to the recipient's wife. This urgent request for information can be explained by the fact that the plague was then raging in Cairo in 1216. Hananel will forward an answer together with his letter to Abu al-Tahir. (Information from Mediterranean Society, V, p. 113.) Note that this dating is tentative; Goitein writes that this document is dated Kislev 1528 = November/December 1216 (Med Soc V, p. 538, n. 375). But he almost certainly meant to cite T-S 6J6.20. By contrast, T-S Ar.54.91 is not dated and does not refer to a 'great plague' but rather to 'the wakham.' ASE.

Letter probably from a man, in Jerusalem, probably to a woman named Marḥaba, perhaps in Fustat. In Judaeo-Arabic, with many colloquial forms (incl. the suffix שי for verbs that are negated). Dating: Late, probably no earlier than 15th century, based on handwriting and language. The letter is full of grief and self-pity. This fragment begins with a discussion of the death of a woman; the writer's father and mother have also died; the writer resents being rebuked for the lack of letters. On verso, "We see others congratulating each other on/with their children, and I am in sorrow. . . You have killed my soul. . . This deed that you have done, nobody does this. If someone sends a piece of news and reports that someone (or the wife of someone, āl fulānī?) died, I am confounded, I don't know if I should mourn or not." The writer requests a proper letter containing news of the address and the family. "You asked if we have an epidemic (magefa) here in Jerusalem. Thank God, there is no evil and no heat (? lā sharr wa-lā ḥarr, probably an idiom). After greeting those of you who have survived, (I inform you) that your son and brother-in-law are well." ASE

Letter, probably a draft, mentioning that Abū Zikrī died in the year of the epidemic (wabā'). (Information from CUDL.) ASE.

Letter in Judaeo-Arabic. Mentions numerous items of clothing and textiles. Written during an epidemic (wa-l-zamān zamān maraḍ, 3 lines from the bottom of recto). The sender’s brother is in Maḥalla, and he is rumored to be sick. The sender mentions greetings from and to Abū l-Ḥasan, Natan and Shemuel al-Baghdādī, and asks for things to be sent either with the carrier of the letter or with ‘the rayyis’, whoever travels first. (Information in part from CUDL)

Letter probably sent from Palestine to Egypt. In Judaeo-Arabic and Hebrew. There are four pages. On the first page, the writer reports that "not only them, but the Alexandrians (ahl al-thaghr) who remained in Hebron "all fell sick with this fever" It is difficult to make out the subject of the remainder of the letter. Needs further examination.

Letter from Yeḥezqel b. Eli ha-Kohen (identification based on comparison with DK 233.2), evidently in Jerusalem, to Abū ʿAlī Ḥasan b. Isḥāq al-Ṣārifī (!), in Fustat. The letter is in Judaeo-Arabic and the address is in Arabic. Dating: second half of the 11th century. Apart from the handwriting comparison, there are at least two other reasons to identify the writer as Yeḥezqel b. Eli: (1) the suftaja (money order) of the rayyis is mentioned in line 17 of this document and line 19 of DK 233.2, and (2) the same bearer is listed underneath the address, ʿUmar b. Yūsuf and his son. Whereas DK 233.2 is dated 21 Adar II, this letter does not bear a date, but mentions a letter from the addressee that arrived on 22 Heshvan. Probably DK 233.2 and T-S Misc.28.171 were not sent together. The writer reports on the epidemic (dever) raging in Jerusalem. The first letter of the word דבר is mostly missing, and it bears the wrong vowel, but the context supports the reading of דבר. It is only Wednesday, and already there have been five funerals this week. The writer mentions children, women, and his paternal uncle "in their number" (the sick? the dead?). He adds, "Many people are ʿalā l-qibla." This phrase does not appear in the Judaeo-Arabic dictionaries. Perhaps it means "praying," or specifically praying in the area of the Temple. The writer touches on various things that he wants the addressee to do for him in Fustat (one of them is reminding the Rayyis Abū l-Ṭayyib about the money order), sends regards to Umm Wahbān, reports that he received the medicine (dawā') sent with ʿAmmār, and reports that he has sent the amulet (? this word looks very much like קמיע but the reading is not certain) of Ibn al-Kohen to the addressee, along with a sealed letter from him. ASE.

List of deaths in Fustat from the last day of Tevet to the 29th of Nisan 1437 (27 December 1125 - 23 April 1126). By Goitein's count: 41 adults, 18 children, and 6 infants. Includes several female slaves and poor people. Information from Med Soc V, p. 115; Goitein index cards.

Letter from Jalāl al-Dawla (or at least a person from the family of Shelomo b. Yishai the Nasi), written during an epidemic, and mentioning the Nagid [Avraham Maimonides] as being ill and also mentioning his (father?)-in-law the judge R. Hananel, who says, "These days are like the Day of Judgment: everyone is preoccupied (mashghul) with himself." He goes on, "We are doing our utmost to escape from this terrible epidemic. There is not a house in Fustat or Cairo among the important Jews—or anyone else—that does not have at least one sick person. The people are in terrible distress, too preoccupied to care for each other--let alone for a stranger." Jalāl al-Dawla also provides an update on his own diarrhea (v7–8): it is intermixed with white phlegm, coiled/twisted (multaff), and it burns when it comes out (yaldhaʿu waqta majī’ihi). ASE.

Letter from Menashshe, in Damsīs, to Abū Hārūn Akhlābū ha-Kohen b. Hārūn, in Fustat. In Judaeo-Arabic. Dating: January 1, 1063. Regarding a purchase of shoes for Abu Nasr, the writer’ son. In addition, the writer mentions that he expects to receive letters from the Maghreb. Mentions the death of al-Muʿizz b. Badīs, the ruler of Ifrīqiyya. Menashshe has heard that Akhlābū has traveled to Fustat, and he conveys his worry and prayers because of what he has heard about the epidemic (amrāḍ) currently in Fustat. (Information from Gil, Kingdom, Vol. 4, #758) VMR. ASE.

Letter from a woman named Harja (הרגה), somewhere in Syria, to her mother, the wife of Mūsā Ibn Fayrūz, in Cairo. In Judaeo-Arabic. Dating: Late, probably no earlier than 14th century. The letter is a remarkable account of Harja's months-long illness. "My heart flared up until I nearly died. I received an enema three times a day, but it did not relieve me. I remained anxious about how I would pass the fast. When the fast came, I let loose (my bowels) like one who has been loosened (in his bowels). I thought it was colic and considered that it was due to a discharge from my brain that settled in my stomach and felt like the colic. I did not sleep during the night of the fast, but I managed to last until midday, and from midday onward, it began to subside. I remained three or four days after the fast as it subsided(?) from me (or: gave me strength?). And when it subsided from me, I remained troubled on account of my eyes, for I could not see the light of the world with them. After that, the pain in my heart returned, and whenever it flared up the basin was not taken away from under my mouth, for whatever went down into my stomach came back up, and my stomach churned from all the vomit. But for now, it has abated, thanks to God for all things. I never imagined I would be carried to Syria sick and blind. I had taken the sickness into account, but not the blindness. I am afraid to have my eye treated, due to the season (i.e., season of illnesses) in Syria, and I am afraid that something else might come over me. I await a sign from God to illuminate my eyes. When you tell me that I am behaving recklessly as is my wont, I have never been more patient in all my life than I have been in these days. Someone who has not seen the light of the world for four months should not feel defeated? Whenever I awake and see the black obscurity of the morning and do not perceive the evening, my only remaining desire is to end my life. When they took me out into the sun, I didn't even see gloom, I saw only blackness." The margin and verso contain mostly greetings. See tag for more of her letters. ASE.