Geniza Lab

Letter fragemnt in Judaeo-Arabic. Wide spacing between the lines.

Letter, probably, in a mixture of Arabic script and Judaeo-Arabic. Dating: Likely 11th century. The addressee is instructed to obtain a certain amount of oil for the Iraqi synagogue, the Palestinian synagogue, and for Dammūh. Then mentions the synagogue of Cairo. The Arabic-script portions still need to be deciphered. ASE.

Letter in Hebrew. Late. Mentions a woman named Simḥa; Sutayta; the addressee;s mother; and the addressee's brother-in-law Menaḥem.

Large vertical strip from the right side of a business letter, account, or legal document. On parchment. Dating: Maybe 11th century. In Judaeo-Arabic. Mentions a partnership (sharika) throughout, along with numerous names and sums of money. Mentions: Nuṣayr; Ṣadaqa b. Ḥasan; "[...] b. Faraj represented him in the partnership"; "would take every week/Friday"; "and we remained like that for a time"; "we remained for another period"; Hiba b. Avraham; [...] b. Jirjis, a Christian (ערל); 100 dinars; 1.5 dirhams a week; Ṭībān; Nuṣayr b. Mubāarak; 40 dinars. On verso, an earlier text in Arabic script that was thoroughly rubbed out. AA. ASE.

Letter in Judaeo-Arabic. Describes a legal arrangement, probably a partnership in a store or business. Dating: 12th century, based on the typical hand. Mentions Abū l-Surūr and Ibn al-Sulamī; a period of a year and a half; a quarter of the business proceeds; "except for the verdigris" (illā l-zinjār); and the term muʿāraḍa (objection?). Ends with greetings (ajall al-salām) and a request to write back quickly (וכתבך לא תוכרהא [עני). Verso is blank. AA. ASE.

Letter from Yefet b. Menashshe to his brother Ḥalfon b. Menashshe. Small fragment (upper left corner of recto).

Letter from [...] b. Menashshe to his 'brother.' In Judaeo-Arabic. Mentions a fūṭa.

Letter addressed to "the noble teacher." In Judaeo-Arabic. Small fragment. Wide space between the lines, at least at the beginning. Mentions cotton and yarn on verso.

Letter in Hebrew or Judaeo-Arabic. Small fragment containing the name Shelomo and blessings.

Small fragment from the end of a letter, containing only greetings, but with almost all details missing. In Judaeo-Arabic. In the hand of Yefet b. Menashshe?

Small fragment of a business letter. In Judaeo-Arabic. Either sender or addressee is [...] b. Yefet.

Minute fragment from a letter in Judaeo-Arabic. Mentions arriving in Alexandria and meeting with somebody, and possibly a boat.

Recto: Letter fragment in Arabic script. Probably commercial. ... wa-katabtu lak al-jawāb ʿalā yadih... fa-ammā mā dhakartah...

Verso: Letter fragment in Judaeo-Arabic. Commercial. Dating: Likely 11th century.

Minute fragment in Judaeo-Arabic. Maybe a letter. Mentions someone called al-Yamanī.

Minute fragment. only few words, but most probably from a letter. The name Yaaqov is written. On verso in a different hand: only the name Bundar. AA

Letter or letter draft from a son to father. In Judaeo-Arabic. Dating: Late, probably no earlier than 16th century. Mainly consists of greetings, including from Jawhara and 'the mother of my children.' The sender's wife is pregnant. The margins and verso are filled with jottings in Hebrew and Judaeo-Arabic.

Letter addressed to a brother. In Judaeo-Arabic. Very rudimentary hand and spellings (e.g., ושׁעא for والساعة and אלה for both الله and الى and נדרכם for نظركم; also שׁ for س and שׂ for ش). The sender mentions fear on account of the addressee and plans to travel to Ibrāhīm and "visit the country" (nazūr al-bilād) "if we live till next year." The last line of recto tells the addressee not to worry about something (ולא תשגל קלבך יאכי מן גהת ל . . . ). Regards to various people on verso. Mentions Eliyya and 50 dinars.

Letter addressed to a cantor. In Judaeo-Arabic. Fragment (upper left corner). The sender greets the entire congregation. Mentions [al-Shaykh] al-Sadīd Zikrī. There are prayers for God to reconcile the addressee with his opponent and to spare them from baseless hatred (sinʾat ḥinam).

Letter in Judaeo-Arabic. Ibn Maymūn is mentioned in the first line. The sender thanks the addressee and conveys sympathy. Deals with business transactions; Abū l-Ḥajjāj; wool; half of the house of Ibn Sabra; legal proceedings in both Jewish and Muslim courts (וכאתבתה עליהא באליהוד ואלמסלמין); someone's wife; business in pepper and coral; Abū l-Manṣūr. (Information in part from Goitein's note card.)