Geniza Lab

Part of a poorly preserved letter, perhaps from [...] b. Joseph, to Shemuʾel he-Ḥaver b. Shelomo, mentioning the good deeds of Yeshuʿa b. Isaac. (Information from CUDL)

Letter from Khalaf b. Yiṣḥaq, in Aden, to Ḥalfon b. Netanel. Dating: October 20, 1137 CE (Heshvan 3, 1449 Seleucid). Long letter in which Khalaf writes about an unfortunate turn in his business affairs. Khalaf had sent goods with Abū l-Yumn al-Maḥallī and Abū Zikrī al-Ṣā'igh to Egypt for Abū ʿImrān Ibn Nufayʿ and at that time had asked Ḥalfon to help Abū ʿImrān with the sales and purchases (r17–23). But Abū ʿImrān died, and Ḥalfon traveled to the West, and the two messengers suppressed Khalaf's letters and acted as if the merchandise belonged to them (r23–27). Abū l-Yumn was going to return to Aden, but he fell ill in Qūṣ and had to return to Fustat, and Khalaf does not know his current condition. Abū Zikrī al-Ṣā'igh is planning to travel on to the West. He had with him a container (mikḥala) of musk that was destined for Ḥalfon, but the head of the Jews, Maẓliāh Gaon, took the container from him before he traveled (r27–38). Khalaf has already asked Abū Zikrī Kohen, the representative of the merchants, to go to the courts with the purpose of recouping the value of the goods Khalaf has lost and sending the money back to Aden. In this letter, Khalaf asks Ḥalfon to assist Abū Zikri Kohen in this (r38–53). The letter continues with other business matters, including an update on the shipment of nard (sunbul) for Ḥalfon and his partner Mubārak al-Māliqī (i.e., from Malaga) that was detained in al-Qaṣṣ, evidently a location in NW India (r53–v3). Khalaf concludes with regards for Maṣliaḥ Gaon; for Ḥalfon's brother ʿEli Nezer ha-Maskilim; and for "the congregations." Khalaf is preoccupied that he has received no letters from Ḥalfon (v4–10). Information from Goitein and Friedman. ASE.

Recto: Letter from an unknown busybody in Minyat Zifta to the Nagid Avraham (II?) in Fustat/Cairo. In Hebrew and Judaeo-Arabic. The purpose of the letter is to relate various improprieties ("matters proceeding not as they should," r13–14) of a muqaddam (perhaps of Minyat Ghamr?), al-Shaykh al-Sadīd. The first episode (r17–32): The local schoolteacher had to go to Cairo to pay his capitation tax (jizya) because he was originally from the Levant. When the teacher was delayed in returning, the community began talking about hiring a new teacher. Al-Sadīd caught wind of this and vetoed the proposal, fearing that a new teacher would be a nuisance (tashwīsh) to him, and he insisted that he teach the children himself. They responded that he was far too busy with his medical practice and serving as muqaddam, not to mention his business dealings. He persisted, and they said, "But you don't even live here!" He said that he would come live there until the original teacher came back. The teacher came back, and al-Sadīd was so enthusiastic about the additional income that he refused to let the children return to the original teacher, and he had made their parents vow to that effect. The community felt pity on the original teacher because of his poverty. The second episode (r32–45): During the same period of al-Sadīd teaching the children, someone fell sick in Minyat Zifta. A group of people, including another physician named al-Shaykh al-Muhadhdhab, came to visit the patient and found al-Sadīd attending him. Al-Sadīd rudely ignored al-Muhadhdhab. After everyone had sat around the patient, al-Muhadhdhab said, "Are you angry at me? I have been courteous to you, just like the community. I don't know what you want from me. I left you the synagogue and didn't attend today." Al-Sadīd (saracastically): "Thank God you found people to support you (against me?)." The writer of the letter editorializes: There were many people present who also don't attend the synagogue, but not because they were supporting al-Muhadhdhab, rather because they heard about how al-Sadīd had disparaged them. Back to the story: Al-Sadīd sighed and said: "How I hold back from complaining about my travails!" The writer: He didn't hold back at all. The third episode (r45–end): A certain judge (qāḍī al-ḥukm) was seriously ill (marīḍ bi-maraḍ shadīd), and al-Muhadhdhab was attending him "[against] his will and not for his good." This is unclear: was al-Muhadhdhab treating the judge incompetently, or was al-Muhadhdhab the one somehow coerced into this job? Meanwhile, al-Sadīd had been angling to get a connection to this judge. The judge had a slave with jaundice (khadīm bihi yaraqān). This too is unclear: is the slave acutely ill, or is this simply a description of his chronic state? Al-Sadīd came and spoke to the slave, and then came back with something to give to the slave—and the story ends here, unless the join is found. This document is possibly related to Bodl. MS heb. a 3/15, a letter from Avraham (I) Maimonides ordering a territorial muqaddam in Minyat Zifta/Minyat Ghamr to share his duties with his cousin al-Shaykh al-Muhadhdhab. (Information in part from Mediterranean Society, II, pp. 189, 560.) Verso: Mysterious page of notes in Judaeo-Arabic in at least two different hands. The items on this page include two recipes for staining (or dying? or removing stains? the word is tulaṭṭakh/laṭkh); Judaeo-Arabic poetry; a riddle or two; and an extended grammatical discussion of case endings after 'kāna and her sisters' and related topics. ASE.

Recto: Saʿadya's Tafsir on Psalms 116:7–118:2. Verso: a letter containing praises (Information from CUDL)

Letter from Daniel Bavli b. Saadia, regarding a stranded Nasi, perhaps Yoshiyyahu b. Yishai, 1211 CE. Greetings are sent to various people, including Ḥananel, his brother Shelomo (i.e. the sons of Shemuel) and their sons, Avraham, Yosef and his son Yitzkhak, Shemarya, David, Yechezkel, Yeḥiʾel and his son. Mentions Meir (perhaps the son of Baruk from France), Yefet, Eliyahu, Kalev ha-Kohen, Saʿadya and his sons, Eliyahu, who is from Alexandria, and Elʿazar. A marginal note mentions a certain Yehuda. Verso: An ethical piece, a Midrashic passage. (Information from CUDL)

Letter from Shelomo Ha-Kohen Gaon b. Yehosef to a notable in Fustat and to its Jewish communities. This is the second leaf of a longer letter, which was pasted onto the (now lost) upper leaf. In Hebrew. Dating: 1025 CE. In particular, the letter is written to Yefet b. Toviyya (known as al-Nīlī, the indigo merchant), David b. Yiṣḥaq ha-Nasi, and Shelomo b. Ḥakīm al-Fāsī, and also to the heads of the congregations, the elders of the Jerusalemite and Babylonian communities, in which the Gaʾon asks that the recipients hasten to obtain, on his behalf, an overdue letter confirming his office from the caliph in Egypt (specifically al-Ẓāhir (r. 1021–35 CE)). It mentions the noble ḥaver Toviyya, who has come from Jerusalem, and refers to the Jerusalem Talmud. The Gaʾon complains about intercommunal strife, particularly in respect of Muḥsin b. Ḥusayn, who is praying at home rather than at the synagogue. (Information from CUDL and Goitein.)

Letter probably from Ḥalfon b. Netanel, probably in Fustat, to Yehuda ha-Levi. Dating: September 1140 CE. India Book 4 (Hebrew description below; full English to come).

Letter from Evyatar ha-Kohen to ʿEli ha-Parnas. In Judaeo-Arabic with the address in Arabic script. Dating: 1070 CE (per CUDL). Containing an agreement about sending letters from Jerusalem to Egypt; mentions a courier, ʿAzarya b. Ṣemaḥ, from the Qaraites "our friends". (Information from Goitein, Palestinian Jewry, 126-128) VMR

Letter in the hand of Shemuel b. Natan to a circuit judge (Goitein's index cards). Nine persons mentioned by name acting as a board of arbitration with a circuit judge sent from the capital presiding. The circuit judge was advised by his superior to attempt a decision by law only if arbitration failed. Damira, dated ca. 1150. (Information from Mediterranean Society, II, pp. 339, 601)

Recto: a letter from Elḥanan b. Shemarya to [Sahlān] b. Abraham ha-Mumḥe. Verso: various poems of praise, including one addressing Judah and his son Saʿadya (Information from CUDL)

Letter from Natan b. Shelomo b. he-hazzan b. Ya'ir, written on behalf of his community to Moshe Nagid b. Mevorakh in Fustat regarding two matters of conflict between two factions into which the community is divided, each with its own hazzan: disagreement over the prayer for the Nagid; and conflict between the two factions regarding a synagogue custom.

Letter from Daniel b. Azarya to Avraham ha- Kohen b. Yiṣḥaq b. Furat.

Letter from one of the followers of Natan b. Avraham. Dating: probably 1042 CE. On verso there are astronomical calculations regarding the position of the moon. (Information from CUDL)

Letter from the Jewish community of Palermo to the Jewish communities of Qayrawān and al-Mahdiyya, specifically addressing Elḥanan b. Ḥushiel and the Nagid Yaʿaqov b. ʿAmram as heads of the community in Qayrawān. Dating: ca. 1030 CE. The writers praise the good deeds of Abū Saʿīd Khalaf/Ḥayyim b. Yaʿaqov ha-Sefaradi and his son Nissim. Thanks to their connections with the authorities, they saved many Jews from punishment after they did not pay taxes. They also saved merchants’ possessions after several ships sank in the water. In addition, they influenced the authorities to cancel a decision to expropriate part of the Jewish cemetery area. The letter mentions other individuals including a certain Natan, Avraham b. David b. Labrāṭ, Shemuʾel b. Moshe, Abū l-Faraj, who is on his way to Egypt, Moshe b. Yaḥyā the Perfumer, and ʿAmmar b. Yehoshuaʿ al-Ḥalabī. Signed by Shemuʾel b. moshe, David b. Levi, Shemuʾel b. [...], Sahlān b. Yehoshuaʿ, Yose[f] b. [...], [...] b. [...]el, Avraham b. Ḥayyim, Yehuda b. Eliyyahu, Eliyyahu b. Yona, Eliyyahu b. Avraham, [...] b. Yaʿaqov, Nissim b. Avraham, Mattityahu b. Yon[ah], [...] b. Yaʿaqov, Pappos (!) b. Shabbetay, Shabbetay b. [...], [...] b. Yehuda, Yiṣḥaq b. Yiṣḥaq the Cantor, Yiṣḥaq b. [...]. (Information from CUDL and Gil, Kingdom, Vol. 2, #236.) Published by Jacob Mann, "The Responsa of the Babylonian Geonim as a Source of Jewish History," JQR New Series Vol. 9 (1918), 139–79.

Letter from Yosef b. Yaʿaqov b. ʿEli ha-Bavli Rosh ha-Seder to his brothers ʿEli and Yiṣḥaq. Mainly in Judaeo-Arabic. Dated: 1476 Seleucid, which is 1164/65 CE. The sender gives his name in several short lines at the top of the leaf, followed by a quotation from Psalms 121:2. Identification of the sender was made by Amir Ashur and Mordechai Akiva Friedman, who add that he signs with his motto/ʿalāma (the same as that of Shemuʾel b. ʿEli, whose disciple he was): הא̇ לא̇ למו̇ (Psalms 68:21). In the letter, Yosef reports that he has sent the requested book in his handwriting. As for what one of them said about his mother missing him, he misses her even more. The next part is the upbringing and education of Yiṣḥaq (evidently the younger brother). ʿEli had complained about how Yiṣḥaq constantly disobeys him. Yosef gives an instruction that may be about corporal punishment and which involves the word "al-muqallib." Then: "You must exert authority over him (tusalṭin bih) and remind him of what the Torah says, 'Honor thy father and thy mother....' As for what you said about him cursing you—his teacher!—I cannot believe that about him." He then cites a couple more biblical verses and tells ʿEli to try to forgive Yiṣḥaq. As for Sameaḥ(?) al-Qaṭṭān and his reneging on a (legal?) agreement and not giving the addressee anything—the addressee must go to him and demand an explanation. The sender is pained that the addressee has not told him what he and Abū l-Barakāt have been reading, nor about his livelihood, nor about "how much gold you have gathered for me." Yosef mentions a letter he received from their father and how he responded to both the addressee's and the father's letter in a single letter. He then rebukes the addressee for his bad handwriting (kawn khaṭṭik manḥūs) and how he botched the 5 quires (apparently homework) that he copied. He must do it again, and also also supervise Yiṣḥaq in this task. Yosef gives further instructions about the Torah portions that they must copy. There follow numerous greetings, including for: Abū l-Faraj al-Baghdādī, Moshe Rosh ha-Qahal, Yosef's mother, ʿEzra the judge, and Binyamin ha-Ḥaver. There is a postscript written with a different pen expressing happiness at the news that Yiṣḥaq recovered from his illness. The letter keeps going on verso with additional greetings. As for the instructions Yosef received to purchase a niqāb and large miqnaʿa (scarf or veil) for his mother in Erbil (ארבל)—it is too late, he has already left Erbil. ASE

Letter of condolence on the death of the Nasi and Rayyis Sar Shalom (ll. 7, 38). Addressed to another Nasi (al-Rayyis al-Dā'ūdī), with blessings for his son Abū l-Ḥasan. In Hebrew and Judaeo-Arabic. It seems that the sender is asking the addressee to convey condolences on his behalf to al-Shaykh al-Thiqa, to Abū Isḥāq and his sons, to the dear brother Abū l-Barakāt al-Ṭabīb and his mother Sitt ʿArīb(?), and to the entire family of the late Rayyis (or of his widow?).

Letter from Yosef al-Muṣallī to Yeshuʿa the Cantor. In Judaeo-Arabic, with 14 lines of biblical quotations at the top. In between, the body of the letter is written in a smaller, semi-cursive script. Dating: No earlier than 13th century. The sender expresses his profuse gratitude for how the addressee aided Umm S[...] and accompanied her to the synagogues. In the next section, he greets the addressee's son Moshe, Peraḥya, the noble lady Mudallala, and ʿAlāʾ al-[...]. He conveys greetings from Farajallāh. (Information in part from CUDL.)

Letter from Yaʿaqov ha-Meshorer b. Yiṣḥaq b. David Maʿaravi, in Hebron, to Yehoshuaʿ, descendant of the Negidim. In Hebrew and Judaeo-Arabic. Dating: Possibly Mamluk era. The letter opens with four short biblical quotations; extensive rhymed blessings follow. Yaʿaqov describes his devastation upon the death of ʿOvadya, descendant of the Negidim. He goes on to describe the poverty of the community of Hebron, and especially his own poverty. He receives 8 dirhams a month from Yeshuʿa al-Ḥakīm b. Menaḥem of Damascus, bu this hardly suffices (he cites the Talmudic idiom "a handful does not sate a lion"). He asks for charity from the addressee. (Information in part from CUDL.)

Letter from Khalaf b. Yiṣḥaq in Aden to Avraham Ibn Yiju in Dahbattan on the Malabar coast. Goitein dated the letter to after 1139, while Friedman to after 1138. The letter contains much information on commercial business and the report of a shipwreck in Bab al-Mandab.