Lectures in Jewish History and Thought. No hard questions, please.
A brief look at the social and economic background of the post-Talmudic era in Baghdad, with an important digression into the 8th-10th century revolution in information technology that helped propel the authority and influence of the Geonim. The following video will look at the early history of North Africa, an area influenced by their scholarship but with a fascinating origin story as well. Join us for a live chat at 12 noon (New York time).
Premiering today at 12:00 noon ET.
Preliminary remarks on the study of the Jews in Africa, followed by The Jews of Ethiopia (origins to 1862). Premiering today at 12 noon ET.
Note: for some reason this particular topic attracts an unusual amount of inappropriate commentary. Scholarly, collegial discussion is welcomed here; but I intend to remove hateful remarks, and commentators who flagrantly disrespect others will be blocked from the channel. If this becomes too onerous a task I will simply turn off comments on the video. Please respect the learning community who gather here to discuss Jewish history.
Recommended reading:
Tudor Parfitt, Black Jews in Africa and the Americas (Harvard, 2013)
Steven Kaplan, The Beta Israel (Falasha) in Ethiopia: From Earliest Tiems to the Twentieth Century (New York University, 1992).
Some thoughts on the literary figure of Queen Esther on the eve of the holiday of Purim. Talk originally delivered to members of Project Makom on February 21, 2022.
Jewish History Lab Report February 12, 2021
Jewish History Lab Lectures Scheduled for Next Week (Advance access for YouTube channel members at the Student Level)
49. Early Jewish Settlement in Spain (Scheduled for Sunday @ 1:00 PM ET)
50. Jews in Visigothic Spain (Scheduled for Monday @1:00 PM ET)
Researchers: The Amazing Journey of Yisrael Aharoni (hopefully releasing today, maybe early next week)
Colleagues: Live Classes:
Conversation with High School Students in Toronto Monday, February 15th, 8:30 PM ET
Becoming the People of the Byte: The Internet, the Talmud, and the Future of the Jewish People Tuesday, February 16th, 7:30 PM PT (10:30 ET)
Jews and the Birth of Islam Wednesday, February 17, 7:30 PM ET
Wednesday is open to channel members at the Colleague level: please contact me at henry@henryabramson.com if you need the link. Monday and Tuesday will require permission from the organizers, but write me early and I’ll see if we can put it together.
Have a wonderful Shabbos, weekend, and Rosh Hodesh Adar! HMA
Jewish History Lab Report for February 5, 2021.
Videos dropping next week (advance viewing for Students now available):
Researchers video:
Colleagues Live Class on Wednesday: Jews in Visigothic Iberia
Other Publications:
The German Convert who Illustrated the Maxwell House Haggadah
Have an excellent Shabbos! Looking forward to learning more Jewish history with you next week.
HMA
Hello fellow students of Jewish History! Here’s this week’s Jewish History Lab Report.
Dropping next week:
Researchers Video: Who Illustrated the Amsterdam Haggadah of 1695?
Next Week: Under Christian Rule
A Bird-Headed Haggadah (Why?) https://www.thejewishstar.com/Print_E…
A brief overview of some historiographic theory as it relates to Jewish history, also considering the impact of Postmodernism.
Here’s a link to Rosman, Moshe. How Jewish is Jewish History?. United Kingdom: Littman Library of Jewish Civilization, 2009.
Another fairly recent and important work is Yerushalmi, Yosef Hayim. Zakhor: Jewish History and Jewish Memory. United Kingdom: University of Washington Press, 2011.
Good morning fellow students of Jewish History! Do you watch the Jewish History Lab series? If so, please contribute your thoughts in this brief, anonymous survey. We’ll be starting the second semester later this month, and I value your opinion! https://bit.ly/jhljanuary2021
Henry Abramson 