Jacob Raphael Fürstenthal (born in Glogau 1781; died at Breslau, February 16, 1855) was a German Jewish poet, translator, and Hebrew writer. Fürstenthal's attention was directed chiefly toward the modernization of Jewish religious services, both in and out of the synagogue, and to this end he translated into German the most important

liturgical book A liturgical book, or service book, is a book published by the authority of a church body that contains the text and directions for the liturgy of its official Church service, religious services. Christianity Roman Rite In the Roman Rite of ...

s. These versions became very popular among the German Jews; and, in spite of many subsequent translations, they have retained their popularity to the present time. To some of them, as, for instance, the '' Penitential Prayers'', he added Hebrew commentaries. He did much work in philosophical and exegetical literature. His German translations of and Hebrew commentaries to the '' Moreh Nebukim'' of

Moses Maimonides Moses ben Maimon (1138–1204), commonly known as Maimonides (, ) and also referred to by the Hebrew acronym Rambam (), was a Sephardic rabbi and philosopher who became one of the most prolific and influential Torah scholars of the Middle A ...

and the ''Ḥobot ha-Lebabot'' of Baḥya ibn Paḳuda, and especially his large Hebrew commentary to the whole Bible, evidence his great versatility in

Talmudic The Talmud (; ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (''halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the centerpiece of Jewi ...

and

Midrashic ''Midrash'' (;"midrash"
. ''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''. ; or ''midrashot' ...

literature. Fürstenthal's main importance, however, lies in his Hebrew poetry. His poetic productions have a classic ring, and are distinguished by diction, richness of thought, and feeling. His power shows itself in his "Song on Zion" ("Ha-Meassef," 1810, iv. 37), which is considered the best of his poems. In German, too, Fürstenthal showed talent in his rhythmical translations of various ''

piyyuṭim A piyyuṭ (plural piyyuṭim, ; from ) is a Jewish liturgical poem, usually designated to be sung, chanted, or recited during religious services. Most piyyuṭim are in Mishnaic Hebrew or Jewish Palestinian Aramaic, and most follow some p ...

'', as, for example, his translation of the '' pizmon'' in the ''

minḥah Mincha (, ; sometimes spelled Minchah, Minhah, Mincho or Minchuh) is the afternoon prayer service in Judaism. Etymology The name ''Mincha'', meaning "gift" or "offering", is derived from the meal offering that accompanied each sacrifice offered ...

'' prayer for the

Day of Atonement Yom Kippur ( ; , ) is the holiest day of the year in Judaism. It occurs annually on the 10th of Tishrei, corresponding to a date in late September or early October. For traditional Jewish people, it is primarily centered on atonement and ...

Works

The following is a complete list of Fürstenthal's writings in their chronological order: *various contributions to "Ha-Meassef," 1810-11 *contributions to "Resise ha-Meliẓah," a collection of poems and epigrams, Breslau, 1820–22 *"Paradigmen der Hebräischen Conjugationen und Declinationen," ib. 1826 *Seliḥot, translated into German together with a Hebrew commentary ("Meṭib Safah"), to which is added a description (in German) of the service of the high priest in the Sanctuary on the Day of Atonement, ib. 1826 *"Ha-Meassef," containing Hebrew and German poems, mostly his own, ib. 1829, 1832 *"Dabar be-'Itto," an ode in German and Hebrew written on the cessation of an epidemic of cholera, ib. 1832 *"Das Judenthum in Staatsbürgerlicher Beziehung," ib. 1832 *"Rabbinische Anthologie," ib. 1834 *"Die Männer Gottes, oder Biblische Charakteristik," a translation of M. B. Friedenthal's "Yesod ha-Dat," Berlin, 1835 *German translation of the "Ḥobot ha-Lebabot," with a Hebrew commentary ("Or la-Yesharim."), Breslau, 1835 *"Ebel Yaḥid," an elegy on the death of Akiba Eger, ib. 1838 *German translation of the "Moreh Nebukim," with a Hebrew commentary (first part only), Krotoschin, 1839 (an appendix to this work was published by Fürstenthal, Leipzig, 1839) *Bible, under the general title "Or le-Yisrael," with Hebrew commentary ("Bi'ur we-Som Sekel"), Krotoschin, 1839–43 *German translation of "Ḳol Sason," liturgies for Purim and the fast of Esther, containing also a supercommentary ("Pittuḥe Ḥotam") to the commentary of

Abraham ibn Ezra Abraham ben Meir Ibn Ezra (, often abbreviated as ; ''Ibrāhim al-Mājid ibn Ezra''; also known as Abenezra or simply ibn Ezra, 1089 / 1092 – 27 January 1164 / 23 January 1167)''Jewish Encyclopedia''online; '' Chambers Biographical Dictionar ...

on the ''

Book of Esther The Book of Esther (; ; ), also known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as "the Scroll" ("the wikt:מגילה, Megillah"), is a book in the third section (, "Writings") of the Hebrew Bible. It is one of the Five Megillot, Five Scrolls () in the Hebr ...

'', ib. 1840 (2d ed., ib. 1845) *"Mazkeret Ahabah," poem by B. Schweitzer, metrically translated into German, Breslau, 1841 *"Tenubot Sadeh," poems and epigrams by S. N. Rosenfeld, translated into German, ib. 1842 *"Das Jüdische Traditionswesen," a translation of Maimonides' introduction to the Mishnah, with explanatory annotations, ib. 1842 *German translation of "Ma'aneh Lashon," Krotoschin, 1844 *"Menorat ha-Ma'or" by Isaac Aboab, German translation (completed by Benzion Behrend), 3 vols., ib. 1844-48 *German translation of "Ḳol Beki," liturgy for the Ninth of Ab, with a history of the destruction of the Temple, 2d ed., ib. 1845 *German translation of Maḥzor for all festivals, under the general title "Minḥah Ḥadashah," 3 vols., ib. 1845.

References

Delitzsch Delitzsch (; Slavic: ''delč'' or ''delcz'' for hill) is a town in Saxony in Germany, 20 km north of Leipzig and 30 km east of Halle (Saale). With 24,850 inhabitants at the end of 2015, it is the largest town in the district of Nordsach ...

, Zur Gesch. der Jüdischen Poesie, pp. 103, 106, Leipsic, 1836 *Allg. Zeit. des Jud. 1855, p. 121 *Geiger's Jüd. Zeit. v. 2

External links

Source
{{DEFAULTSORT:Furstenthal, Jacob Raphael 1781 births 1855 deaths 18th-century German Jews Hebrew-language poets People from Głogów Poets from the Kingdom of Prussia