Shammai Zahn (6 July 1920 – 4 March 2001) was a Polish-born rabbi who was the chief rabbi of the Jewish community of Sunderland, United Kingdom and

rosh yeshiva Rosh yeshiva or Rosh Hayeshiva (, plural, pl. , '; Anglicized pl. ''rosh yeshivas'') is the title given to the dean of a yeshiva, a Jewish educational institution that focuses on the study of traditional religious texts, primarily the Talmud and th ...

of the Sunderland Yeshiva.

Early life

Zahn was born in

Nuremberg Nuremberg (, ; ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the Franconia#Towns and cities, largest city in Franconia, the List of cities in Bavaria by population, second-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Bav ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

in 1920 to Meshulam Zushe and Pessel Zirel Zahn. He held

Polish citizenship Polish nationality law is based primarily on the principle of jus sanguinis. Children born to at least one Polish parent acquire Polish citizenship irrespective of place of birth. Besides other things, Polish citizenship entitles the person to ...

. He began his education at the

Würzburg Würzburg (; Main-Franconian: ) is, after Nuremberg and Fürth, the Franconia#Towns and cities, third-largest city in Franconia located in the north of Bavaria. Würzburg is the administrative seat of the Regierungsbezirk Lower Franconia. It sp ...

teachers' seminary but fled to Britain in 1939, escaping the

persecution of Jews The persecution of Jews has been a major event in Jewish history prompting shifting waves of refugees and the formation of diaspora communities. As early as 605 BC, Jews who lived in the Neo-Babylonian Empire were persecuted and deported. Antis ...

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

Education and community leadership

Zahn studied in Yeshivas Toras Emes in London under Rabbi Moshe Schneider. In 1944, he joined the newly established Kollel in Gateshead as its sole unmarried student. The following year, he married Lotte Bergman, also a refugee. He helped the founding of the Sunderland Yeshiva in 1946 and served as its

Rosh Yeshiva Rosh yeshiva or Rosh Hayeshiva (, plural, pl. , '; Anglicized pl. ''rosh yeshivas'') is the title given to the dean of a yeshiva, a Jewish educational institution that focuses on the study of traditional religious texts, primarily the Talmud and th ...

from approximately 1949 until his death in 2001. Zahn made annual trips to Morocco from 1950 to 1967 to recruit students, impacting the education of future chief rabbis of Argentina and Venezuela, as well as dayanim and communal rabbis around the world.

Community service

In 1966, Zahn took on the responsibilities of Rosh Yeshiva at the Sunderland Yeshiva and effectively became the Rabbi of the Sunderland Beth Hamedrash. In 1981, he became the first and only communal Rabbi of Sunderland, holding the position until his death. In the early 1990s, Zahn was appointed ''nasi'' of Agudas Yisroel UK.

Scholarly contributions

Zahn wrote ''V'gam Lishmonah'' on machshovah and ''Beis Shammai'' on the

Torah The Torah ( , "Instruction", "Teaching" or "Law") is the compilation of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, namely the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. The Torah is also known as the Pentateuch () ...

Later years

Zahn retired to Gateshead in 1999, where he continued to be an active member of the Jewish community until his death on 4 March 2001. A memorial brochure was published by the Sunderland Yeshiva, now based in Gateshead, in honour of Zahn after his death.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Zahn, Shammai 1920 births 2001 deaths German emigrants to England English Haredi rabbis Rosh yeshivas