Zechariah ben Judah Aghmati ( he, זכריה אגמאתי), also spelled Agamati, was a

Rabbi A rabbi () is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi – known as ''semikha'' – following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of ...

and

Talmud The Talmud (; he, , Talmūḏ) 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 ce ...

ist who lived from 1120 CE - 1195 CE in

Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria t ...

Works

R. Zechariah's major contribution was the ''Sefer Ha-Ner'', a supercommentary on the ''

Halachot ''Halakha'' (; he, הֲלָכָה, ), also transliterated as ''halacha'', ''halakhah'', and ''halocho'' ( ), is the collective body of Jewish religious laws which is derived from the written and Oral Torah. Halakha is based on biblical commandm ...

'' of

Isaac Alfasi Isaac ben Jacob Alfasi ha-Cohen (1013–1103) ( ar, إسحاق الفاسي, he, ר' יצחק אלפסי) - also known as the Alfasi or by his Hebrew acronym Rif (Rabbi Isaac al-Fasi), was a Maghrebi Talmudist and posek (decider in matters of ...

. The work is extremely significant from a historical perspective as it is the first known compilation work on the

. This ''Shittah Mekubbetzet'' genre grew in the 12th and 13th century and reached a pinnacle of popularity in the 15th century. His sources are almost all Sephardic and include: R. Chananel ben Chushiel, R. Barukh ha-Sefardi, R. Isaac ibn Ghiyyat,

Joseph ibn Migash Joseph ibn Migash or Joseph ben Meir HaLevi ibn Migash or Yosef Ibn Meir Ha-Levi Ibn Megas or José ben Meir ibn Megas (early 1077 – c. 1141) ( he, יוסף בן מאיר הלוי אבן מיגאש) was a Rabbi, Posek, and Rosh Yeshiva in Lucena ...

Maimonides Musa ibn Maimon (1138–1204), commonly known as Maimonides (); la, Moses Maimonides and also referred to by the acronym Rambam ( he, רמב״ם), was a Sephardic Jewish philosopher who became one of the most prolific and influential Tora ...

' ''Perush ha-Mishnayot,''

Rashi Shlomo Yitzchaki ( he, רבי שלמה יצחקי; la, Salomon Isaacides; french: Salomon de Troyes, 22 February 1040 – 13 July 1105), today generally known by the acronym Rashi (see below), was a medieval French rabbi and author of a compre ...

, and

Hai Gaon Hai ben Sherira (Hebrew: האי/י בר שרירא) better known as Hai Gaon (Hebrew: האי/י גאון, חאיי גאון), was a medieval Jewish theologian, rabbi and scholar who served as Gaon (Hebrew), Gaon of the Talmudic Academies in Babylo ...

and the

Geonim ''Geonim'' ( he, גאונים; ; also transliterated Gaonim, singular Gaon) were the presidents of the two great Babylonian Talmudic Academies of Sura and Pumbedita, in the Abbasid Caliphate, and were the generally accepted spiritual leaders of ...

. The quotes are all in the original, either Hebrew or

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walter ...

, and R. Zechariah’s own comments are also in Arabic. However, most printed editions are translated into Hebrew. In Aghmat, in the year 1190, he wrote a Talmudic commentary on Babha Kamma, Babha Mesi'a and Babha Bathera of the Babylonian Talmud. Aghmat-Ourika was the place where the Jews of Marrakesh lived until the Saadian sultan invited them to come and live in Marrakech itself.

Bibliography

Editions of Sefer ha-Ner

Arranged in reverse chronological order: *''Sefer ha-Ner al Massekhet Shabbat'', S. Eidenson Jerusalem, 2010 *''Shittah Mekubbetzet Kadmon: sefer ha-ner, massekhet Bava Kamma'', ed. Dov Zeev Havlin, Jerusalem, Institute for the Complete Israeli Talmud (Yad ha-Rav Herzog) 2009/10, 358 pp *''Shittah Mekubbetzet ha-Ner, massekhet Bava Batra'', Jerusalem, Otzar ha-Poskim 1999 *''Shittah Mekubbetzet ha-Ner, massekhet Bava Batra'', Jerusalem, Machon Harry Fischel 1987/8, ed. Yekutiel Zalman Cohen, 175 pp *''Sefer ha-Ner al Massekhet Berakhot'' (ed. Meir David ben-Shem), Jerusalem, Machon Torah Shelemah 1958, 141 pp *''A digest of commentaries on the tractates Bābhā ķammā, Bābhā meṣīʻā and Bābhā bhātherā of the Babylonian Talmud'', ed. Leveen, British Museum 1961

Compilations of commentaries including extracts from Sefer ha-Ner

Arranged by order of tractate: *''Kovetz Rishonim le-Massekhet Moed Katan'', ed Nissan Sachs, Institute for the Complete Israeli Talmud 1966 *''Ohel Yeshayahu'', ed Hillel Mann, Bava Kamma, 2000-1 *''Shittat Ha-Kadmonim'', M.Y. Blau, Bava Metzia, Bava Batra (2 volumes) *''Arba’ah Sefarim Niftahim: Sefer Perushe Rabbenu Hananel u-Vet Medrasho: Bava Batra'', ed Cohen, 2002, 544 pp *''Kadmonim al Massekhet Bava Batra'', Jerusalem, Agudat Torat Hesed 2004 *''Kovetz Sakotah le-Roshi'', Bava Batra, Bnei Brak 2003 *''Hiddushe ha-R”I Migas le-Massekhet Bava Batra'', ed. Shapira, Machon Torani-Sifruti Oraita, 1985, 280 pp *''Hiddushe ha-R”I Migas le-Massekhet Bava Batra'', ed. Shapira, Friedman, 1978, 266 pp

Secondary literature

*S. Assaf, "Chelek miPirush Kadmon le-Massekhet Berachot le-Echad mi-Bnei Zemano shel ha-Rambam", in ''Le-Zikhron R' Z. P. Chayyes'', Jerusalem 1933 *Yehoshua Hutner, "Sefer ha-Ner le-Rabbenu Zechariah Aghmati", in ''Sefer Zikkaron le-R. Yitzchak Yedidyah Frankel'', Tel Aviv 1992 (contains first chapter of Bava Kamma) *C. Z. Hirschburg, '' Tarbiẕ'' 42 (1973) *Ta Shma ''Sifrut Haparshanit'' pp 156–159 *Y. Malchi, "R. Zechariah Aghmati, ha-Ish, Yetzirato, ha-Parshanut, ve-Yachasah le-Ferushei Rashi", Shanan 14 (2009) pp 65–73 *Y. Malchi, "Rashi's Commentary to Tractate Berachot Included in Sefer Haner of R. Zecharyah Agamati" n Hebrew Alei Sefer, vol. 17, 1993, p. 85-95.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Aghmati 1120 births 1195 deaths 12th-century Moroccan people 12th-century rabbis Medieval Moroccan rabbis Moroccan writers 12th-century Moroccan writers People from Aghmat