Gideon Brecher (; 12 January 1797 – 14 May 1873), also known by the

pen name A pen name or nom-de-plume is a pseudonym (or, in some cases, a variant form of a real name) adopted by an author and printed on the title page or by-line of their works in place of their real name. A pen name may be used to make the author's na ...

Gedaliah ben Eliezer (, was an

Austrian Austrian may refer to: * Austrians, someone from Austria or of Austrian descent ** Someone who is considered an Austrian citizen * Austrian German dialect * Something associated with the country Austria, for example: ** Austria-Hungary ** Austria ...

writer and physician. He was a central figure in the Moravian

Haskalah The ''Haskalah'' (; literally, "wisdom", "erudition" or "education"), often termed the Jewish Enlightenment, was an intellectual movement among the Jews of Central Europe, Central and Eastern Europe, with a certain influence on those in Wester ...

Biography

Brecher was born in Prossnitz, Moravia, and attended

yeshivot A yeshiva (; ; pl. , or ) is a traditional Jewish education, Jewish educational institution focused on the study of Rabbinic literature, primarily the Talmud and halacha (Jewish law), while Torah and Jewish philosophy are studied in par ...

in Eibenschütz and

Nikolsburg Mikulov (; ) is a town in Břeclav District in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 7,600 inhabitants. From the 16th to the 19th century, it was the cultural centre of the Jewish community of Moravia. The historic centr ...

. He was the first

Jew Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, religion, and community are highly inte ...

of Prossnitz to study medicine or any other professional field. Brecher received a graduate degree in surgery and

obstetrics Obstetrics is the field of study concentrated on pregnancy, childbirth and the postpartum period. As a medical specialty, obstetrics is combined with gynecology under the discipline known as obstetrics and gynecology (OB/GYN), which is a su ...

at the

University of Pest A university () is an institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly means "community of teachers and scholars". Univ ...

in 1824, and obtained a

doctorate in medicine A Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated MD, from the Latin language, Latin ) is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the ''MD'' denotes a professional degree of ph ...

at the

University of Erlangen A university () is an institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly means "community of teachers and scholars". Univ ...

in 1849, with the thesis ''Das Transcendentale, Magie und Magische Heilarten im Talmud'' (Vienna, 1850). Brecher's fame in Jewish literature rests principally on this work and upon his lucid commentary on the ''

Kuzari The ''Kuzari'', full title ''Book of Refutation and Proof on Behalf of the Despised Religion'' (; : ''Kitâb al-ḥujja wa'l-dalîl fi naṣr al-dîn al-dhalîl''), also known as the Book of the Khazar (: ''Sefer ha-Kuzari''), is one of the most ...

'' of

Judah ha-Levi Judah haLevi (also Yehuda Halevi or ha-Levi; ; ; c. 1075 – 1141) was a Sephardic Jewish poet, physician and philosopher. Halevi is considered one of the greatest Hebrew poets and is celebrated for his secular and religious poems, many of which ...

, which appeared with the text in four parts (Prague, 1838–1840). His correspondence with Samuel David Luzzato about this commentary was also published. In addition to many contributions to scientific and literary periodicals and collections, and some important "Gutachten" (expert opinions) on social and religious questions submitted to him by imperial and local government officials, Brecher is the author of a monograph on

circumcision Circumcision is a procedure that removes the foreskin from the human penis. In the most common form of the operation, the foreskin is extended with forceps, then a circumcision device may be placed, after which the foreskin is excised. T ...

, ''Die Beschneidung der Israeliten'' (Vienna, 1845), with an introduction by Hirsch Fassel, and an appendix on ''Circumcision Among the Semitic Nations'', by

Moritz Steinschneider Moritz Steinschneider (; 30 March 1816 – 24 January 1907) was a Moravian bibliographer and Orientalist, and an important figure in Jewish studies and Jewish history. He is credited as having invented the term ''antisemitism.'' Education Mo ...

. Brecher also wrote ''Die Unsterblichkeitslehre des Israelitischen Volkes'' (Vienna, 1857), of which a French translation appeared in the same year by ; and ''Concordantiæ nominum propriorum'', a concordance of Biblical proper names, part of which was revised and published after his death by his son Adolph Brecher.

Partial bibliography

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brecher, Gideon 1797 births 1873 deaths 19th-century Austrian Jews Physicians from the Austrian Empire Austrian obstetricians 19th-century Czech Jews Czech medical writers Eötvös Loránd University alumni People of the Haskalah Moravian Jews Moravian writers People from the Margraviate of Moravia University of Erlangen–Nuremberg alumni Writers from Prostějov