M. H. Landauer (1808 – February 3, 1841) was a writer on

Jewish mysticism Academic study of Jewish mysticism, especially since Gershom Scholem's ''Major Trends in Jewish Mysticism'' (1941), draws distinctions between different forms of mysticism which were practiced in different eras of Jewish history. Of these, Kabbal ...

, born at Kappel, near Buchau,

Württemberg Württemberg ( ; ) is a historical German territory roughly corresponding to the cultural and linguistic region of Swabia. The main town of the region is Stuttgart. Together with Baden and Province of Hohenzollern, Hohenzollern, two other histo ...

in Germany. He was a son of the cantor Elias Landauer, and at the age of 18 entered the

yeshiva A yeshiva (; ; pl. , or ) is a traditional 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 parallel. The stu ...

and lyceum in

Karlsruhe Karlsruhe ( ; ; ; South Franconian German, South Franconian: ''Kallsruh'') is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, third-largest city of the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, after its capital Stuttgart a ...

; later, he studied at the universities of

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

and

Tübingen Tübingen (; ) is a traditional college town, university city in central Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated south of the state capital, Stuttgart, and developed on both sides of the Neckar and Ammer (Neckar), Ammer rivers. about one in ...

. In spite of ill health, he returned to Munich in 1838 to copy from Hebrew manuscripts in the Royal Library extracts for use in his investigations. In 1839, he passed the examination for the

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 t ...

nate, and in the following year was appointed rabbi of

Braunsbach Braunsbach is a municipality in the district of Schwäbisch Hall in Baden-Württemberg in Germany. It is on the Kocher river, about from the district seat of Schwäbisch Hall. The town is bordered to the north by the town Künzelsau, the county s ...

, Württemberg. Only three months later, illness obliged him to resign his position and to return to Kappel, where he died. Of Landauer's works, the following may be mentioned: *''Jehova und Elohim, oder die Althebräische Gotteslehre als Grundlage der Geschichte der Symbolik und der Gesetzgebung der Bücher Mosis,'' Stuttgart and Augsburg, 1836 (see A. Geiger's review in his ''Wiss. Zeit. Jüd. Theol.'' iii. 403 et seq.) *''Wesen und Form des Pentateuchs,'' ib. 1838. Landauer's posthumous works and excerpts, dealing with his investigations of the history and literature of the Kabala, of the

Zohar The ''Zohar'' (, ''Zōhar'', lit. "Splendor" or "Radiance") is a foundational work of Kabbalistic literature. It is a group of books including commentary on the mystical aspects of the Torah and scriptural interpretations as well as material o ...

, and of

Jewish literature Jewish literature includes works written by Jews on Jewish themes, literary works written in Jewish languages on various themes, and literary works in any language written by Jewish writers. Ancient Jewish literature includes Biblical literature ...

, as well as his report on his studies of Hebrew manuscripts, were published in ''Orient, Lit.'' 1845–46.

Jewish Encyclopedia bibliography

Jost Jost is both a German given name and a surname and a Jewish (Ashkenazi) surname. Notable people with the name include: Given name * Jost Amman (1539–1591), Swiss * Jost Bürgi (1552–1632), Swiss clockmaker, maker of astronomical instruments ...

's Annalen, iii. 69 et seq.; *

Julius Fürst Julius Fürst (; 12 May 1805, Żerków, South Prussia – 9 February 1873, Leipzig), born Joseph Alsari, was a Jewish German oriental studies, orientalist and the son of noted maggid, teacher, and Hebrew grammarian Jacob Alsari. Fürst was a dis ...

, Bibl. Jud. ii. 219 et Seq

External links

Jewish Encyclopedia article for M. H. Landauer
by

Isidore Singer Isidore Singer (10 November 1859 – 20 February 1939) was an Austrian-born American encyclopedist and editor of '' The Jewish Encyclopedia'' and founder of the American League for the Rights of Man. Biography Singer was born in 1859 in ...

and

Meyer Kayserling Meyer Kayserling (also '' Meir'' or ''Moritz'', 17 June 1829 – 21 April 1905) was a German rabbi and historian. Life Kayserling was born in Gleidingen near Hanover, and was the brother of writer and educator Simon Kayserling. He was educ ...

References

* 1808 births 1841 deaths 19th-century German rabbis {{Germany-rabbi-stub