''Rav'' (or ''Rab'',

Modern Hebrew Modern Hebrew (, or ), also known as Israeli Hebrew or simply Hebrew, is the Standard language, standard form of the Hebrew language spoken today. It is the only surviving Canaanite language, as well as one of the List of languages by first w ...

: ) is the Hebrew generic term for a person who teaches

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 () ...

or is a Jewish spiritual guide or 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 t ...

. For example,

Pirkei Avot Pirkei Avot (; also transliterated as ''Pirqei Avoth'' or ''Pirkei Avos'' or ''Pirke Aboth'', also ''Abhoth''), which translates into English as Chapters of the Fathers, is a compilation of the ethical teachings and maxims from Rabbinic Jewis ...

(in the

Talmud 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 Haskalah#Effects, modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the cen ...

) states (1:6) that: The term ''rav'' is also

Hebrew Hebrew (; ''ʿÎbrit'') is a Northwest Semitic languages, Northwest Semitic language within the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family. A regional dialect of the Canaanite languages, it was natively spoken by the Israelites and ...

for ''

''. (For a more nuanced discussion, see semicha.) The term is frequently used by

Orthodox Jews Orthodox Judaism is a collective term for the traditionalist branches of contemporary Judaism. Theologically, it is chiefly defined by regarding the Torah, both Written and Oral, as literally revealed by God on Mount Sinai and faithfully tr ...

to refer to their own rabbi.

Overview

In the

, the title ''Rav'' generally precedes the names of Babylonian

Amoraim ''Amoraim'' ( , singular ''Amora'' ; "those who say" or "those who speak over the people", or "spokesmen") refers to Jewish scholars of the period from about 200 to 500 CE, who "said" or "told over" the teachings of the Oral Torah. They were p ...

; ''Rabbi'' generally precedes the names of ordained scholars in the

Land of Israel The Land of Israel () is the traditional Jewish name for an area of the Southern Levant. Related biblical, religious and historical English terms include the Land of Canaan, the Promised Land, the Holy Land, and Palestine. The definition ...

whether Tannaim or Amoraim. In the Talmud, ''Rav'' or ''Rab'' (used alone) is a common name for the amora named Abba Arikha.

The title ''Rav HaTzair'' (or ''Rav HaTza'ir'') refers to an assistant rabbi. ''Tzair'' means young, in Hebrew, and the prefix ''Ha'' means "the"; therefore, the combination can be used to mean the younger of a pair: ''Rav HaTzair'', in context, can refer to the younger of a pair of rabbis, or Junior Rav.

References

{{reflist Orthodox rabbinic roles and titles

Overview

See also

References