Uriel Rappaport (; 1935 – 20 December 2019) was an Israeli historian. His area of research focus was the
Second Temple period
The Second Temple period or post-exilic period in Jewish history denotes the approximately 600 years (516 BCE – 70 CE) during which the Second Temple stood in the city of Jerusalem. It began with the return to Zion and subsequent reconstructio ...
(6th century BCE – 1st century CE), including
Hellenistic Judaism
Hellenistic Judaism was a form of Judaism in classical antiquity that combined Jewish religious tradition with elements of Hellenistic culture and religion. Until the early Muslim conquests of the eastern Mediterranean, the main centers of Hellen ...
, the
Maccabean Revolt
The Maccabean Revolt () was a Jewish rebellion led by the Maccabees against the Seleucid Empire and against Hellenistic influence on Jewish life. The main phase of the revolt lasted from 167 to 160 BCE and ended with the Seleucids in control of ...
, the
Hasmonean kingdom
The Hasmonean dynasty (; ''Ḥašmōnāʾīm''; ) was a ruling dynasty of Judea and surrounding regions during the Hellenistic times of the Second Temple period (part of classical antiquity), from BC to 37 BC. Between and BC the dynasty rule ...
, and the
First Jewish–Roman War
The First Jewish–Roman War (66–74 CE), also known as the Great Jewish Revolt, the First Jewish Revolt, the War of Destruction, or the Jewish War, was the first of three major Jewish rebellions against the Roman Empire. Fought in the prov ...
. He became a professor of
Jewish History
Jewish history is the history of the Jews, their Jewish peoplehood, nation, Judaism, religion, and Jewish culture, culture, as it developed and interacted with other peoples, religions and cultures.
Jews originated from the Israelites and H ...
at the
University of Haifa
The University of Haifa (, ) is a public research university located on Mount Carmel in Haifa, Israel. Founded in 1963 as a branch of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, the University of Haifa received full academic accreditation as an inde ...
and served as a rector of the university from 1983 to 1985. He was a member of the
Council for Higher Education in Israel
The Council for Higher Education in Israel (, ''HaMo'atza LeHaskala Gevoha'') is a supervisory body for universities and colleges in Israel. It is the only organization with the authority to award academic educational accreditation. The head of th ...
in 1987–1989 and 1998–2001, and served as a chairman of the Humanities Committee at the
Israel Science Foundation
The Israel Science Foundation (ISF) is a nonprofit organization that provides monetary grants for scientific research in Israel. It is the Israeli analogue of scientific funding bodies in other countries such as the US National Science Foundation, ...
. Rappaport took emeritus status at Haifa in 2003, and served as president of Kinneret College in 2002–2006.
Biography
Uriel Rappaport was born in 1935 in
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv-Yafo ( or , ; ), sometimes rendered as Tel Aviv-Jaffa, and usually referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the Gush Dan metropolitan area of Israel. Located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline and with a popula ...
(then part of
Mandatory Palestine
Mandatory Palestine was a British Empire, British geopolitical entity that existed between 1920 and 1948 in the Palestine (region), region of Palestine, and after 1922, under the terms of the League of Nations's Mandate for Palestine.
After ...
) and grew up in
Netanya
Netanya () () or Natanya (), is a city in the "Planet Bekasi" Central District (Israel), Setanyahu of Israel, Israel BAB ih, and is the capital of the surrounding Sharon plain. It is north of Tel Aviv, and south of Haifa, between the Poleg stre ...
. He attended the
Hebrew University of Jerusalem
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem (HUJI; ) is an Israeli public university, public research university based in Jerusalem. Co-founded by Albert Einstein and Chaim Weizmann in July 1918, the public university officially opened on 1 April 1925. ...
for his education, where he acquired degrees in both History and Jewish History. He earned his master's degree in 1962. He taught part-time at
Hebrew Reali School
The Hebrew Reali School of Haifa (), located in Haifa, Israel, is one of the country's oldest private schools.Abraham Schalit as his advisor, an expert on the
Second Temple period
The Second Temple period or post-exilic period in Jewish history denotes the approximately 600 years (516 BCE – 70 CE) during which the Second Temple stood in the city of Jerusalem. It began with the return to Zion and subsequent reconstructio ...
. He studied for a post-doctorate at the
École pratique des hautes études
The (), abbreviated EPHE, is a French postgraduate top level educational institution, a .
EPHE is a constituent college of the Université PSL (together with ENS Ulm, Paris Dauphine or Ecole des Mines). The college is closely linked to É ...
(EPHE) in Paris under Louis Robert, an expert in Greek
epigraphy
Epigraphy () is the study of inscriptions, or epigraphs, as writing; it is the science of identifying graphemes, clarifying their meanings, classifying their uses according to dates and cultural contexts, and drawing conclusions about the wr ...
numismatics
Numismatics is the study or collection of currency, including coins, tokens, paper money, medals, and related objects.
Specialists, known as numismatists, are often characterized as students or collectors of coins, but the discipline also inclu ...
.
When he returned to Israel, he became one of the first instructors at the
University of Haifa
The University of Haifa (, ) is a public research university located on Mount Carmel in Haifa, Israel. Founded in 1963 as a branch of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, the University of Haifa received full academic accreditation as an inde ...
, which was initially a branch of the Hebrew University in 1963–1972. In 1972, he was elected the second dean (after Professor Akiva Gilboa) of the Faculty of Humanities at the University of Haifa. In the years 1983-1986 he served as rector of Haifa University. He spent time as a visiting professor at
Temple University
Temple University (Temple or TU) is a public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related research university in Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. It was founded in 1884 by the Baptist ministe ...
in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; at the Center for Advanced Hebrew Studies in Wolfson College at
Oxford University
The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the second-oldest continuously operating u ...
; and at the
Israel Institute for Advanced Studies
The Israel Institute for Advanced Studies (; IIAS, or IAS in Israel) is a research institute in Jerusalem, devoted to academic research in physics, mathematics, the life sciences, economics, and comparative religion. It is a self-governing body, ...
, on the campus of his alma mater, the Hebrew University of Jerusalem (1995–1996). He took emeritus status at Haifa in 2003. He served as president of Kinneret College in the Northern District from 2002 to 2006.
In addition to his academic work, Rappaport served on a number of education-related commissions and committees. He was a member of the
Council for Higher Education in Israel
The Council for Higher Education in Israel (, ''HaMo'atza LeHaskala Gevoha'') is a supervisory body for universities and colleges in Israel. It is the only organization with the authority to award academic educational accreditation. The head of th ...
in 1987–1989 and 1998–2001, and served as a chairman of the Humanities Committee at the
Israel Science Foundation
The Israel Science Foundation (ISF) is a nonprofit organization that provides monetary grants for scientific research in Israel. It is the Israeli analogue of scientific funding bodies in other countries such as the US National Science Foundation, ...
.
In his personal life, he was married and had three children. Rappaport died in December 2019, and was buried in the kibbutz Neve Yam's cemetery.
Work
Rappaport was a historian of the
Second Temple period
The Second Temple period or post-exilic period in Jewish history denotes the approximately 600 years (516 BCE – 70 CE) during which the Second Temple stood in the city of Jerusalem. It began with the return to Zion and subsequent reconstructio ...
, when Judea was under first Persian control, then that of various Greek states, then the
Hasmonean kingdom
The Hasmonean dynasty (; ''Ḥašmōnāʾīm''; ) was a ruling dynasty of Judea and surrounding regions during the Hellenistic times of the Second Temple period (part of classical antiquity), from BC to 37 BC. Between and BC the dynasty rule ...
, and then the Romans. In particular, one of his areas of focus was relations between Jews and non-Jews in the region, such as
Samaritan
Samaritans (; ; ; ), are an ethnoreligious group originating from the Hebrews and Israelites of the ancient Near East. They are indigenous to Samaria, a historical region of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah that ...
s and Greeks, as well as Greek influence on the Jews themselves in
Hellenistic Judaism
Hellenistic Judaism was a form of Judaism in classical antiquity that combined Jewish religious tradition with elements of Hellenistic culture and religion. Until the early Muslim conquests of the eastern Mediterranean, the main centers of Hellen ...
. He also studied times when those tensions boiled over into conflict, notably the
Maccabean Revolt
The Maccabean Revolt () was a Jewish rebellion led by the Maccabees against the Seleucid Empire and against Hellenistic influence on Jewish life. The main phase of the revolt lasted from 167 to 160 BCE and ended with the Seleucids in control of ...
(177–141 BCE), the Great Revolt (66–73 CE), and the
Bar Kochba Revolt
The Bar Kokhba revolt (132–136 AD) was a major uprising by the Jews of Judaea against the Roman Empire, marking the final and most devastating of the Jewish–Roman wars. Led by Simon bar Kokhba, the rebels succeeded in establishing an ind ...
(141–144). Rappaport wrote for a variety of audiences: both a textbook aimed for high schoolers written with Israel Shatzman that was reprinted many times for a popular audience, as well as many scholarly articles and books. He also translated various works, both Hebrew to English and English to Hebrew, including a work of Victor Tcherikover's on the
History of the Jews in Egypt
The history of the Jews in Egypt goes back to ancient times. Egyptian Jews or Jewish Egyptians refer to the Jewish community in Egypt who mainly consisted of Egyptian Arabic-speaking Rabbanites and Karaites. Though Egypt had its own community ...
in 1974. His 2006 book on
John of Giscala
John of Gischala (, ; , 70) was a leader of the first Jewish revolt against the Romans.
History
During the Jewish war with Rome, John of Gischala (), son of Levi (), vied with Josephus over the control of Galilee and amassed a large band of su ...
won the Yaacov Bahat award for outstanding non-fiction book, an award from the University of Haifa aimed at books for an academic audience.
Selected works
Rappaport's major books include:
* בית חשמונאי: עם ישראל בארץ ישראל בימי החשמונאים ,יד יצחק בן-צבי, ירושלים, תשע"ג 2013. (''The House of the Hasmoneans: The people of Israel in Eretz Israel during the Hasmonean era'')
* יוחנן מגוש חלב: מהרי הגליל אל חומות ירושלים, מרכז זלמן שזר, ירושלים, תשס"ז 2006. (''John of Gischala: From the Mountains of Galilee to the Walls of Jerusalem'')
* מכורש עד אלכסנדר: תולדות ישראל בשלטון פרס, בהשתתפות שלומית ירון (עריכה וריכוז הפיתוח: ישראל רונן), האוניברסיטה הפתוחה, רעננה, תשס"ה 2004. (''From Cyrus to Alexander: The History of Israel under Persian rule'')
* ספר מקבים א': מבוא, תרגום ופירוש, יד יצחק בן-צבי, ירושלים, תשס"ד 2004. (''The Book 1 Maccabees: Introduction, Translation, and Commentary''. Co-authored with Daniel R. Schwartz.)
* יהודה ורומא: מירידת בית חשמונאי עד רבי יהודה הנשיא, (ראש צוות הקורס), מהדורה ב', האוניברסיטה הפתוחה, תל אביב, תשנ"ח 1998 - תשנ"ט 1999. (''Judah and Rome: From the Hasmonean dynasty to Rabbi Judah ha-Nasi''. 1st edition in 1982, 2nd edition in 1998–1999, 3rd edition in 2016.)
* מגלות לקוממיות: מגלות בבל עד ירידת בית חשמונאי (מהדורה ב', 12 יחידות לימוד), האוניברסיטה הפתוחה, תל אביב, תש"ן - תשנ"ב. (''Exiles to Communes: From the Babylonian Exile to the Fall of the House of the Hasmoneans'')
* האנציקלופדיה לתולדות ארץ ישראל: מאורעות, מונחים, מקומות ואישים מהתקופה הפרהיסטורית ועד מלחמת העולם הראשונה (1914), בהשתתפות יואל רפל, הוצאת מודן, תל אביב, 1986. (''The Encyclopedia of the History of the Land of Israel: Events, Terms, Places and Persons from the Prehistoric Period to the First World War (1914)'')
* תולדות ישראל בתקופת הבית השני, ספר עזר לתלמידי הכיתות העליונות של בית הספר התיכון, לנבחנים בבחינות-בגרות חיצוניות, לסטודנטים, למורים ולקורא המשכיל, מהדורה ג', מעובדת ומסודרת מחדש. הוצאת עמיחי, תל אביב, 1984 (מהדורה ראשונה יצאה לאור בתשכ"ז). (''History of Israel during the Second Temple Period'')
* דניאל, סדרת "עולם התנ"ך", בהשתתפות פרופ' יצחק אבישור, הוצאת רביבים, תל אביב, תשמ"ג 1983. (''Daniel'', part of the "World of the Bible" series)
Rappaport has edited various articles and journals, including the compilation books:
* 1982: יוסף בן מתתיהו : היסטוריון של ארץ־ישראל בתקופה ההלניסטית והרומית : קובץ מחקרים (''Flavius Josephus: Historian of Eretz Israel in the Hellenistic and Roman periods'')
* 1992: Dimant, Devorah, and Rappaport, Uriel (eds.), ''The Dead Sea Scrolls: Forty Years of Research'', Leiden and Jerusalem: E.J. Brill, Magnes Press, Yad Izhak Ben-Zvi.
* 1993/1994: מדינת החשמונאים : לתולדותיה על רקע התקופה ההלניסטית : קובץ מאמרים (''The Hasmonean State: Its History Against the Background of the Hellenistic Period'')
Upon his retirement, a
festschrift
In academia, a ''Festschrift'' (; plural, ''Festschriften'' ) is a book honoring a respected person, especially an academic, and presented during their lifetime. It generally takes the form of an edited volume, containing contributions from the h ...
was published in his honor in 2005:
* 2005 לאוריאל; מחקרים בתולדות ישראל בעת העתיקה מוגשים לאוריאל רפפורט (''For Uriel: Studies of the History of Israel in Antiquity, submitted to Uriel Rapaport'').