Yosef Yoel Rivlin (; 11 October 1889–April 15, 1971) was an Israeli

Oriental studies Oriental studies is the academic field that studies Near Eastern and Far Eastern societies and cultures, languages, peoples, history and archaeology. In recent years, the subject has often been turned into the newer terms of Middle Eastern studie ...

scholar, a professor at 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. ...

and a member of the

Academy of the Hebrew Language The Academy of the Hebrew Language (, ''ha-akademyah la-lashon ha-ivrit'') was established by the Israeli government in 1953 as the "supreme institution for scholarship on the Hebrew language in the Hebrew University of Jerusalem of Givat Ram cam ...

Biography

Yosef Yoel Rivlin was born in

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

on October 11, 1889, to Reuven Rivlin, a scion of the

Rivlin family Rivlin () is a primarily Jewish family originating from Austria and Eastern Europe, which became established in early 19th century Palestine (now Israel). There are also branches of the family in several other countries. The family The Rivlin fami ...

, and Ita Rivka Shapira (the sister of the Zionist settler Avraham Shapira), who died when he was born. He studied in the

Talmud Torah Talmud Torah (, lit. 'Study of the Torah') schools were created in the Jewish world, both Ashkenazic and Sephardic, as a form of religious school for boys of modest backgrounds, where they were given an elementary education in Hebrew language, H ...

of the

Etz Chaim Yeshiva Etz Chaim Yeshiva (, ''Yeshivat Etz Hayyim'', lit. "Tree of Life") was an orthodox yeshiva located on Jaffa Road close to the Mahane Yehuda Market in downtown Jerusalem. History Etz Chaim Yeshiva was originally a Talmud Torah that was establish ...

, in the

Lämel School The Lämel School (; also the Von Lamel School) is a school established in Jerusalem in 1856 by the Austrian family of Simon von Lämel to educate members of the Old Yishuv in the city. It was initially established in the Jewish Quarter of the Ol ...

(often misspelled 'Lemel School'), and at the Ezra teachers college. Later, he was one of the few Jews who studied at the independent Muslim school Rawdat al-Ma'araf (روضة المعارف). He was one of the first teachers in the Teacher's College founded by David Yellin and among the leaders of the supporters of

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 ...

medium Medium may refer to: Aircraft *Medium bomber, a class of warplane * Tecma Medium, a French hang glider design Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''The Medium'' (1921 film), a German silent film * ''The Medium'' (1951 film), a film vers ...

education in the

War of the Languages The war of the languages (; ) was a heated debate in the land of Israel over the language of instruction in the region's new Jewish schools. This "language war" was a cornerstone event in the history of the revival of the Hebrew language. Bac ...

. In 1917, he was imprisoned in

Damascus Damascus ( , ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in the Levant region by population, largest city of Syria. It is the oldest capital in the world and, according to some, the fourth Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. Kno ...

after being forcibly conscripted into the

Ottoman Military The Military of the Ottoman Empire () was the armed forces of the Ottoman Empire. It was founded in 1299 and dissolved in 1922. Army The Military of the Ottoman Empire can be divided in five main periods. The foundation era covers the years ...

, and after his release he remained there and taught at the Hebrew School for Girls. Together with a group of Jewish educators, he returned to Palestine at the end of 1918, and in January 1919 he was sent back to Damascus by

David Yellin David Yellin (; March 19, 1864 – December 12, 1941) was an educator, a researcher of the Hebrew language and Hebrew literature, literature, a politician, one of the leaders of the Yishuv, the founder of the first David Yellin College of Educat ...

to run the Hebrew School for Girls. Together with him,

Yehuda Burla Yehuda Burla (; 18 September 1886 – 7 November 1969) was an Israeli author. Biography Burla was born in 1886 in Jerusalem, then part of the Ottoman Empire, to a Sephardi Jewish family with rabbinical roots, originating from İzmir. As a chil ...

was sent to run the Hebrew School for Boys. From Damascus, he frequently wrote in the daily Hebrew newspaper

Do'ar HaYom ''Do'ar HaYom'' () also known as the ''Palestine Daily Mail'', was a Hebrew-language newspaper that ran in the British Mandate for Palestine from 1919 to 1936 and was edited by Itamar Ben-Avi. At its peak, the daily circulation of the newspa ...

under the pseudonym Mekomi ("Local"). In 1922, he taught in

Tiberias Tiberias ( ; , ; ) is a city on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee in northern Israel. A major Jewish center during Late Antiquity, it has been considered since the 16th century one of Judaism's Four Holy Cities, along with Jerusalem, Heb ...

. He studied at the University of Frankfurt and received a doctorate in Arabic and Islamic studies. In 1927, he was appointed research assistant at the Hebrew University and was later appointed professor there. In 1929, he was appointed as a member of the

Hebrew Language Committee The Academy of the Hebrew Language (, ''ha-akademyah la-lashon ha-ivrit'') was established by the Israeli government in 1953 as the "supreme institution for scholarship on the Hebrew language in the Hebrew University of Jerusalem of Givat Ram cam ...

. When it was replaced by the

, Rivlin became one of its members, and remained one until his death. From 1930 to 1941 he served as chairman of the Hebrew Teachers Union. Rivlin translated Islamic literature into Hebrew, including translation of the

Quran The Quran, also Romanization, romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a Waḥy, revelation directly from God in Islam, God (''Allah, Allāh''). It is organized in 114 chapters (, ) which ...

(published in 1936) and the

Arabian Nights ''One Thousand and One Nights'' (, ), is a collection of Middle Eastern folktales compiled in the Arabic language during the Islamic Golden Age. It is often known in English as ''The Arabian Nights'', from the first English-language edition () ...

(32 volumes were published between 1947 and 1971. He published studies on the history of the

Yishuv The Yishuv (), HaYishuv Ha'ivri (), or HaYishuv HaYehudi Be'Eretz Yisra'el () was the community of Jews residing in Palestine prior to the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948. The term came into use in the 1880s, when there were about 2 ...

and

. In 1932, he published "The Life of Muhammad", a Hebrew biography of

Muhammad Muhammad (8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious and political leader and the founder of Islam. Muhammad in Islam, According to Islam, he was a prophet who was divinely inspired to preach and confirm the tawhid, monotheistic teachings of A ...

. In 1951 published a Hebrew translation of

Ignác Goldziher Ignác (Yitzhaq Yehuda) Goldziher (22 June 1850 – 13 November 1921), often credited as Ignaz Goldziher, was a Hungary, Hungarian scholar of Islam. Alongside Joseph Schacht and G.H.A. Juynboll, he is considered one of the pioneers of modern aca ...

's ''Vorlesungen über den Islam''. Since the establishment of

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

, he had been active in the

Herut Herut () was the major conservative nationalist political party in Israel from 1948 until its formal merger into Likud in 1988. It was an adherent of Revisionist Zionism. Some of their policies were compared to those of the Nazi party. Early y ...

movement. In 1957 he was mentioned as its possible

presidential Presidential may refer to: * "Presidential" (song), a 2005 song by YoungBloodZ * Presidential Airways (charter), an American charter airline based in Florida * Presidential Airways (scheduled), an American passenger airline active in the 1980s * ...

candidate, but withdrew in favor of then incumbent

Yitzhak Ben-Zvi Yitzhak Ben-Zvi ( ''Yitshak Ben-Tsvi''; 24 November 188423 April 1963; born Izaak Shimshelevich) was a historian, ethnologist, Labor Zionism, Labor Zionist leader and the longest-serving president of Israel. He was 1952 Israeli presidential elec ...

. He chaired the committee to commemorate his childhood friend Dr.

Pesach Hebroni Passover, also called Pesach (; ), is a major Jewish holiday and one of the Three Pilgrimage Festivals. It celebrates the Exodus of the Israelites from slavery in Egypt. According to the Book of Exodus, God commanded Moses to tell the Israeli ...

and edited his book "Mathematical Writings". Rivlin was married twice. His first wife was Rachel, the daughter of the educator Yitzhak Yehezkel Yehuda. She died in 1935 with no children. After her death, he married Rachel "Ray" Rivlin, a

Jerusalem City Council Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

member, one of the leaders of

B'nai B'rith B'nai B'rith International ( ; from ) is an American 501(c)(3) nonprofit Jewish service organization and was formerly a cultural association for German Jewish immigrants to the United States. B'nai B'rith states that it is committed to the se ...

. One of their sons is

Reuven Rivlin Reuven "Ruvi" Rivlin ( ; born 9 September 1939) is an Israeli politician and lawyer who served as the president of Israel between 2014 and 2021. He is a member of the Likud party. Rivlin was Minister of Communications from 2001 to 2003, and su ...

, the tenth President of Israel.

Bibliography

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rivlin, Yosef Yoel Quran translators Arabic–Hebrew translators Israeli orientalists 20th-century Israeli translators Israeli scientists Translators of One Thousand and One Nights Etz Chaim Yeshiva (Jerusalem) alumni Goethe University Frankfurt alumni 1889 births 1971 deaths Jewish orientalists Academics from Jerusalem Academic staff of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem