Rabbinic texts and the history of late-Roman Palestine
By: edited by Martin Goodman & Philip Alexander
Contributors: British Academy
Series: Proceedings of the British Academy -- 165; Proceedings of the British Academy -- 165.
Publisher: Published for the British Academy by University Press; Oxford University Press, USA
Published: 2010
Place of publication: Oxford; New York
Language: eng
Number of pages: 419
ISBN-13: 9780197264744
Subjects: Rabbinical literature; Rabbinische Literatur; Religion; Rabbinsk judendom; History and criticism; Historia; Sources; Congresses; 11.21 Jewish religious literature; Källor; History
Description: This volume brings together studies by experts in the rabbinic literature of late antiquity and by specialists in the history of the Jews in that period, in order to reveal the value of rabbinic material as historical evidence and the problems and issues which arise in its exploitation for this purpose.

A substantial introductory section discusses both the current state of knowledge about Palestine in this period, and the debates about the difficulties involved in editing and dating rabbinic texts. Specific core texts and text categories are then introduced to the reader in a series of ten discrete studies. The volume concludes with six thematic analyses which illustrate the use and limitations of rabbinic evidence for cultural, religious, political, economic and social history.

This volume will be essential reading for all scholars concerned with the history of the later Roman Empire.

Since 1905 this series has provided a unique record of British scholarship in the humanities and social sciences, by publishing the highly regarded Academy lectures, and through its memoirs of the lives and scholarly achievements of recently deceased Fellows of the Academy.

The series includes thematic volumes that stem from symposia specially convened to address particular subjects. --Book Jacket.
Notes: Proceedings of a conference held in March 2007 at the British Academy.

Includes bibliographical references and index.
Table of contents: title: Machine generated contents note: -- pt. I; title: The issues -- -- 1.; title: Using Rabbinic literature as a source for the history of Late-Roman Palestine : problems and issues  -- Philip Alexander -- 2.; title: The Palestinian context of Rabbinic Judaism  -- Fergus Millar -- 3.; title: Research into Rabbinic literature : an attempt to define the status quaestionis  -- Peter Schäfer -- 4.; title: The status quaestionis of research in Rabbinic literature  -- Chaim Milikowsky -- 5.; title: Current views on the editing of the Rabbinic texts of Late Antiquity : reflections on a debate after twenty years  -- Peter Schäfer and Chaim Milikowsky -- pt. II; title: The Rabbinic texts -- -- 6.; title: The state of Mishnah studies  -- Amram Tropper -- 7.; title: The Tosefta and its value for historical research : questioning the historical reliability of case stories  -- Ronen Reichman -- 8.; title: Halakhic midrashim as historical sources  -- Günter Stemberger -- 9.; title: The Talmud Yerushalmi  -- Sacha Stern -- 10.; title: Problems in the use of the Babylonian Talmud for the history of Late-Roman Palestine : the example of astrology  -- Richard Kalmin -- 11.; title: Literary structures and historical reconstruction : the example of an Amoraic Midrash (Leviticus Rabbah)  -- Alexander Samely -- 12.; title: The future of ancient Piyyut  -- Wout Jac. van Bekkum -- 13.; title: Targum  -- Robert Hayward -- 14.; title: The Epistle of Sherira Gaon  -- Robert Brody -- 15.; title: Hekhalot literature and the origins of Jewish mysticism  -- Peter Schäfer -- pt. iii; title: History -- -- 16.; title: 'Rabbinic culture' and Roman culture  -- Seth Schwartz -- 17.; title: Material culture and daily life  -- Catherine Hezser -- . 18.; title: Rabbinic literature and the history of Judaism in Late Antiquity : challenges, methodologies and new approaches  -- Moshe Lavee -- 19.; title: Rabbinic perceptions of Christianity and the history of Roman Palestine  -- William Horbury -- 20.; title: Politics and administration  -- Aharon Oppenheimer -- 21.; title: Economy and society -- Hayim Lapin.