Meshullam son of Jacob (or Meshullam HaKohen ben Ya'akov) also known as Rabbeinu Meshullam hagodol (Rabbi Meshullem the great) was a Franco-Jewish Talmudist of the twelfth century CE. [1] He led a Talmudic Yeshiva in Lunel which produced several famous scholars, and was an intimate friend of Abraham ben Isaac, Av beth din of Narbonne, who addressed to him several responsa, and spoke of him in high terms. His Talmudic decisions are quoted in Sefer ha-Terumot.
He was interested also in philosophy. According to Yehudah ibn Tibbon, whom he encouraged to translate Bahya ibn Paquda's Al-Hidayah ila Fara'id al-Qulub (Chovot ha-Levavot) into Hebrew, he wrote several works dealing with moral philosophy, advised and assisted other Jewish writers, and possessed a large library. R' Yehudah Ibn Tibbon never wearied of praising R' Meshullam's zeal in investigating the various branches of knowledge.
Meshullam was the father of the renowned Asher ben Meshullam HaKohen. Meshullam's disciples include the Raavad and the Baal Hama'or . Meshullam died in Lunel in 1170.
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain : Peiginsky, A. and Solomon Schechter (1901–1906). "Meshullam b. Jacob". In Singer, Isidore; et al. (eds.). The Jewish Encyclopedia . New York: Funk & Wagnalls. which cites:Abba Mari ben Moses ben Joseph, was a Provençal rabbi, born at Lunel, near Montpellier, towards the end of the 13th century. He is also known as Yarhi from his birthplace, and he further took the name Astruc, Don Astruc or En Astruc of Lunel from the word "astruc" meaning lucky.
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Asher ben Meshullam was a Jewish theologian and Talmudic scholar who lived at Lunel in the second half of the 12th century CE. A renowned Talmudist, he was a son of the well-known Meshullam ben Jacob, and a pupil of Joseph ibn Plat and the Raavad.
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Aaron ben Jacob ha-Kohen was a Provençal rabbi, one of a family of scholars living at Narbonne, France, and who suffered from the expulsion of the Jews in 1306.
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