Abba Arikha, commonly known as Rav, was a Jewish amora of the 3rd century. He was born and lived in Kafri, Sassanid Babylonia. He established at Sura the systematic study of the rabbinic traditions, which, using the Mishnah as text, led to the compilation of the Talmud. With him began the long period of ascendancy of the great academies of Babylonia, around the year 220. In the Talmud, he is frequently associated with Samuel of Nehardea, with whom he debated on many major issues.
Rav Nachman bar Yaakov was a Jewish Talmudist who lived in Babylonia, known as an Amora of the third generation.
Ravina II was a Jewish Talmudist and rabbi, accounted as an Amora sage of the 8th generation of the Amoraim era. Most scholars agree that the rabbi here in question was Ravina the son of R. Huna, and not Ravina the colleague of R. Ashi who died before R. Ashi. Ravina II died in 475 CE, but not before he redacted the final edition of the Babylonian Talmud, completing the work that was begun by his teacher Rav Ashi. He was also a nephew of Ravina I. He served as leader of the Jewish community in Babylonia for 22 years. One year before his death, all the Babylonian synagogues were closed, and Jewish infants were handed over to the Magians.
The Talmudic Academies in Babylonia, also known as the Geonic Academies, were the center for Jewish scholarship and the development of Halakha from roughly 589 to 1038 CE in what is called "Babylonia" in Jewish sources, at the time otherwise known as Asōristān or Iraq. It is neither geopolitically, nor geographically identical with the ancient empires of Babylonia, since the Jewish focus of interest has to do with the Jewish religious academies, which were mainly situated in an area between the rivers Tigris and Euphrates and primarily between Pumbedita, and Sura, a town farther south down the Euphrates.
A Savora is a term used in Jewish law and history to signify one among the leading rabbis living from the end of period of the Amoraim to the beginning of the Geonim. As a group they are also referred to as the Rabbeinu Sevorai or Rabanan Saborai, and may have played a large role in giving the Talmud its current structure. Modern scholars also use the plural term Stammaim for the authors of unattributed statements in the Gemara.
Rav Huna was a Jewish Talmudist who lived in Babylonia, known as an amora of the second generation and head of the Academy of Sura; he was born about 216 and died in 296-297 or in 290.
Rav Chisda was a Jewish Talmudist who lived in Kafri, Babylonia, near what is now the city of Najaf, Iraq. He was an amora of the third generation, mentioned frequently in the Talmud.
Raba bar Rav Huna was a Jewish Talmudist who lived in Babylonia, known as an amora of the third generation. He was the son of Rav Huna, the head of the Academy of Sura.
Adda bar Ahavah or Adda bar Ahabah is the name of two Jewish rabbis and Talmudic scholars, known as Amoraim, who lived in Babylonia.
Rami bar Hama was a Babylonian amora of the third generation.
Rav Kahana (III) was a Jewish Amora sage of Babylon, of the third and fourth generation of the Amora sages, and headed the Yeshiva of Pum-Nahara.
For the Amora sages of the Land of Israel of the third Amoraic generation, see Hanina b. Papi or Hanina ben Pappa.
For another Babylonian Amora sage of the fifth generation, see Rav Papa.
Mar bar Rav Ashi (Tabyomi) (Hebrew: מר בר רב אשי was a Jewish Amora sage of Babylon, of the seventh generation of the Amora era. As his name indicates, he was the son of Rav Ashi, headed the academy of Sura city in its suburb of Matha-Mehasia. He would sign his name as Tabyomi, which was either his first name or his nickname. He was appointed to head the academy in 455 AD, 28 years after his father died, and served in that job for 13 years, until he himself died on Yom Kippur of the year 467 AD. His father, who was his principle teacher and whom he had delivered Halakhic statements on his authority, had a life work of arranging the Babylon Talmud, a life work that was to be continued by his son.
Rafram (II) was an Amora of Babylon of the seventh generation of the Amora era. He was a disciple of Rav Ashi, and a colleague of Ravina II. He headed the Pumbedita academy for ten years until his death on 443.
Huna b. Nathan was a Jewish Amora sage of Babylon, of the fifth and sixth generations of the Amora era. He served as an Exilarch to the Jewish community in Babylonia, during these days, and also as their political leader. He acquired his knowledge on the Torah from Rav Papa and Amemar, and was granted the honor of sitting in front of Rava at the Yeshiva. His term overlapping with Rav Ashi's term as Dean of the academy of Sura. He had access to the Sassanid Empire, and especially to the king Yazdegerd I, who ruled over Babylonia at the time, and was known for having a kind attitude towards the Jewish community there, and R. Huna b. Nathan was one of the close associates of Yazdegerd's inner circle.
Pumbedita Academy was a yeshiva in Babylon during the era of the Amoraim and Geonim sages. It was founded by Judah bar Ezekiel and, with the Sura Academy founded in 225 by Abba Arika, was an influential and dominant yeshiva for about 800 years.
Rav Mesharshiya was a fifth generation Amora sage of Babylon. His principle teacher was Rava, and they are mentioned together dozens of times in the Talmud. It is possible he was also a pupil of Abaye. He was a close colleague of Rav Papa, who was also a pupil of Rava, and he even sent his son to study under Rav Papa. R. Joseph the son of R. Ila'i was also among his colleagues. His father-in-law is reminded on his name as R. Kahana the father-in-law of R. Mesharshya. Three of his sons were Amora sages, and studied at Rav Ashi's Beth midrash. Their name: Raba, R. Sama, and R. Isaac who was an honorable and dignified man. The Talmud states that Rav Mesharshiya himself encouraged them to learn in this Beth midrash.
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Wilhelm Bacher was a Jewish Hungarian scholar, rabbi, Orientalist and linguist, born in Liptó-Szent-Miklós, Hungary to the Hebrew writer Simon Bacher. Wilhelm was himself a prolific writer, authoring or co-authoring approximately 750 works. He was a contributor to many encyclopedias, and was a major contributor to the landmark Jewish Encyclopedia throughout all its 12 volumes. Although almost all of Bacher's works were written in German or Hungarian, at the urging of Hayyim Nahman Bialik many were subsequently translated into Hebrew by Alexander Siskind Rabinovitz.
Jacob Zallel Lauterbach (1873–1942) was an American Judaica scholar and author who served on the faculty of Hebrew Union College and composed responsa for the Reform movement in America. He specialized in Midrashic and Talmudical literature, and is best known for his landmark critical edition and English translation of the Mekilta de-Rabbi Ishmael.
