700 ⟶ Beginning of the Gaonic Era

Period of the Gaonim (the Gaonic era). Most Jews lived in th...
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Year
700
1250

🕍 Beginning of the Gaonic Era

Period of the Gaonim (the Gaonic era). Most Jews lived in the Muslim Arab realm (Andalusia, North Africa, Palestine, Iraq and Yemen), others living in Christian southern Europe and Asia Minor. Despite general discrimination and sporadic periods of persecution in this period, Jewish communal and cultural life flowered. The universally recognized centers of Jewish life were in Jerusalem and Tiberias (Syria), Sura and Pumbeditha (Iraq). The heads of these law schools were the Gaonim, who were consulted on matters of law by Jews throughout the world. During this time, the Niqqud is invented in Tiberias.⟶
Beginning of the Gaonic Era (700)
GaonimJewish LawHalakhaTalmudic Era7th Century8th CenturyJewish CultureNiqqudSuraPumbeditha
IraqIraqIsraelIsraelSpainSpainMoroccoMoroccoTunisiaTunisiaItalyItaly

📚 The Era of the Rishonim

Period of the Rishonim, the medieval rabbinic sages. Most Jews at this time lived in lands bordering the Mediterranean Sea or in Western Europe under feudal systems. With the decline of Muslim and Jewish centers of power in Iraq, there was no single place in the world which was a recognized authority for deciding matters of Jewish law and practice. Consequently, the rabbis recognized the need for writing commentaries on the Torah and Talmud and for writing law codes that would allow Jews anywhere in the world to be able to continue living in the Jewish tradition.⟶
The Era of the Rishonim (1250)
RishonimMedieval JudaismRabbinic SagesHalakhaCommentariesTorahTalmudJewish LawCodificationJewish History