Women's Literacy in Antiquity: Examining Evidence of Women's Hebrew Literacy Skills in the Biblical and Tannaitic Periods
Lead Research Organisation:
UNIVERSITY COLLEGE LONDON
Department Name: Hebrew and Jewish Studies
Abstract
While the topic of education and literacy in biblical times is a fairly well-explored area of research in academia, women's education is often glossed over within this context. Evidence for formal education in Ancient Israel can be extrapolated from the irrefutable fact that schools, specifically scribal schools, played a vital role in several major cultures of the biblical period, particularly in Egypt, Mesopotamia, and Ugarit. However, according to most scholars, few people beyond the scribal elites were fully literate in Ancient Israel during the biblical period.
Although school education was not widespread in Ancient Israel, 'home-schooling' was common practice for many centuries. The Hebrew Bible indicates that from an early period, Jews actively employed the home for educational purposes, such as the transmission of ethical teachings and the history of the nation. Women had a prominent role in household reproduction both in childbearing, and cultural reproduction, including the education of children. Based on the Hebrew Bible, it seems that at least high-class women, as most named biblical women can be regarded, were literate in the Hebrew language. It is important to note that knowledge of the Hebrew language was intrinsically tied to knowledge of the Torah (Hebrew Bible) and Jewish Law in ancient Jewish tradition. Thus, examples of literate women in the Torah range from Deborah who was a judge and leader of the nation and would have therefore had to have been erudite in Jewish Law, to the daughters of Zelophehad who were able to quote biblical sources to argue against Moses for their right to inherit their father's estate.
Meanwhile, although the Mishnah, the main compendium of Jewish Oral Law which was composed in the Tannaitic period (1st - 3rd centuries CE), presents conflicting opinions about women's education, there is evidence that women were literate in the Hebrew language during this time period.
The main debate regarding women's Hebrew literacy in Antiquity stems from the Talmud, a central theological work of Judaism composed between the 3rd and 6th centuries CE, which asserts that women should not learn Torah. The Talmud (in bKiddushin 29b) bases this prohibition on the biblical verse of Deuteronomy 11:19 which it interprets as
'and you shall teach them (referring to Torah) to your children (lit. sons), your sons and not your daughters.' Thus, although the Talmud's prohibition was widely debated and variously interpreted by rabbis and scholars throughout subsequent centuries, it largely resulted in women not receiving a Jewish education, including Hebrew literacy skills, from the Middle Ages to the early twentieth century (when formal religious education for Jewish girls was first established). Instead, Jewish women were literate in local languages or the Jewish languages of their communities and sometimes used these languages in their religious worship.
The primary aim of my research is to dispel myths relating to Jewish women's education in Antiquity, or lack thereof, by revealing the disparities between conventional beliefs based on religious sources and historical realities.
Spanning the biblical, Tannaitic, and Talmudic periods, my research establishes a direct correlation between Jewish women's education in these formative times and its enduring impact through later centuries. This comprehensive exploration aims to provide a nuanced understanding of the evolving educational landscape for Jewish women, challenging preconceived notions and enriching our comprehension of the intricate tapestry of Jewish intellectual history. Moreover, my project will help generate a more historically based framework for this under-researched topic, allowing future scholars who seek to explore Jewish women's education in later periods to have a more solid historical basis and context for their research. In this way, I seek to contribute significantly to Jewish and Women's Studies, and beyond.
Although school education was not widespread in Ancient Israel, 'home-schooling' was common practice for many centuries. The Hebrew Bible indicates that from an early period, Jews actively employed the home for educational purposes, such as the transmission of ethical teachings and the history of the nation. Women had a prominent role in household reproduction both in childbearing, and cultural reproduction, including the education of children. Based on the Hebrew Bible, it seems that at least high-class women, as most named biblical women can be regarded, were literate in the Hebrew language. It is important to note that knowledge of the Hebrew language was intrinsically tied to knowledge of the Torah (Hebrew Bible) and Jewish Law in ancient Jewish tradition. Thus, examples of literate women in the Torah range from Deborah who was a judge and leader of the nation and would have therefore had to have been erudite in Jewish Law, to the daughters of Zelophehad who were able to quote biblical sources to argue against Moses for their right to inherit their father's estate.
Meanwhile, although the Mishnah, the main compendium of Jewish Oral Law which was composed in the Tannaitic period (1st - 3rd centuries CE), presents conflicting opinions about women's education, there is evidence that women were literate in the Hebrew language during this time period.
The main debate regarding women's Hebrew literacy in Antiquity stems from the Talmud, a central theological work of Judaism composed between the 3rd and 6th centuries CE, which asserts that women should not learn Torah. The Talmud (in bKiddushin 29b) bases this prohibition on the biblical verse of Deuteronomy 11:19 which it interprets as
'and you shall teach them (referring to Torah) to your children (lit. sons), your sons and not your daughters.' Thus, although the Talmud's prohibition was widely debated and variously interpreted by rabbis and scholars throughout subsequent centuries, it largely resulted in women not receiving a Jewish education, including Hebrew literacy skills, from the Middle Ages to the early twentieth century (when formal religious education for Jewish girls was first established). Instead, Jewish women were literate in local languages or the Jewish languages of their communities and sometimes used these languages in their religious worship.
The primary aim of my research is to dispel myths relating to Jewish women's education in Antiquity, or lack thereof, by revealing the disparities between conventional beliefs based on religious sources and historical realities.
Spanning the biblical, Tannaitic, and Talmudic periods, my research establishes a direct correlation between Jewish women's education in these formative times and its enduring impact through later centuries. This comprehensive exploration aims to provide a nuanced understanding of the evolving educational landscape for Jewish women, challenging preconceived notions and enriching our comprehension of the intricate tapestry of Jewish intellectual history. Moreover, my project will help generate a more historically based framework for this under-researched topic, allowing future scholars who seek to explore Jewish women's education in later periods to have a more solid historical basis and context for their research. In this way, I seek to contribute significantly to Jewish and Women's Studies, and beyond.
Organisations
People |
ORCID iD |
| Lily Okalani Kahn (Primary Supervisor) | |
| Shulamit Raymond (Student) |