Gaon (Hebrew)

Gaon (gā'ōn) (Hebrew: גאון, lit. 'genius', plural גְּאוֹנִים geonim — gĕ'ōnīm) may have originated as a shortened version of "Rosh Yeshivat Ge'on Ya'akov", though there are alternative explanations.[1][2] In Ancient Hebrew, it referred to arrogance and haughty pride (Amos 6:8 - "I abhor the pride of Jacob and detest his fortresses; I will deliver up the city and everything in it.") and later became known as a general term for pride, both the positive and negative forms ('Pride [of]'; Late Medieval and Modern Hebrew for 'genius'). Today, it may refer to:

  • One of the Geonim, that is to say the heads of the two major academies, at Pumbedita and Sura, and later in Baghdad, during the period 589-1040. Prominent Geonim include:
  • An honorific title given to a few leading rabbis of other countries in the same period, such as:
    • Nissim Gaon (990-1062)
  • Specific rabbis of later periods, called "gaon":

Many great Rabbis,[3] though not formally referred to as the "Gaon of ..." are often lauded with this honorific as both a mark of respect and a means to indicate their greatness in the field of Torah learning.

See also

References
  1. Jehoshua Brand , Simha Assaf and David Derovan (2007). "Gaon". In Michael Berenbaum and Fred Skolnik (ed.). Encyclopedia Judaica. 7 (2nd ed.). Farmington Hills, Michigan: Gale. p. 380.
  2. Jewish Virtual Library — Gaon
  3. "ידיד נפשי המנוח הדגול, שייף עייל שייף נפיק, הגאון הגדול רבי יוסף קאפח זצ"ל." — Rabbi Ovadia Yosef in the Hebrew responsa book שו"ת הריב"ד קאפח, quoted in עלון אור ההליכות גליון חודש תמוז התשס"ט (page 3).


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