1. His Father’s Name Was Yitzchak
Rashi is an acronym for Rabbi Shlomo Yitzchaki (son of Yitzchak). Little is
known for certain about Rashi’s father, Rabbi Yitzchak, but we know he was
learned, since Rashi quotes him as an authority.1
Some say the family may have had the name Yarchi (“of the moon”), since they
originated in Lunel ( “moon” in Latin), a heavily Jewish settlement in Southern
France.
2. He Wrote a Commentary on (Most of) the Bible
Rashi is known as the foremost commentator on
the entire Chumash (Five Books of Moses) and most of the other books of
Scripture. His carefully crafted commentaries rely heavily on Talmudic and
Midrashic traditions to uncover the most straightforward meaning of the text (peshuto shel mikra).2
Read: Rashi’s Method of Biblical Commentary
3. He Also Elucidated the Talmud
Rashi also composed what has become
universally accepted as the primary commentary on the Babylonian Talmud. At
times, he provides accurate copy of the texts, translates difficult words into
the French of his day, punctuates, and otherwise provides invaluable background
for the student. Rashi did not finish his commentary (of which he produced
three editions), and there are some parts that have been completed by others,
most notably his son-in-law, Rabbi Yehuda ben Natan (Rivan), and his grandson,
Rabbi Shmuel ben Meir (Rashbam).
Read: What Is the Talmud?
4. He Did Not Write Rashi Script
A
page from the only known nearly complete copy of the first dated print
of Rashi, housed in the Biblioteca Palatina in Parma (image via
University of Pennsylvania). |
There is a widely used Hebrew font known as
“Rashi script.” Contrary to popular belief, this was not invented—or even
used—by Rashi. Rather, it is a form of Sephardic script that was adopted in 1475 to render Rashi’s commentary, in the first
ever printed edition of Torah with Rashi.
Read: Who Invented Rashi Script?
5. He Was a Native of Troyes
Rashi lived in the French-German cradle of the
then-emerging Ashkenazi culture and tradition. He was from Troyes, France, and from
his commentary it is clear that French was his native tongue.
Interior of Rashi's home in Worms, Germany |
6. He Studied Torah in Worms and Maintz
Rashi learned in the great yeshivot in Worms
(Vermaiza) and Maintz (Magentza), both of which are on the Rhine River in
Germany. In addition to his father, many of his subsequent teachers were
relatives of his, some of whom (such as Rabbi Yaakov ben Yakar) had studied
under Rabbeinu Gershom, the “father” of Ashkenazic scholarship.
Read: Rabbenu Gershom
7. He Composed Synagogue Music
There are several synagogue hymns (piyyutim) attributed to Rashi. They
follow the traditional format, with each line (or set of lines) beginning with
the next letter of the Hebrew alphabet, and in the final lines, the acrostic
spells out his own name and that of his father. They include Az Terem, which is recited, according to
Chabad custom, in the Selichot prayers for the Fast of Gedalia.
Read: What Are Selichot?
The Worms Synagogue, also known as Rashi Shul, was built in the 11th-century and destroyed and rebuilt several times since. |
8. He Corresponded Widely
In addition to teaching his students and
writing his commentary, Rashi replied to queries from scholars on a wide range
of subjects. They ranged from questions from the rabbis of Auxerre who wished
to understand certain verses of Jeremia and Ezekiel, to halachic inquiries on
the laws of not charging interest, how an ill person should pray, and baking
egg matzah on Passover.
9. He Was a Descendant of King David
Many rabbinic families (such as the Lurias)
trace their lineage to Rashi, who, in turn, was a descendant of Rabbi Yochanan
Hasandlar, a fourth-generation descendant of Rabbi Gamliel the Elder, a scion
of the royal house of David.
Read: The Story of King David
10.
He Was Not Ashamed to Admit He Did
Not Know
In more than a dozen instances in his
commentary on the Torah, Rashi writes that he does not know the meaning or
explanation of a given verse. While there are scholarly debates regarding what
exactly he did not know,3 the fact
remains that he humbly paved the way for the rest of us to admit when we do not
(yet) know something, and turn to others for guidance.
11.
“His” Version of Tefillin Is
Accepted
Tefillin, prayer boxes used every weekday by
Jewish males, contain parchment scrolls inscribed with four portions of the
Torah. Even before Rashi, there were differing
opinions regarding the arrangement of the four Biblical passages inserted in
the tefillin boxes. One approach was
favored by Rashi, while another tradition was championed by his grandson,
Rabbeinu Tam. The halacha follows the ruling of Rashi, and that has become
standard. At the same time, many are particular to don a second set of tefillin
each day, following the arrangement of Rabbeinu Tam.
Read:
Why Do Some Wear Two
Pairs of Tefillin?
12.
He Had Only Daughters
Rashi had (at least) three daughters, who
became the matrons of the most prominent Ashkenazi rabbinic families. There is
reason to believe that they were learned, as one would expect. There is also a
persistent urban myth that they wore tefillin.
However, there does not appear to be any support for this notion, which
surfaced in the 20th century.
Read:
9 Tefillin Myths and
Misconceptions
13.
His Grandchildren Were Major
Tosafists
The standard page of Talmud has the actual
Talmudic text in the center, surrounded by commentary. On one side, one finds
the elucidations of Rashi. And on the other side is a Tosafot (“additions”)
collection of commentaries written by a number of medieval Ashkenazi rabbis
(known as Baalei Tosafot or Tosafists), some of whom are named and some of whom
are anonymous. The most prominent and most prolific of these commentators are
students and/or progeny of Rashi. This includes Rabbi Yaakov (known as Rabbeinu
Tam) and Rabbi Shmuel (known as Rashbam)—both sons of Rashi’s daughter
Yocheved, as well as Rabbi Yitzchak (Ri Hazaken), who came along two
generations later.
Read: The Tosafists
14.
There Is Controversy About Where
he Is Buried
Rashi passed away on 11 Tammuz in 1105. Where
this happened, however, is not entirely clear. It would stand to reason that he
died in Troyes, where he lived, and where he is believed to have been buried.
However, there is a competing tradition that says he passed away in Prague,
nearly 600 miles from home.
FOOTNOTES |
1.
|
This, as well as many of the facts that
follow, has been culled from the entry on Rashi in Shem Hagedolim by Rabbi
Chaim Yosef David Azulai, the Chida. |
2.
|
There is discussion
whether the commentaries appearing under his name on some of the final books of
Scripture were, in fact, written by Rashi (see Shem Hagedolim, ibid.). |
3.
|
See Likutei Sichot Vol. 5, page 1. |
By Menachem Posner
More by this author Rabbi
Menachem Posner serves as staff editor at Chabad.org, the world’s largest Jewish informational website. He has been writing, researching, and editing for Chabad.org since 2006, when he received his rabbinic degree from Central Yeshiva Tomchei Temimim Lubavitch. He lives in Chicago, Ill., with his family.
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