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676 Ben Judah Ben Naphtali

THE JEWISH ENCYCLOPEDIA

language in other countries than Palestine. Ben Judah declares that it is only possible to revive the study of Hebrew as a living tongue in a country almost entirely inhabited by Jews. In the same strain he wrote in the "Habazelet," a weekly paper edited in Jerusalem by Frumkin, with whom Ben Judah made arrangements to become assistant editor. In one article he bitterly complains of the Alliance Israelite Universelle for encouraging and assisting Russian-Jewish emigration to America, which he calls the final burial-place of Judaism ("Habazelet," 1882, xiv., No. 2). After his arrival in Jerusalem Ben Judah met Michel Pinnes, an ardent Zionist and Hebrew scholar, in whom he found a fellow-enthusiast of his scheme to make the Hebrew a living language. He made it the language of his household. The example he set was soon followed by the colonists in Palestine, and has been successfully introduced in many of the Alliance schools. In 1884 Ben Judah began to edit and publish the monthly supplement to the "Habazelet," called " Mebasseret Zion " but it did not long survive, as his new doctrines were out of harmony with the views of the editor-in-chief of the journal. Ben Judah made futile attempts to obtain from the government a firman to publish a Hebrew paper of his own, and at last he succeeded in making use of Hirshenson's firman, and commenced Esto publish "Ha-Zebi." His first eftablish.es fort was to promote the circulation of "Hathe new paper among the poor, who ?ebi." could ill afford to purchase the highpriced "Habazelet." The first issue (1885) was a four-page quarto and was sold for a

quarter-piaster (one cent) in the streets of Jerusalem. The paper contained a summary of general news and particularly Jewish topics. The editor's principal object, however, was to propagate the settlement of the Holy Land by the persecuted Russian Jews. He also endeavored to counteract the zeal of the English missionaries in promoting Christianity among the Jews in Palestine and to this end he helped to organize the society called " Ezrat Nedahim." He combated the system of the Halukah, which gave support to the idle poor in preference to the industrious colonists. These attacks naturally called forth strong opposition from all sides; the Halukah faction nicknaming him "the leader of the Philistines." At length his enemies succeeded in their machinations.

676

destruction of Jerusalem, by which he dates all his See Responsa, writings, is not altogether new. "Benjamin Ze'eb," § 50, p. 104i, Venice, 1539. Ben Judah's works are: (1) "Erez Yisrael" (The Land of Israel), a physical and geographical description, Jerusalem, 1883; (2) (jointly with Beer Lipschiltz) " "We- Yada'ta ha-Yom " (And Know To-day), a Hebrew calendar for the year 5644 (1884) with Jewish historical notes, Jerusalem, 1883; (3) (with D. Jellin) "Ha-Mikrale-Yalde Yisrael," a reader for Jewish children, with notes, 2 vols., Jerusalem, 1889 (4) " Kizzur Dibre ha- Yamim, etc. " an abridged history of the Jews during their national existence in the Holy Land, 2d ed., Jerusalem, 1894; (5) ,



"Milon Kelali," unabridged Hebrew dictionary, with French and German translation, including all

New Hebrew

words,

pts.

i. ii.,

published Jerusalem,

1896-1900.

Bibliography: N. Sokolow, Sefer Ztkkaron, pp. 188-192, Warsaw, 1889 Ha-'lbri, 1894, iv., Nos.' 14-16, copied from Sokolow, with the addition of Ben Judah's portrait. d. J. D. E.

BEN KAFRON

IBN CAPRON

or One of the three disciples of Menahem ben Saruk (last third of tenth century) who defended the honor of their teacher against his critic, Dunash ben Labrat. Judah ben Sheshet, a disciple of Dunash, wrote a violent polemic against this controversial treatise of the disciples of Menahem, in which he mentions the

authors of the treatise by name, and among them mentions Ben Kafron. Moses ibn Ezra also speaks of an Isaac ibn Kafron (Geiger, " Jiid. Zeitschrif t, " i. 238), who doubtless is identical with the Ben Kafron of Judah ben Sheshet's polemic. The name is derived from the Latin caper, goat; and Judah b. Sheshet continually and tauntingly alludes to this name of his opponent. For the polemic of Menahem's disciples, of which Ben Kafron was joint author, and which was printed by S. G. Stern at the same time as the refutation of Judah ben Sheshet ("Liber Responsionum, " Vienna, 1870), see Mena-

hem.

W.

L- G.

B.



'

The pasha suspended

the paper for a time and ordered the arrest of its Suspended; editor. Even the colonists accused Ben Judah. Ben Judah o f being pre j udiced against Arrested, them, owing to his connection with the Rothschild administration, which subsidized his paper. Ben Judah may be regarded as the originator of the modern type of New Hebrew, which he claims is a necessity for the regenerated nation. Most of his new vocabulary is coined either from the Talmudic literature or from the Arabic, such as " penknife" = -6lK, " buckle " DDX, "sympathy " mnK, "reflection " = J»UV3His adoption of the era from the

"Ha-?ebi"



=

=

BEN KALBA nent

man of

SABBTJA' A rich and promiJerusalem who flourished about the year

According to the Talmud (Git. 56a), he obname from the fact that any one that came to his house hungry as a dog (Kalba), went away satisfied (Sabbua'). He was one of the three rich men of Jerusalem (the other two being Nakdimon ben Goryon and Ben Zizit ha-Keset), each of whom 70.

tained his

had

in his storehouses enough to provide the besieged city with all the necessaries of life for ten years. But as these three favored peace with Rome, the Zealots burned their hoards of grain, oil, and wood, thus causing a dreadful famine in Jerusalem (Git. ib.

Lam. R.



i.

5; Eccl. R. vii. 11;

ed. Schechter, vi. 31, 32, in

Ab. R. N.,

which Ben Kalba Sab-

bua'^ wealth is described as still greater). Although the details of this account are hardly supported by historical evidence, there is no reason to doubt the existence of the three rich men. But the account in the Babylonian Talmud, according to which Akiba ben Joseph was the son-in-law of Ben Kalba Sabbu'a, is probably without any histor,