Hyman Hurwitz
Encyclopedia
Hyman Hurwitz was a learned Jew who became first professor of Hebrew at University College, London. He was born in Poznan
, Poland in 1770, came to England about 1797 and conducted a private academy for Jews at Highgate, where he established a close friendship with Samuel Taylor Coleridge
and corresponded with him. Coleridge once described Hurwitz as "the first Hebrew and Rabbinical Scholar in the Kingdom". In 1828, on Coleridge's recommendation, he was elected professor of the Hebrew language
and literature at University College, London. His inaugural lecture was published. He died on 18 July 1844.
Hurwitz also wrote many Hebrew hymns, odes, elegies, and dirges. A Hebrew dirge, "chaunted in the Great Synagogue, Aldgate, on the day of the Funeral of Princess Charlotte" was published in 1817, with an English translation in verse by Coleridge. The Knell, another Hebrew elegy by Hurwitz on George III of the United Kingdom
, appeared in an English translation by W. Smith at Thurso in 1827.
Poznan
Poznań is a city on the Warta river in west-central Poland, with a population of 556,022 in June 2009. It is among the oldest cities in Poland, and was one of the most important centres in the early Polish state, whose first rulers were buried at Poznań's cathedral. It is sometimes claimed to be...
, Poland in 1770, came to England about 1797 and conducted a private academy for Jews at Highgate, where he established a close friendship with Samuel Taylor Coleridge
Samuel Taylor Coleridge
Samuel Taylor Coleridge was an English poet, Romantic, literary critic and philosopher who, with his friend William Wordsworth, was a founder of the Romantic Movement in England and a member of the Lake Poets. He is probably best known for his poems The Rime of the Ancient Mariner and Kubla...
and corresponded with him. Coleridge once described Hurwitz as "the first Hebrew and Rabbinical Scholar in the Kingdom". In 1828, on Coleridge's recommendation, he was elected professor of the Hebrew language
Hebrew language
Hebrew is a Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Culturally, is it considered by Jews and other religious groups as the language of the Jewish people, though other Jewish languages had originated among diaspora Jews, and the Hebrew language is also used by non-Jewish groups, such...
and literature at University College, London. His inaugural lecture was published. He died on 18 July 1844.
Works
- Vindiciae Hebraicae, being a Defence of the Hebrew Scriptures as a Vehicle of Revealed Religion, in Refutation of J. Bellamy, 1820.
- Hebrew Tales from the Writings of the Hebrew Sages 1826.
- Elements of the Hebrew Language, 1829; 4th edition, 1848.
- The Etymology and Syntax of the Hebrew Language, 1831; a first part on orthography appeared in 1807.
- A Grammar of the Hebrew Language, 2 parts; 2nd edition, enlarged, 1835.
Hurwitz also wrote many Hebrew hymns, odes, elegies, and dirges. A Hebrew dirge, "chaunted in the Great Synagogue, Aldgate, on the day of the Funeral of Princess Charlotte" was published in 1817, with an English translation in verse by Coleridge. The Knell, another Hebrew elegy by Hurwitz on George III of the United Kingdom
George III of the United Kingdom
George III was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of these two countries on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland until his death...
, appeared in an English translation by W. Smith at Thurso in 1827.