Johann Jakob Schudt
Encyclopedia
Johann Jakob Schudt was a German polyhistor and Orientalist
.
, and went to Hamburg
in 1684 to study Orientalia under Ezra Edzardi. He then settled in his native city as teacher in the gymnasium in which he had been educated, and of which he became rector in 1717.
Up to that time he had been on friendly terms with the Jews of Frankfurt
, writing a preface to Grünhut's edition of David Ḳimḥi
's Commentary on the Psalms, 1712, while in 1716 he published the Purim
play of the Frankfurt and Prague Jews with a High German translation. He had, however, previously published Judæus Christicida, attempting to prove that Jews deserved corporal as well as spiritual punishment for the crucifixion.
His "Jüdische Merkwürdigkeiten" is full of prejudice, and repeats many of the fables and ridiculous items published by Eisenmenger
; but it contains also details of contemporary Jewish life, a source for the history of the Jews, particularly those of Frankfurt.
Schudt also contributed to Ugolini
's "Thesaurus" (vol. xxxii.) a dissertation on the singers of the Temple.
Oriental studies
Oriental studies is the academic field of study that embraces Near Eastern and Far Eastern societies and cultures, languages, peoples, history and archaeology; in recent years the subject has often been turned into the newer terms of Asian studies and Middle Eastern studies...
.
Life
He studied theology at WittenbergWittenberg
Wittenberg, officially Lutherstadt Wittenberg, is a city in Germany in the Bundesland Saxony-Anhalt, on the river Elbe. It has a population of about 50,000....
, and went to Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
in 1684 to study Orientalia under Ezra Edzardi. He then settled in his native city as teacher in the gymnasium in which he had been educated, and of which he became rector in 1717.
Works
He devoted himself especially to Jewish history and antiquities, beginning with the publication of a Compendium Historiæ Judaieæ (1700). His greatest work was his Jüdische Merkwürdigkeiten, of which three parts appeared in 1714, and a supplementary part in 1717.Up to that time he had been on friendly terms with the Jews of Frankfurt
Frankfurt
Frankfurt am Main , commonly known simply as Frankfurt, is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a 2010 population of 688,249. The urban area had an estimated population of 2,300,000 in 2010...
, writing a preface to Grünhut's edition of David Ḳimḥi
David Kimhi
David Kimhi , also known by the Hebrew acronym as the RaDaK , was a medieval rabbi, biblical commentator, philosopher, and grammarian. Born in Narbonne, Provence, he was the son of Rabbi Joseph Kimhi and the brother of Rabbi Moses Kimhi, both biblical commentators and grammarians...
's Commentary on the Psalms, 1712, while in 1716 he published the Purim
Purim
Purim is a Jewish holiday that commemorates the deliverance of the Jewish people in the ancient Persian Empire from destruction in the wake of a plot by Haman, a story recorded in the Biblical Book of Esther .Purim is celebrated annually according to the Hebrew calendar on the 14th...
play of the Frankfurt and Prague Jews with a High German translation. He had, however, previously published Judæus Christicida, attempting to prove that Jews deserved corporal as well as spiritual punishment for the crucifixion.
His "Jüdische Merkwürdigkeiten" is full of prejudice, and repeats many of the fables and ridiculous items published by Eisenmenger
Eisenmenger
Eisenmenger is a name of:- People :* Arthur Eisenmenger , German graphic designer , Austrian painter , German footballer* Johann Andreas Eisenmenger , German orientalist, Antisemite...
; but it contains also details of contemporary Jewish life, a source for the history of the Jews, particularly those of Frankfurt.
Schudt also contributed to Ugolini
Luigi Ugolini
Luigi Ugolini was an Italian writer. He is best known for his series of fictionalized biographies of Italian leaders in art and science, and for a volume of work that immortalizes traditions, values and ways of life of Tuscany and Florence...
's "Thesaurus" (vol. xxxii.) a dissertation on the singers of the Temple.