Zvi Hermann Schapira
Encyclopedia
Zvi Hermann Schapira was a Russian
mathematician
and Zionist
. He was the first to suggest the idea of founding a Jewish National Fund
to buy land in Palestine
.
, Schapira was educated for the rabbinate. He was appointed to a rabbinical position at the age of twenty-four, but then decided to devote the rest of his life to the cultivation of the secular sciences. He went first to Odessa
and later (1868) to Berlin
, where he studied for three years in the Gewerbeakademie. Returning to Odessa, he became a merchant, but in 1878 he again took up his scientific studies, and for the next four years busied himself at Heidelberg
, especially with mathematics and physics. In 1883, after obtaining the degree of Ph.D., he established himself as privat-docent in mathematics at the University of Heidelberg, becoming assistant professor in 1887. His contributions to mathematics were published in various mathematical journals.
Schapira remained a lifelong student of Hebrew literature, which he enriched by an edition, from a Munich
manuscript, of the Mishnat ha-Middot
(1880), and by his contributions to the Hebrew periodicals Ha-Meliẓ, Ha-Ẓefirah, and Mi-Mizraḥ umi-Ma'arab.
He was also an ardent Zionist, adhering from the very start to the Basel program. In 1884 Schapira was the to suggest the idea of founding a Jewish National Fund
in order to acquire land in Palestine
. He voiced his idea again in the First Zionist Congress
of 1897, but it was only realized fully four years later, after Shapira had already died. Nonetheless, he is still considered founder of the JNF, which became an important player within the Zionist movement and had a great effect on the development and forestation of modern Israel
. At that same Zionist congress in 1897, Shapira brought up the idea to found a Hebrew University
in Jerusalem.
During a Zionist lecture tour he contracted pneumonia
in Cologne
, and died in the city on 8 May 1898.
Russians
The Russian people are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Russia, speaking the Russian language and primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries....
mathematician
Mathematician
A mathematician is a person whose primary area of study is the field of mathematics. Mathematicians are concerned with quantity, structure, space, and change....
and Zionist
Zionism
Zionism is a Jewish political movement that, in its broadest sense, has supported the self-determination of the Jewish people in a sovereign Jewish national homeland. Since the establishment of the State of Israel, the Zionist movement continues primarily to advocate on behalf of the Jewish state...
. He was the first to suggest the idea of founding a Jewish National Fund
Jewish National Fund
The Jewish National Fund was founded in 1901 to buy and develop land in Ottoman Palestine for Jewish settlement. The JNF is a quasi-governmental, non-profit organisation...
to buy land in Palestine
Palestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
.
Biography
Born in Erswilken, near Tauroggen, a small town in LithuaniaLithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
, Schapira was educated for the rabbinate. He was appointed to a rabbinical position at the age of twenty-four, but then decided to devote the rest of his life to the cultivation of the secular sciences. He went first to Odessa
Odessa
Odessa or Odesa is the administrative center of the Odessa Oblast located in southern Ukraine. The city is a major seaport located on the northwest shore of the Black Sea and the fourth largest city in Ukraine with a population of 1,029,000 .The predecessor of Odessa, a small Tatar settlement,...
and later (1868) to Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, where he studied for three years in the Gewerbeakademie. Returning to Odessa, he became a merchant, but in 1878 he again took up his scientific studies, and for the next four years busied himself at Heidelberg
Heidelberg
-Early history:Between 600,000 and 200,000 years ago, "Heidelberg Man" died at nearby Mauer. His jaw bone was discovered in 1907; with scientific dating, his remains were determined to be the earliest evidence of human life in Europe. In the 5th century BC, a Celtic fortress of refuge and place of...
, especially with mathematics and physics. In 1883, after obtaining the degree of Ph.D., he established himself as privat-docent in mathematics at the University of Heidelberg, becoming assistant professor in 1887. His contributions to mathematics were published in various mathematical journals.
Schapira remained a lifelong student of Hebrew literature, which he enriched by an edition, from a Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
manuscript, of the Mishnat ha-Middot
Mishnat ha-Middot
The Mishnat ha-Middot is considered the earliest known Hebrew treatise on geometry. The treatise was discovered in the Munich Library by Moritz Steinschneider, who dated it between 800 and 1200 C.E. Hermann Schapira argued the treatise dates from an earlier period and Solomon Gandz conjectured...
(1880), and by his contributions to the Hebrew periodicals Ha-Meliẓ, Ha-Ẓefirah, and Mi-Mizraḥ umi-Ma'arab.
He was also an ardent Zionist, adhering from the very start to the Basel program. In 1884 Schapira was the to suggest the idea of founding a Jewish National Fund
Jewish National Fund
The Jewish National Fund was founded in 1901 to buy and develop land in Ottoman Palestine for Jewish settlement. The JNF is a quasi-governmental, non-profit organisation...
in order to acquire land in Palestine
Palestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
. He voiced his idea again in the First Zionist Congress
First Zionist Congress
The First Zionist Congress was the inaugural congress of the Zionist Organization held in Basel , Switzerland, from August 29 to August 31, 1897. It was convened and chaired by Theodor Herzl, the founder of the modern Zionism movement...
of 1897, but it was only realized fully four years later, after Shapira had already died. Nonetheless, he is still considered founder of the JNF, which became an important player within the Zionist movement and had a great effect on the development and forestation of modern Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
. At that same Zionist congress in 1897, Shapira brought up the idea to found a Hebrew University
Hebrew University of Jerusalem
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem ; ; abbreviated HUJI) is Israel's second-oldest university, after the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology. The Hebrew University has three campuses in Jerusalem and one in Rehovot. The world's largest Jewish studies library is located on its Edmond J...
in Jerusalem.
During a Zionist lecture tour he contracted pneumonia
Pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung—especially affecting the microscopic air sacs —associated with fever, chest symptoms, and a lack of air space on a chest X-ray. Pneumonia is typically caused by an infection but there are a number of other causes...
in Cologne
Cologne
Cologne is Germany's fourth-largest city , and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.Cologne is located on both sides of the...
, and died in the city on 8 May 1898.
Jewish Encyclopedia bibliography
- Kohut, Berühmte Israelitische Männer und Frauen, vi. 249-250;
- Allg. Zeit. des Jud. May 13, 1898;
- Aḥiasaf, 1898, pp. 296–301;
- Ha-MeliẓHa-MelizHa-Meliẓ was the first Hebrew newspaper in Russia. It was founded by Alexander Zederbaum, in Odessa, in 1860, as a weekly, and was transferred to St. Petersburg in 1871....
, 1898, No. 95; 1899, Nos. 62, 68, 76, 77