The Medieval Hebrew Tradition in Astronomy

Abstract

FOR THE PAST FEW YEARS I have been engaged in editing and translating a number of Hebrew versions of Arabic astronomical texts. In the course of this work I have become increasingly aware of a Hebrew tradition in astronomy separate from, though dependent on, Islamic astronomy. Though translations into Hebrew were made for most of the major Arabic treatises, as well as of the Arabic versions of Greek treatises on astronomy, such as the Almagest, I shall restrict my attention here to a few texts of special interest, and then give some indications of the nature of the original contribution of medieval Hebrew astronomy and the reasons for considering it a separate tradition. The medieval Hebrew tradition in astronomy, which extends from the middle of the twelfth century to the beginning of the sixteenth century, includes treatises on calendaric problems, theoretical astronomy, astronomical instruments and astrology. Though a series of monumental bibliographical studies by Moritz Steinschneider and others in the late nineteenth century makes this corpus of literature accessible with a minimum of preliminary investigation, very little use has been made of it, and most of the Hebrew treatises still await scholarly analysis.'