Grünhut Lázár

1850, Gerenda commune, Austrian Empire - 20.02.1913, Petah-Tikvah, Palestine

Rabbi, Talmudist, author and translator

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In the picture, the signature of the rabbi from 1888 that appears in the register of marriage announcements in the Jewish community of Fabric, 1888 - 1985 (Magyar Zsidó levéltàr, pdf document)

He graduated as a rabbi in Talmudic (ieşiva) schools in Oradea, Vác and Hajdúböszörmény. Although he did not receive a general education, through self-taught study he managed to become a scholarly and modern Jew and Talmudist. After 6 years of activity as a rabbi of the Jewish community in Fabric, in 1890, at the age of 40, his thirst for knowledge pushed him to continue his studies in Berlin, in the Hildesheimer rabbinical seminary. He obtained his PhD in Berlin (Jakab Singer) or Bern (Magyar Zsidó Lexikon). His successor in Timisoara, Dr. Bartalan Kohlbach, as well as members of the community took care of his large family left in the city.

In 1892, "Der Verein zur Erziehung der jüdischen Waisen in Palästina" (Association for the Education of Jewish Orphans in Palestine), based in Frankfurt / Main, appointed him director of the German orphanage in Jerusalem. In Palestine, where his family followed him, Grünhut became an eminent connoisseur of Midrash (commentary on biblical texts) and of the geography and topography of Palestine, and his acquisition of the Arabic language was of great use to him. He published numerous Bible studies and translated and edited a book on the geography of Palestine.

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