ARABS IN TALMUDIC SOURCES : of the Jewish temple in 70, the rabbinic movement became in Judaism, and its world-views and attitudes became the foundation of all of the rabbinic tradition were at first a group of teach- of the of teachers, the

doi:10.4324/9781315029535-54

ABSTRACT

In the rabbinic texts we find sayings mentioning Arabs, some of which are anonymous, some of which are ascribed to known rabbis. I The earliest named authority is YoJ.1anan ben Zakkai, who lived through the destruction of the temple, and the latest belong to the third generation of Palestinian amoraim and the fourth of Babylonian amoraim.2 This means a time span from c. AD 70 to 350. Most of the references with the word 'Arabs' or 'Arabia' ('i'RB, 'i'RBY, 'i'RBY?) come from Palestinian authorities. Designations derived from this root are not unknown to the Babylonian amoraim, but the instances are rather few. Instead, the Babylonians sometimes refer to a group called TY'i'?, which has usually been seen as identical with the 'i'RB. The term is also rendered 'Arabs' in modem translations of rabbinical texts.