ABSTRACT
Abraham b. Meir Ibn ‘Ezra was born and educated in Tudela in Navarre, a Muslim city until it was conquered by the Christians in 1115. He was certainly an outstanding example, before Maimonides, of the ideal of Jews living in Muslim lands, of the completely educated man, expert in grammar, philosophy, mathematics, astronomy and other sciences, as well as poetry and literature. He wrote works on all these subjects, as well as what might be called “theological” writings, and was a translator of Arabic works. His approach in the commentary on Song of Songs differs significantly from his other commentaries. The commentary on Psalms is somewhat different than his usual method. Ibn ‘Ezra refers to several current customs and stories in his commentaries. The commentaries also contain a considerable amount of information about various countries, some of which may have come from his own travels but most of it is based on what he read in other sources/heard from travelers.
