Many people today are no longer aware that Jews did not always speak Hebrew. This lecture takes you to medieval France (particularly Champagne, Lorraine, Normandy, and Franche-Comté), where Old French, the langue d’oïl, was also the native language of the Jews, in which they also annotated and explained their sacred texts. What makes this unique is that they wrote French using Hebrew letters, and their biblical interpretations show clear influences from contemporary French literature. The lecture explores medieval French Jewry, where the Song of Songs could certainly be understood as a counterpart to the chansons des femmes. Furthermore, it becomes clear that there are quite a few French words that are accessible to us only through Jewish texts.

About the authors: Prof. Dr. Hanna Liss studied Jewish Studies, Ancient Near Eastern Studies, and Biblical Studies in Tübingen, Jerusalem, Munich, and Berlin. Following teaching positions and research stays in Israel, Heidelberg, and the United States (Lexington, Harvard), she has been a professor of the Bible and Jewish Biblical Interpretation at the Heidelberg College of Jewish Studies since 2003.
Dr. Stephen Dörr studied Romance languages, history, and political science and received his doctorate in Heidelberg in 1994 with a dissertation in Romance studies. After many years of work on the "Dictionnaire étymologique de l'ancien français" (until 2020), he worked at the Mannheim research center of the "Lessico etimologico italiano." Since 2023, he has been leading the project "Bible Glossaries as Hidden Carriers of Culture" ( internal link) together with Hanna Liss .

About the lecture series: For over 20 years now, this public lecture series has been taking place, featuring presentations by scholars from the Heidelberg Academy of Sciences and Humanities well Academy of Sciences and Humanities from its seven sister academies. The lectures are aimed at a broad audience and are designed to provide insights into the research being conducted. Afterward, there will be an opportunity to chat with the scholars over pretzels and wine in the Academy’s courtyard garden.

We are grateful that the vhs Heidelberg is also promoting the series.

"We Research. For You." Program (internal link)
 

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