Akiva Eger

Infobox Person
name = Akiva Eger

---

image_size = 200px
caption = "Picture of the pious sage, leader of the diaspora, our master rabbi Akiva Eger"
birth_date = Birth date|1761|11|8 (11 Cheshvan 5522 Anno Mundi)
birth_place = Eisenstadt, Hungary
death_date = Death date and age|1837|10|12|1761|11|8 (13 Tishrei 5598 Anno Mundi)
death_place = Poznań
resting_place = Poznań
resting_place_coordinates =
residence = Markisch Friedland, Posen
nationality = flagicon|Hungary|1867Hungarian
other_names = Akiba ben Moses Guens
known_for =
occupation = Rabbi
religion = Haredi Orthodox Judaism
spouse =
children =
parents =
relatives =


website =
footnotes = Rabbi Akiva Eger, (born: Akiva Güns), (1761-1837), was an outstanding Talmudic scholar, influential halakhic decisor and foremost leader of European Jewry during the early 19th century.

Akiva Eger was born in Eisenstadt — the most important town of the Seven Jewish Communities of Burgenland, Hungary, (now Austria). He was a child prodigy and was educated first at the Mattersdorf yeshiva and later by his uncle, Rabbi Wolf Eger, (1756-1795) (b. "5516", d. "6 Tishrei 5556"), at the Breslau (Wrocław) yeshiva, who later became Rabbi of Tziltz and Leipnik. Out of respect for his uncle he changed his surname to Eger. He therefore shared the full name Akiva Eger with his maternal grandfather, the first Rabbi Akiva Eger. (1722-1758) (b. "5482", d. "15 Elul 5518"). the "Mishnas De'Rebbi Akiva" who was Rabbi of Zülz, Silesia from 1749 and Pressburg from 1756.

He was the rabbi of Märkisch Friedland, West Prussia, from 1791 until 1815; then for the last twenty two years of his life, he was the rabbi of the city of Posen (Poznań). He was a rigorous casuist of the old school, and his chief works were legal notes and responsa on the "Talmud" and the "Shulkhan Arukh". He believed that religious education was enough, and thus opposed the party which favored secular schools. He was a determined foe of the Reform movement, which began to make itself felt in his time.

Progeny

Among his children were his two sons, Abraham (1781-1853) and Solomon (1785-1852), a rabbi in Kalisz, Poland and chief rabbi of Posen from 1837 to 1852. His daughter Sarel (1790-1832) (b. "5550", d. "18 Adar II 5592"), was the second wife of the "Chasam Sofer" (1762-1839) Rabbi of Pressburg.

References

*
* Jacob H. Sinason. "Gaon of Posen: A Portrait of Rabbi Akiva Guens-Eger". Feldheim, 1990. ISBN 0-87306-548-4.

External links

* [http://www.chabad.org/library/article.asp?AID=112047 Short biography of Rabbi Akiva Eger]
* [http://www.loebtree.com/eger.html Family tree]

Timeline

ImageSize = width:590 height:120PlotArea = width:570 height:25 left:5 bottom:60TimeAxis = orientation:horizontalDateFormat = yyyyPeriod = from:-250 till:2000AlignBars = earlyScaleMajor = unit:year increment:200 start:-200ScaleMinor = unit:year increment:50 start:-200

Colors = id:turkiz value:rgb(0,0.76,0.76) id:treaty value:rgb(0.6,0.8,0.6) id:lightgrey value:rgb(0.6,0.8,0.4) id:darkgrey value:rgb(0.6,0.8,0) id:Celadon value:rgb(0.67,1,0.68) id:TeaGreen value:rgb(0.81,0.94,0.75)

Define $hx = 15 # shift text to right side of bar

PlotData = bar:Leaders color:blue width:20 align:left fontsize:s from:-250 till:0 color:treaty shift:(-10,$hx) text:Zugot from:0 till:220 color:turkiz shift:(-15,$hx) text:Tannaim from:220 till:500 color:TeaGreen shift:(-20,$hx) text:Amoraim from:500 till:625 color:darkgrey shift:(-20,$hx) text:Savoraim from:625 till:1050 color:turkiz shift:(-15,$hx) text:Geonim from:1050 till:1500 color:TeaGreen shift:(-20,$hx) text:Rishonim from:1500 till:2000 color:treaty shift:(-20,$hx) text:Acharonim

LineData = layer:front # all lines in front of bars unless stated otherwise from:1761 till:1837 atpos:65 color:red width:2

Colors = id:aaa value:red