place · L0267
Lunel לוניל
Provençal "city of sages": Benjamin of Tudela found there a community devoted to Torah study that supported its scholars, and its sages — the "chachmei Lunel" — corresponded with the Rambam, whose Guide was translated into Hebrew at their request. Zerachiah HaLevi (the Baal HaMaor) spent his career there.
I. Who
- Hebrew
- לוניל
III. Where
- Modern location
- Lunel, Hérault, Occitania, France
V. How do we know
| Claim | Evidence | Confidence | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|
| Benjamin of Tudela (c. 1165) describes Lunel as a community of sages where students were maintained by the town so they could study undisturbed. | external | ★★★★☆ | |
| The sages of Lunel addressed halakhic and philosophical queries to the Rambam, and Shmuel ibn Tibbon of Lunel made the Hebrew translation of the Guide for the Perplexed in correspondence with its author. | tradition external | ★★★★☆ |
Referenced by: Zerachiah HaLevi