The Cambridge Guide to

Jewish History, Religion, and Culture

The Cambridge Guide to Jewish History, Religion, and Culture is a ­comprehensive

and engaging overview of Jewish life, from its origins in the ancient Near East
to its impact on contemporary popular culture. The twenty-one essays, ­arranged
­historically and thematically and written specially for this volume by lead-
ing ­scholars, examine the development of Judaism and the evolution of Jewish
­history and culture over many centuries and in a range of locales. They emphasize
the ongoing diversity and creativity of the Jewish experience. Unlike previous
­anthologies, which concentrate on elite groups and expressions of a male-oriented
rabbinic culture, this volume also includes the range of experiences of ordinary
people and looks at the lives and achievements of women in every place and era.
The many illustrations and maps, the timeline, and the glossary of important
terms enhance this book’s accessibility to students and general readers.

Judith R. Baskin is Philip H. Knight Professor of Humanities and Associate Dean

for Humanities in the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of ­Oregon.
Her books include Midrashic Women:  Formations of the Feminine in ­Rabbinic
­Literature and Pharaoh’s Counsellors:  Job, Jethro, and Balaam in Rabbinic and
­Patristic Tradition, and she is editor of Jewish Women in Historical Perspective and
Women of the Word: Jewish Women and Jewish Writing. She also served as subeditor
for postbiblical entries for The Torah: A Women’s Commentary, which received the
Everett Family Foundation Jewish Book of the Year Award in 2008.

Kenneth Seeskin is Philip M. and Ethel Klutznick Professor of Jewish ­Civilization

at Northwestern University. He is the author of Maimonides on the Origin of
the World, which was selected by Choice as one of the outstanding books in the
­humanities for 2006, and Searching for a Distant God: The Legacy of ­Maimonides,
which won the Koret Jewish Book Award in 2000; he is also editor of The
­Cambridge Companion to Maimonides. He has received several teaching awards,
including the Charles Deering McCormick Professor of Teaching Excellence at
Northwestern University.

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 The Cambridge Guide to

Jewish History, Religion, and Culture

edi ted by

Judith R. Baskin
University of Oregon

Kenneth Seeskin
Northwestern University

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© Cambridge University Press 2010

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no reproduction of any part may take place without the written
permission of Cambridge University Press.

First published 2010

Printed in the United States of America

A catalog record for this publication is available from the British Library.

Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication data

The Cambridge guide to Jewish history, religion, and culture / edited by
Judith R. Baskin, Kenneth Seeskin.
p.  cm. – (Comprehensive surveys of religion)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-521-86960-7 (hardback)
1.  Judaism – History.  2.  Jews – History.  I.  Baskin, Judith Reesa, 1950–
II.  Seeskin, Kenneth, 1947–  III.  Title.  IV.  Series.
BM155.3.C25 2010
296.09–dc22    2009036450

ISBN 978-0-521-86960-7 Hardback

ISBN 978-0-521-68974-8 Paperback

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this publication and does not guarantee that any content on such Web sites is,
or will remain, accurate or appropriate.

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