Universität Wien

060011 SE Jewish Journeys in late antiquity and early Middle Ages (2024S)

8.00 ECTS (2.00 SWS), SPL 6 - Ägyptologie, Judaistik, Urgeschichte und Historische Archäologie
Continuous assessment of course work
Moodle

Registration/Deregistration

Note: The time of your registration within the registration period has no effect on the allocation of places (no first come, first served).

Details

Language: German

Lecturers

Classes (iCal) - next class is marked with N

  • Wednesday 06.03. 12:30 - 14:00 Hörsaal 2 Judaistik UniCampus Hof 7 2L-EG-17
  • Wednesday 13.03. 12:30 - 14:00 Hörsaal 2 Judaistik UniCampus Hof 7 2L-EG-17
  • Wednesday 20.03. 12:30 - 14:00 Hörsaal 2 Judaistik UniCampus Hof 7 2L-EG-17
  • Wednesday 10.04. 12:30 - 14:00 Hörsaal 2 Judaistik UniCampus Hof 7 2L-EG-17
  • Wednesday 24.04. 12:30 - 14:00 Hörsaal 2 Judaistik UniCampus Hof 7 2L-EG-17
  • Wednesday 08.05. 12:30 - 14:00 Hörsaal 2 Judaistik UniCampus Hof 7 2L-EG-17
  • Wednesday 15.05. 12:30 - 14:00 Hörsaal 2 Judaistik UniCampus Hof 7 2L-EG-17
  • Wednesday 22.05. 12:30 - 14:00 Hörsaal 2 Judaistik UniCampus Hof 7 2L-EG-17
  • Wednesday 29.05. 12:30 - 14:00 Hörsaal 2 Judaistik UniCampus Hof 7 2L-EG-17
  • Wednesday 05.06. 12:30 - 14:00 Hörsaal 2 Judaistik UniCampus Hof 7 2L-EG-17
  • Wednesday 12.06. 12:30 - 14:00 Hörsaal 2 Judaistik UniCampus Hof 7 2L-EG-17
  • Wednesday 19.06. 12:30 - 14:00 Hörsaal 2 Judaistik UniCampus Hof 7 2L-EG-17
  • Wednesday 26.06. 12:30 - 14:00 Hörsaal 2 Judaistik UniCampus Hof 7 2L-EG-17

Information

Aims, contents and method of the course

One of the precursors of modern tourism was the pilgrimage to the Holy Land in late antiquity. Like Christians, Jews in late antiquity and the early Middle Ages also travelled to the land, which in rabbinic literature is referred to not as the Holy Land but as erets Yisrael; they travelled in the land and also abroad.
What did it mean for Jews to travel in late antiquity and the early Middle Ages, and how is travel represented in their own sources? This key question is particularly interesting when we consider that this is the period in which the paradigmatic diaspora in world history, the Jewish diaspora of late antiquity, emerges - travellers move within a diasporic network. In Jewish literature of the period, we learn about this network as well as about imaginary places in fantastic travel narratives.
In this course we will a) read primary literature – excerpt from classical and post-classical rabbinic literature, travel literature and use traditional and DH methods and tools to answer questions such as How do Jewish men and women travel, for what purpose, with whom do they interact? What are the dangers of travel?; and b) major contributions to the research literature on the Jewish diaspora and Jewish travel in late antiquity and the early Middle Ages.

Assessment and permitted materials

Written and oral assignments on primary and research literature: homework during the semester, short presentation, term paper (max. 90 points).
Participation: Continuous participation in class (max. 10 points).
Resources: Dictionaries, digital humanities tools to be introduced

Minimum requirements and assessment criteria

Regular attendance (max. 2 absences); the overall grade is calculated from the sum of the points of the partial performances. Grading scale:
89–100 points = 1
77–88 points = 2
64–76 points = 3
51–63 points = 4
0–50 points = 5

Examination topics

S. o. Art der Leistungskontrolle.

Reading list

Primärliteratur:
-Reader wird in Moodle zur Verfügung gestellt

Forschungsliteratur:
-Boyarin, D. A Traveling Homeland: The Babylonian Talmud as Diaspora. Philadelphia, 2015.
-Cohen, G., „Travel Between Palestine and Mesopotamia during the Hellenistic and Roman Periods: A Preliminary Study“, in The Archaeology and Material Culture of the Babylonian Talmud, ed. Markham J. Geller. Leiden, 2015.
-Diner, Hasia D. The Oxford Handbook der jüdischen Diaspora. Oxford, 2021.
-Fonrobert, Ch. and Vered Shemtov, Introduction, Special Issue Jewish Space, Jewish social studies 11,3 (2005).
-Hezser, C. Jewish Travel in Late Antiquity. Tübingen, 2011.
-Kiperwasser, R. Going West: Migrating Personae and Construction of the Self in Rabbinic Culture. Providence, RI, 2021.
-Stein, D. The blind eye of the beholder: Tall tales, travelogues, and midrash. In Textual Mirrors: Reflexivity, Midrash, and the Rabbinic Self, chapter 3. Philadelphia, 2012.

Association in the course directory

Last modified: Th 14.03.2024 17:45