- Hiyya bar Abba
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- For the Amora sage of the Land of Israel, of the 1st Amora Generation, see Rabbi Hiyya (Hiyya the Great).
For the Amora sage of Babylon, of the 2nd and 3d Amora Generation, and Dean of the Pumbedita Academy, see Huna b. Hiyya.
Hiyya bar Abba or Rabbi Hiyya (ca. 180-230 AD) (Hebrew: רבי חייא בר אבא) was an amoraic sage of priestly descent of the latter Mishnaic period. Active in Tiberias, Hiyya was the primary compiler of the tosefta. He was the uncle of Abba Arika.
In the Jerusalem Talmud he is also called Ḥiyya bar Ba or Ḥiyya bar Wa (Yer. Berakhot iii.6a, iv.7d); and in both Talmuds he is frequently mentioned merely as R. Ḥiyya, the context showing that Hiyya bar Abba is meant. Though a native of Babylon, where, perhaps, for a very short time he came under the influence of Samuel of Nehardea (Weiss, "Dor," iii.94), he migrated to Palestine at a very early age. There he studied under Ḥanina and Joshua ben Levi, and came into very close contact with Simeon bar Laḳish. He is, moreover, known as a disciple of Rabbi Johanan, after whose death he and his friends Ammi and Assi were the recognized authorities on the Halakah in Palestine.
Ḥiyya was distinguished for the care with which he noted the sayings of his masters (Ber. 38b), and in questions of doubt as to the phraseology of a tradition the version of Ḥiyya was preferred (Ber. 32b, 38b). Though he was the author of many aggadot, he denounced every attempt to collect and commit them to writing, and upon seeing such a collection he cursed the hand that wrote it (Yer. Shab. xvi.15c). His interest was centered in Halakhah, in the knowledge of which he probably excelled all his Palestinian contemporaries. Together with Ammi and Assi, he formed a court of justice before which a certain woman named Tamar was tried. The sentence involved Ḥiyya and his associates in difficulty, and might have had disastrous results had not Abbahu promptly come to their assistance (Yer. Meg. iii.74a).
Ḥiyya was very poor, and therefore was compelled to go lecturing from town to town in search of a livelihood; he even temporarily left Palestine (Yer. Ma'as. Sh. v.56b). He was greatly annoyed that the lecturer on aggadah drew a larger audience than he (see Jew. Encyc. i.36, s.v. Abbahu). Through stress of poverty he accepted a commission from Judah II to collect money to defray the expenses of the decaying patriarchate. The esteem in which Ḥiyya was held is manifested in the credentials obtained for him by Eleazar ben Pedath: "Behold, we have sent you a great man, our envoy. Until his return he possesses all the powers that we do." According to another version the introduction ran: "Behold, we have sent you a great man. His greatness consists in this, that he is not ashamed to say 'I know not' " (Yer. Ḥag. i.76d; Yer. Ned. x.42b). At another time Ḥiyya, Ammi, and Assi were appointed by Judah II to visit the various communities in Palestine, with the view of reawakening interest in the study of the Law (Yer. Ḥag. i.76c).
Ḥiyya had several brothers: R. Nathanha-Kohen, also known as R. Kohen (or R. Nathan) b. Abba; Rabbannai, or R. Bannai; and R. Simeon ben Abba. He had several children, among whom were R. Abba, R. Kahanah, and R. Nehemiah.
Rabbis of the Mishnah : Chronology & Hierarchy Teacher→Student Father→Son Hillel Shammai Gamaliel the Elder Johanan b. Zakai R. Gamaliel Jose the Galilean Eliezer b. Hyrcanus Joshua b. Hananiah Eleazar b. Arach Eleazar b. Azariah Elisha b. Abuyah Akiva Ishmael b. Elisha Tarfon Nathan Meir Judah b. Ilai Jose b. Halafta Shimon b. Yohai Judah the Prince Hiyya Oshiah References
- This article incorporates text from the 1901–1906 Jewish Encyclopedia article "Hiyya bar Abba" by Solomon Schechter and Nathan Stern, a publication now in the public domain.
Amoraim Amoraim of Eretz Israel First Generation (Until 250 A.D): Gamaliel III | R. Hiyya | Rabbi Yannai | Hoshaiah Rabbah | Epes the Southerner | Joshua ben Levi | Hanina bar Hama | Levi ben Sisi | Bar Kappara | Jeremiah (I)Second Generation (Until 280 A.D): Judah II (Nesi'ah I) | Yochanan bar Nafcha | Shimon ben Lakish | Eleazar ben Pedat | Jose b. Hanina | Rav Kahana II | Jacob b. Idi | Hezekiah | Judah b. Hiyya | Abba of JaffaThird Generation (Until 310 A.D): Gamaliel IV | Rabbi Ammi | Rabbi Assi | Abbahu | Abin I | Hiyya bar Abba | Ulla | Rav Zeira | Rabbah bar bar Hana | Rabbi Ilai II | Rab 'Awira | Hanina b. Papi | Jose of Yokereth | Jeremiah (II) | Hoshaiah | Hanina | Abba bar Memel | Tachlifa the Palestinian | Avdimi of HaifaFourth Generation (Until 340 A.D): Hasa of Eshtemoa | Judah III (Nesi'ah II) | Jeremiah (III) | Rabbi Aha | Rabbi Berekiah | Jose b. Zevida | Rav Jonah | Rabbi Hilkiah | Zerika | Isaac b. EliashibFifth Generation (Until 380 A.D): Sixth Generation (Until 410 A.D): Judah IV (Nesi'ah III) | Tanhuma bar Abba | Hanina of Sepphoris | Samuel b. Jose b. BoonAmoraim of Babylon First Generation (Until 250 A.D): Second Generation (Until 280 A.D): Rav Huna | Judah ben Ezekiel | Rabbah b. Abuha | Jeremiah b. Abba | Rav Kahana II | Rav Berona | Hiyya b. Joseph | Rav Giddel | Hiyya b. Ashi | Raba Bar Jeremiah (Abba)Third Generation (Until 310 A.D): Rav Nachman | Sheshet | Rav Chisda | Rabbah bar Nahmani | Rav Yosef b. Hiyya | Raba bar Rav Huna | Joseph b. Hama | Ammi b. AbbaFourth Generation (Until 340 A.D): Abaye | Rava | Rami bar Hama | Aha b. Jacob | Rav Safra | Rav Kahana III | Idi b. Abin Naggara | Hiyya b. Abin Naggara | Rav Shizbi | Isaac b. Judah | Rabbah b. ShelaFifth Generation (Until 380 A.D): Rav Nachman bar Yitzchak | Rav Papa | Huna b. Joshua | Rav Zevid | Rav Papi | Amemar | Mar Zutra | Rav MesharshiyaSixth Generation (Until 430 A.D): Seventh Generation (Until 465 A.D): Rav Yemar | Mar b. Rav Ashi | Rafram II | Aha b. Raba | Judah b. MeremarEighth Generation (Until 500 A.D): Rabbah Tosafa'ah | Ravina II | Rabbah JoseCategories:- Mishnah rabbis
- 3rd-century rabbis
- 180 births
- 230 deaths
- People from Tiberias
- Talmud rabbis
- For the Amora sage of the Land of Israel, of the 1st Amora Generation, see Rabbi Hiyya (Hiyya the Great).
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