Abraham Solomon Halkin (Russian: Абрахам Соломон Га́лкин, 1904 – March 9, 1990) was a Jewish history professor who was the brother of Simon Halkin and cousin of Shmuel Halkin.

Abraham Halkin
Абрахам Соломон Га́лкин
Born
Abraham Solomon Halkin

1904 (1904)
Died(1990-03-09)March 9, 1990 (aged 86)
ChildrenHillel Halkin
Relatives
Academic background
Alma materColumbia University
Academic work
DisciplineJewish literature, history, and culture
InstitutionsJewish Theological Seminary of America

Biography edit

Halkin was born in 1904 in the Russian Empire, the younger brother of Simon Halkin.[1] He is also the cousin of Shmuel Halkin.[2]

In 1914, at the age of 11, Halkin immigrated to the United States from his native Russia.[3] He would go on to receive his bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees from Columbia University.[4][5]

Halkin began teaching at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America in 1930. From 1938 to 1970 he also served as professor of Hebrew at City College of New York.[1][3] He would serve as professor emeritus at the seminary after retiring in 1977.[4][6] That same year he made aliyah to Israel.[7][8]

Halkin was known to be one of the few familiar with an Apologetic Letter of rabbi Jedaia ha - Penini.[9] He also was a noted scholar of Shmuel Yosef Agnon's writing, having taught it in his lectures.[8]

Halkin died on March 9, 1990, in Jerusalem, Israel at 86 years of age from pneumonia, survived by his son and daughter.[4][7] His son Hillel Halkin, would go on to serve as a prominent Hebrew writer.[1][8]

References edit

  1. ^ a b c Scult, Mel (2016-10-10). Communings of the Spirit, Volume II: The Journals of Mordecai M. Kaplan, 1934–1941. Wayne State University Press. ISBN 978-0-8143-4162-9.
  2. ^ Krutikov, Mikhail. "Halkin, Shmuel". yivoencyclopedia.org. Archived from the original on 2011-01-12. Retrieved 2021-12-14.
  3. ^ a b Cohn-Sherbok, Dan (2010-01-07). Dictionary of Jewish Biography. A&C Black. ISBN 978-1-4411-9784-9.
  4. ^ a b c "Abraham Halkin, 86; Taught Jewish Culture". The New York Times. 1990-03-15. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-12-12.
  5. ^ Roth, Salo W. Baron, Gerson D. Cohen, Abraham S. Halkin, Yehezkel Kaufmann, Ralph Marcus, Cecil (1956). Great Ages and Ideas of the Jewish People.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  6. ^ Encyclopaedia Judaica. Encyclopaedia Judaica. 1996. ISBN 978-965-07-0219-9.
  7. ^ a b Cohen, Gerson D. (1990). "Abraham S. Halkin 1904-1990". Proceedings of the American Academy for Jewish Research. 57: 1–3. ISSN 0065-6798. JSTOR 3622651.
  8. ^ a b c Falk, Avner (2018-10-22). Agnon's Story: A Psychoanalytic Biography of S. Y. Agnon. BRILL. ISBN 978-90-04-36778-4.
  9. ^ Aparício, Manuel Forcano i; Forcano, Manuel (2003). La lletra apologètica de Rabí Iedaia ha-Peniní: un episodi de la controvèrsia maimonidiana a Catalunya i Provença (in Catalan). Edicions Universitat Barcelona. ISBN 978-84-475-2728-1.