Hillel

views updated

Hillel (late 1st cent. BCE–early 1st cent. CE). Leading Jewish ḥakham (sage) of the second Temple period. He rapidly emerged as a prominent interpreter of Torah, developing his seven rules of hermeneutics. He became nasi (president) of the Sanhedrin, and, with Shammai, formed the last of the pairs (zugot) of scholars. In general, Hillel adopted the less rigorous interpretations of Torah, though B.Shab. 77a refers to six issues where Hillel was more rigorous.

More From encyclopedia.com