PIYYUT

PIYYUT (Heb. ????????; plural: piyyutim; from the Greek ???????), a lyrical composition intended to embellish an obligatory prayer or any other religious ceremony, communal or private. In a wider sense, piyyut is the totality of compositions composed in various genres of Hebrew liturgical poetry from the first centuries of the Common Era until the beginning of the Haskalah. In ancient times, the piyyutim were intended to replace most of the set versions of prayer and to serve as substitutes. They ensured variety of the obligatory prayers, mainly on Sabbaths and festivals. In a later period, when the prayers became fixed, sections of piyyut were interspersed in certain places within the set pattern of the prayers. Naturally, most of the very extensive piyyut literature is devoted to the adornment of the major holy days. However, during the early Oriental (eastern) period of the history of the piyyut, liturgical compositions were also produced in great abundance for regular Sabbaths, for simple fast days, and even for weekdays. Obligatory prayers were also embellished with special sets of piyyutim for private occasions, such as weddings, circumcisions, and mourning. (See Table: Piyyut.)

The History of the Piyyut

Piyyut literature began in Ere? Israel while the various versions of the obligatory prayers were crystallizing. Though the evidence from this period is limited, texts of ancient piyyutim are to be found scattered in talmudic sources, and piyyutim which apparently were composed during this period were absorbed into the established versions of the various rites of prayer. These ancient segments are recognizable by their lofty style and characteristic rhythm; they do not as yet use rhyme. The ancient compositions, known in part from the Cairo Genizah and in part from other sources, and similarly characterized by their style and rhythm, were also apparently composed during this period, which may be called "the period of the anonymous piyyut."

The earliest paytan known to us by name is *Yose b. Yose, who lived and worked in Ere? Israel in approximately the sixth century or even earlier. His works still retain the above-mentioned characteristics of the form; they do not employ rhyme, even though something similar to rhyme can be seen in his teki'ot, where similar words are employed as line endings. With Yose b. Yose begins the period of the paytanim whose names are known; the period is represented by a group of important poets from Ere? Israel, who all seem to have been functioning before Ere? Israel was conquered by the Arabs (636 c.e.). The most important of these paytanim are *Yannai, *Simeon b. Megas, Eleazar b. *Kallir, *?aduta b. Abraham, Joshua ha-Kohen, and Joseph b. Nisan from Shaveh Kiryatayim. During their period, the structural framework of most of the classical piyyut types was finally crystallized. Even after Ere? Israel was conquered by the Arabs, all the great paytanim worked in the East; from then until the beginning of the 11^th century this literature flourished; a great quantity of piyyutim was produced. For the first time paytanim from abroad, such as Solomon Suleiman b. ? Amr al-Sanjari, Nissi al-Nahrawani, *Saadiah Gaon, Joseph al-Bardani, and others, begin to appear. Outstanding among the paytanim of Ere? Israel are *Phinehas b. Jacob ha-Kohen from Kafra at the beginning of the period, and *Samuel ha-Shelishi b. Hoshana at its close. Toward the end of the period, creative activity spread to North Africa, which in the tenth and eleventh centuries became a fruitful extension of Oriental piyyut.

On European soil, the first blossoms of piyyut literature appeared in Byzantine southern Italy in the second half of the ninth century. Only a few piyyutim from among the creations of the early Italian paytanim, *Silano, *Shephatiah, and his son *Amittai, are now extant, but even these testify to an extensive and consolidated literary activity, which, despite a number of interesting points of originality, reveals blatant signs of the influence of Ere? Israel. The creative work of the paytanim of southern Italy became, in the tenth century, a basis for the development of piyyut in central and northern Italy. The paytanim working there, headed by *Solomon b. Judah ha-Bavli, created a precedent for Central European piyyut, whose major representatives henceforth worked in Italy, Ashkenaz (Germany), France, and Byzantine Greece. The most important region of Central European sacred poetry was Germany, where the piyyut developed impressively because of the activity of a number of great paytanim in the 10^th–11^th centuries, such as *Moses b. Kalonymus, *Meshullam b. Kalonymus (both of Italian extraction), *Simeon b. Isaac, and Meir b. Isaac. In the succeeding centuries, Ashkenazi piyyut continued to develop, and a number of important composers made major contributions to the literature.

The direct continuation of Oriental piyyut was in Spain, where, beginning in the middle of the tenth century, several generations of great composers functioned. Outstanding among these are Joseph *Ibn Abitur, Solomon ibn *Gabirol, Isaac *Ibn Ghayyat, Moses *Ibn Ezra, *Judah Halevi, and Abraham *Ibn Ezra. These Spanish paytanim attained impressive peaks of perfection. Even though creativity in the realm of piyyut did not cease in Central Europe, Northern Africa, or the East until the beginning of the Haskalah, the 13^th century marks the beginning of the decline; later paytanim, despite their often impressive productivity, failed to create major works. Although some of their poetry was included in local prayer rites, most of it has been excluded from accepted prayer books.

Types of Piyyut

Piyyutim can be divided according to their liturgical purpose into a number of categories, differing in their histories and development, their structures, and their distribution. In different periods, certain types of piyyutim were more prevalent than others. The earliest and most important types of piyyut are the kerovah and the yo?er. The kerovah is designed for inclusion in the Amidah prayer, while the yo?er belongs to the benedictions before and after the *Shema in the *Sha?arit service. The kerovot divide into a number of secondary categories, according to the types of Amidah to which they are attached: the kerovah of the daily Amidah is called kerovat Shemoneh Esreh because of the 18 blessings in that Amidah; that of Musaf or Ma'ariv Amidah for Sabbaths and the holy days is called shivata because of the seven blessings in these Amidot; while that of the Sha?arit Amidah of the Sabbath and holy days, which include a kedushah, is called kedushata (in ancient Ere? Israel, kedushah was said on Sabbaths and festivals only in the Sha?arit service). Each of the types of kerovah has its own structural characteristics. The kerovah, mainly the kedushata, is thought of as the dominant type of ancient piyyut. The yo?er is combined from several types of piyyut, according to the structure of the permanent prayers replaced or embellished by piyyut. The yo?er enjoyed great circulation mainly in the second period of Oriental piyyut, between the seventh and eleventh centuries. Parallel to the yo?erot, which were intended for Sha?arit, there are also, during this period, piyyutim of Ma'ariv, intended to adorn the blessings before and after the Shema in the evening service. This type of piyyut, however, was never widely employed.

Among the kerovot of the major holidays, a number of special types of piyyut for different occasions are found. These include teki?ata, which adorns the *malkhuyyot, *zikhronot, and *shofarot blessings in the Musaf Amidot for New Year; Seder ha-*Avodah (which describes the sacrificial service on the Day of Atonement during the time the Temple was in existence), in the Musaf kerovah of the Day of Atonement; or the *azharot, which discuss the list of 613 mitzvot in the Torah, in the shivatot of Musaf for Shavuot. The kerovot for fast days include *seli?ot (penitential), while the kerovot for the Ninth of Av include kinot (dirges). In some communities these seli?ot and kinot were removed in later periods from the kerovot and placed after them. Seli?ot were also composed for the Days of Penitence during the month of Elul and between New Year and the Day of Atonement. The special processions for the days of Tabernacles (Sukkot) were embellished with hoshana piyyutim (see *Hoshanot). In the early period of piyyut, works were not composed to adorn religious ceremonies outside of the obligatory prayers, except for the Grace after Meals, and even in that case, they were probably intended, from the start, for use at communal festive meals or at meals for religious ceremonies. Similarly, ashkavah piyyutim were composed in this period (aftarot, or ?idduk hadin, "funeral services").

All the classical types of piyyut were cultivated to some extent by the later European paytanim. However, the scope of the piyyut literature was greatly enlarged, mainly in Spain, by the creation of a number of new types of piyyut. The Spanish paytanim preceded the accepted patterns of the yo?er with a number of piyyut passages which they interlaced in the prayer said on Sabbaths and festivals before the yo?er prayers. These types are known as the nishmat, the mu?arakh, the illufinu, and the kol a?motai. The Spanish paytanim also cultivated the type known as reshut (pl. reshuyyot, "introductory piyyutim "), and they joined these works to the Barukh she-Amar prayer, to nishmat, to *Kaddish after nishmat, to *Barekhu, and so on. In addition to their extensive work with these types, the Spanish paytanim developed new types of special piyyutim for private religious ceremonies, such as Sabbath songs and *Havdalot, as well as types of religious poetry intended to satisfy the spiritual needs of the individual. To a certain extent, the Ashkenazi paytanim followed them in these areas.

A considerable part of the creative efforts of the European paytanim was dedicated to the type known as seli?ot for fast days and days of penitence. Because of the great creative activity in this area, a number of secondary types within the category have been distinguished, some partly because of thematic distinctions and some because of formal distinctions. The early Oriental seli?ah recognized only the category ?atanu (seli?ot of confession), and the tokha?ah ("rebuke") as a secondary type. In a later period, the *Akedah type was added to them, in which God's mercy is requested for Israel because of the merit of the binding of Isaac. According to structural distinctions, a number of secondary types of seli?ot are distinguishable, of which the important ones are the pizmon (a seli?ah with an opening refrain and a strophe), and the mustagib (a seli?ah in which a biblical passage appears as a refrain at the end of every verse). In specific sources, especially Ashkenazi, the seli?ot are distinguished by special names according to their place in the calendar, their composers, the way they are said, or the number of lines in their poetic phrases.

Language and Style

The style and the vocabulary of the paytanim vary in the different periods and different poetic schools. In the anonymous period of piyyut, the style followed the stylistic and lexical paths of the permanent prayers; the vocabulary is mostly biblical, even though some later linguistic bases – midrashic and talmudic – may be found in it. The style of the piyyutim is lucid and clear and contains little wordplay or rhetorical embellishment. With the work of Yannai, Hebrew sacral poetry becomes more and more expansive in its vocabulary and increasingly vague and flowery in its style. During the whole Oriental period of the piyyut, the composers used not only the whole Hebrew lexicon, with all its various layers and strata (to a certain extent, in the early piyyut creations, ancient Hebrew words with no mention in the sources are preserved) but they also adorned the piyyut with idioms and words of their own creation. The poetic novelties of language and form, which do not always fit the classical rules of Hebrew grammar, gave a singular stylistic character to the poetic creations, and frequently aroused harsh criticism. These paytanim (who are included among those of the Kallir school, so called after its major representative, the paytan Eleazar b. Kallir), often used a complicated set of terms, flavoring their works with an abundance of talmudic and midrashic material, or with (sometimes vague) allusions to this material. Thus, some of their works became enigmatic, constituting difficult exegetical problems. From a linguistic point of view, piyyut reached its peak in the works of Saadiah Gaon and his pupils, during the tenth and eleventh centuries. The paytanim of the "Saadiah school" were the most radical in establishing novel uses of language in their piyyutim.

As a reaction to the Saadianic style of exaggerated innovations, and probably under the influence of the new ways and principles of Andalusian arabized secular poetry and of philological studies, Hebrew sacred poetry in Spain crystallized within clearly biblical frameworks of language and style. The first of the Spanish paytanim composed their works according to the example of the later Oriental paytanim. In addition to the works written in this style, there exists a parallel group of works, written in the Spanish model in a language which strives to recognize only a biblical vocabulary and in a style which strives to free itself of talmudic and midrashic material and allusions to the teachings of the rabbis. The style of the Spanish piyyutim is impressively lucid and flexible, approaching the style of secular poetry; in this period, sacred poetry was notably influenced by secular poetry both in form and in lyrical means of expression. Solomon ibn Gabirol was instrumental in the process by which the piyyut was increasingly purified of the linguistic-stylistic exaggerations of eastern piyyut; the earliest of the Spanish paytanim whose work appears to be entirely within the new stylistic framework is Isaac Ibn Ghayyat. During this period, the style of writing of the Spanish paytanim greatly influenced the paytanim of other lands, such as North Africa, Yemen, Ere? Israel, Babylonia, and Provence. Certain traces of Spanish influence are found also in later Ashkenazi piyyut. In general, Central European piyyut remained faithful to the Kallir model in language and style. Even so, Italian and Ashke-nazi poets were more restrained and moderate in their use of language and style. In the creations of the greatest of them, the poetic language reaches impressive heights of beauty and flexibility.

Rhyme and Meter

The ancient anonymous piyyut did not employ rhyme. The piyyutim composed during this period with the characteristic method of dividing each poetic line into four feet, each one having two or three stresses, are limited. With the beginning of the use of rhyme, or more specifically, with the period of the literary activity of Yannai, the paytanim concentrate much more on rhyme than on rhythm. Those of the Kallir school attained great virtuosity in their methods of rhyming and playing with rhyme, and this lowered the level and content of the creations, especially in the works of mediocre paytanim. A number of eastern paytanim wrote their works in a peculiar rhythmic system (known as mishkal ha-tevot), by establishing an identical number of words or stresses in every poetic line, but this method is found in only a few works, and was used more widely in the works of the first Central European paytanim, who also continued and developed the traditions of rhyme of the early Kallir school. It was the Spanish paytanim who introduced a precise method of rhythm in their piyyutim. Many of their works, mainly in the specific types of piyyut which originated in Spain, are subject to the quantitative method of meter – Arabic in its source – of secular poetry, but the major part of their work is in a unique meter created in Spain for sacred poetry. This is mainly syllabic, meting out to each line of poetry a specific fixed number of grammatical syllables. In Spain, however, the paytanim also continued to compose piyyutim without meter, particularly in the classical types of piyyut. Rhyme also developed impressively in Spain, particularly in the short types of piyyut, under the influence of the ezor (Muwassaha) type of secular poems. Many piyyutim, some metered precisely according to the example of the ezor type, some metered according to the special method of Spanish piyyut, have a variegated and rich rhyme, which competes successfully with the best achievements of Hebrew secular poetry in Spain.

Signatures

The first paytanim signed their piyyutim only with their own names. Later, they added patronymics and the places where they wrote; and, after a while, they added blessings and the like. At times, the paytanim also added the names of relatives.

Collections of Piyyutim

The extent to which piyyutim were incorporated into the prayer service differs in time and locality. In ancient times, there was fierce opposition to the piyyut literature, mainly from the great academy in Babylonia. Nevertheless, it appears that there was a wide use of piyyutim in most of the early eastern communities. During this period there were still no fixed collections of piyyutim for the use of various communities. Rather, each cantor recited piyyutim according to his taste and choice. Only in later periods, when the congregations took greater part in prayer services, was the set recitation of certain piyyutim for various liturgical occasions practiced. These fixed prayers, which multiplied, led to the collections of piyyutim (ma?zorim, books of seli?ot, and kinot) which established for every occasion passages of piyyut, whose recitation was repeated year after year. At first, each community established its own collection, usually by choosing piyyut passages and adding the works of local composers. In a later period, the distinctions between the collections of piyyutim of the various communities became increasingly blurred and, with the invention of printing, unified collections of piyyutim crystallized for different rites of prayer. (See table on following page.)

bibliography:

Waxman, Literature, 1 (1960), ch. 9; 2 (1960²), ch. 3; Zunz, Poesie; Zunz, Ritus; Zunz, Lit Poesie; Elbogen, Gottesdienst, 206-31, 280-353; Zulay, in: ym?si, 5 (1939), 107-80; Mirsky, ibid., 7 (1958), 1-129; A. Mirsky, Reshit ha-Piyyut (1965); S. Abramson, Bi-Leshon Kodemim (1965); Davidson, O?ar, index, s.v. names of paytanim; J. Yahalom, The Syntax of Ancient Piyyut (including Yannai) as a Basis for its Style (1974). add. bibliography: E. Fleischer, Shirat ha-Kodesh ha-Ivrit bi-Ymei ha-Benayim (1975); idem, Ha-Yo?erot be-Hithavvutam ?e-Hitpatte?tam (1984); Sh. Elizur, Piyyutei Eleazar be-Rabi ?ilar ?e-Ya?asam li-Ye?irato shel Eleazar Berabi ?ilir (1981); dem: Paitan be-'Idan shel Mifneh: R. Yehoshu'a Bar Khalfa u-Fiyyutav (1994); idem, Shirah shel Parashah: Parashot ha-Torah bi-Re'i ha-Piyyut (1999); N. Weissenstern (ed.), Piyyutei Yo?anan ha-Kohen be-Rabi Yehoshu'a (diss., 1983); L. Weinberger, Early Synagogue Poets in the Balkans (1988); A. Mirsky, Ha-Piyyut: Hitpat?uto be-Ere?-Yisra'el u-va-Golah (1990); idem, Me-?ovot ha-Levavot le-Shirat ha-Levavot (1992); R.P. Scheindlin, The Gazelle: Medieval Hebrew Poems on God, Israel, and the Soul (1991); I. Levin and A. Sáenz-Badillos, Si me olvido de ti, Jerusalén… Cantos de las Sinagogas de al-Andalus (1992); Z.Z. Breuer, Shirat ha-Kodesh shel Rabi Shelomoh Ibn Gabirol: Tokhen ve-?urah (1993); Eleazar ben Judah, Shirat ha-Roke'ah. Piyyutei Eleazar mi-Vermaiza, ed. I. Meiseles (1993); A.V. Tanenbaum, Poetry and Philosophy: The Idea of the Soul in Andalusian Piyyut (1993); S. Kats, R. Yi??ak Ibn Gi'at: Monografyah (1994); E. Hollender, Synagogale Hymnen: Qedushtaót des Simon b. Isaak im Amsterdam Mahsor (1994); idem, Clavis Commentariorum of Hebrew Liturgical Poetry in Manuscript (2005); M. Zulay, Ere?-Yisra'el u-Fiyyuteha: Me?karim be-Fiyyutei ha-Genizah, ed. E. ?azan (1995); idem, Mi-pi Paytanim ve-Shofkhei Sia?, ed. Sh. Elitsur (2004); Sh. Spiegel, Avot ha-Piyyut: Mekorot u-Me?karim le-Toledot ha-Piyyut be-Ere? Yisra'el, ed. M. Schmelzer (1996); M. Zulay and E. Hazan, Ere?-Yisra'el u-Fiyyuteha: Me?karim be-Fiyyutei ha-Genizah (1995); E.D. Goldschmidt, Me?kerei Tefillah u-Fiyyut (1996); David Ben-Hasin, Tehilah le-David: Kove? Shirato shel David Ben-Hasin; ed. A.E. Elbaz et al. (1996); idem, David Ben-Hasin, Tefillah le-David: Azharot, ed. A.E. Elbaz et al. (2000); idem, Leket Shirei David Ben Hasin: …mi-Tokh Sifro Tehilah le-David (2005); M. Ben-Yashar, Siftei Renanot: Miv?ar Piyyutim le-Shabatot u-le-Mo'adim (1996); Isaac ha-Seniri, Piyyutei R. Yi??ak ha-Seniri, ed. B. Bar-Tikva (1996); Y. David, J. Schirmann, et al., Osef Shirei Kodesh: Ketav Yad mi-Sefarad u-mi-Ar?ot ha-Magreb me-ha-Me'ah ha-14 (1997); W. van Bekkum, Hebrew Poetry from Late Antiquity: Liturgical Poems of Yehudah (1998); R. Halevi, Shirat Yisra'el be-Teiman: mi-Miv?ar ha-Shirah ha-Shabazit-Teimanit (1998); N. Katsumatah, Sidrei Avodah le-Yom ha-Kippurim min ha-Dorot ha-Semukhim le-R. Se'adyah Ga'on (1998); J. Yahalom, Shirat Benei Yisra'el ba-Tekufah ha-Bizantinit ve-ad Kibushei ha-?albanim (1996); idem, Piyyut u-Me?i'ut be-Shilheu ha-Zeman ha-Atik (1999); I. Meiseles, Shirat ha-Mi?vot: Azharot Rabi Eliyahu ha-Zaken (2001); T. Beeri, Ha-?azzan ha-Gadol asher be-Bagdad: Piyyutei Yosef ben ?ayyim Albaradani (2002); N. Katsumata, The Liturgical Poetry of Nehemiah ben Shelomoh ben Heiman ha-Nasi (2002); idem, Hebrew Style in the Liturgical Poetry of Shmuel Hashlishi (2003); Y. Ratzaby, Shirei R. Shalem Shabazi: Bibliografyah (2003); M. Zulay, and S. Elizur, Mi-pi Paytanim ve-Shofkhei Si'ah (2004); M.D. Swartz and J. Yahalom, Avodah: An Anthology of Ancient Poetry for Yom Kippur (2005).

[Ezra Fleischer]

The following list contains:

1. Those paytanim and pre-modern poets who have individual entries in the Encyclopedia – included are those who are either primarily paytanim or famous as such;

2. Paytanim and pre-modern poets who do not have individual entries and who are not included in (1) Davidson's O?ar ha-Shirah ve-ha-Piyyut (vol. 4, pp. 347) which was completed in 1933 (Davidson's additions were published in HUCA 12–13, 1937–38);

3. Paytanim and pre-modern poets who are in Davidson but on whom new material has been made available in the intervening years.

The list is alphabetical according to the first names.

The abbreviations used (other than standard) are the following:

Bernstein, Italyah – S. Bernstein, Mi-Shirei Yisrael be-Italyah (1939).

Bernstein, Piyyutim – S. Bernstein, Piyyutim u-Faytanim meha-Tekufah ha-Bizantinit (1941).

Habermann, Ateret – A.M. Habermann, Ateret Renanim (1967).

Schirmann, Italyah – J. Schirmann, Miv?ar ha-Shirah ha-Ivrit be-Italyah (1934).

Schirmann, Sefarad – J. Schirmann, Ha-Shirah ha-Ivrit bi-Sefarad u-vi-Provence, 2 vols. (1959–60²).

Schirmann, Shirim Hadashim – J. Schirmann, Shirim ?adashim min ha-Genizah (1965).

Simonsohn, Mantovah – S. Simonsohn, Toledot ha-Yehudim be-Dukkasut Mantovah, 2 vols. (1962–64).

YM?SI – Yedi'ot ha-Makhon le-?eker ha-Shirah ha-Ivrit, 7 vols. (1933–58).

[Abraham David]