Studies in Ancient Judaism: Major Trends in the Study of Ancient Judaism

Subject associations
REL 513
Term
Fall 2024
Instructors
Yedidah Koren
Registrar description

We examine the wide array of sources for the study of Ancient Judaism, in Egypt, Palestine, Babylonia, and across the Mediterranean from the 6th century BCE, until the 6th century CE, and the variety of channels by which they were preserved and discovered. Looking back on two centuries of scholarship, we study the emergence of "Ancient Judaism" and its development as a field. We examine ideological and methodological issues alongside major archaeological discoveries, and the way they mutually shaped the field and continue to shape it.