Joseph ibn Ezra

Who is Joseph ibn Ezra?

Rabbi Josef ben Isaac ibn Ezra was an oriental rabbi of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, descended from Ibn Ezra family of Spain. Brought up in Salonica, he studied under the direction of Rabbi Samuel de Medina, and became head of the Talmudic school there; among his pupils were Aaron Hazzan, Meir Melammed, and Shabbethai Jonah. Late in life Ibn Ezra was compelled to seek refuge in Constantinople, where he was called to the rabbinate of Sofia, and where he eventually died.