Raphael Levi Hannover

Raphael Levi Hannover (1685 – May 17, 1779) was a German mathematician and astronomer. The son of Jacob Joseph, Hannover was born at Weikersheim, Franconia in 1685. He was educated at the Jewish school of Hanover and at the yeshivah of Frankfurt am Main, and became bookkeeper in the firm of Simon Wolf Oppenheimer in Hanover.^[1] Here he attracted the attention of Leibniz, and for a number of years was one of his most distinguished pupils (including last secretary),^[2][3] and afterward teacher of mathematics, astronomy, and natural philosophy. He also corresponded with Moses Mendelssohn.^[2]

Raphael Levi Hannover wrote: "Luḥot ha-'Ibbur," astronomical tables for the Jewish calendar;^[4] "Tekunat ha-Shamayim," on astronomy and calendar-making, especially commenting on the Talmudical passages on these topics, with glosses of Moses Tiktin.^[5] An enlarged revision of the latter work, with two other astronomical works of his, is in manuscript. The "Luḥot ha-'Ibbur" has been published with M. E. Fürth's "Yir'at Shamayim," on Maimonides' "Yad," Ḳiddush ha-Ḥodesh.^[6] He died in Hanover in 1779.

Jewish Encyclopedia bibliography

• Fürst, Bibl. Jud. i. 362;
• Steinschneider, Cat. Bodl. col. 2127;
• Zeitlin, Bibl. Post-Mendels, p. 135;
• Orient, 1846, pp. 256 et seq.;
• Blogg, Sefer ha-Ḥayyim, p. 324, Hanover, 1867, where a copy of Hannover's epitaph is given.

References

•  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Singer, Isidore; et al., eds. (1901–1906). "Hannover, Raphael Levi". Jewish Encyclopedia. New York: Funk & Wagnalls Company.

1. Schulze, Peter (2002). "Levi, Rafael". In Böttcher, Dirk. Hannoversches Biographisches Lexikon: Von den Anfängen bis in die Gegenwart (in German). Schlütersche. p. 291. ISBN 3-87706-706-9.
2. Benbassa, Esther; Attias, Jean-Christophe; Gisel, Pierre (2002). Europe et les juifs (in French). Labor et Fides. p. 120. ISBN 978-2-8309-1048-3.
3. Schulte, Christoph (2008). "Leibniz und sein 'Schüler' Raphael Levi". In Rudolph, Hartmut. Leibniz und das Judentum (in German). Stuttgart: Franz Steiner. pp. 35–48. ISBN 978-3-515-09251-7.
4. Leyden-Hanover, 1756
5. Amsterdam, 1756
6. Dessau, 1820-21

Further reading

• Brown, Jeremy (2013). "The Eighteenth Century: Jews and Copernicus in the Newtonian Era". New Heavens and a New Earth: The Jewish Reception of Copernican Thought. New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 144–167. ISBN 978-0-19-975479-3.