Bayla Falk Explained

Bayla Falk
Birth Place:Lemberg, Ruthenia, Kingdom of Poland
Death Place:Jerusalem, Ottoman Syria
Father:Israel Edels
Spouse:Joshua Falk

Bayla Falk [1] was a woman of Talmudic learning. She was born in Lemberg about the middle of the sixteenth century, and died at an advanced age at Jerusalem.

Biography

Bayla Falk was a daughter of the philanthropist and head of the community at Lemberg, Israel Edels, and wife of the well-known Talmudist Joshua Falk, author of the Sefer Me'irat 'Enayim.[2] She moved to Jerusalem after her husband's death in 1614.

Bayla had a strong inclination toward Talmudic studies, and gave some decisions on certain difficult halakhic cases. One of these was that on festivals the festive blessing over the lights should be said before and not after the lights are kindled.[3]

Notes and References

  1. Also spelled Beila Falk and Bella Cohen.
  2. Book: Taitz. E.. Henry. S.. Tallan. C.. The JPS Guide to Jewish Women: 600 B.C.E. to 1900 C.E.. Jewish Publication Society. 2003. 978-0-8276-0752-1. 136.
  3. Landau, Ezekiel. Dagul me-Rebabah to Shulḥan 'Arukh, Oraḥ Ḥayyim. Chapter 12.