Jacob Ḥagiz

In his youth, Jacob ben Samuel Ḥagiz lived in various Italian communities. In 1658, he left for Jerusalem where he became head of a yeshiva established and funded by the Vega brothers from Leghorn (Livorno), which taught secular subjects and Spanish as well as Torah study. In addition to his religious studies, Ḥagiz was interested in philosophy, astronomy, medicine, and grammar. He was responsible for a number of takkanot (communal regulations) in Jerusalem, mainly regarding divorces. Ḥagiz was a severe critic of Shabbetai Tzvi and was among those who excommunicated Tzvi in 1665. In 1673, Ḥagiz left for Constantinople with the intention of printing his work Leḥem ha-panim (The Shewbread). However, he died before accomplishing this. In addition to his commentary on the Mishnah, ‘Ets ḥayim (The Tree of Life), Ḥagiz wrote responsa and talmudic works, produced an adapted version of ‘En Ya‘akov (The Well of Jacob), and translated Isaac Aboab’s Menorat ha-ma’or (The Lamp of Light) into Spanish.