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512
Nachmanides, Moses (Nahmanides, Moshe ben Nach-
man, Ramban, Bonastrug da Porta) (ca. 1194–ca. 1270)
scholar, philosopher, exegete
Ramban (an acronym of the name Rabbi Moses ben Nah-
man) was a member of a family of rabbis and scholars.
Little is known of his early life except that he was born
about 1194 and went to school in Gerona in CATALONIA.
He was initiated into the KABBALA; studied Christian THE-
OLOGY, the sciences, and MEDICINE; and was an opponent
of MAIMONIDESand the rationalist integration and recon-
ciliation of PHILOSOPHYinto theological thought.
In July 1263, given full freedom of speech, he
defended JUDAISMat BARCELONAbefore King JAMESI of
Aragon in a disputation on the validity of Judaism against
a converted Jew. Well respected at the court and by the
Jewish community in Catalonia, he later refuted the con-
vert’s arguments and his understanding of the rabbinical
tradition on the coming of the Messiah in his Book of the
Debate.In 1265, the DOMINICANSaccused him of commit-
ting BLASPHEMY and of insulting Christianity. Pope
Clement IV (r. 1265–68) granted their petition for pursu-
ing him in 1267. At the age of 70 or older, he had to leave
for PALESTINE, where he reorganized a Jerusalem commu-
nity disrupted by the MONGOLinvasion of 1267 and the
occupation by the crusaders.
A prolific author, Nachmanides also wrote biblical
and Talmudic commentaries, treatises on rabbinic cus-
tom, and homilies or SERMONS. His commentary on the
PENTATEUCHrejected Maimonides’ allegorical interpreta-
tions. His commentary on Job solved the problem of a
just sufferer and a sinner by means of the concept of a
transmigration of SOULS. He benefited while he was in
Palestine from access to the Babylonian and Jerusalem
Talmuds. His few kabbalistic treatises were a commentary
on the first chapter of the Book of Creation and the sec-
tion entitled “Portico of Retribution.” His disciples
claimed to find his kabbalistic ideas scattered throughout
his commentary on the Pentateuch. It was of the most
important kabbalistic books until the appearance of the
Zoharin about 1325. He died at ACREor Erets in about
1270 and is buried at the foot of Mount Carmel.
See alsoHALAKAH; TALMUD.
Further reading: Charles Ber Chavel, Ramban: His
Life and Teachings(New York: P. Feldheim, 1960); Robert
Chazan, Daggers of the Faith: Thirteenth-Century Christian
Missionizing and Jewish Response(Berkeley: University of
California Press, 1989); Robert Chazan, Barcelona and
Beyond: The Disputation of 1263 and Its Aftermath(Berke-
ley: University of California Press, 1992); Jeremy Cohen,
The Friars and the Jews: The Evolution of Medieval Anti-
Judaism(Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press, 1982);
David Novak, The Theology of Nahmanides Systematically
Presented(Atlanta: Scholar Press, 1992); Isadore Twersky,
ed., Rabbi Moses Nahmanides (Ramban): Explorations in
His Religious and Literary Virtuosity(Cambridge, Mass.:
Harvard University Press, 1983).Naples and Kingdom of Naples An important city
under the Roman Empire, Naples was conquered by the
OSTROGOTHSin 493 and then twice more by the BYZAN-
TINESunder BELISARIUSin 536 and 553. Naples remained
under Constantinople’s theoretical authority from 544 to
1137 but gained essential independence in 763, resisting
later attacks by the LOMBARDS, Byzantines, and NORMANS
in Italy. Arab raiders did heavy damage to its harbor in
the ninth century. Naples was a port for coastal traffic but
was less active than nearby AMALFI. It profited from the