Benjamin of Tudela

Lore & Background

Little is known of Benjamin's personal life, apart from his being a native of Tudela, that he lived during the second half of the 12th century, and that his father's name was Jonah. He is often referred to as Rabbi by non-Jewish sources, although there is no reliable evidence that he was ever one. He set out on his journey from the northeast Iberian Peninsula around 1165, possibly as a pilgrimage to the Holy Land, and may have had commercial motives, such as interest in the coral trade. He stopped frequently, meeting people, describing occupations, and giving demographic counts of Jews in each town and country.

Reader's Guide

Benjamin of Tudela's work, The Travels of Benjamin, is important not only as a description of Jewish communities but also as a reliable source about the geography and ethnography of the Middle Ages. Some modern historians credit him with giving accurate descriptions of everyday life. Originally written in Hebrew, his itinerary was translated into Latin and later into most major European languages, receiving much attention from Renaissance scholars in the sixteenth century. His journeys reveal the interconnectedness and diversity of Jewish communities during this time period. He visited 300 cities, including many important in Jewish history, and gathered information on areas such as China and Tibet. His account of the ruins outside Mosul is one of the earliest accurate descriptions of ancient Nineveh. Although generally regarded as trustworthy, some of his claims are faulted as relying on earlier writers, and there is no consensus among scholars as to his exact route.

Did You Know?

• Benjamin of Tudela's descriptions of western Asia preceded those of Marco Polo by a hundred years.
• He visited over 300 cities and described a Jewish community in 'Kush' (often identified with Abyssinia/Ethiopia), though the account is brief.
• His account of the ruins outside Mosul is one of the earliest accurate descriptions of the site of ancient Nineveh.
• A street in Jerusalem's Rehavia neighborhood, Rehov Binyamin Mitudela, is named after him.