Abraham Polak

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'''Abraham Nahum Polak''' (sometimes referred to as A. N. Polak or '''Poliak'''; born 2 September 1910, died 5 March 1970) was an [[Israelis|Israeli]] historian, a Professor at the [[Tel Aviv University]] since its inception, Professor of [[Middle Ages|Medieval]] History and founder of the department of [[History of the Middle East|Middle-Eastern History]]. His main areas of research were [[Jewish history|Jewish History]], [[Arab history|Arab History]], Nations of [[Islam]] and [[Africa]] and the History of the [[Khazars]].

== Biography ==

=== Early years and education ===
Polak was born in [[Ochakiv]], a small city in southern [[Ukraine]], then part of the [[Russian Empire]].<ref name=":0">''Immigration card - Avraham Poliak'' - File no. STC6, archive of The Jewish Agency for Israel, Jerusalem.</ref> There is little information on his early years or his family. In 1923 he emigrated to [[Mandatory Palestine]] with his mother, Miriam Mindel (born Serebreni) and his elder brother, Menashe Polak.<ref name=":0" /> The family settled in the city of [[Haifa]] where Polak also attended high-school between the years 1924-1929 at the [[Hebrew Reali School]].<ref>''Officer's questionnaire form'' - 1953-05-21, IDF archive.</ref>

In 1930 Polak moved to [[Jerusalem]] where he studied at the [[Hebrew University of Jerusalem|Hebrew University]]. Between 1930-1931 he also studied [[Bible|Biblical]] History at the [[École Biblique]] in Jerusalem.<ref>Archive of the École Biblique et Archéologique Française de Jérusalem - 2013-04-13.</ref> Even as a student, Polak published numerous articles in the daily newspaper ''[[Davar]]'', such as: "Israel Under the Crusaders Rule", "How the Land of Israel was Abandoned", "National Minorities in Iraq and The New Arab Literature".

In 1934 he received his MA in "Culture of [[Islam]]"<ref>''Davar'' daily newspaper - "Confirmation Celebration at the Hebrew University" - 1934-12-20.</ref> and went on to write his [[thesis]] on the subject of the ''History of Land Relationships in [[Egypt]], [[Syria]] and [[Land of Israel|Israel]] during the late [[Middle Ages]] and in [[Early modern period|Modern Times]]'', under the guidance of Professor [[Leo Aryeh Mayer]].<ref>A.N. Polak - Introduction to: "''The History of Land Relationships in [[Egypt]], [[Syria]] and [[Land of Israel|Israel]] During the Late [[Middle Ages]] and in [[Early modern period|Modern Times"]]'', dissertation for PhD - Hebrew University, Jerusalem 1940, p. 1. 1940
</ref> He was awarded his [[Doctor of Philosophy|PhD]] in 1936.

=== Publications home and abroad ===
Research articles by Polak often appeared in foreign publications. The first - "National Revolutions in Egypt at the times of the Mamluks and their Economic Causes", was published in 1934 in the [[Paris]]ian magazine ''Revue des Études Islamiques''<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Poliak|first=A. N.|year=1934|title=''Les revoltes populaires en Égypte à l'époque des Mamelouks et leur causes économiques''|url=|journal=Revue des études islamiques|volume=8|pages=|via=}}</ref> and by 1938 three more articles by him were published there. In 1937 he also became a member of [[The Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland|the Royal Asiatic Society]] in London and in 1939 he received the society's award for his research on [[Feudalism]] in the Middle East, which later that year was published in London as a book.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Feudalism in Egypt, Syria, Palestine and the Lebanon, 1250-1900|last=Poliak|first=A. N.|publisher=The Royal Asiatic Society Prize Publication Fund|year=1939|isbn=|location=London|pages=Vol. XVII - 8s. 6d.|quote=|via=}}</ref> In their decision, members of the award committee noted that "Dr. Poliak has set out to write a concise account of the feudal systems in Egypt, Syria, Palestine and the Lebanon...This monograph is of great interest and is full of interesting suggestions and notes."<ref>{{Cite book|title=Reviews of Books - Bulletin of the School of Oriental Studies|last=Heyworth-Dunne|first=J.|publisher=University of London|year=1940|isbn=|location=London|pages=Vol. 10, No. 2, p.532|quote=|via=}}</ref>

In 1941 Polak published the article "The Khazars' Conversion to Judaism".<ref>{{Cite journal|last=|first=|year=|title=The Khazars' Conversion to Judaism|url=|journal=Zion - Israel History Quarterly, published by the Israeli Company for History and Ethnography (with the support of the Bialik Institution)|volume=March–April 1941, pp. 106-112; June–July 1941, pp. 160-180|pages=|via=}}</ref> Up until then, the culture of the Khazars was outside the scope of Polak's research but evidently, this article led him to delve deeper into this topic and in 1943 he published his book ''Khazaria: History of a Jewish Kingdom in Europe''.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Khazaria - Toldot Mamlacha Yehudit BeEropa|last=Polak|first=Dr. Ab. N.|publisher=Bialik Institute by Masada|year=1943|isbn=|location=Tel Aviv, Israel|pages=|quote=|via=}}</ref> In his book, Polak asserted that the Khazars were the demographic foundation of the Jews who inhabited [[Eastern Europe]] in the late Middle Ages and who later evolved into the [[Ashkenazi Jews|Ashkenazi Jewry]]. For this book, Polak was awarded in 1943 the [[Bialik Prize|Bialik Prize for Jewish Thought]] by the city of [[Tel Aviv]].<ref>''Davar'' daily newspaper - "Ceremony of the Bialik Award for 1943" - 1944-01-06.</ref><ref>''Al HaMishmar'' daily newspaper - "A. Kavak and Dr. Polak are the Laureates of the Bialik Award for 1943" - 1944-01-06.</ref> The book was said to be of "...great historic value...which sheds new light on the obscure subject of the Khazars' Kingdom and is important to the history of the Jews and the country".<ref name=":1">Program for the ceremony of the Bialik Award - Bialik House Museum, Tel Aviv 1943.</ref> ('''See "Polak and the Khazars" below''')

=== IDF service and further research ===
Following the formation of the [[Israel|State of Israel]] in 1948, Polak was enlisted to the [[Israel Defense Forces|IDF]] and began his service in the Cultural Services Unit, which later became part of the [[Education and Youth Corps|Education and Youth Corp]]. For 10 years he was "Chief Writer" in the Educational Publications Section and retired in 1959 with the rank of [[Major]]. His superiors described Polak in various evaluations as being "...highly educated and with vast knowledge..." (1952), "an extraordinary man with special skills and talents" (1958), "...a remarkable person in many aspects and one who can not be defined in conventional terms, he possesses a deep intellect and amazing analytical capabilities" (1959).<ref>''IDF archive'' - personal file of Abraham Polak.</ref> All throughout his service, Polak continued to publish numerous books within the IDF publishing center, such as: ''[[Geopolitics]] of Israel and the Middle East'', ''The Naval Potential of the [[Arab League|Arab States]]'', ''The Struggle for the Road to [[Jerusalem]]'', ''Founding the [[Israel|State of Israel]]'', ''Security Forces in the [[Judea]] Region,'' and many more. In 1955 he was awarded the Kugel Award for Literary and Scientific Work by the city of [[Holon]] for his book ''The Bible and the National Social Movements''.<ref>''Davar'' daily newspaper - "The Kugel Award Was Given to Y. Cohen and Ab. N. Polak" - 1955-05-20.</ref><ref>''Al HaMishmar'' daily newspaper - "Awards for Literature and Science Are Given by the Municipality of Holon" - 1955-05-22.</ref>

=== Academic work and international ties ===
In 1955, while still an officer in the IDF, Polak began giving lectures at the University Institute for Israeli Culture,<ref>Davar daily newspaper - "The University Institute for Israeli Culture and Humanities in Tel Aviv" - 1955-11-02.</ref> which a year later was the core of the [[Humanities]] Department in the newly forming [[Tel Aviv University]]. Between 1961-1966 Polak served as Professor of History of the [[Middle Ages]] and founded and directed the Department of Middle-Eastern Studies.<ref>''Davar'' daily newspaper - "The Department of African Studies at the University" - 1961-08-07.</ref> Later on, he also taught in the Department of [[Developing country|Developing Countries]] and devoted his research to the history of Jews, Arabs and other Muslim and African nations.

Polak kept extensive connections with international organizations and was regularly invited to participate in professional conferences all over the world, such as: the International Congress of Historians ([[Stockholm]] 1960), International Congress of [[Oriental studies|Orientalists]] ([[City of Brussels|Brussels]] 1938, [[Moscow]] 1960, [[New Delhi]] 1964), the [[Parliament of the World's Religions]] ([[Calcutta]] 1964) and in numerous events of the World Congress of Jewish Studies ([[Jerusalem]] 1947, 1957, 1961, 1965, 1969).<ref>''Al HaMishmar'' daily newspaper - "The Russian Academy Commissioned Research Work from Prof. Polak" - 1944-01-06.</ref><ref>''[[Maariv (newspaper)|Maariv]]'' daily newspaper - "A Scholar from Tel Aviv Gave a Lecture in Calcutta" - 1964-01-23.</ref> Polak was also a member of the [[International African Institute|International African Institute (IAI)]] in [[London]].

Polak never married or had a family of his own. He died in his home in Tel Aviv on March 5, 1970 at the age of 59. He is buried in Holon Cemetery.<ref>''Maariv'' daily newspaper - "Professor Polak Has Died" - 1970-03-09.</ref>

=== Polak and the Khazars ===
To this date, Polak is renowned mainly due to his book on the history of the Khazars, although his vast research before and after the publication of this book, was devoted to other areas of interest. Late in his life, Polak was to refer to the issue of the Khazars only once again, when in 1969 he gave a speech on that topic at the World Congress of Jewish Studies in Jerusalem.

His book ''Khazaria: History of a Jewish Kingdom in Europe'' was groundbreaking, not only due to the comprehensive approach to the issue of the Khazars, but specifically because for the first time, Islamic sources were used. These sources were essentially unknown to researchers in the west and were uncovered by Polak through his work which was based on [[Arabs|Arab]], [[Persian people|Persian]] and [[Kurds|Kurd]] authors.<ref name=":1" />

In his book, Polak presented two important, albeit controversial assumptions - the first considered a non-Middle-Eastern origin for most of the [[Eastern Europe|Eastern-European]] Jews; the second, saw the birth of the [[Yiddish]] language in [[Crimea]] and not in [[Germany]], as was previously believed.

Initially, the book was well received.<ref>''[[HaBoker]]'' daily newspaper - 1943-04-19.</ref><ref>''[[HaTzofe]]'' daily newspaper - "Khazaria" - 1943-05-14.</ref> The literary critic B. Lobotzki of ''[[HaMashkif]]'' newspaper, wrote:

"The Bialik Institute has given us now the important book about Khazaria. It addresses the issue which everyone knows had a major influence on the formation of Polish and Eastern-European Jewry, but not many took the trouble to assemble the few surviving sources, to pursue them for many years until, behind the fog of myths and forgeries the true character of the Khazars' Kingdom, comes into light. Professor Polak made this thing happen, and performed so diligently and thoroughly. The book itself, the bibliography attached to it, prove the extent of undertaking by the author, who did not neglect any source, and with a unique sense of history knew to find the criterion in which to distinguish between truth and a lie, between fiction and fact, between tradition and folklore".<ref>''HaMashkif'' daily newspaper - "Khazaria" - 1943-04-09.</ref>

''[[The Palestine Post]]'' book review asserted:

"This is the first attempt in any language to introduce the history of the Khazars' Kingdom...a methodical examination of first-hand sources allowed the author to determine that the Khazars' Kingdom collapsed in 1239 and even to conclude that until its downfall, it was a powerful and independent state".<ref>''The Palestine Post'' daily newspaper - "Books in the News" - 1943-05-13.</ref>

Even [[Salo Wittmayer Baron]] and [[Ben-Zion Dinur]], two of the leading Jewish historians in those years, accepted Polak's fundamental assumptions. Prof. Baron declared that "...from Khazaria Jews began to penetrate into the vast plains of Eastern-Europe. This migration occurred both during the peak of the Khazars' Kingdom and during its decline".<ref>{{Cite book|title=Historia Chevratit ve Datit shel Am Israel [A Social and Religious History of the Jews]|last=Baron|first=Shalom|publisher=Masada|year=1960|isbn=|location=Ramat Gan|pages=174–175, Volume IV|quote=|via=}}</ref> Prof. Dinur did not hesitate to confirm that Khazaria was "the origin of the [[diaspora]], the origin of one of the greatest diasporas, the diaspora of [[Russia]], [[Lithuania]] and [[Poland]]".<ref>{{Cite book|title=Yisrael BaGola [Israel in the Diaspora]|last=Dinur|first=Ben-Zion|publisher=Dvir|year=1961|isbn=|location=Tel Aviv|pages=3–5, Volume I (2)|quote=|via=}}</ref>

Nonetheless, these same assumptions which Polak presented in his book, were the target of criticism in various circles because of their possible ramifications on the right of Jews to settle in Israel. As early as 1944, the Jewish historian Aharon Zeev Eshkoli asserted: "I do not know what enjoyment and dignity he finds in our [[Turkish people|Turkish]]-[[Mongols|Mongolian]] descent rather than our Jewish ancestry".<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Eshkoli|first=Aharon Zeev|year=1944|title=Scharcheret shel Historia [Carousel of History]|url=|journal=Moznayim|volume=6|pages=382|via=}}</ref>

Polak's book on Khazaria was only published in three editions - in 1943, in 1944 (including correction of mistakes) and in 1951 with a supplement on the origin of the Yiddish language, also written by Polak.

After his death, Polak's work has gradually faded from public awareness and his book ''Khazaria'' was not printed again in Israel, although since its publication it was quoted in almost every major research on the Khazars worldwide .

The first translation of his book was published in 2015 in the [[Polish language|Polish]] language. For the first time, a biography of Polak was written and a complete bibliography of his books and articles was assembled.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Chazaria Dzieje królestwa źydowskiego w Europie, z hebrajskiego przełoźył oraz przedmową poprzedził Krzysztof Dawid Majus [Khazaria: History of a Jewish Kingdom in Europe, Kshishtof David Majus translated from Hebrew into Polish and wrote the introduction]|last=Polak|first=Abraham Nahum|publisher=Południowo-Wschodni Instytut Naukowy w Przemyślu [The South-Eastern Institute for Research in Przemyśl]|year=2015|isbn=978-83-60374-20-7|location=Przemyśl, Poland|pages=|quote=|via=}}</ref>

== Selected works ==

=== Books ===
* ''Feudalism in Egypt, Syria, Palestine, and the Lebanon 1250-1900''; London 1939
* ''Toldot hayachasim hakarkaim beMitsrayim, Suria ve Eretz Israel be-sof Yemei HaBeynayim vebazman hachadash'' [The History of Land Relationships in Egypt, Syria and Israel During the Late Middle Ages and in Modern Times]; Jerusalem 1940
* ''Khazaria - Toldot mamlacha Yehudit BeEropa'' [Khazaria: History of a Jewish Kingdom in Europe]; Tel Aviv 1943, 1944 (corrected edition), 1951 (corrected edition)
* ''Divrei yemei haAravim mishachar kiyumenu vead ledoroteinu'' [History of the Arabs from the Dawn of Our Existence Until Our Times]; Jerusalem 1945
* ''Yehudei Polin beEretz Israel'' [Polish Jews in Israel]; Jerusalem 1947
* ''Geopolitika shel Yisrael veHamizrach Hatichon'' [Geopolitics of Israel and the Middle East]; Tel Aviv 1950
* ''HaTanach vehatnuot hasotsialiot ba'amim'' [The Bible and the National Social Movements]; Tel Aviv 1954
* ''BeKom Medinat Israel'' [Founding the State of Israel]; Tel Aviv 1955
* ''Eretz Israel BeYemei HaShilton HaParsi'' [Israel in Persian Times]; Tel Aviv 1956
* ''Yahadut Bavel'' [The Babylonian Jewry]; Tel Aviv 1959
* ''Yahadut Sefarad'' [The Sephardic Jewry]; Tel Aviv 1960

=== Articles ===
* "Tachat shilton haTsalbanim beEretz Israel" [Israel under the [[Crusades|Crusaders]] Rule]; ''Davar'' 1930
* ''"''Les révoltes populaires en Égypte á l’epoque des mamelouks et leurs causes économiques"; ''Revue des Études Islamiques'' 1934
* "La féodalité islamique"; ''Revue des Études Islamiques'' 1936
* "Some Notes on the Feudal System of the Mamluks"; ''The Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland'' 1937
* "Yehudei haMizrach haTichon besof yemei haBeinayim (lefi mekorot Aravim)" [The Jews of the Middle-East at the End of the Middle-Ages (according to Arab sources)]; ''Zion'' 1937
* "Agrarian Problems in the Middle East"; ''Palestine and Middle East'' 1938
* "Classification of Lands in the Islamic Law and itsTechnical Terms"; ''American Journal of Semitic Languages and Literatures'' 1940
* "Hitgayrut haKuzarim" [The Khazars' Conversion to Judaism]; ''Zion'' 1941
* "The Influence of Chingiz-Khan’s Yasa upon the General Organization of the Mamluk State"; ''Bulletin of the School of Oriental Studies'' 1942
* "The Dead Sea Scrolls: A New Approach"; ''The Jewish Quarterly Review'' 1958
* "HaYesod HaYehudi she-be-Arviyei Ertz Israel" [The Jewish Element in Israeli Arabs]; ''Molad'' 1965 

== References ==

{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
* [https://www.worldcat.org/identities/lccn-n87873134/ Poliak A. N. (Abraham N.)] in [[WorldCat]]
* [https://www.loc.gov/books/?q=poliak%2C+abraham&all=true Poliak, Abraham] in [[Library of Congress]]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Polak, Abraham}}

[[Category:Israeli historians]]
[[Category:20th-century historians]]
[[Category:Historians of Jews and Judaism]]
[[Category:Hebrew University of Jerusalem alumni]]
[[Category:Tel Aviv University faculty]]
[[Category:History of the Jews in Europe]]
[[Category:Historians of the Middle East]]
[[Category:Medieval historians]]
[[Category:Israeli medievalists]]
[[Category:Historians of Africa]]
[[Category:Historians of Islam]]
[[Category:Khazar studies]]
[[Category:Orientalists]]
[[Category:Khazars]]
[[Category:Judaism-related controversies]]
[[Category:1910 births]]
[[Category:1970 deaths]]

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Abraham Polak