Ḥayyim ben Jehiel Ḥefeẓ Zahav
ḤAYYIM BEN JEHIEL ḤEFEẒ ZAHAV
ḤAYYIM BEN JEHIEL ḤEFEẒ ZAHAV (13th century), German talmudist. Ḥayyim studied under his father and under *Samuel of Evreux. Many of his responsa are included in the responsa of *Meir b. Baruch of Rothenburg (ed. by M. Bloch, 1895, nos. 188–9, 209, 241, 249, 296–8, 339–41, 355–6, 382–3, 461–3). In a responsum (no. 241) he affirms that he filled the post of "emissary of Kolonia," probably Cologne. It has been therefore assumed by some that he was a member of the Cologne bet din and represented the community before the government. He was probably given the appellation "Ḥefeẓ Zahav" because of his book bearing this title, but from the endings of many of the responsa (nos. 189, 241, 339) it can also be deduced that his father was the author of the book. It appears that Ḥayyim was a colleague of Samuel b. Menahem, the teacher of Meir of Rothenburg, since in one responsum (no. 188) he refers to him as "my associate." This Ḥayyim is not to be identified with Ḥayyim b. Jehiel, the brother of *Asher b. Jehiel.
bibliography:
Michael, Or, no. 876; H. Gross, in: mgwj, 34 (1885), 313f.; Germ Jud, 1 (1934), 151, 484; 2 (1968), index; I. Agus, Rabbi Meir of Rothenburg, 1 (1947), xxvi, 106, 129, 131, 146–8, 160f.
[Yehoshua Horowitz]