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PLACZEK, ABRAHAM – Austrian rabbi; born at-Prerau Jan., 1799; died at Boskowitz Dec. 10, 1884. In 1827 he became rabbi in his native city, and from 1832 to 1840 he officiated at Weisskirchen, in Moravia, whence he was called to Boskowitz. In Oct.,...
PLACZEK, BARUCH JACOB – Austrian rabbi; born at Weisskirchen, Moravia, Oct. 1, 1835; son and successor of Abraham Placzek. In 1858 he founded a high school at Hamburg, and two years later was called to Brünn. Since 1884 he has been styled...
PLAGUE – Biblical Data: Word which is used in the English versions of the Bible as a rendering of several Hebrew words, all closely related in meaning. These are: (1) "Maggefah" (a striking, or smiting): Used in a general way of the...
PLANTS – In the Bible: The following names of plants and plant materials are found in the Old Testament:[The plant-names in this table follow the order of the Hebrew alphabet, but are transliterated according to the system adopted by The...
PLATON (PLAṬYON) OF ROME – Scholar of the second century C.E. Like Todos (Theodorus) the Roman, his probable contemporary, Platon sought to inspire his persecuted coreligionists with resignation and steadfastness, reminding them that others had suffered...
PLEDGES – The law against taking pledges for debt is drawn from the following passages: "No man shall take the mill or the upper millstone to pledge: for he taketh a man's life to pledge" (Deut. xxiv. 6, R. V.), "nor [shall he] take the...
PLEIADES – The word "Kimah," which occurs in three passages in the Bible (Job ix. 9, xxxviii. 31, and Amos v. 8), each time in connection with Orion, is translated by the Septuagint once by Πλειάδα (Job xxxviii. 31); and Aquila, who...
PLESSNER, ELIAS – German rabbi; son of Solomon Plessner; born Feb. 19, 1841, at Berlin; died at Ostrowo March 30, 1898. He studied at the University of Berlin, and received his degree as Ph.D. from the University of Tübingen (1870). In 1871 he...
PLESSNER, SOLOMON – Becomes Eminent as a Preacher. German preacher and Bible commentator; born at Breslau April 23, 1797; died at Posen Aug. 28, 1883. Having lost his father when very young, Plessner had to support his mother and himself. He...
PLETSCH, SOLOMON – German physician of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries; a native of Regensburg. Pletsch was in 1394 appointed city surgeon of Frankfort-on-the-Main with a salary of 36 gulden per year. Besides, the city furnished him with...
PLOCK (PLOTZK) – Government in Russian Poland, with a Jewish population (1897) of 50,473 (in a total population of 553,094), which is the smallest Jewish population of any government in the Pale of Settlement.The most important of the district...
PLOTKE, JULIUS – German lawyer and communal worker; born at Borek, province of Posen, Oct. 5, 1857; died at Frankfort-on-the-Main Sept. 27, 1903. Having finished his studies at the gymnasium at Krotoschin and the University of Berlin, he...
PLOWING – No description of the plow ("maḥareshet") is found in the Bible; but it may be assumed with certainty that the implement resembled, on the whole, the very simple plow which is still used by the fellahs of Palestine. It consists...
PLUM – See Peach.
PLUNGIAN – Old town in the government of Kovno, district of Telshi, Russia. Among the earlier rabbis of Plungian were Jacob b. Ẓebi, a resident of Grodno, who gave his approbation to his younger brother's work, "Ohole Yehudah" (Jessnitz,...
PLUNGIAN (PLUNGIANSKI), MORDE-CAI (MARCUS) – Russian Hebraist and author; born at Plungian, in the government of Wilna, 1814; died at Wilna Nov. 28, 1883. He was a descendant of Mordecai Jaffe, author of the "Lebushim." While still young Plungian became a Talmudist of high...
PLYMOUTH – Seaport in the county of Devon, England; one of the principal ports of that country. A few Jewish families were living there in 1740. Among the synagogue deeds is a lease of a garden, dated 1752, the signature to which is...
POBYEDONOSTZEV – See Russia.
POCHOWITZER (PUCHOWITZER), JU-DAH LÖB BEN JOSEPH – Russian rabbi and preacher; flourished at Pinsk in the latter part of the seventeenth century; died in Palestine, whither he went before 1681. He was the author of: "Ḳench Ḥokmah" (Frankfort-on-the-Oder, 1681), a work consisting...
POCOCK, EDWARD – English Christian Orientalist and theologian; born at Oxford Nov. 8, 1604; died there Sept. 12, 1691. He studied Oriental languages at Oxford and elsewhere; was chaplain of the English "Turkey Merchants" in Aleppo from 1630 to...
PODIEBRAD, DAVID – Austrian writer; born in 1816; died Aug. 2, 1882. He received his education in the yeshibah of Prague and by private tuition. He was especially interested in the history of the Jews in Prague, where for thirty years he occupied...
PODIVIN – See Kostel.
PODOLIA – Government in southwestern Russia, on the Austrian frontier (Galicia). It is a center of many important events in the history of the Russian Jews. Polish and Russian documents of 1550 mention Jewish communities in Podolia, but...
POETRY – Biblical: The question whether the literature of the ancient Hebrews includes portions that may be called poetry is answered by the ancient Hebrews themselves. A distinction between different classes of writings is evident in...
POGGETTI, JACOB (JOSEPH) B. MOR-DECAI – Italian Talmudist and writer on religious ethics; born at Asti, Piedmont; flourished in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. His only known work is "Ḳiẓẓur Reshit Ḥokmah" (Venice, 1600; Cracow, 1667; Amsterdam, 1725;...

PLACZEK, ABRAHAM – Austrian rabbi; born at-Prerau Jan., 1799; died at Boskowitz Dec. 10, 1884. In 1827 he became rabbi in his native city, and from 1832 to 1840 he officiated at Weisskirchen, in Moravia, whence he was called to Boskowitz. In Oct.,...

PLACZEK, BARUCH JACOB – Austrian rabbi; born at Weisskirchen, Moravia, Oct. 1, 1835; son and successor of Abraham Placzek. In 1858 he founded a high school at Hamburg, and two years later was called to Brünn. Since 1884 he has been styled...

PLAGUE – Biblical Data: Word which is used in the English versions of the Bible as a rendering of several Hebrew words, all closely related in meaning. These are: (1) "Maggefah" (a striking, or smiting): Used in a general way of the...

PLANTS – In the Bible: The following names of plants and plant materials are found in the Old Testament:[The plant-names in this table follow the order of the Hebrew alphabet, but are transliterated according to the system adopted by The...

PLATON (PLAṬYON) OF ROME – Scholar of the second century C.E. Like Todos (Theodorus) the Roman, his probable contemporary, Platon sought to inspire his persecuted coreligionists with resignation and steadfastness, reminding them that others had suffered...

PLEDGES – The law against taking pledges for debt is drawn from the following passages: "No man shall take the mill or the upper millstone to pledge: for he taketh a man's life to pledge" (Deut. xxiv. 6, R. V.), "nor [shall he] take the...

PLEIADES – The word "Kimah," which occurs in three passages in the Bible (Job ix. 9, xxxviii. 31, and Amos v. 8), each time in connection with Orion, is translated by the Septuagint once by Πλειάδα (Job xxxviii. 31); and Aquila, who...

PLESSNER, ELIAS – German rabbi; son of Solomon Plessner; born Feb. 19, 1841, at Berlin; died at Ostrowo March 30, 1898. He studied at the University of Berlin, and received his degree as Ph.D. from the University of Tübingen (1870). In 1871 he...

PLESSNER, SOLOMON – Becomes Eminent as a Preacher. German preacher and Bible commentator; born at Breslau April 23, 1797; died at Posen Aug. 28, 1883. Having lost his father when very young, Plessner had to support his mother and himself. He...

PLETSCH, SOLOMON – German physician of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries; a native of Regensburg. Pletsch was in 1394 appointed city surgeon of Frankfort-on-the-Main with a salary of 36 gulden per year. Besides, the city furnished him with...

PLOCK (PLOTZK) – Government in Russian Poland, with a Jewish population (1897) of 50,473 (in a total population of 553,094), which is the smallest Jewish population of any government in the Pale of Settlement.The most important of the district...

PLOTKE, JULIUS – German lawyer and communal worker; born at Borek, province of Posen, Oct. 5, 1857; died at Frankfort-on-the-Main Sept. 27, 1903. Having finished his studies at the gymnasium at Krotoschin and the University of Berlin, he...

PLOWING – No description of the plow ("maḥareshet") is found in the Bible; but it may be assumed with certainty that the implement resembled, on the whole, the very simple plow which is still used by the fellahs of Palestine. It consists...

PLUM – See Peach.

PLUNGIAN – Old town in the government of Kovno, district of Telshi, Russia. Among the earlier rabbis of Plungian were Jacob b. Ẓebi, a resident of Grodno, who gave his approbation to his younger brother's work, "Ohole Yehudah" (Jessnitz,...

PLUNGIAN (PLUNGIANSKI), MORDE-CAI (MARCUS) – Russian Hebraist and author; born at Plungian, in the government of Wilna, 1814; died at Wilna Nov. 28, 1883. He was a descendant of Mordecai Jaffe, author of the "Lebushim." While still young Plungian became a Talmudist of high...

PLYMOUTH – Seaport in the county of Devon, England; one of the principal ports of that country. A few Jewish families were living there in 1740. Among the synagogue deeds is a lease of a garden, dated 1752, the signature to which is...

POBYEDONOSTZEV – See Russia.

POCHOWITZER (PUCHOWITZER), JU-DAH LÖB BEN JOSEPH – Russian rabbi and preacher; flourished at Pinsk in the latter part of the seventeenth century; died in Palestine, whither he went before 1681. He was the author of: "Ḳench Ḥokmah" (Frankfort-on-the-Oder, 1681), a work consisting...

POCOCK, EDWARD – English Christian Orientalist and theologian; born at Oxford Nov. 8, 1604; died there Sept. 12, 1691. He studied Oriental languages at Oxford and elsewhere; was chaplain of the English "Turkey Merchants" in Aleppo from 1630 to...

PODIEBRAD, DAVID – Austrian writer; born in 1816; died Aug. 2, 1882. He received his education in the yeshibah of Prague and by private tuition. He was especially interested in the history of the Jews in Prague, where for thirty years he occupied...

PODIVIN – See Kostel.

PODOLIA – Government in southwestern Russia, on the Austrian frontier (Galicia). It is a center of many important events in the history of the Russian Jews. Polish and Russian documents of 1550 mention Jewish communities in Podolia, but...

POETRY – Biblical: The question whether the literature of the ancient Hebrews includes portions that may be called poetry is answered by the ancient Hebrews themselves. A distinction between different classes of writings is evident in...

POGGETTI, JACOB (JOSEPH) B. MOR-DECAI – Italian Talmudist and writer on religious ethics; born at Asti, Piedmont; flourished in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. His only known work is "Ḳiẓẓur Reshit Ḥokmah" (Venice, 1600; Cracow, 1667; Amsterdam, 1725;...