Methods for the evaluation of the chronology of Rashi's commentaries to the Babylonian Talmud

Abstract

Rashi's monumental commentary to the Talmud is among the most constant companions for the student of Talmud. Of the 37 tractates of the Babylonian Talmud, we possess Rashi's commentary to at least 291 tractates, in full or for some significant section. One question of particular interest in the study of the commentary is the stylistic and intellectual development of the commentary. Discussing development, however, requires knowledge of direction, i.e. determining a chronological ordering of the commentaries.2 There are a number of hypotheses, differing in their suggested ordering as well as the criteria proposed criteria for determining said ordering. While some3 have begun to test these hypotheses against the handful of cases where there is internal evidence to the ordering, there is still much to be done to that end. The goal of this study is to present the previous hypotheses, collect the known control data, and provide a data-based assessment of the theories. Hopefully this modest attempt to collect and utilize the available data will serve as an example of which questions can be tested with relative ease, and encourage others to do the same in the study of Rashi's commentary.