Scienceאהרן דמסקי

Aaron Demsky

Aaron Demsky is an Israeli historian and epigrapher at Bar-Ilan University, known for his work on Jewish names and on literacy in ancient Israel.

born 1938Study of Jewish namesLiteracy in ancient IsraelHistory of the alphabet2014 Bialik Prize

Born: 23 December 1938, Brooklyn
Occupation: epigrapher, historian, university teacher
Education: Columbia University

Aaron Demsky was born in 1938 in Brooklyn

Aaron Demsky was born in Brooklyn, New York, on December 23, 1938. He grew up and was educated in the United States and moved to Israel in 1965. He lives in Efrat, is married to Rivka, and their son Noam Demsky makes documentary films.

He studied Bible, rabbinic literature and Jewish history in the United States, earning degrees from Columbia University and the Jewish Theological Seminary of America. He completed his doctorate at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in 1977, under Benjamin Mazar and Abraham Malamat.

Demsky taught in the department of Jewish history at Bar-Ilan University from 1968 until he retired in 2007. His research covers the history of the alphabet, ancient scribes and education, biblical genealogies and the historical geography of the Land of Israel. He served as epigrapher at digs including Tel Shiloh and Tell es-Safi.

In 1991 he founded a project at Bar-Ilan University for the study of Jewish names. In 2014 he received the Bialik Prize for his book on literacy in ancient Israel.