Public lifeמשה שרון

Moshe Sharon

Moshe Sharon is an Israeli historian of Islam and Professor Emeritus at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, where he founded the chair in Baháʼí Studies.

born 1937Founding the Baháʼí Studies chairArabic epigraphy of PalestineHebrew translation of Kitáb-i-AqdasAdviser on Arab affairs to Begin

Born: 18 December 1937, Haifa
Occupation: pedagogue, historian, orientalist, Islamicist
Education: Hebrew University of Jerusalem

Moshe Sharon was born in 1937 in Haifa

Moshe Sharon was born in Haifa in 1937 to Avraham and Victoria Sharon. After high school he joined the IDF in 1955.

He studied Arabic language and literature and the modern Middle East at the Hebrew University, earning a bachelor's degree in 1961 and a master's degree in Islamic history in 1964. His master's thesis dealt with Bedouin tribes in the Land of Israel. He did research in London, Oxford, Paris and Dublin from 1965 to 1968, and his doctorate dealt with the rise of the Abbasids.

He joined the Hebrew University faculty and became a full professor in 1990. He also taught Arabic at Bar-Ilan University from 1971 to 1997 and was the first to teach Arabic epigraphy at both universities. In late 1977 he became adviser on Arab affairs to Prime Minister Menachem Begin and resigned in January 1979.

His research covers early Islamic history, Shia Islam and Arabic inscriptions, published in the series Corpus Inscriptionum Arabicarum Palaestinae. In 2005 he published the first Hebrew translation of the Kitáb-i-Aqdas, the holy book of the Baháʼí faith. He chaired the Government Names Committee from May 2012 to July 2025 and was elected to the American Philosophical Society in 2014.

He has stated that peace between Israel and the Palestinians is not possible and opposed the Oslo Accords. He and his wife, Judy, have 6 children.

Moshe Sharon's life in 10 milestones

1937
Born in Haifa.
1955
Joined the IDF.
1964
Earned a master's degree in Islamic history.
1972
Became scientific director of Yad Yitzhak Ben-Zvi.
1977
Became adviser on Arab affairs to Menachem Begin.
1982
Mobilized for reserve duty in the Lebanon War.
1998
Initiated the chair in Baháʼí Studies at the Hebrew University.
2005
Published the first Hebrew translation of the Kitáb-i-Aqdas.
2012
Became chair of the Government Names Committee.
2014
Elected to the American Philosophical Society.

Moshe Sharon served in the military

He joined the IDF in 1955, and in the 1982 Lebanon War he served first in the reserves and then as a career officer, working mainly on ties with the Shiites in Lebanon. He rose to colonel, headed the Arab Affairs department of the General Staff and was discharged at the end of 1984.