Gabriel Judah Lichtenfeld

Who was Gabriel Judah Lichtenfeld?

Gabriel Judah Lichtenfeld was a Polish mathematician and author. He was born in Lublin in 1811 and died at Warsaw on March 22, 1887. He was a descendant of Moses Isserles, and, true to the family tradition, showed early ability as a Talmudic scholar. He later became familiar with Latin, German, French, and Polish, and made a special study of philosophy and mathematics.

In the Hebrew periodical "Ha-Shachar", vol. iii. et seq., there appeared a series of Hebrew articles by Lichtenfeld which attracted attention. His reputation was enhanced by his series of articles, in the Polish periodical "Izraelita," on Jewish mathematicians. Lichtenfeld is known also by his polemics with Slonimski on mathematical subjects.

Lichtenfeld was the author of: "Yedi'ot ha-Shi'urim"; "Tzofnat Pa'neach", a critical review of S. Slonimski's "Yesode Ḥokmat ha-Shi'ur"; "Tosefot", polemic against S. Slonimski; "Kohen Lelo Elohim", mathematical criticisms; "Sippurim be-Shir," etc., a collection of poems and rimed prose by himself and by his son-in-law Leon Peretz.