A Hidden Delight: in memory of my father and teacher, the late Prof. Yaacov Choueka

Abstract

The late Professor Choueka founded Genazim, the computation unit of the Friedberg Genizah Project (FGP) and headed it for over ten years (2005-2016). He was the spirit, the catalyst, and the architect of the FGP, and was responsible for the digitization of the Cairo Genizah manuscripts. This enterprise revolutionized the research field of Jewish studies. The treasures of culture and knowledge stored in the Genizah, which in the past were known to only a handful of scholars, have become accessible to a wide audience of scholars and, in fact, to anyone who is interested. The late Professor Choueka also helped shape the character and availability of the online version of Ginzei Qedem and published important articles here. His important life’s work is reviewed in this issue by his son, Dr. Aharon Choueka, in the article that opens the volume.