11 Facts About Hermann Gollancz

Sir Hermann Gollancz was a British rabbi and Hebrew scholar.

Hermann Gollancz was the first British rabbi to be granted a knighthood, when he was knighted in 1923.

Hermann Gollancz was born in Bremen, Germany, the son of Rabbi Samuel Marcus Hermann Gollancz, who led the Hambro Synagogue.

Hermann Gollancz earned his degree at University College London and started preaching in 1876.

Hermann Gollancz served from 1892 to 1923 as rabbi of the Bayswater Synagogue and was a Professor of Hebrew at University College London from June 1902 to 1924, after which he served as a professor emeritus.

Hermann Gollancz produced a translation of the Hebrew Scriptures "for Jewish families, which adhered 'as closely as possible to the excellent Anglican version of the 17th century' " He translated from Hebrew and Aramaic the Targum to the Song of Songs.

Hermann Gollancz was later named minister emeritus of the United Synagogue and served as president of the Jewish Historical Society of England in 1905 and 1906.

Hermann Gollancz received the accolade from the king at Buckingham Palace on 25 July 1923.

Hermann Gollancz was an advocate for public libraries and helped establish the Mocatta Library at University College, to which he donated thousands of volumes when he concluded his 21 years as Goldschmid Professor of Hebrew.

Hermann Gollancz died in London on 15 October 1930, at the age of 77.

Hermann Gollancz was the elder brother of Shakespearean and English literature scholar Sir Israel Gollancz and the uncle of publisher Victor Gollancz.