GEIGER

geiger, abraham (1810-1874), jewish theologian and orientalist, was born at frankfort-on-main on the 24th of may 1810, and educated at the universities of heidelberg and bonn. as a student he distinguished himself in philosophy and in philology, and at the close of his course wrote on the relations of judaism and mahommedanism a prize essay which was afterwards published in 1833 under the title _was hat mohammed aus dem judentum aufgenommen?_ (english trans. _judaism and islam_, madras, 1898). in november 1832 he went to wiesbaden as rabbi of the synagogue, and became in 1835 one of the most active promoters of the _zeitschrift fur judische theologie_ (1835-1839 and 1842-1847). from 1838 to 1863 he lived in breslau, where he organized the reform movement in judaism and wrote some of his most important works, including _lehr- und lesebuch zur sprache der mischna_ (1845), _studien_ from maimonides (1850), translation into german of the poems of juda ha-levi (1851), and _urschrift und ubersetzungen der bibel in ihrer abhangigkeit von der innern entwickelung des judentums_ (1857). the last-named work attracted little attention at the time, but now enjoys a great reputation as a new departure in the methods of studying the records of judaism. the _urschrift_ has moreover been recognized as one of the most original contributions to biblical science. in 1863 geiger became head of the synagogue of his native town, and in 1870 he removed to berlin, where, in addition to his duties as chief rabbi, he took the principal charge of the newly established seminary for jewish science. the _urschrift_ was followed by a more exhaustive handling of one of its topics in _die sadducaer und pharisaer_ (1863), and by a more thorough application of its leading principles in an elaborate history of judaism (_das judentum und seine geschichte_) in 1865-1871. geiger also contributed frequently on hebrew, samaritan and syriac subjects to the _zeitschrift der deutschen morgenlandischen gesellschaft_, and from 1862 until his death (on the 23rd of october 1874) he was editor of a periodical entitled _judische zeitschrift fur wissenschaft und leben_. he also published a jewish prayerbook (_israelitisches gebetbuch_) and a variety of minor monographs on historical and literary subjects connected with the fortunes of his people. (i. a.) an _allgemeine einleitung_ and five volumes of _nachgelassene schriften_ were edited in 1875 by his son ludwig geiger (b. 1848), who in 1880 became extraordinary professor in the university of berlin. ludwig geiger published a large number of biographical and literary works and made a special study of german humanism. he edited the _goethe-jahrbuch_ from 1880, _vierteljahrsschrift fur kultur und litteratur der renaissance_ (1885-1886), _zeitschr. fur die gesch. der juden im deutschland_ (1886-1891), _zeitschr. fur vergleichende litteraturgeschichte und renaissance-litteratur_ (1887-1891). among his works are _johann reuchlin, sein leben und seine werke_ (leipzig, 1871); and _johann reuchlin's briefwechsel_ (tubingen, 1875); _renaissance und humanismus in italien und deutschland_ (1882, 2nd ed. 1901); _gesch. des geistigen lebens der preussischen hauptstadt_ (1892-1894); _berlin's geistiges leben_ (1894-1896). see also j. derenbourg in _jud. zeitschrift_, xi. 299-308; e. schrieber, _abraham geiger als reformator des judentums_ (1880), art. (with portrait) in _jewish encyclopedia_. abraham geiger's nephew lazarus geiger (1829-1870), philosopher and philologist, born at frankfort-on-main, was destined to commerce, but soon gave himself up to scholarship and studied at marburg, bonn and heidelberg. from 1861 till his sudden death in 1870 he was professor in the jewish high school at frankfort. his chief aim was to prove that the evolution of human reason is closely bound up with that of language. he further maintained that the origin of the indo-germanic language is to be sought not in asia but in central germany. he was a convinced opponent of rationalism in religion. his chief work was his _ursprung und entwickelung der menschlichen sprache und vernunft_ (vol. i., stuttgart, 1868), the principal results of which appeared in a more popular form as _der ursprung der sprache_ (stuttgart, 1869 and 1878). the second volume of the former was published in an incomplete form (1872, 2nd ed. 1899) after his death by his brother alfred geiger, who also published a number of his scattered papers as _zur entwickelung der menschheit_ (1871, 2nd ed. 1878; eng. trans. d. asher, _hist. of the development of the human race_, lond., 1880). see l.a. rosenthal, _laz. geiger: seine lehre vom ursprung d. sprache und vernunft und sein leben_ (stuttgart, 1883); e. peschier, _l. geiger, sein leben und denken_ (1871); j. keller, _l. geiger und d. kritik d. vernunft_ (wertheim, 1883) and _der ursprung d. vernunft_ (heidelberg, 1884).