| Halakhic texts relating to this article | |
|---|---|
| Torah: | Deuteronomy 23:3, Zechariah 9:6 |
| Babylonian Talmud: | Yevamot 49a–b, 69a, 78b, 87b, Kiddushin 67b and 73a |
| Shulchan Aruch: | Even HaEzer 4 |
In the Hebrew Bible and Jewish religious law, a mamzer (Hebrew: ממזר, lit., "estranged person"; plural mamzerim) is a person who is born as the result of certain forbidden relationships or incest (as it is defined by the Bible), or the descendant of such a person. Mamzer status (ממזרות, mamzerut) is not synonymous with the traditional western definition of illegitimacy, since it does not include children born to unmarried mothers.[1]