Joseph Perl

Joseph Perl, with medals awarded for his work in education

Joseph Perl (also Josef Perl; November 10, 1773, in Ternopil – October 1, 1839, in Ternopil), was an Ashkenazi Jewish educator and writer, a scion of the Haskalah or Jewish Enlightenment. He wrote in Hebrew, Yiddish, and German; in 1819, he published the first Hebrew novel.[1] Born and raised in the Austrian province of Galicia shortly after its annexation in the first partition of Poland, he was a follower of Hasidism in his youth. Later, he turned against Hasidism and became a proponent of Jewish emancipation and Haskalah, although he remained an observant Jew. He is best known for his many writings on Hasidism, ranging from critical treatises to parody.

  1. ^ Halkin, Hillel (11 May 2015). "Sex, Magic, Bigotry, Corruption—and the First Hebrew Novel". mosaicmagazine.com. Retrieved 17 May 2015.