Annotated List of Talmudic Figures Known as 'Ben X' or 'Bar X,' and Stories of Ben Zoma (Chagigah 14b-15a)
Some time ago, I noted that there’s a traditional misconception about the formula “Ben X” or “Bar X” always signifying “son of X.” While I won’t lay out the full argument against this idea here (I still hope to revisit it in detail), you can refer to my article on my Academia page, “Ben Bag Bag, Ben He He, and Beyond: Patronymics in Hebrew and Aramaic in Late Antiquity Which Are Not Father’s Names”.
For now, I want to provide a comprehensive list (to the best of my ability), along with brief notes, of people in the Talmud known solely by the name “Ben X” or “Bar X.” This list is drawn from this much larger list of all people named in the Talmud, at my Academia page: “Talmud Personal Names Extracted From Steinzaltz Translation”. That list, in turn, is based on the pattern-matching approach I’ve detailed elsewhere, supplemented by extensive manual adjustments and additions.
Before presenting the full annotated list, I’d like to highlight an intriguing and extended passage about two sages renowned for this type of name. The first story in the passage is among the most well-known in the Talmud. (See also my recent series--final part here--on Bar Kappara and Ben Elasa, two other sages with this style of name.)
Outline
Tales of Ben Zoma (Chagigah 14b-15a)
The Story of the Four Tannaitic Sages Who Entered the "Pardes"
Two questions asked of Ben Zoma: Permissibilty of Castrating a Dog; Permissibility of a Virgin Who Was Pregnant Marrying a High Priest
R' Yehoshua Ben Ḥananya, Ben Zoma and the Limits of Esoteric Comprehension: An Account of Cosmological Interpretation on the Temple Mount
Annotated List of 70+ names of People known Primarily as ‘Ben X’ or ‘Bar X’
Tales of Ben Zoma (Chagigah 14b-15a)
The Story of the Four Tannaitic Sages Who Entered the "Pardes"
The Talmud recounts the story of four sages who engaged with profound mystical secrets, referred to as “entering the orchard" (פרדס - Pardes): Ben Azzai, Ben Zoma, Aḥer (literally: “Other”, meaning Elisha Ben Avuya), and R' Akiva.
R' Akiva warned them not to mistake appearances in the spiritual realm, as saying “Water, water” about what seems like water but is not would be deceitful.
The outcomes for each of the four were as follows:
Ben Azzai: “Glimpsed (at God?) and died”, fulfilling the verse: "Precious in the eyes of the Lord is the death of His pious ones" (Psalms 116:15).
Ben Zoma: “Glimpsed and was injured”,1 likened to one overindulging in honey and vomiting (Proverbs 25:16).
Aḥer (=Elisha Ben Avuya): "Chopped down the shoots" (traditionally understood here to mean that he became a heretic).
R' Akiva: Entered and exited safely.
תנו רבנן:
ארבעה נכנסו בפרדס, ואלו הן:
בן עזאי,
ובן זומא,
אחר,
ורבי עקיבא.
אמר להם רבי עקיבא:
כשאתם מגיעין אצל אבני שיש טהור,
אל תאמרו ״מים מים״,
משום שנאמר: ״דובר שקרים לא יכון לנגד עיני״.
בן עזאי -- הציץ ומת,
עליו הכתוב אומר: ״יקר בעיני ה׳ המותה לחסידיו״.
בן זומא -- הציץ ונפגע,
ועליו הכתוב אומר: ״דבש מצאת? אכול דייך, פן תשבענו והקאתו״.
אחר -- קיצץ בנטיעות.
רבי עקיבא -- יצא בשלום.
The Sages taught:
Four entered the orchard [pardes], i.e., dealt with the loftiest secrets of Torah, and they are as follows:
Ben Azzai;
and Ben Zoma;
Aḥer, the other, a name for Elisha Ben Avuya;
and R' Akiva.
R' Akiva, the senior among them, said to them:
When, upon your arrival in the upper worlds, you reach pure marble stones,
do not say: Water, water, although they appear to be water,
because it is stated: “He who speaks falsehood shall not be established before My eyes” (Psalms 101:7).
The Gemara proceeds to relate what happened to each of them:
Ben Azzai glimpsed at the Divine Presence and died.
And with regard to him the verse states: “Precious in the eyes of the Lord is the death of His pious ones” (Psalms 116:15).
Ben Zoma glimpsed at the Divine Presence and was harmed, i.e., he lost his mind.
And with regard to him the verse states: “Have you found honey? Eat as much as is sufficient for you, lest you become full from it and vomit it” (Proverbs 25:16).
Aḥer chopped down the shoots of saplings. In other words, he became a heretic.
R' Akiva came out safely.
Two questions asked of Ben Zoma: Permissibilty of Castrating a Dog; Permissibility of a Virgin Who Was Pregnant Marrying a High Priest
The Talmud then mentions two questions asked of Ben Zoma, with two questions asked of him
Permissibilty of Castrating a Dog: When asked about the permissibility of castrating a dog, Ben Zoma derived the answer from Leviticus 22:24, which prohibits mutilation of animals in the land, extending the prohibition beyond sacrificial animals to all animals.2
Permissibility of a Virgin Who Was Pregnant Marrying a High Priest: Ben Zoma was also asked about the halakhic status of a virgin who became pregnant, regarding her eligibility to marry a High Priest, who is only permitted to marry a virgin. Ben Zoma responds that she may have conceived from semen in a bath3 (thus remaining physically a virgin despite having become pregnant).
שאלו את בן זומא: מהו לסרוסי כלבא?
אמר להם: ״ובארצכם לא תעשו״, כל שבארצכם לא תעשו.
שאלו את בן זומא: בתולה שעיברה, מהו לכהן גדול?
[...]
אמר להו: [...] חיישינן שמא באמבטי עיברה.
[...]
The Gemara recounts the greatness of Ben Zoma, who was an expert interpreter of the Torah and could find obscure proofs: They asked Ben Zoma: What is the halakha with regard to castrating a dog? The prohibition against castration appears alongside the sacrificial blemishes, which may imply that it is permitted to castrate an animal that cannot be sacrificed as an offering.
He said to them: The verse states “That which has its testicles bruised, or crushed, or torn, or cut, you shall not offer to God, nor shall you do so in your land” (Leviticus 22:24), from which we learn: With regard to any animal that is in your land, you shall not do such a thing.
They also asked Ben Zoma: A woman considered to be a virgin who became pregnant, what is the halakha? A High Priest may marry only a virgin; is he permitted to marry her?
[...]
He said to them: [...] we are concerned that she may have conceived in a bath. Perhaps she washed in a bath that contained a man’s semen, from which she became impregnated while remaining a virgin.
[...]
R' Yehoshua Ben Ḥananya, Ben Zoma and the Limits of Esoteric Comprehension: An Account of Cosmological Interpretation on the Temple Mount
An additional account illustrates Ben Zoma's lack of understanding about esoteric matters. One time, while on the Temple Mount,4 he calculated the separation between the upper and lower waters as the breadth of three fingers,5 interpreting Genesis 1:2 metaphorically.
R' Yehoshua Ben Ḥananya, observing this, remarked that Ben Zoma was still "outside," lacking full comprehension of esoteric cosmology.
תנו רבנן:
מעשה ברבי יהושע בן חנניה
שהיה עומד על גב מעלה בהר הבית,
וראהו בן זומא ולא עמד מלפניו.
אמר לו: מאין ולאין בן זומא?
אמר לו:
צופה הייתי בין מים העליונים למים התחתונים,
ואין בין זה לזה אלא שלש אצבעות בלבד,
שנאמר: ״ורוח אלהים מרחפת על פני המים״ —
כיונה שמרחפת על בניה ואינה נוגעת.
אמר להן רבי יהושע לתלמידיו: עדיין בן זומא מבחוץ.
With regard to the fate of Ben Zoma, the Sages taught:
There was once an incident with regard to R' Yehoshua Ben Ḥananya,
who was standing on a step on the Temple Mount,
and Ben Zoma saw him and did not stand before him to honor him, as he was deep in thought.
R' Yehoshua said to him: From where do you come and where are you going, Ben Zoma, i.e., what is on your mind?
He said to him:
In my thoughts I was looking upon the act of Creation, at the gap between the upper waters and the lower waters,
as there is only the breadth of a mere three fingers between them,
as it is stated: “And the spirit of God hovered over the face of the waters” (Genesis 1:2),
like a dove hovering over its young without touching them.
R' Yehoshua said to his students who had overheard this exchange: Ben Zoma is still outside; he has not yet achieved full understanding of these matters.
Annotated List of 70+ names of People known Primarily as ‘Ben X’ or ‘Bar X’
The transliteration of names into English follows the Steinsaltz translation of the Talmud, which serves as the default translation on Sefaria and is the one I use for all my analyses unless otherwise specified.
For many of these names, where relevant, I note their Wikipedia entry (English or Hebrew), or where there is none, their entry in Heiman’s Toldot (תולדות תנאים ואמוראים).6
Bar Abuveram - see תולדות תנאים ואמוראים/א/אבוברם – ויקיטקסט
Bar Adda Mari - תולדות תנאים ואמוראים/ב/בר אדא מרי
Bar Adda the porter - תולדות תנאים ואמוראים/ב/בר אדא סבולאה
Bar Adda the surveyor - תולדות תנאים ואמוראים/ב/בר אדא משוחאה
Bar Adi the Arab
Bar Ahina - on him, see תולדות תנאים ואמוראים/ב/בר אהינא
Bar Avin - תולדות תנאים ואמוראים/ב/בר אבין (או בר אובא)
Bar Binittos - תולדות תנאים ואמוראים/ב/בר ביניתוס
Bar Deroma - “a Southerner”, see the story about him in Gittin.57a.7-9
Bar Elyashiv - the name of a family, see בר אלישיב – ויקיפדיה
Bar Hamdurei / Hamduri / Hamedurei - תולדות תנאים ואמוראים/ב/בר המדורא
Bar Ḥavu - תולדות תנאים ואמוראים/ב/בר חבו
Bar Hedya / Haddaya / Hadaya - on him, see בר הדיא – ויקיפדיה
Bar / Ben Hei Hei - on him, see בן הא הא – ויקיפדיה
Bar Hinak - see רב הינק – ויקיפדיה
Bar / Ben Kalba Savua - on him, see my piece “The Eight Second Temple Clans in the Schedule of the Wood Offering, Purported Descendants of Families mentioned in Late Biblical Books (Mishnah, Ta'anit 4:5)”, section “The “genealogical scroll in Jerusalem” (Talmud Yerushalmi Taanit Chapter 4, 2:13)”
Bar Kamtza - on him, see my piece “Talmudic Stories Relating to the Destruction of the Second Temple”
Bar Kappara - see Bar Kappara - Wikipedia, and my recent pieces
Bar Kaza - תולדות תנאים ואמוראים/ב/בר קזא
Bar Kidri - a stereotypical non-Jewish name, see Gittin.11a.2
Bar Kippok / Kipof - a famous eulogizer, see my “A Cycle of Five Elegeic Poems in the Talmud (Moed Katan 25b)”
Bar / Ben Kokheva / Koziva - Simon Bar Kokhba - Wikipedia
Bar Leva’i / Liva’ei / Livai - see רבי יהושע בן לוי – ויקיפדיה
Bar Luyyanus
Bar Maryon - תולדות תנאים ואמוראים/ב/בר מריון
Bar Maryon, son of Ravin
Bar Nappaḥa
Bar Padda - on him, see בר פדא – ויקיפדיה
Bar Pedat
Bar Peyoli - תולדות תנאים ואמוראים/ב/בר פיולי
Bar Shatya
Bar Sheshakh - on him, see my piece “Rose Water and Decadence: Rava and the Pleasure-seeking Bar-Sheshakh (Avodah Zarah 65a)”
Bar Shibbetai - a stereotypical non-Jewish name, see Gittin.11a.2
Bar Shirika Panda - the name of a demon, see Shabbat.67a.9
Bar Tit Bar Tamei Bar Tina - the name (or multiple names) of a demon, see Shabbat.67a.8
Bar Tutini / Tutni / Ta’utni - see תולדות תנאים ואמוראים/ב/בר תוטני
Bar Tzartzur - תולדות תנאים ואמוראים/ב/בר צרצור
Bar Tzitai - תולדות תנאים ואמוראים/ב/בר ציתאי
Bar Uva - a famous eulogizer, see Yevamot.103a.10
Bar Yokhani - a massive bird, on it, see my piece: “Gigantic Lettuce Heads, Cedars, and Eggs: Extraordinary Testimonies from R' Yishmael ben Satriel (Bekhorot 57b)“
Ben Arza - on him, see my piece: “Fifteen Named Officials Who Served in Specific positions in the Late Second Temple, in the Context of Late Biblical Books (Mishnah, Shekalim 5:1)”
Ben Avatiaḥ - on him, see אבא סיקרא – ויקיפדיה
Ben Azzai - see the main piece (earlier)
Ben Bag Bag - on him, see Ben Bag-Bag - Wikipedia
Ben Beivai - on him, see my piece: “Fifteen Named Officials” (cited earlier)
Ben Bukhri - on him, see תולדות תנאים ואמוראים/ב/בן בוכרי – ויקיטקסט
Ben Dama, son of Rabbi Yishmael - on him, see תולדות תנאים ואמוראים/א/ר' אלעזר בן דמא
Ben Donai
Ben Drosai / Derosai - on him, see מאכל בן דרוסאי – ויקיפדיה, and the bibliography cited there
Ben Elasa - see earlier in the main piece, and my recent pieces here and here
Ben Ḥamtzan - a nickname, see my piece here: “Pt1 Prophecy, Omens, and Miracles: Shimon HaTzaddik and the Foreshadowing of the Second Temple's Destruction (Yoma 39a-b)”
Ben Ḥavu
Ben Kamtzar - on him, see piece “Honorable Innovations and Selfish Secrets: Contributions and Criticisms in Second Temple Service (Mishnah Yoma 3:10-11)”
Ben Katin - on him, see piece “Honorable Innovations” (cited previously)
Ben Megusat
Ben Nannas / Nanas - on him, see שמעון בן ננס – ויקיפדיה (nanas / nanos is Greek, which can mean “small, tiny, dwarf, midget”, see my piece here, and the etymology in my piece here and here)
Ben Nappaḥa
Ben Netz - an angel; on him, see piece “Pt2 Between Heat and Harvest: The Talmud on Winds and the Timing of Selling Agricultural Products (Gittin 31b-32a)”
Ben Netzer - on him, see Odaenathus - Wikipedia, section “Name, family and appearance”(“son of Nasor.”)
Ben Perata son of the son of Rabbi Perata
Ben Petora - on him, see בן פטורי – ויקיפדיה
Ben Reḥumi
Ben Shelakot
Ben Sira - on his book in the Talmud, see my piece here: Notes on the Seforim Chitzonim - pt.3
Ben Stada / Setada - the purported true father of Jesus, on him, see my piece “Four More Stories Relating to Remarriage (Jerusalem Talmud Yevamot 16:4.2-9.2)”; and ישו (יהדות) – ויקיפדיה, section “בן פנדירא ובן סטדא”.
Ben Tedal
Ben Teima
Ben Temalyon - a demon, on him, see my “Pt2 Debates and Miracles: Logic, Exorcism, and the Repeal of Roman Anti-Jewish Laws (Meilah 17a-b)”
Ben Tzion / Tziyyon
Ben Tzitzit HaKesat - on him, see my piece “The Eight Second Temple Clans”, section “The “genealogical scroll in Jerusalem” (Talmud Yerushalmi Taanit Chapter 4, 2:13)” (cited earlier)
Ben Uzziel
Ben Yasiyan / Yasiyyan
Ben Zaza - on him, see תולדות תנאים ואמוראים/ב/בן זזא
Ben Zoma - see the main piece (earlier)
נפגע (“injured") is traditionally understood here to mean that Ben Zoma became mentally unstable, as interpreted by Steinsaltz in this context.
However, I believe a different interpretation is more plausible: that his monotheistic beliefs were compromised. In other words, his experience was similar to Aher's, though far less extreme. This interpretation seems more convincing for two reasons:
-There is no evidence elsewhere in rabbinic literature suggesting that Ben Zoma was ever mentally unstable.
-It aligns better with the subsequent passage (quoted in this piece), where R’ Yehoshua remarks that Ben Zoma “still" remains "outside" a true understanding of cosmology.
On the halachic prohibition on castrating an animal, see איסור סירוס – ויקיפדיה.
Notably, in many cases, the known personal name is Shimon, which was the most common name at the time. Examples:
(Shimon) Ben Azzai
(Shimon) Bar / Ben Kokheva / Koziva
(Shimon) Ben Nannas / Nanas
(Shimon) Ben Zoma
This makes sense, as first names alone were not sufficient to distinguish individuals. (This was pointed out recently in a discussion forum, see my piece “From Abba to Zebedee: A Comprehensive Survey of Naming Conventions in the Mishnah, Talmud, and Late Antique Midrash”, p. 42 ff. 244, at my Academia page.)