Dynasties of Jewish Physicians in the Fatimid and Ayyubid Periods

This article discusses dynasties of Jewish practitioners – physicians, for the most part, as well as pharmacists – in the High Middle Ages in Egypt and Syria. Based on reliable Jewish sources, primarily Genizah documents and Muslim Arabic historiographical literature, twenty-four dynasties of Jewish physicians in Egypt and Syria during the Fatimid and Ayyubid periods (1171–1250/60 ce) are surveyed, with a particular focus on five of them in terms of their social and political status within Jewish society and vis-à-vis the Muslim authorities and social elite.