Chazal is an acronym for Chkhameinu Zikhronam Liv’rakha (חכמינו זכרונם לברכה) which means “Our Sages, may their memory be blessed”. This term is used to refer to the Sages of the Mishnah and Talmud and other rabbinic commentators from the end of the Second Temple until the sixth century CE. The groups of Sages that are referred to as “Chazal” include: Zugot, Tannaim, Amoraim, and (according to some scholars) Savoraim. The “post-Chazal” Sages include: Gaonim, Rishonim, and Acharonim.

Zugot (זוגות) refers to the time of the Second Temple period (515 BCE – 70 CE) when the Jewish people were under the guidance of five successive generations of zugot (pairs) of religious teachers.

Tannaim (תנאים) were rabbinic sages during the Mishnaic period (70-200 CE). The Taanaim were the teachers of the Oral Torah which was passed on from teacher to student. According to Jewish tradition, the Taanaim were the last generation of the oral teachers that began with Moses.

The Amoraim (אמוראים) lived after the destruction of the Second Temple (200-500 CE) in Babylonia and the Land of Israel. The legal discussion and debates of the Amoraim were eventually codified in the Gemara.

The Savoraim (סבוראים) were leading rabbis that lived from the end of the Amoraim period to the beginning of the Geonim era (500-700 CE). The Savoraim played a role in giving the Talmud its current structure. Modern scholars equate the Savoraim with the unattributed statements that are in the Gemara.

The Gaonim (גאונים) were leaders of the two Babylonian Talmudic Academies of Sura and Pumbedita. They were the generally accepted leaders of the Jewish community in the early medieval era (700-1000 CE). They played a prominent role in the transmission of Torah and halakhah. They were also decisors of halakhah – ruling on issues that had not been rendered on during the Talmudic period.

The Rishonim (ראשונים) were the leading Sages and Poskim (halakhik decisors) before the writing of the Shulkhan Arukh (1000-1563 CE).

The Acharonim (אחרונים) are the leading Sages and Poskim who from the publication of the Shulkhan Arukh (1563) to today.

Rabbi Yehudah HaNasi
(Rabbeinu HaKadosh, Rabbi, Judah the Prince)

Born: c. 135 (Israel)
Died: c. 200 (Israel)
Teacher(s): His father, Rabbi Yehudah ben Ilai, Rabbi Yaakov ben Kurshai, Rabbi Elazar ben Shamua, and Rabbi Yosi ben Chalafta
Writing(s): Editor of the Mishnah in its final form
Miscellaneous: He founded a Torah Academy in Sh'faram, Israel.