A New Source for the Jews of Kaifeng

 

The 1663 stone inscription went missing sometime in the early nineteenth century.  But there were rubbings made by Gozani after 1700.  Leslie, in his appendix of his Chinese Hebrew Memorial Book, found here, located a manuscript in Paris at the Bibliotheque Nationale, Fond Chinois, which was ignored by previous researchers.  These is a list of the names inscribed on the 1663b stone inscription.

The list is interesting for many reasons. It contains the names, and in some cases, the titles of 241 Kaifeng community members:

The first 21 are synagogue officials:

Here, the title manla is taken to mean Elder of the Synagogue.  Is this Leslie's interpretation, or in the Chinese text?  We also have novice and incense and devotion manlas.  Is this the only place were we find such designations?  

Leslie notes (in a note) that Manla Ai Ti at a mosque in Chi-nan-fu dated 1495  was appointed to manage the job of "incense and devotion." Kao Chieh is listed as he ritual slaughter, is this the only place where this position is mentioned at all, or with a name?

In the list of Civil and Military Officials, Scholars and Physicians, we get more complete accounts of Kaifeng Jews known from other sources:

Here is Leslie's note on Chao Yingcheng:

Chao Yingcheng was an imperial envoy to several regions, something not known before, it seems, but Leslie could not find any confirmation of this in Chinese sources.  Did he ever do so? 

Here is the entire list with Leslie's notes:

Leslie tells us that he could not find confirmation "as yet" of the posts of:

24. Chao Chengchi, major in the West Route An-Chou camp, in Kuyuan in Shensi.

25. Cheng Mei, major in the Ping-yuan camp in Shansi

26. Chang Shi-ju, major in the border defences at Shih-men-chai (in Hopei? or Liao-ning?)

28. Li Chungchih, Subprefecture Assistant Magistrate in the Tsang-cho in Ho-chien fu (Hopei)

Given the relative importance of the position of these men, could they not be found in gazettes?

Chao Chengchi is examined by Leslie in his article on the Chao Family in Toung Pao, 53, 1967, 174-175:

Kao Hsuan is on this list as a junior scholar, 1652 kung-sheng.  He is the [young?] man who helped recover waterlogged Torah scrolls in 1642.

Chao Cheng-chi was a major of the Middle Army, Ta-Ling Route, and his role in reviving the synagogue after the Flood of 1642 is noted on the 1663 stone:

I count some 14 Kaifeng Jews as military officers.  Why has this element of the community not been studied.  This is from a book on Chinese civil service exams:

...we should not overlook the place of military examinations as a parallel track in Chinese imperial governance. I will discuss some aspects of these parallel tracks in Chapters 3 and 6, but more focused research on the military examinations since Song times is still needed.

Although my account emphasizes the role of classical thought in the civil branch of Ming-Qing government, the reader should keep in mind unresolved problems with notions of the civil service that follow long-standing civilian conceits and thereby slight the military service in such a definition.

- Elman, Benjamin A.. Civil Examinations and Meritocracy in Late Imperial China 

It seems that this has occurred in the study of the Jews of Kaifeng as well.  Long standing conceits have slighted military service among members of this community.  A scholar of the gazettes would have fertile material with this list.  

Also, what is are these positions: Graduate attached to the Kaifeng Prefectural College, Stipendiary Scholar of the Kaifeng Prefectural College, Official Physician, Graduate attached to the Hsiang-fu District?  Leslie mentions these titles next to men, but does not define them.