This study explores a famous chapter of university, scholarly and family history, placing it in context for the first time. The Buxtorf family, which originated from Westphalia, held the Chair of Hebrew Language at the University of Basel from 1588 to 1732 a total of 144 years spanning a period of four generations. The Buxtorfs conveyed the methods and findings of Jewish scholarship to the Christian Bible scholars of the time. With their eloquent disputations, the Buxtorfs contributed to the development of reformed orthodoxy in a world undergoing spiritual and theological transformation.

Rudolf Smend, Universität Göttingen.