Matrona

The figure of the Matrona appears mainly in classical midrash. The word matrona was a Roman title for a married woman but was also sometimes used as a personal name, so the Matrona’s identity has been the subject of scholarly research and debate. Scholars question whether she was an actual person or a composite type and whether she is meant to be a Roman, Christian, Gnostic, or Jewish woman. It is possible that various texts from different periods in which these stories appear reflect different typological characters, each of whom was called a matrona. The Matrona appears to be a student or patron of R. Yosi ben Ḥalafta and a convenient literary figure through whom the rabbis could ask controversial questions they could then answer. Each of the passages that feature her shows her seeking to understand biblical texts or other issues that may have been the subject of sectarian disputes, such as Enoch’s alleged immortality.