Mevorakh ben Se‘adya

Born in Egypt to a leading family, Mevorakh ben Se‘adya was a prominent fgure, even while his older brother Judah still served as nagid, the local head of the Jewish community. Mevorakh was called a rayyis (chief) already in the 1060s, though this was either because he held some governmental appointment or because he was a physician. He succeeded Judah in 1078 but almost immediately entered into a power struggle with the Jerusalem-based gaon Elijah ben Solomon ha-Kohen. In 1082, Mevorakh was deposed by David ben Daniel ben Azariah. He then fed to Alexandria and was reinstated only in 1094, holding office until his death. Mevorakh likely regained power due to his connections with the Fâtimid vizier and the Jerusalem gaon (head of the academy), by then based in Damascus. Contemporaries commented that Mevorakh was knowledgeable about

Jewish law and the Hebrew Bible; he also served as a cantor.