Samuel ben Meir (Rashbam)

Very little is known of the life of Samuel ben Meir, known as Rashbam. He seems to have lived in France (Caen, Rouen) and supported himself as a sheep farmer. He distinguished himself in several intellectual fields, including Hebrew grammar, scriptural exegesis, talmudic commentary, piyyut, and halakhic responsa. Having studied in his youth with his grandfather Rashi and other leading figures, Samuel famously wrote that his exegesis sought to adhere to the peshat (plain sense) of scripture rather than Rashi’s more midrashic interpretations. The precise scope of his talmudic commentary, and even his biblical commentary, remains a matter of dispute. In his grammatical writings, Samuel frequently worked with earlier Andalusi sources.