David Kimhi was a medieval rabbi, biblical commentator, philosopher, and grammarian.
Background
Kimhi was born in 1160 in Narbonne, France, the youngest son of Rabbi Joseph Kimhi and the brother of Rabbi Moses Kimhi, both also biblical commentators and grammarians. His father died while David was still as a child, and Kimhi was raised by his brother Moses.
Education
Kimhi learned his father’s teachings under the tutelage of his brother and then began to support himself by teaching children the Talmud, the body of Jewish tradition.
Career
David Kimhi's most important work was Mikhlol, consisting of two parts, a Hebrew grammar and a Biblical dictionary. The second, which reveals Kimhi's powers as a lexicographer, is sometimes regarded as a separate work under the title Sefer Hashorashim ("Book of Roots"). Kimhi's works, which include commentaries characterized by rationality and grammatical insight on Genesis, the Prophets, Psalms, and Chronicles, were highly esteemed by Christian and Jewish medieval scholars, and many Latin translations were made of them. They considerably influenced the English translation of the Bible.