In 1921, he immigrated to Palestine and from 1923 to 1948 served as a teacher and later as head of the Jewish Teachers' Training College, Jerusalem. In 1936, he was appointed lecturer in modern Jewish history at the Hebrew University and became professor in 1948 and professor emeritus in 1952.
Dinur advocated for a global historical approach to Jewish history and authored "The History of Israel from Its Early Days to Our Times". He also compiled the monumental work "Israel in the Exile" (1961–1966, originally Yisrael ba-gola),[2] encompassing the history of the Jewish people up to the era of the Black Death. His pioneering research focused on community life, encompassing family, marriage, household arrangements, Torah and wisdom, beliefs, scholarly perspectives, burial practices, and festivals. Additionally, Dinur delved into interrelations between Jews, non-Jews, anusim, meshumadim and proselytes. He supplemented his works with responsa, illustrations, photographs, manuscripts, and legal details. Moreover, Dinur explored various Jewish streams, internal disputes, persecutions, religious debates between Jews and Christians, and messianic movements.
As a historian he described Zionism in the diaspora as "a huge river into which flowed all the smaller streams and tributaries of the Jewish struggle down the ages",[3] and tracing its origins to 1700, when history records a first wave of Polish Jews emigrating to Jerusalem.[4] He believed "messianic ferment" played a crucial role in Jewish history,[5] and introduced the idea of mered hagalut ("Revolt of the Diaspora").[6]
His most notable historical works include "Israel in Its Land" and "Israel in Exile". He also authored two autobiographical books detailing his life against the backdrop of his era: "In a Sunken World" and "In Days of War and Revolution".
Political career and public office
He was elected to the first Knesset on the Mapai list and served as Minister of Education and Culture in the third to sixth governments (1951 to 1955), when he was responsible for the 1953 State Education Law, which put an end to the prevailing party "trend" education system.
From 1953 to 1959 he was president of Yad Vashem.[7]
Awards and recognition
Dinur was twice a recipient of the Israel Prize, which was established at his initiative[6] when he was Minister of Education: