Raphael Ankawa

Raphael Ben Mordechai Ankawa, also spelled Ankavah or Encouau, (1848–1935) was the Chief Rabbi of Morocco and a noted commentator, talmudist, posek, and author.

Biography Born in Salé, Morocco in 1848, he is known to the Jews of North Africa as "Malach Raphael" or the Angel Raphael. In 1880, he became President of the Rabbinical Court or Beit Din in Sale and founded a yeshiva there. In 1918, he was appointed the first President of the High Rabbinical Court of Rabat, Morocco. He published numerous works on jurisprudence, including Karne Reem (Jerusalem 1910), Hadad Vetema (Jerusalem 1978), Paamone Zahav (Jerusalem 1912), and Paamon Ve-Rimon (Jerusalem 1967); some of them continue to be regarded as authoritative.

Funeral and legacy His funeral, on 3 August 1935, was visited by over 50,000 followers. His grave became a place of Jewish pilgrimage. Rabbi Ankawa is survived by hundreds of descendants today, mostly in Israel, France, Venezuela and the United States. Leading Halachic rabbis refer to his books as sources for contemporary Jewish legal works.