Gemara

The Gemara (also transliterated Gemora, Gemarah, or, less commonly, Gemorra; from Hebrew Hebrew: גמרא, Gemarah, from the Aramaic verb gamar, study) is the component of the Talmud comprising rabbinical analysis of and commentary on the Mishnah.

Divisions

The Gemara is divided into six orders (sedarim). These in turn are divided into tractates (massekhtoth) comprising a total of 63 tractates. These, in turn, are divided into chapters comprising a total of 524 chapters including the sixth chapter of Pirké Avoth, which is a later addition. There are two versions of the Gemara. The Jerusalem Talmud (Talmud Yerushalmi) was compiled by scholars of the Land of Israel, primarily of the academies of Tiberias and Caesarea, and was published between about 350–400 CE. The Talmud Bavli was published about 500 CE by scholars of Babylonia, primarily of the academies of Sura, Pumbedita, and Nehardea. By convention, a reference to the "Gemara" or "Talmud," without further qualification, refers to the Babylonian version. The main compilers were Revina and Rav Ashi.

Orders

Order of the Gemara	Translation	Description
זְרָעִים, Zeraim	Seeds	Deal with prayer and blessings, tithes and agricultural laws
מוֹעֵד, Moed	Festival	Pertaining to the laws of the Sabbath and the Festivals
נָשִׁים, Nashim	Women	Concerning marriage and divorce, some forms of oaths and the laws of the nazirite
נְזִיקִין, Nezikin	Damages	Deal with civil and criminal law, the functioning of the courts and oaths
קָדָשִׁים, Kodashim	Holy things	Regarding sacrificial rites, the Temple, and the Kashrut (dietary laws)
טָהֳרוֹת, Tehorot	Purities	Pertaining to the laws of purity and impurity, including the impurity of the dead, the laws of food purity and bodily purity

External links

• "Gemara", Jewish Encyclopedia