ROBINSON, EDWARD°

ROBINSON, EDWARD ° (1794–1863), U.S. Orientalist. In 1830, he was appointed professor of theology at Andover, and later taught in Boston and at the New York Theological Seminary. His travels to Egypt and Palestine in 1837 and 1852 resulted in Biblical Researches in Palestine (3 vols., 1841); Later Biblical Researches in Palestine (1857); and Physische Geographie des Heiligen Landes, published posthumously in 1865 (Physical Geography of the Holy Land, 1865). Robinson's travels initiated a new period of biblical research. He went straight to the Arab inhabitants of Palestine, noting the names of places and ruins preserved by them, and was thus able to identify correctly hundreds of forgotten biblical locations. As his archaeological training was insufficient, he was unable to identify a site correctly if it lacked an Arabic name. By leaving the beaten track of the pilgrims and examining early traditions, he shed new light on biblical topography. He was also openly critical of the topographical studies of Jerusalem and discovered important remains of the Third Wall. He was greatly aided in his researches by his assistant Eli Smith, a local missionary who was thoroughly acquainted with Arabic. Robinson discovered five of the six ruined cities in the Negev, identified Masada and transformed knowledge of biblical Palestine.

bibliography:

H.B. Smith and Hitchcock, Life of E. Robinson (1863); J.A. Bewer, in: jbl, 58 (1939), 355–63; F. Abel, ibid., 365–72; A. Alt, ibid., 373–7; W. Stinespring, ibid., 379–87.

[Michael Avi-Yonah]