Arba'ah Turim
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An important work of Jewish law, composed by Rabbi Yaakov ben Asher Ba'al ha-Turim of Spain (1270-ca 1340). In it, the author traces practical Jewish law from the Torah text and the dicta of the Talmud through the Rishonim.

The Arba'ah Turim (literally: four rows, as on the High Priest's breastplate):

• Orach Chayim - laws of prayer and synagogue, Sabbath, holidays
• Yorei De'ah - laws of shechita, kashrut
• Even ha-Ezer - laws of marriage, divorce
• Choshen Mishpat - laws of finance, financial responsibility, damages (personal and financial), interest

Commentaries on Arba'ah Turim include Beth Joseph by Rabbi Joseph Caro, Beth Chadash by Rabbi Yoel Sirkis and a number of others. The influential work of halacha, Shulkhan Arukh is a condensation of Beth Joseph and follows the basic structure of the Arba'ah Turim, including its division in four sections and chapters.

The original article can be found at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arba'ah_Turim.
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License.