Why are some rabbis called Rabbi (רַבִּי) and others Rav (רָב) TB Sanhedrin 14

Have you noticed that some rabbis in the Talmud are called Rabbi (רַבִּי) like Rabbi Akiva and some rabbis are called Rav (רָב) like Rav Yehuda? Today’s daf TB Sanhedrin 14 explains why. According to rabbinic tradition semikha (סְמִיכָה), rabbinic ordination, was passed down from teacher to student from generation to generation starting with Moses. Semikha could only be granted in the land of Israel. “Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi says: There is no ordination outside of Eretz Yisrael.” (Sefaria.org translation) The person with Rabbi (רַבִּי) in front of his name was ordained in Israel. Those people living in Babylonia could not be granted semikha; consequently, they received the title Rav (רָב). On the previous daf we learned that three rabbis are needed to grant semikha. The newly minted rabbi may join the Sanhedrin and adjudicate cases involving fines.

The history of semikha is quite interesting. It was discontinued after the Bar Kochba revolt and there was an attempt in the 16^th century to reestablish it. “Once the Jews entered the Land of Israel, semicha was performed only there (Rambam, Sanhedrin 4:6). That is why in the Talmud, sages living in Israel are referred to by the title Rabi whereas those in Babylon are called only Rav. After the Bar Kochba revolt, the Roman ruler Hadrian prohibited semicha, enforcing the death penalty against anyone who conferred, received or even lived in the town in which semicha was performed. In fact, the Talmud relates that Rabbi Yehuda ben Baba was executed for conferring semicha (Sanhedrin 14a).

“In the year 1538, there was an attempt in Tzefat to re-establish semicha. The background of the story was as follows: During the Inquisition, many Jews fled Spain rather than endure forced conversion to Christianity. Among them was a special ten year-old boy, Yaakov Beirav, who fled with his family, became the chief rabbi of Fez at the age of eighteen, later became a member of the Rabbinical Court in Cairo, and eventually settled and opened a yeshiva in Tzefat.

“Of those Jews who remained in Spain, some eventually regretted their public acceptance of Christianity, and many of them came to settle in Tzefat. According to Jewish law they could only attain complete atonement through the auspices of a court whose rabbis had the authority of formal semicha. Rabbi Yaakov Beirav, out of deep compassion for his fellow Jews, whose predicament he understood only too well, sought to help.

“Regarding re-establishing semicha, Rambam wrote, "It seems that if all [meaning, a majority of] sages in the Land of Israel agree to appoint judges and confer upon them semicha, it would be re-established" (San. 4:11). Based on this, Rabbi Beirav ceremoniously gathered all the rabbis of Tzefat, who were the majority in those days, and received semicha from them. He then conferred it upon Rabbi Yosef Karo (the author of the Shukhan Arukh-gg), Rabbi Moshe Terani (Mabit), Rabbi Moshe Galanti and Rabbi Moshe Cordovero.

“Rabbi Beirav then sent an honorary envoy to confer semicha upon the Rabbi of Jerusalem, the great Rabbi Levi ben Chaviv (Ralbach). However, he refused to accept it and rejected the validity of the entire cycle of events. A prolonged disagreement among the great rabbis of that time ensued, without the matter being resolved. In the meantime, Rabbi Yosef Karo gave semicha to Rabbi Moshe Alsheich, who eventually gave semicha to the main disciple of the Arizal, Rabbi Chaim Vital. Because of the protracted debate, over several generations traditional semicha was gradually discontinued. So ended another episode of yearning in the long history of Jewish exile.” (https://ohr.edu/2097)

Obviously the semikha granted by modern yeshivot is not the classical semikha our Gemara is talking about. Today when somebody says I have semikha, it just means they have mastered certain areas of Jewish law like the laws of kashrut.