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{{for|other institutions with the same name|Etz Chaim Yeshiva (disambiguation)}}
'''Etz Chaim Yeshiva''' ({{langx|he|ישיבת עץ חיים}}, ''Yeshivat Etz Hayyim'', lit. "Tree of Life") was an orthodox [[yeshiva]] located on [[Jaffa Road]] close to the [[Mahane Yehuda Market]] in downtown [[Jerusalem]].<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.news1.co.il/Archive/001-D-415177-00.html | title=חשד למרמה בעשרות מיליונים בעץ חיים }}</ref>

==History==
[[Image:Etz Chaim Yeshiva faculty.jpg|thumb|300px|Early 20th century photograph of teachers at the Etz Chaim Yeshiva located in the [[Hurva Synagogue]] complex.]]
[[File:Etz Chaim Talmud Torah, Jerusalem.JPG|thumb|300px|The building on Jaffa Road, 2010.]]
Etz Chaim Yeshiva was originally a [[Talmud Torah]] that was established in 1841 by the [[Chief Rabbi]] of [[Jerusalem]], [[Shmuel Salant]]. For the first two years classes were held in various rooms throughout the [[Old City (Jerusalem)|Old City]]. In 1857, the yeshiva consolidated into a group of buildings adjacent to the [[Hurva Synagogue]], sharing the premises with the [[Beth Din]] of Jerusalem. It was at this stage that the institution was renamed "Etz Chaim Yeshiva." The first permanent home of the yeshiva was financed by Rabbi [[Tzvi Zeev Fiszbejn]] (Fishbein in English), a wealthy brush maker originally from [[Miedzyrzec Podlaski]] in what is today [[Poland]], who donated a thousand [[ruble]]s in silver to Rabbi Salant for that purpose in 1863.<ref>url=http://www.jewishgen.org/Yizkor/Miedzyrzec_Podlaski/mie077.html#Page79</ref>

[[Moshe Nechemiah Kahanov]] led the school from 1867 to his death in 1886 and was as concerned with the progress of his average students as with the gifted.<ref>Rossoff, Dovid. (2004). Where heaven touches earth:Jewish life in Jerusalem from Medieval times to the present. Jerusalem: Guardian Press. Revised Edition. pp. 233-235. {{ISBN|0-87306-879-3}}.</ref>

The head teacher was Rabbi Chaim Mann. His brother Yehuda Leib Mann was the secretary who also served as a teacher. They were the sons of Rabbi Yaakov Mann, who was a prominent scholar who had declined the invitation of Rabbi [[Tzvi Pesach Frank]] to become a [[Dayan (rabbinic judge)|dayan]] on the Beth Din. (He went on to build the [[Sha'arey Tzedek Medical Center]] and the Lemel school). Frank was in turn appointed judge at the recommendation of Rabbi [[Yechiel Michel Tucazinsky]], who was ''[[rosh yeshiva]]'' of Etz Chaim starting around the turn of the 19th century.

As the yeshiva expanded, Tucazinsky acquired a plot of land on [[Jaffa Road]] in 1908 for it, though the yeshiva maintained an ownership claim on the Hurva complex. After the opening of the Jaffa Road location, a [[kollel]] was subsequently established, catering mainly to the alumni of the yeshiva.

After disputes arose between the pupils and the faculty, a permanent agreement was reached by Rabbi [[Tzvi Pesach Frank]], who reallocated the positions of authority.

In 1925, Rabbi [[Isser Zalman Meltzer]] was appointed to lead the yeshiva and Rabbi [[Aryeh Levin]] was made the [[Mashgiach ruchani|mashgiach]]. After the death of Rabbi Meltzer, his son-in-law, Rabbi [[Aharon Kotler]], was appointed ''rosh yeshiva.'' In an unusual arrangement, he held this position while continuing to live in the [[United States]], and visited Jerusalem on occasion. During the periods when he resided in Israel, he delivered fortnightly lectures.

After the death of Rabbi Kotler, Rabbi [[Elazar Shach]] was chosen to head the yeshiva, and he also delivered fortnightly lectures. Some time later, Rabbi [[Yisroel Yaakov Fisher]] took up a position at the yeshiva. A grandson of Rabbi [[Aharon Kotler]], Rabbi [[Zvulun Schwartzman]], has served as one of the primary leaders.

A great-grandson of Rabbi Salant, Rabbi Nissan Tikochinsky, the son of Rabbi [[Yechiel Michel Tucazinsky]], served as head and director of the institution until his death in 2012.<ref>{{cite news|last=Benari|first=Elad|title=Video, Photos: Funeral of Rabbi Nissan Aharon Tikochinsky| url=http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/151653|work=[[Arutz Sheva]]|date=January 12, 2012|access-date=October 11, 2017}}</ref> For many years he traveled to the United States and [[South Africa]] to raise money to keep the institution functioning.

==Threat of demolition==
Although the yeshiva building on Jaffa Road is registered on Jerusalem's List of Protected Monuments, in 2007 the building was under the threat of demolition to make way for shops and offices. The authorities accepted an appeal for the buildings' preservation.<ref>{{cite web
| url = http://www.ladaat.net/article.php?do=viewarticle&articleid=392&PHPSESSID=e1d9be0df6b1b0484ffe9d66d9a56e26
| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070313031042/http://www.ladaat.net/article.php?do=viewarticle&articleid=392&PHPSESSID=e1d9be0df6b1b0484ffe9d66d9a56e26
| url-status = dead
| archive-date = March 13, 2007
| title = The historic building of Yeshivat Etz Chaim will not be destroyed
| access-date = 2007-08-14
| last = '''(Hebrew)''' Shmuelvitz
| first = Yeruchum
| date = January 16, 2007
| publisher = Ladat
}}</ref><ref>{{cite web
| url = http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/119478
| title = Etz Chaim Yeshiva Building Saved from Destruction
| access-date = 2007-08-14
| last = Fendel
| first = Hillel
| date = January 15, 2007
| publisher =[[Arutz Sheva]]
}}</ref>

==Notable students==

* Rabbi [[Shlomo Zalman Auerbach]] (1910-1995)
* Rabbi [[Yitzchak Dovid Grossman]]
* Rabbi [[Yitzchok Zilberstein]]
* Rabbi [[Betzalel Zolty]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* [http://www.etzchaim.co.il/default.aspx?lang=en-US/ Etz Chaim website]

{{Orthodox yeshivot in Israel}}
{{Authority control}}
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[[Category:Orthodox yeshivas in Jerusalem]]
[[Category:Educational institutions established in 1841]]
[[Category:Yishuv]]
[[Category:Words and phrases in Modern Hebrew]]

Etz Chaim Yeshiva - Revision history

imported>Citation bot: Added title. Changed bare reference to CS1/2. | Use this bot. Report bugs. | Suggested by Folkezoft | Category:Words and phrases in Modern Hebrew | #UCB_Category 28/357