Gaon

American  

[gah-ohn, gah-awn, gah-ohn, goin] / ˈgɑ oʊn, gɑˈɔn, ˈgɑ oʊn, gɔɪn /

noun

• Geonim,
  plural
• Gaons
  plural

1. a title of honor for the directors of the Jewish academies at Sura and Pumbedita in Babylonia, used from the end of the 6th century a.d. to about the beginning of the 11th century.

2. an eminent Jewish scholar noted for wisdom and knowledge of the Talmud.

   the Gaon of Vilna.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• Gaonic
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• Gaons
  plural
• Geonim
  plural

Etymology

Origin of Gaon

1770–80; < Hebrew: literally, majesty

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Gaon Geonim

Immigration Services Commissioner Gaon Hart, who oversees the regulation of immigration advisers, said there was "abhorrent abuse of the system" and a minority of advisers were damaging the reputation of the sector.

From BBC ● Apr. 16, 2026

Immigration Services Commissioner Gaon Hart said: "Our message to the public is clear - only use registered advisers, anything else puts you at serious risk."

From BBC ● Apr. 16, 2026

South Korea celebrated snowboarding sensation Choi Gaon as a "miracle girl" and history-maker on Friday after soaring to the country's first Olympic gold in the sport.

From Barron's ● Feb. 13, 2026

South Korean teenager Choi Gaon shocked US snowboard superstar Chloe Kim in the Olympic women's halfpipe final on Thursday as the American missed out on a historic hat-trick.

From Barron's ● Feb. 12, 2026

“So,” he said softly, “it is pilpul. I see you do not like pilpul....Nu, the great Vilna Gaon also did not like pilpul.”

From "The Chosen" by Chaim Potok

The succession of Geonim in the Talmudical schools of Sura and Pumbadita, and particularly the great fame of Saadia, made all the other Jewish communities of the world look to Babylonia as the spiritual centre.

From A History of Mediaeval Jewish Philosophy by Isaac Husik

It is only when no reading satisfies him that he assumes an interpolation or an error, in this event frequently resorting to the Responsa of the Geonim.

From Rashi by Adele Szold

Hai Gaon died in 1038, closing the period of the Geonim after an activity of four and a half centuries.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 11, Slice 4 "G" to "Gaskell, Elizabeth" by Various

Between the middle of the fourth century and the time of the Geonim, we find no information as to the use of letters among the Jews.

From The Book of Delight and Other Papers by Israel Abrahams

The Geonim withdrew in favor of the Rabbis.

From Jewish History : an essay in the philosophy of history by S. M. (Simon Markovich) Dubnow