Yalkut

Yalkut is a Hebrew term meaning collection or anthology and is used in Jewish bibliographic titles for compendia that compile midrashic or homiletic material on the Hebrew Bible. The most famous Yalkut is Yalkut Shimoni, a medieval compilation of Midrash on the Tanakh, typically dated to the 13th century and attributed to an anonymous compiler, possibly from the Rhineland or northern France.

Yalkut Shimoni presents excerpts from earlier rabbinic literature, including midrashim and aggadah, arranged largely in the order of the biblical text. It draws on sources such as the Talmud, Midrash Rabbah, Sifra, Sifre, and other rabbinic works, linking verses to a wide range of interpretive readings. The collection is not a halachic code but a literary and exegetical work that preserves a broad spectrum of rabbinic interpretation and narrative material.

Scholars value Yalkut Shimoni as a major conduit of earlier interpretive traditions into later periods and as a resource for understanding how biblical verses were read and taught in medieval Jewish communities. Its influence extends through later exegetical and literary works, and it is frequently cited in scholarly and rabbinic contexts for its abundant citations and cross-references. There are other compendia that bear the name Yalkut, used for various collections of interpretations or commentaries, but Yalkut Shimoni stands as the best-known and most widely studied example.

In summary, Yalkut denotes a collection of rabbinic interpretation on the Bible, with Yalkut Shimoni serving as the principal and most influential medieval specimen, shaping how biblical texts were read and taught in subsequent Jewish tradition.