SIPHRA, SIPHRE. – Midrashic commentaries on Leviticus and Numbers-Deuteronomy. Siphra (the book) is a midrash (q.v.) of a preceptive character on Leviticus.
Probably based on the teaching of R. Hijja, it was adopted as a text in the school of Rab (or ABBA AREKA [q.v.], d. 247); hence the title Siphra debé Rab (others, however, believe it is not a proper name but the concept of a schoolbook). Siphre (the book), a collection of commentaries of a halakhic character on various parts of the fourth and third books of Moses, is also called Siphre debé Rab.
BIBL.: H. L. Strack, Einleitung in Talmud und Midras, 2nd ed., Munich 1921, p. 199 SGR.; J. Ziegler, s. V. in Jud. Lex., vol. 403 SGR.