Inheritance Rules

Question

Hello.

I am studying Jewish daily life in the Roman era of history and I have a number of questions. I’ll start with my first one here.

How did the inheritance “system” work in this time period? What does the Torah say about it? Was it the eldest son would receive 100% upon death of their father or could they acquire it while he was alive? What if there were multiple sons? Could daughters receive a portion of the inheritance?

Thank you.

Ryan

0

Answers

  1. The Just Ask! - AskTheRabbi.org Team

    In Jewish Law, the inheritance has always followed the same laws. The inheritance is split between the sons of the deceased. There is a special law that if the first born in the family is a boy, he receives an extra portion of the inheritance. For example, if there are four sons the inheritance is split into five equal portions, and the first born takes two portions and the others take one portion each.

    Unmarried daughters would be taken care of from the estate of the deceased. Married daughters did not receive a part of the inheritance because it was assumed that they would benefit from the inheritance that their husband receives from his father. Any father wishing to ensure that his daughters inherited, could do so by writing a stipulation in his will.

    Best wishes from the AskTheRabbi.org Team