R. Jehiel ben Solomon Heilprin (1660–1746) was a Lithuanian talmudic scholar and historian. The son of the rabbi of Sokolov, R. Heilprin studied Kabbalah and, according to legend, performed miracles. He served as rabbi first in Glussk (Bobruisk district), where his compilation of rules and regulations for the hevra kaddisha were preserved in his own manuscript for several generations. In 1711 he was appointed head of the yeshivah in Minsk. His method of teaching the Talmud, contrary to pilpul, caused friction between him and R. Aryeh Leib b. Asher Gunzberg, who was also a rosh yeshivah in Minsk. R. Aryeh Leib later left Minsk, and R. Heilprin was able to continue in his own yeshivah, unhampered, and with the affection of his pupils. R. Heilprin became famous mainly for his historical-chronological book Seder ha-Dorot (Karlsruhe, 1769), which is divided into three parts: a) chronology of events and personages dated from the Creation to 1696; b) the biographies and chronologies of the tannaim and amoraim in alphabetical order; c) the names of Hebrew authors and books, listed alphabetically, up to Heilprin's period. In the first part of this work he made use of stories from the Sefer ha-Yashar and the earlier chronological books, including Zemah David by David Gans, Sefer Yuhasin by Abraham Zacuto, and Shalsft ha-Kabbalah by Gedaliah ibn Yahya. In the third part he used Siftei Yeshenim by Shabbetai Bass; Heilprin copied the list of books from this work with all its errors. The second part, devoted to the history of the tannaim and amoraim, is of utmost importance. Although Heilprin followed Sefer Yuhasin in compiling the list of individuals, the history he wrote was the first modern-type biography of the tannaim and amoraim, being based on original research of the talmudic sources. In the introduction to his book Heilprin discussed the importance of the history of the tannaim to halakhic decisions. Seder ha-Dorot was published a second time (Lemberg, 1858) with comments by Joseph Saul Nathanson, the rabbi of Lemberg. An improved edition of the book with a preface was later published by Naphtali Maskil le-Eitan (Maskileison; Warsaw, 1878). Heilprin also published annotations to the Babylonian Talmud (Vilna, 1880); Erkhei Kinnuyim (Dyhernfurth, 1806), a work similar to a concordance and a new edition entitled Kav Shalom with notes and comments (letters (A-H) was published by S. Z. Adler (Satu Mare, 1939).

דף ד: הקדמת נין ונכד המחבר, ר' יצחק ב"ר שלמה כהנא. הסכמות: ר' יצחק הלוי מלבוב, חעלמא, ט ניסן תקל"ה; ר' דוד "הוא הק' טעבל מבראד", הארחוב, יז מנחם[-אב] תקל"ח; ר' שאול ב"ר מאיר [מרגליות], לובלין, א אייר [תקל"ה], ועמו אחיו ר' בצלאל ב"ר מאיר [מרגליות] מאוסטרהא; ר' שמואל, ווילנא, יז מנחם[-אב] תקל"ח; ר' אפרים פישל ב"ר יהושע, טיקטין; ר' מרדכי ב"ר יצחק הלוי, טיקטין, ט תמוז תקמ"א; ר' צבי לוי בר"ש [הוא ר' לוי יצחק ב"ר מאיר מברדיטשוב. עיין: קרית ספר, שנה כג, תש"ו-תש"ז, עמ' 192-193], זעליחאבי, לג בעומר [יח אייר] תקל"ה; ר' נפתלי הירץ [ב"ר צבי הירש חריף], דובנא, כו תמוז תקל"ה; ר' יוסף ב"ר מענדל, לוסק, [מר]חשון תקל"ט; ר' ישראל כהן ראפפורט, בוחאב ישן, כט סיון תקל"ד; ר' יחיאל, קאוולא, כז סיון תקל"ה; ר' חיים ב"ר שלמה זלמן, דרויא, כו מנחם[-אב] תקל"ד.