Newly Discovered Midrashic Fragments from Germany

Since the start of the project `Genizat Germania` several new and unknown fragments of aggadic Midrashim have come to light in German archives and libraries. The paper will present some of the most recent findings and will evaluate their importance for further research of the textual transmission and history of interpretation of certain portions of these texts. Among the newly identified fragments are pieces of Midrash Bereshit Rabbah, Midrash Tanhuma, and Yalqut. Some other pieces are enclosed in other works and cannot be claimed as independent witnesses of the texts. Nevertheless, they are mirroring the use and importance of certain Midrashic collections in Ashkenaz at the end of the Middle Ages, while other Midrashic writings have not left any notable traces among the thousands of fragments preserved in book bindings and files in Germany alone.