The Alexander Romance was translated from different languages into Slavonic and within the Slavic realm enjoyed a long-lasting life from the twelfth to the eighteenth centuries. Translations circulated between different kingdoms and Alexander’s deeds were the matter of the first literary work composed in Old Czech. From various traditions and at different times, Alexander of Macedon was mainly known as a fully Christianised prince, a model to follow, either for having enclosed the Impure Peoples, or for having been able to listen and learn from Aristotle, or even ascend into the heavens. We have more than one Slavic Alexander, and not only due to the source language used. We have as many Alexanders as the political and propagandistic needs of the time required, until the printing press arrived and the Alexander as an explorer became clearly the most popular.

This chapter surveys the main treatments of Alexander in Jewish literature (in Greek, Hebrew and Aramaic), from the Hellenistic period to the Hebrew Alexander Romances and the medieval biblical and Talmudic commentators. Themes discussed include the prophecy of Daniel regarding Alexander and Makedonian rule, the king’s visit to Jerusalem, the analogies drawn between his character and role and those of Cyrus and Antiochos IV, and the value attached to his name and personality by the Jewish community in Alexandria. The Romances tell of Alexander’s adventures with gymnosophists, Amazons, and his wise judgement given to the king of Katzia. Though a hero and sage in Jewish tradition, his aspirations to divinity make him an imperfect role model for the rabbinic scholars.

The Byzantines had direct access to much ancient material about Alexander, and so their view of him, compared to that of other cultures, tended to be more grounded in history. Yet they also continued to develop the Romance tradition in new directions and combined it with parallel Christian interpretations that tied the Conqueror to prophesies made in the book of Daniel and apocalyptic scenarios involving Gog and Magog. These different elements combined in various permutations when the Byzantine historians turned to Alexander in their surveys of world history. Alexander was also invoked in rhetoric that praised the Byzantine emperors, often to show that they had surpassed him, but he was not a meaningful model of kingship for them as he imparted no lessons about how to actualy rule a kingdom.