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Who knows two hundred seventy-two?

Please cite/link your sources, if possible.

At some undetermined point in the future, at least a day from now, I will:

  • Vote up all interesting, relevant answers.

  • Accept what I consider the "best" answer.

  • Move on to the next number.

In case this is the last entry before Rosh Hashanna: Shanna Tova!

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And if it's not? – msh210♦ Sep 26 '11 at 17:44
1  
@msh210 I guess we'll have to see what my sentiments are on the subject at that later date. – Isaac Moses Sep 26 '11 at 17:45
IsaacMoses, :-) – msh210♦ Sep 26 '11 at 17:47

3 Answers

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Certain numbers in Hebrew are not written in the normal form. 15 would normally be written yud/hey, but because this spells a name of Hashem, it is customarily written tes/vav The same is true of tes/zayin, 16, instead of yud/vav.

The number 272 is also not written in the regular pattern, since the regular pattern would spell a word with a negative connotation. 272 would normally be spelled resh/ayin/bais which spells ra'av meaning "famine." Since the normal way to write this numbers spells a word with a negative connotation, it is written out of order.

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Nice answer: +1. Do you want to post one elsewhere, too? – msh210♦ Sep 26 '11 at 18:09
msh210, you can do so where you want. – Gershon Gold Sep 26 '11 at 18:21
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I was going to write this by 270. – HodofHod Sep 26 '11 at 20:30
Related: judaism.stackexchange.com/q/14079. – msh210♦ Feb 9 '12 at 5:54
up vote 2 down vote

There were 272 delegates to the B'nai B'rith convention in Fresno in June of 1947, according to the Southwestern Jewish Press.

272 is the gimatriya of raev, "hungry", and possibly the number of months someone's life was extended for being charitable, according to Rabbi Moshe Bogomilsky.

Stealing an answer of Gershon Gold's, it was possible to give birth on the 272d day of pregnancy, according to Sh'muel.

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up vote 2 down vote

Per the Seder Olom Zuta from the Mabul till the Dor Haflaga was 272 years.

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