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How many halachot are detailed in the Mishneh Torah?

To clarify, I am interested in the counting of the author's (i.e. if the Mishneh Torah details two rules under one halacha that counts as one and not two).

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  • 1
    Note that there are differing numbering schemes for Mishne Tora. But I guess any answer can say which scheme it's using.
    – msh210 ♦
    Commented Dec 29, 2013 at 6:13
  • As far as I can tell there is only one numbering scheme. Though he uses the word Halachah to refer to both a group of halachot, and individual halachot. I am curious in the total number of indidvidual ones.
    – avi
    Commented Dec 29, 2013 at 6:16
  • 1
    There seem to be at least two numbering schemes. The only way I know this is from the Mechon Mamre site, which breaks up the Mishne Tora two ways. E.g.
    – msh210 ♦
    Commented Dec 29, 2013 at 6:18
  • 1
    Indeed mechon-mamre explains that, although fully confident that the versions of texts they have based upon manuscripts are correct, they include the conventional numbering in brackets. See the bottom of this page.
    – WAF
    Commented Dec 29, 2013 at 14:37
  • 3
    This seems off-topic
    – Lee
    Commented Jun 15, 2017 at 9:54

2 Answers 2

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+200

According to Mechon Mamre:

TL;DR

TOTAL - 16,818 (+ 104)

  1. Hamada` - 725
  2. Ahavah - 730 (+ 63)
  3. Zemanim - 1,738 (+ 41)
  4. Nashim - 1,207
  5. Qedushah - 1,140
  6. Hafla'ah - 820
  7. Zera`im - 1,582
  8. `Avodah - 1,537
  9. Haqorbanot - 651
  10. Taharah - 2,317
  11. Nezaqim - 993
  12. Qinyan - 1,191
  13. Mishpattim - 1,141
  14. Shofettim - 1,046
  1. Hamada` - 725
    • Yesode'i HaTorah - 140
    • De`ot - 130
    • Talmud Torah - 107
    • `Avodah Zarah Wehuqot Hagoyim - 218
    • Teshuvah - 130
  2. Ahavah - 730 (+ 63)
    • Qer'iat Shema` - 58
    • Tefillah U'birkat Kohanim - 253
    • Tefillin U'mezuzah Wesefer Torah - 162
    • Zizit - 40
    • Berakhot - 180
    • Milah - 37
    • (Seder Hatefillah - 63)
  3. Zemanim - 1,738 (+ 41)
    • Shabbat - 665
    • `E'iruvin - 165
    • Shevitat `Asor - 28
    • Shevitat Yom Tov - 178
    • Hamez U'mazah - 122 (+ 41)
      • (Nusah Hahaggadah - 41)
    • Shofar Wesukkah Welulav - 132
    • Sheqalim - 49
    • Qiddush Hahodesh - 252
    • Ta`aniyot - 84
    • Megillah Wehanukkah - 63
  4. Nashim - 1,207
    • Ishut - 581
    • Girushin - 323
    • Yibum Wehalizah - 189
    • Ne`arah Betulah - 42
    • Sottah - 72
  5. Qedushah - 1,140
    • Issure'i Bi'ah - 499
    • Ma'akhalot Assurot - 408
    • Shehittah - 233
  6. Hafla'ah - 820
    • Shevu`ot - 198
    • Nedarim - 252
    • Nezirut - 193
    • Arakhim U'heramim - 177
  7. Zera`im - 1,582
    • Kilayim - 181
    • Matenot `Aniyim - 194
    • Terumot - 332
    • Ma`aser - 241
    • Ma`aser Sheni Wenetta` Reva`i - 190
    • Bikkurim `Im She'ar Matenot Kehunah She'bagevulin - 218
    • Shemittah Weyovel - 226
  8. `Avodah - 1,537
    • Be'it Habehirah - 132
    • Kele'i Hamiqdash Weha`ovdim Bo - 156
    • Bi'at Hamiqdash - 140
    • Issure'i Mizbe'ah - 101
    • Ma`aseh Haqorbanot - 315
    • Temidin U'mussafin - 172
    • Pessule'i Hamuqdashin - 310
    • `Avodat Yom Hakippurim - 86
    • Me`ilah - 125
  9. Haqorbanot - 651
    • Qorban Pessah - 149
    • Hagigah - 40
    • Bekhorot - 123
    • Shegagot - 212
    • Mehussre'i Kapparah - 71
    • Temurah - 56
  10. Taharah - 2,317
    • Tum'at Met - 385
    • Parah Adumah - 218
    • Tum'at Zara`at - 250
    • Mettame'i Mishkav U'moshav - 196
    • She'ar Avot Hatum'ot - 331
    • Tum'at Okhalin - 284
    • Kelim - 470
    • Miqwot - 183
  11. Nezaqim - 993
    • Nizqe'i Mamon - 238
    • Genevah - 137
    • Gezelah Wa'avedah - 301
    • Hovel U'maziq - 138
    • Roze'ah U'shmirat Nefesh - 179
  12. Qinyan - 1,191
    • Mekhirah - 455
    • Zekhiyah U'matanah - 208
    • Shekhenim - 209
    • Sheluhin U'shutafin - 160
    • `Avadim - 159
  13. Mishpattim - 1,141
    • Sekhirut - 193
    • She'elah U'fiqadon - 103
    • Malweh Weloweh - 437
    • To`en Wenitt`an - 258
    • Nehalot - 150
  14. Shofettim - 1,046
    • Sanhedrin Weha`unshin Hamessurin Lahem - 327
    • `Edut - 253
    • Mamrim - 103
    • Evel - 194
    • Melakhim U'milhamot - 169
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  • 8
    Here is the JavaScript I'm using on Mechon Mamre to extract the number of laws per topic: Array.from(document.querySelectorAll("b")).filter(function (n) { return n.innerHTML.match("^.{1,2},.{1,2}$") !== null; }).length;
    – Lee
    Commented Jun 15, 2017 at 10:35
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One simple way to calculate the number of halachot in Mishneh Torah is to use the URLs in the version on Hebrewbooks. Each halacha has a unique URL ending in a number, with the first halacha starting with the number 1. Each URL increases by one from the previous URL. Thus, the URL of the very last halacha in Mishneh Torah contains the total number of halachot. In this case we can see that it comes out to 15,024 halachot.

Of course, as R. Yosef Qafih already noted in the introduction to his edition of Mishneh Torah, there are differences in the numbering of the halachot between different versions:

הנוסח הוא על פי כתבי היד וכך גם חלוקת ההלכות נעשתה על פי רוב כתבי היד וקטעי כתבי היד שברשותי והואיל והספרות התורתית העולמית מציינים בספריהם מספרי ההלכות כפי שמופיע בדפוסים לא יכולתי להתעלם מהם לגמרי כדי שלא להקשות על המעיין למצוא דברי חפץ לפיכך עשיתי את המספרים אשר על פי כתבי היד תוך סוגרים מרובעים [ב] ומספר ההלכות על פי הדפוסים תוך סוגרים עגולים (א) ובכך נראה לי שיצאנו ידי חובת הכל

Just as the text is presented according to the manuscripts, the division of the halachot is presented according to the majority of the manuscripts and fragments of manuscripts in my possession. Since Torah literature around the world quotes from the previously printed texts, I could not ignore them entirely, so that the reader can find what he is looking for without difficulty. Therefore I placed the section numbers from the manuscripts in brackets and the section numbers from the printed texts in parentheses, in an effort to oblige everyone. (Bohnen translation)

As such, there is not necessarily one precise answer to how many halachot there are; the number might vary based on edition/manuscript. Indeed, the number presented here is different from the number presented in the other answer which used a different (probably more faithful to the original) source.

Here is the breakdown by Sefer:

Hamada

1-457

Total: 457 halachot

Ahavah

458-1154

Total: 697 halachot

Zemanim

1155-2852

Total: 1,698 halachot

Nashim

2853-4037

Total: 1,185 halachot

Kedusha

4038-5254

Total: 1,217 halachot

Hafla'ah

5255-6062

Total: 808 halachot

Zeraim

6063-7656

Total: 1,594 halachot

Avodah

7657-9188

Total: 1,532 halachot

Hakorbanot

9189-9697

Total: 508 halachot

Tahara

9698-11505

Total: 1,808 halachot

Nezikin

11506-12446

Total: 941 halachot

Kinyan

12445-13430

Total: 985

Mishpatim

13431-14219

Total: 789 halachot

Shoftim

14220-15024

Total: 805 halachot

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  • I think "מספרי ההלכות כפי שמופיע בדפוסים" is "misp're...". (You translated it as "misifre...".)
    – msh210 ♦
    Commented Oct 16, 2018 at 3:33
  • @msh210 Admittedly, it is not my translation, and you are probably correct that the word in question is "misp're" rather than "misifre". However, I'm not sure that the translator disagrees with you. The Hebrew anyway refers to the previously printed texts with the words כפי שמופיע בדפוסים, so it might just be that it's not a precise word-for-word translation and he left out מספרי ההלכות.
    – Alex
    Commented Oct 16, 2018 at 3:43
  • Oh, sorry, I hadn't realized you'd cited the translation as not your own.
    – msh210 ♦
    Commented Oct 16, 2018 at 4:04
  • @msh210 Your point is valid regardless of whose translation it is.
    – Alex
    Commented Oct 16, 2018 at 4:07

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