Elchanan Heilprin

{{Short description|Czechoslovakian-born English rabbi (1921–2015)}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}

{{Infobox Jewish leader

| honorific-prefix = Rabbi

| name = Elchanan Halpern

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| image = Reb elchonon halpen.jpg

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| synagogue = Beis Shmuel

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| birth_date = {{birth date|1921|12|26}}

| birth_place = Košice, Czechoslovakia

| death_date = {{death date and age|2015|2|18|1921|12|26}}

| death_place = London

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| buried = Israel

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| residence = Golders Green, London

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}}Elchanan Halpern (December 26, 1921 – February 18, 2015) was the Rabbi of the Golders Green neighbourhood of London and President of the Union of Orthodox Hebrew Congregations. He was also known as the Av Beit Din of Radomishl{{cite web|url=https://www.kikar.co.il/164251.html|date=Feb 18, 2015|website=Kikar HaShabbat|language=he|script-title=he:גאב"ד ראדמושילא: הגאון רבי אלחנן הלפרין זצ"ל|access-date=Oct 5, 2021}} after the town of his maternal grandfather, Rabbi {{ill|Shmuel Engel|de|Schmuel Engel|he|שמואל אנגל|yi|שמואל ענגיל}}, Rav of Radomishl.

He was born in Košice, Czechoslovakia. Both of his parents were descendants of Rabbi Chaim Halberstam.

In his youth, he studied several years under his grandfather, Rabbi Shmuel Engel, until the death of the latter, who was formally eulogised by Halpern, then aged 13. At age 14, Halpern corresponded with Rabbi Joseph Rosen.{{cite news |date=Feb 18, 2015|script-title=he:נשבה ארון ה' • הגה"צ רבי אלחנן היילפרין גאב"ד ראדומישלא זצוקללה"ה|url=https://www.jdn.co.il/gallery/453342/|work={{ill|JDN (website)|lt=JDN|he|JDN}}|language=he|access-date=Jan 13, 2022}}{{cite news|date=Feb 18, 2015|script-title=he:אב"ד ראדומישלא: הגאון רבי אלחנן הלפרין זצ"ל|url=https://www.bhol.co.il/news/166865|work={{ill|Bhol (website)|lt=Bhol|he|בחדרי חרדים}}|language=he|access-date=Jan 17, 2022}}See {{cite book|author=Joseph Rosen|author-link=Joseph Rosen|script-chapter=he:סימן ריב|chapter-url=https://www.hebrewbooks.org/pdfpager.aspx?req=15094&st=&pgnum=281|script-title=he:שאלות ותשובות צפנת פענח|language=he|page=117|access-date=Oct 6, 2021}}

After his marriage, he settled in London.

At the time of Halpern's death, He was considered one of the most senior rabbis in the world. He left behind over 1,400 direct descendants, including grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and great-great-grandchildren. His five sons and four sons-in-law all hold important rabbinic positions.{{cite book|last1=Hurvitz|first1=Nattan|last2=Hoffman|first2=Aharon Yosef|date=2015|orig-year=Originally published 2014 in Hebrew|chapter=Most Descendants on Record|title=The Book of Amazing Facts and Feats|volume=4|others=Translated into English by Brocha David|publisher=Feldheim Publishers|page=20|isbn=978-1-59826-149-3}}