James Adolf Israel (February 2, 1848 - February 2, 1926) was a German surgeon. He was a pioneer in modern urologic and renal surgery. His first report of an operation of the kidney was in 1882. He published over 170 articles during his career, largely on urologic medicine, and he was co-founder of the journal Folia Urologica. Israel made important contributions in the field of plastic surgery, particularly oral and maxillofacial surgery. He was also an early advocate of Joseph Lister's antiseptic practices in the operating room. He is credited for providing the first description of a bacterium of the genus Actinomyces in humans, which is a genus of Gram-positive bacteria that are the cause of actinomycosis. Later this organism was given the name Actinomyces israelii. He died on his birthday at the age of 78.
