Sephardic Family History Research Guide
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NEWSLETTER Winter/ Spring 2020 LETTER from the DIRECTOR
YIVO Institute for Jewish Research NEWSLETTER winter/ spring 2020 LETTER FROM THE DIRECTOR Dear Friends, launch May 1 with an event at the National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C. YIVO is thriving. 2019 was another year of exciting growth. Work proceeded on schedule for the Edward Other highlights include a fabulous segment on Mashable’s Blank YIVO Vilna Online Collections and we anticipate online “What’s in the Basement?” series; a New York completion of this landmark project in December 2021. Times feature article (June 25, 2019) on the acquisition Millions of pages of never-before-seen documents and of the archive of Nachman Blumenthal; a Buzzfeed rare or unique books have now been digitized and put Newsletter article (December 22, 2019) on Chanukah online for researchers, teachers, and students around the photos in the DP camps; and a New Yorker article world to read. The next important step in developing (December 30, 2019) on YIVO’s Autobiographies. YIVO’s online capabilities is the creation of the Bruce and Francesca Cernia Slovin Online Museum of East YIVO is an exciting place to work, to study, to European Jewish Life. The museum will launch early explore, and to reconnect with the great treasures 2021. The first gallery, devoted to the autobiography of the Jewish heritage of Eastern Europe and Russia. of Beba Epstein, is currently being tested. Through Please come for a visit, sign up for a tour, or catch us the art of storytelling the museum will provide the online on our YouTube channel (@YIVOInstitute). historical context for the archive’s vast array of original documents, books, and other artifacts, with some materials being translated to English for the first time. -
Antisemitism in the United States Report of an Expert Consultation
Antisemitism in the United States Report of an Expert Consultation Organized by AJC’s Jacob Blaustein Institute for the Advancement of Human Rights in Cooperation with UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief, Dr. Ahmed Shaheed 10-11 April 2019, New York City Introduction On March 5, 2019, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief, Dr. Ahmed Shaheed, announced that he was preparing a thematic report on global antisemitism to be presented to the UN General Assembly in New York in the fall of 2019. The Special Rapporteur requested that the Jacob Blaustein Institute for the Advancement of Human Rights (JBI) organize a consultation that would provide him with information about antisemitism in the United States as he carried out his broader research. In response, JBI organized a two-day expert consultation on Wednesday, April 10 and Thursday, April 11, 2019 at AJC’s Headquarters in New York. Participants discussed how antisemitism is manifested in the U.S., statistics and trends concerning antisemitic hate crimes, and government and civil society responses to the problem. This event followed an earlier consultation in Geneva, Switzerland convened by JBI for Dr. Shaheed in June 2018 on global efforts to monitor and combat antisemitism and engaging the United Nations human rights system to address this problem.1 I. Event on April 10, 2019: Antisemitism in the United States: An Overview On April 10, several distinguished historians and experts offered their perspectives on antisemitism in the United States. In addition to the Special Rapporteur, Professor Deborah Lipstadt (Emory University), Professor Jonathan Sarna (Brandeis University), Professor Rebecca Kobrin (Columbia University), Rabbi David Saperstein (former U.S. -
Aliyah and Settlement Process?
Jewish Women in Pre-State Israel HBI SERIES ON JEWISH WOMEN Shulamit Reinharz, General Editor Joyce Antler, Associate Editor Sylvia Barack Fishman, Associate Editor The HBI Series on Jewish Women, created by the Hadassah-Brandeis Institute, pub- lishes a wide range of books by and about Jewish women in diverse contexts and time periods. Of interest to scholars and the educated public, the HBI Series on Jewish Women fills major gaps in Jewish Studies and in Women and Gender Studies as well as their intersection. For the complete list of books that are available in this series, please see www.upne.com and www.upne.com/series/BSJW.html. Ruth Kark, Margalit Shilo, and Galit Hasan-Rokem, editors, Jewish Women in Pre-State Israel: Life History, Politics, and Culture Tova Hartman, Feminism Encounters Traditional Judaism: Resistance and Accommodation Anne Lapidus Lerner, Eternally Eve: Images of Eve in the Hebrew Bible, Midrash, and Modern Jewish Poetry Margalit Shilo, Princess or Prisoner? Jewish Women in Jerusalem, 1840–1914 Marcia Falk, translator, The Song of Songs: Love Lyrics from the Bible Sylvia Barack Fishman, Double or Nothing? Jewish Families and Mixed Marriage Avraham Grossman, Pious and Rebellious: Jewish Women in Medieval Europe Iris Parush, Reading Jewish Women: Marginality and Modernization in Nineteenth-Century Eastern European Jewish Society Shulamit Reinharz and Mark A. Raider, editors, American Jewish Women and the Zionist Enterprise Tamar Ross, Expanding the Palace of Torah: Orthodoxy and Feminism Farideh Goldin, Wedding Song: Memoirs of an Iranian Jewish Woman Elizabeth Wyner Mark, editor, The Covenant of Circumcision: New Perspectives on an Ancient Jewish Rite Rochelle L. -
Read the Conference Program
COVER: Stone medallion with the purported martyrdom scene of Simonino di Trento. Palazzo Salvadori, Trent, Italy. Photo by Andreas Caranti. Via Wikimedia Commons. YIVO INSTITUTE FOR JEWISH RESEARCH PRESENTS CONFERENCE OCTOBER 9, 2016 CO-SPONSORED BY 1 INCE ITS FABRICATION IN THE MIDDLE AGES, the accusation that Jews Skidnapped, tortured and killed Christian children in mockery of Christ and the Crucifixion, or for the use of their blood, has been the basis for some of the most hateful examples of organized antisemitism. The blood libel has inspired expulsions and murder of Jews, tortures and forced mass conversions, and has served as an ines- capable focal point for wider strains of anti-Jewish sentiment that permeate learned and popular discourse, social and political thought, and cultural media. In light of contemporary manifestations of antisemitism around the world it is appropriate to re-examine the enduring history, the wide dissemination, and the persistent life of a historical and cultural myth—a bald lie—intended to demonize the Jewish people. This conference explores the impact of the blood libel over the centuries in a wide variety of geographic regions. It focuses on cultural memory: how cultural memory was created, elaborated, and transmitted even when based on no actual event. Scholars have treated the blood libel within their own areas of expertise—as medieval myth, early modern financial incentive, racial construct, modern catalyst for pogroms and the expulsion of Jews, and political scare tactic—but rarely have there been opportunities to discuss such subjects across chronological and disciplinary borders. We will look at the blood libel as historical phenomenon, legal justification, economic mechanism, and visual and literary trope with ongoing political repercussions. -
JUL 15 and the History of YIVO CECILE KUZNITZ | Delivered in English
MONDAY The Rise of Yiddish Scholarship JUL 15 and the History of YIVO CECILE KUZNITZ | Delivered in English As Jewish activists sought to build a modern, secular culture in the late nineteenth century they stressed the need to conduct research in and about Yiddish, the traditionally denigrated vernacular of European Jewry. By documenting and developing Yiddish and its culture, they hoped to win respect for the language and rights for its speakers as a national minority group. The Yidisher visnshaftlekher institut [Yiddish Scientific Institute], known by its acronym YIVO, was founded in 1925 as the first organization dedicated to Yiddish scholarship. Throughout its history, YIVO balanced its mission both to pursue academic research and to respond to the needs of the folk, the masses of ordinary Yiddish- speaking Jews. This talk will explore the origins of Yiddish scholarship and why YIVO’s work was seen as crucial to constructing a modern Jewish identity in the Diaspora. Cecile Kuznitz is Associate Professor of Jewish history and Director of Jewish Studies at Bard College. She received her Ph.D. in modern Jewish history from Stanford University and previously taught at Georgetown University. She has held fellowships at the US Holocaust Memorial Museum, the Oxford Centre for Hebrew and Jewish Studies, and the Center for Advanced Judaic Studies at the University of Pennsylvania. In summer 2013 she was a Visiting Scholar at Vilnius University. She is the author of several articles on the history of the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research, the Jewish community of Vilna, and the field of Yiddish Studies. English-Language Bibliography of Recent Works on Yiddish Studies CECILE KUZNITZ Baker, Zachary M. -
Jewish Persecutions and Weather Shocks: 1100-1800⇤
Jewish Persecutions and Weather Shocks: 1100-1800⇤ § Robert Warren Anderson† Noel D. Johnson‡ Mark Koyama University of Michigan, Dearborn George Mason University George Mason University This Version: 30 December, 2013 Abstract What factors caused the persecution of minorities in medieval and early modern Europe? We build amodelthatpredictsthatminoritycommunitiesweremorelikelytobeexpropriatedinthewake of negative income shocks. Using panel data consisting of 1,366 city-level persecutions of Jews from 936 European cities between 1100 and 1800, we test whether persecutions were more likely in colder growing seasons. A one standard deviation decrease in average growing season temperature increased the probability of a persecution between one-half and one percentage points (relative to a baseline probability of two percent). This effect was strongest in regions with poor soil quality or located within weak states. We argue that long-run decline in violence against Jews between 1500 and 1800 is partly attributable to increases in fiscal and legal capacity across many European states. Key words: Political Economy; State Capacity; Expulsions; Jewish History; Climate JEL classification: N33; N43; Z12; J15; N53 ⇤We are grateful to Megan Teague and Michael Szpindor Watson for research assistance. We benefited from comments from Ran Abramitzky, Daron Acemoglu, Dean Phillip Bell, Pete Boettke, Tyler Cowen, Carmel Chiswick, Melissa Dell, Dan Bogart, Markus Eberhart, James Fenske, Joe Ferrie, Raphäel Franck, Avner Greif, Philip Hoffman, Larry Iannaccone, Remi Jedwab, Garett Jones, James Kai-sing Kung, Pete Leeson, Yannay Spitzer, Stelios Michalopoulos, Jean-Laurent Rosenthal, Naomi Lamoreaux, Jason Long, David Mitch, Joel Mokyr, Johanna Mollerstrom, Robin Mundill, Steven Nafziger, Jared Rubin, Gail Triner, John Wallis, Eugene White, Larry White, and Ekaterina Zhuravskaya. -
The Time and Place of European Admixture in Ashkenazi Jewish History
The time and place of European admixture in Ashkenazi Jewish history The Harvard community has made this article openly available. Please share how this access benefits you. Your story matters Citation Xue, James, Todd Lencz, Ariel Darvasi, Itsik Pe’er, and Shai Carmi. 2017. “The time and place of European admixture in Ashkenazi Jewish history.” PLoS Genetics 13 (4): e1006644. doi:10.1371/journal.pgen.1006644. http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/ journal.pgen.1006644. Published Version doi:10.1371/journal.pgen.1006644 Citable link http://nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:32630677 Terms of Use This article was downloaded from Harvard University’s DASH repository, and is made available under the terms and conditions applicable to Other Posted Material, as set forth at http:// nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:dash.current.terms-of- use#LAA RESEARCH ARTICLE The time and place of European admixture in Ashkenazi Jewish history James Xue1,2, Todd Lencz3,4,5, Ariel Darvasi6, Itsik Pe'er1,7, Shai Carmi8* 1 Department of Computer Science, Columbia University, New York, New York, United States of America, 2 Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America, 3 Center for Psychiatric Neuroscience, The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research, North Shore-Long Island Jewish Health System, Manhasset, New York, United States of America, 4 Department of Psychiatry, Division of Research, The Zucker Hillside Hospital Division of the North Shore± Long Island Jewish Health System, Glen Oaks, -
YIVO Institute for Jewish Research Re: Otto Frank File Embargoed Until
Prepared for: YIVO Institute for Jewish Research Re: Otto Frank File Embargoed until: February 14, 2007 at 10 AM EST BACKGROUND TO THE SITUATION OF JEWS IN THE NETHERLANDS UNDER NAZI OCCUPATION AND OF THE FAMILY OF OTTO FRANK By: David Engel Greenberg Professor of Holocaust Studies New York University Understanding the situation of Jews in the Netherlands under Nazi occupation, like understanding any aspect of the Holocaust, requires suspension of hindsight. No one could know in 1933, 1938, or even early 1941 that the Nazi regime would soon embark upon a systematic program aimed at killing each and every Jewish man, woman, and child within its reach. The statement is true of top German officials no less than it is of the Jewish and non-Jewish civilian populations of the twenty countries within the Nazi orbit and of the governments and peoples of the Allied and neutral countries. Although it is tempting to look back upon the history of Nazi anti-Jewish utterances and measures and to detect in them an ostensible inner logic leading inexorably to mass murder, the consensus among historians today is that when the Nazi regime came to power in January 1933 it had no clear idea how the so-called Jewish problem might best be solved. It knew only that, from its perspective, Jews presented a problem that would need to be solved sooner or later, but finding a long-term solution was initially not one of the regime's most immediate priorities. Between 1933-41 various Nazi agencies proposed different schemes for dealing with Jews. -
The Sephardim of the United States: an Exploratory Study
The Sephardim of the United States: An Exploratory Study by MARC D. ANGEL WESTERN AND LEVANTINE SEPHARDIM • EARLY AMERICAN SETTLEMENT • DEVELOPMENT OF AMERICAN COMMUNITY • IMMIGRATION FROM LEVANT • JUDEO-SPANISH COMMUNITY • JUDEO-GREEK COMMUNITY • JUDEO-ARABIC COMMUNITY • SURVEY OF AMERICAN SEPHARDIM • BIRTHRATE • ECO- NOMIC STATUS • SECULAR AND RELIGIOUS EDUCATION • HISPANIC CHARACTER • SEPHARDI-ASHKENAZI INTERMARRIAGE • COMPARISON OF FOUR COMMUNITIES INTRODUCTION IN ITS MOST LITERAL SENSE the term Sephardi refers to Jews of Iberian origin. Sepharad is the Hebrew word for Spain. However, the term has generally come to include almost any Jew who is not Ashkenazi, who does not have a German- or Yiddish-language background.1 Although there are wide cultural divergences within the Note: It was necessary to consult many unpublished sources for this pioneering study. I am especially grateful to the Trustees of Congregation Shearith Israel, the Spanish and Portuguese Synagogue in New York City, for permitting me to use minutes of meetings, letters, and other unpublished materials. I am also indebted to the Synagogue's Sisterhood for making available its minutes. I wish to express my profound appreciation to Professor Nathan Goldberg of Yeshiva University for his guidance throughout every phase of this study. My special thanks go also to Messrs. Edgar J. Nathan 3rd, Joseph Papo, and Victor Tarry for reading the historical part of this essay and offering valuable suggestions and corrections, and to my wife for her excellent cooperation and assistance. Cecil Roth, "On Sephardi Jewry," Kol Sepharad, September-October 1966, pp. 2-6; Solomon Sassoon, "The Spiritual Heritage of the Sephardim," in Richard Barnett, ed., The Sephardi Heritage (New York, 1971), pp. -
Aliyah and the Ingathering of Exiles: Jewish Immigration to Israel
Aliyah and the Ingathering of Exiles: Jewish Immigration to Israel Corinne Cath Thesis Bachelor Cultural Anthropology 2011 Aliyah and the Ingathering of Exiles: Jewish immigration to Israel Aliyah and the Ingathering of Exiles: Jewish Immigration to Israel Thesis Bachelor Cultural Anthropology 2011 Corinne Cath 3337316 C,[email protected] Supervisor: F. Jara-Gomez Aliyah and the Ingathering of Exiles: Jewish immigration to Israel This thesis is dedicated to my grandfather Kees Cath and my grandmother Corinne De Beaufort, whose resilience and wits are an inspiration always. Aliyah and the Ingathering of Exiles: Jewish immigration to Israel Table of Contents Acknowledgments ...................................................................................................................... 4 General Introduction ............................................................................................. 5 1.Theoretical Framework ............................................................................................... 8 Introduction ........................................................................................................ 8 1.1 Anthropology and the Nation-State ........................................................................ 10 The Nation ........................................................................................................ 10 States and Nation-States ................................................................................... 11 Nationalism ...................................................................................................... -
A History of Antisemitism Dr. Katherine Aron-Beller Fall 2020
A History of Antisemitism Dr. Katherine Aron-Beller Fall 2020 Email: [email protected] Office Hours: By appointment Course Credits: 3 TAU Semester Credits For course times/days and location, please visit the TAU International web site (Study Abroad Course Offerings and Schedules). Please note that all information below is subject to change and/or adjustment as necessary. Course Description(Summary) An analysis of articulated hatred toward Jews as a historical force. After treating precursors in the pagan world of antiquity and in classical Christian doctrine, the course will focus on the modern phenomenon crystallizing in 19th-century Europe and reaching its lethal extreme in Nazi ideology, propaganda, and policy. Expressions in the U.S. and in the Arab world, as well as Jewish reactions to anti-semitism, will also be studied. Course Requirements and Expectations Regular Attendance and Participation in lectures, a short written test in session five, a midterm exam in class, and a final essay which must be completed by all students. This final paper (10–12 pages) will analyze a primary text or an issue of dispute among historians, the topic to be chosen by the student from a list to be distributed or in consultation with the instructor. No cell phones are allowed in class. Please keep them in your bags. Computers may be used for note-taking only during class. Learning Outcomes The purpose of the class is to introduce students to important trends and theoretical issues in the study of antisemtism. Students will acquire a detailed knowledge of the history of this hatred and prejudice, as well as a detailed understanding of the latest trends in historiography and theory. -
Reflecting on American Jewish History
University of Pennsylvania ScholarlyCommons Departmental Papers (History) Department of History 9-2003 Reflecting on American Jewish History David B. Ruderman University of Pennsylvania, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://repository.upenn.edu/history_papers Part of the History of Religion Commons, Jewish Studies Commons, and the United States History Commons Recommended Citation Ruderman, D. B. (2003). Reflecting on American Jewish History. American Jewish History, 91 (3-4), 371-378. http://dx.doi.org/10.1353/ajh.2005.0014 This paper is posted at ScholarlyCommons. https://repository.upenn.edu/history_papers/31 For more information, please contact [email protected]. Reflecting on American Jewish History Abstract I must confess that, in some thirty years of writing and teaching Jewish history, I have not thought seriously about the American Jewish experience, with the notable exception of some basic reading to prepare me to introduce the subject in my broad survey courses on modern Jewish history and thought. I was trained as a Jewish historian at Columbia University and the Hebrew University at a time when a clear bias existed, perpetuating the primary status of European Jewish history over American because of its grounding in Hebraic and rabbinic texts. Moreover, I was acutely aware of the relative indifference of my Israeli teachers to American culture, all of them students of Baer, Dinur, and Scholem, card-carrying members of the so-called "Jerusalem school."1 Disciplines History | History of Religion | Jewish Studies | United States History This journal article is available at ScholarlyCommons: https://repository.upenn.edu/history_papers/31 D.B.