Dameta leTamar Studies in Honor of Tamar Alexander
El Prezente, Studies in Sephardic Culture Mikan, Journal for Hebrew and Israeli Literature and Culture Studies
Editors Eliezer Papo, Haim Weiss, Yaakov Bentolila, Yuval Harari
El Prezente, vol. 8-9 / Mikan, vol. 15
Part 3
May 2015
יםהֶ HEKSHERIM The Research Institute Moshe David Gaon Center Ben-Gurion University of the Negev for Jewish and Israeli for Ladino Culture The Department of Hebrew Literature Literature and Culture
Naime & Yehoshua Salti Center The National Authority for Ladino for Ladino Studies and its Culture Editorial Council: Rifat Bali, Albert Benveniste Center of Studies and Sefardic Culture, EPHE, Sorbonne, París, and The Ottoman-Turkish Sephardic Culture Research Center, Istanbul; David M. Bunis, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem; Winfried Busse, Freie Universitӓt. Berlin; Paloma Díaz-Mas, CSIC, Madrid; Oro Anahory-Librowicz, University of Montreal; Alisa Meyuhas Ginio, Tel Aviv University; Laura Minervini, University of Napoli ‘Federico II’; Aldina Quintana, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem; Rena Molho, Pantheon University, Atens; Shmuel Refael, Bar-Ilan University; Aron Rodrigue, University of Stanford; Minna Rozen, University of Haifa; Beatrice Schmid, University of Basel; Ora (Rodrigue) Schwarzwald, Bar-Ilan University; Edwin Seroussi, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem; Michael Studemund-Halévy, University of Hamburg
Published with the support of
Ben-Gurion University of the Negev: The President’s Office The Rector’s Office The Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences
Moshe David Gaon Center for Ladino Culture
National Authority for Ladino and its Culture
Naime & Yehoshua Salti Center for Ladino Studies
Mishael Ben-Melech, Jerusalem
Editorial Coordinator: Maayan Mangoni Language Editors: Yitzhak Recanati (Hebrew), Fern Seckbach (English), Orna Stoliar (Spanish) Graphic Design: Sefi Graphics Design Print: BGU Print Unit Cover photo: Ketubah, Rome, Italy (1627), with the courtesy of The Israel Museum, Jerusalem
ISBN 978-965-91164-4-7
All rights reserved © 2015 Moshe David Gaon Center for Ladino Culture Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva Israel Table of Contents
Yaakov Bentolila Cómo se trokan los proverbios 1
David M. Bunis On Judezmo Terms for the Proverb and Saying: A Look from Within 11
Paloma Díaz-Mas Actitudes de los españoles hacia los sefardíes: descripciones de las costumbres de boda de Marruecos en libros y periódicos publicados en España (1873-1971) 55
Michal Held “Ansina pueden dizir loke keren” (This way they can say whatever they wish) – Expressions of Gender in the Personal Narratives of Judeo-Spanish (Ladino) – Speaking Women Storytellers 75
Aviad Moreno An Insight into the Course of European-oriented Modernization among Oriental Jewries – the Minute Book of the Junta of Tangier 95
Gérard Nahon Les Pĕqide-Qushṭa, les Officiers pour la Terre sainte d’Istanbul face aux Ămarkalim, les Surintendants d’Amsterdam, 1827-1828 121
Eliezer Papo Iberian Catholic Elements in Bosnian and Moroccan Judeo-Spanish Refraneros 143
Aldina Quintana Cuatro fragmentos de otros tantos cuadernos inéditos con recetas de medicina y farmacología sefardíes de la colección de la Genizah del JTS 161
Pilar Romeu Aproximación a la filmografía sobre los sefardíes: Apuntes para el estudio de un género en gestación 191 Ora (Rodrigue) Shwarzwald Personal Names, Toponymes, and Gentile Nouns in Ladino and Spanish Translations of the Bible 209
Michael Studemund-Halévy Obsessed with the Theater: The Translator and Amateur Author Rafael Farin 229 Yaakov Bentolila
Cómo se trokan los proverbios
Yaakov Bentolila Universidad Ben-Gurion del Neguev
A Tamar, de quien tanto he aprendido en materia de refranes
El título de este artículo se inspira en una anécdota. Mi mamá tenía una amiga, la Sra. Afumado, que era oriunda de Turquía, en paz descansen ambas. Se hablaban en francés, pero la charla, cuando el tema o los ánimos lo motivaban, resbalaba al español. La una, nacida en Tetuán, hablaba español con algunos giros en jaquetía, la otra utilizaba el ladino (judezmo) turco, y se entendían de lo mejor. Un día estuvo mi madre enseñándola unas fotos antiguas, donde resplandecía en toda la belleza de su juventud. La reacción de su amiga fue: “¡Cómo se trokan las personas!” ‘Trokar’, en ladino, significa simplemente ‘cambiar’, o sea, lo que quiso decir fue: “¡Cómo cambian las personas!” Pero en jaquetía el sentido es ‘cambiar para peor’ o ‘desmejorar’. Cuán desagradable fue para mamá el oír lo que muy bien sabía, que la edad tiene sus efectos: “¡Cómo desmejoran las personas!” Comentar el incidente fue una ocasión para analizar el fenómeno de faux amis en las correspondencias semánticas entre dos lenguas emparentadas… El propósito de este artículo es analizar los cambios, o las variantes, que se han manifestado en algunos proverbios jaquéticos, y que supongo hayan ocurrido en el curso de las transmisiones interpersonales. Este análisis podría ofrecer intuiciones sobre algunos temas lingüísticos, al mismo tiempo que dejar traslucir características de las personas que suelen usar los refranes. El corpus que sirve de base a mis observaciones son refranes de los que hemos editado, Tamar Alexander y yo, en nuestro libro La palabra en su hora es oro (Alexander y Bentolila 2008).1
1 Tamar Alexander y Yaakov Bentolila, La palabra en su hora es oro. El refrán judeo- español en el Norte de Marruecos, Instituto Ben-Zvi, Jerusalén 2008.
1 Cómo se trokan los proverbios
El repetido uso de refranes en boca de individuos diversos resulta en actuaciones diferentes. La mayoría de éstas son simples variaciones banales, de vocabulario, de pronunciación, de código lingüístico (jaquetía versus español), etc. A continuación doy un ejemplo de esta clase de variaciones triviales:2
(1.229) a De que parí, bocado güeno3 no comí b Desde que parí, bocado bueno no comí c Desde que parí, ojo de luz no mirí4 d Desde que parí, ojo bueno no mirí, bocado bueno no comí y sueño bueno no durmí e De que parí, oǰo bueno no mirí, bocado bueno no comí y sueño bueno no durmí f Desde que me caźí, bocado bueno no comí g Desde que te conocí, bocado bueno no comí
Esas variaciones personalizadas se distinguen por añadiduras; disminuciones; fraseos diferentes, que a veces presentan mensajes diferentes, incluso contrarios; que optan por vocabulario distintos, por gusto o por incultura.
1 Añadiduras y disminuciones
Los casos de añadidura se distinguen fácilmente de los de disminución. Por lo general, se trata de refranes donde se disciernen dos partes, una primera que contiene
2 Los ejemplos están numerados de la siguiente manera: entre paréntesis, un ordinal seguido de un punto y luego el número con el que están registrados el refrán y sus variantes en nuestro libro La palabra en su hora es oro; las variantes las designamos con letras. La transcripción de voces jaquetiescas presentes en los refranes citados es la siguiente: ǰ = [Ʒ] de API (1989), o sea la sibilante prepalatal sonora, como en francés ‹jour› [Ʒur]. ź = [z] de API, o sea la sibilante alveolar sonora, como en francés ‹maison› [mezõ]; la usamos para designar esta pronunciación en palabras españolas, donde reemplaza a una [s] sorda normal. ḫ = la fricativa laríngea [h] sonora ḥ = la fricativa faríngea sorda sh = [ʃ] de API, o sea la sibilante prepalatal sorda, como en francés ‘marcher’ [marʃe] cc = consonante geminada 3 güeno = bueno 4 mirí, durmí = miré, dormí
2 Yaakov Bentolila
el mensaje5 completo y una segunda parte, o apódosis, que lo que añade son detalles de poco interés, ilustraciones del mensaje, observaciones de índole particular, etc. Según esos criterios se puede considerar como añadiduras lo indicado en negrita en los siguientes ejemplos:
(2.188) a Cuando yo tenía todos me querían b Cuando yo tenía todos me querían y ahora que no tengo… al río me echarían (3.336) a El muerto al hoyo y el vivo al bollo b El muerto al hoyo y el vivo al bollo y viene el Dió y lo arsa6 todo (4.461) a Guay7 del día de las alabanzas8 b Guay del día de las alabanzas y guay del día que diga era, era, era y era
Obviamente, los mensajes están ya en las variantes (a), lo que sigue es pura ampliación. El refrán clásico se distingue por su fraseo sucinto; hay añadidura cuando se incrementa el tema con detalles que no modifican considerablemente la significación básica del mensaje, por ejemplo:
(5.706) a Casamiento y mortaja del cielo baja b Nacimiento, casamiento y mortaja, del cielo baja (6.862) a ¿Quién alaba a la novia? Su madre la tiñoźźa b ¿Quién alaba a la novia mocoźźa? Su madre la tiñoźźa
Cuando una novia es alabada por una persona conocida y no por extraños, cuyo juicio impersonal garantiza la sinceridad, se entiende que no presenta muchos motivos de elogio; la palabra mocoźźa puede haber sido incorporada para que rime con tiñoźźa.
5 Denominamos mensaje a la significación ideal, o metafórica, del refrán, mientras que el tema corresponde a su significado literal, “siempre explícito, puesto que sobresale directamente del texto como tal”. Cf. Tamar Alexander y Yaakov Bentolila, “Elementos hispánicos y jaquéticos en los refranes judeo-españoles de Marruecos”, en Judit Targarona- Borrás y Ángel Sáenz-Badillos (eds.), Jewish Studies at the Turn of the Twentieth 20th Century, Proceedings of the 6th EAJS Congress, vol. 2, Judaism from the Renaissance to Modern Times, Brill, Toledo 1999, pp. 421-429. 6 arsar = alzar 7 guay = interjección de pena o de dolor 8 Interpretación: Recela el día de la muerte, cuando te elogiarán.
3 Cómo se trokan los proverbios
No obstante, (6a) puede ser un ejemplo de disminución; la rima ha sido siempre un elemento valioso en la composición de refranes.9 Los casos de disminución se deben generalmente a una estrategia de la conversación, según la cual basta con una evocación parcial del refrán, cuando el hablante sabe de seguro que su interlocutor conoce la continuación.10 El ejemplo siguiente lo ilustra:
(7.280) a El almeḫrez11 y el anafe12 se cayeron al poźźo b El almedrez y el anafe se cayeron al poźźo. El almedrez dijo me ḥarsheí13 y el anafe ¿qué va a decir?14
La variante (a) no diría nada a quien desconoce a (b). A veces podemos concluir que hay disminución sobre la base de una versión extensa registrada en fuente antigua o remota, como en los ejemplos siguientes:
(8.267) a Donde comen tres, comen cuatro b Donde comen tres, comen cuatro añadiendo más en el plato
La antigüedad de la versión (b) está garantizada por la presencia del proverbio (c) en el Vocabulario de Correas:15
c Donde comen tres, comerán cuatro, añidiendo (¡sic!) más en el plato. (9.864) a Quien bien te quiere, te hará llorar b Quien te quiere mal, te hará reír; quien te quiere bien, te hará llorar
9 Cf. Alexander y Bentolila, La palabra en su hora... (nota 1), p. 30. 10 Chétrit, Yosef, “Hāʼămîrāh happiṯgāmîṯ kaʼămîrāh ʻal-ṭeqsṭûʼālîṯ – haṣṣāṣāh lappiṯgāmîm šel yehûḏēy mārôqô” [en hebreo: El dicho proverbial en tanto que dicho supra-textual. Ojeada sobre los refranes de los judíos marroquíes], Masorot 9-10-11 (1997), pp. 557-577. Chétrit compara el repertorio de refranes en una comunidad con el caudal léxico que está a su disposición (p. 558). La evocación –parcial o total– de un proverbio es una estrategia que supone un saber común por parte de los participantes en el acto de habla. Tanto las añadiduras como las disminuciones tienen por objeto enfatizar el punto de vista del hablante, en el cuadro de lo que Chétrit llama la función semántico-pragmática de la conversación. 11 almeḫrez, almedrez = almirez 12 anafe = hornillo de carbón, redondo y de barro 13 me ḥarsheí = me rallé, me raspé 14 Interpretación: Ante un mismo accidente, el fuerte grita a voz en cuello por un daño ligero, mientras que el flojo se arruina completamentesin lamentarse. 15 Maestro Gonzalo Correas, Vocabulario de refranes y frases proverbiales y otras fórmulas comunes de la lengua castellana en que van todos los impresos antes y otra gran copia
4 Yaakov Bentolila
Una versión que corrobora a (b) se encuentra en (c):16
c El quen te quere bien te hace llorar, el quen te quere mal te hace reír
2 Mensajes diferentes
La simple sustitución de una preposición puede alterar el mensaje de un refrán:
(10.533) a La mujer compuesta quita al marido de otra puerta b La mujer compuesta quita al marido por la otra puerta
Si en (a) se entiende que el marido aludido frecuenta culpablemente casa ajena, lo que dice la variante (b) no está muy claro: se puede suponer, por ejemplo, que una valiosa esposa le libera de un percance. La modificación puede ser de índole tal que produzcamensajes opuestos:
(11.638) a Si negra fue la culpa, más negra es la disculpa b Más negra es la culpa que la disculpa (12.301) a Da el Dió la manta asegún el frío b El Dió da el frío asigún la manta (13.415) a El agua de abril se puede poner en un barril b En abril cada gota llena un barril
A veces las sustituciones lexicales cambian el tema del refrán dejando más o menos intacto su mensaje, como en los ejemplos siguientes:
(14.41) a Al hombre y al sol no ha menester seliḥot17 b Para la niña y el sol no es menester seliḥot18
que juntó el Maestro Gonzalo Correas, Tip. de la Rev. de archivos, bibliotecas y museos, Salamanca/Madrid 1924, p. 163. El Vocabulario data de 1627. 16 Leonor Carracedo y Elena Romero, “Refranes publicados por Ya’acob Yona”, Estudios Sefaradíes 4 (1981), p. 544, refrán 264. Esta versión no se ha registrado en Alexander y Bentolila, La palabra en su hora... (nota 1). 17 Interpretación: No hay que preocuparse demasiado por asuntos que acabarían por solucionarse a su debido tiempo. 18 seliḥot = Oraciones por las que se implora perdón
5 Cómo se trokan los proverbios
(15.127) a Caźźar, caźźar19 que la landra20 viene21 b Come, come que la landra viene (16.31) a Agudos me maten y no bobos me den la vida b Agudos que me maten y no burros que me den vida c Sabio que me mate y no tonto que me dé la vida (17.13) a A la vejez, sarampión b A la vejez, sabañones22 (18.105) a Cada pasharito tiene su nidito b Cada pasharito tiene su corazonito23
Eso ocurre también en las traducciones, cuando se sustituye un término español por su equivalente jaquético (< árabe o hebreo). Tanto el mensaje como el tema quedan iguales, pero la formulación distinta evoca un ambiente local íntimo.
(19.51) a Quien madruga el Dió le ayuda b El Dió fuquea24 al que sobḥea25 (20.264) a A quien Dios no dio hijos, el diablo da sobrinos b Dios no le dio hijos, pero el Shed26 le dio sobrinos (21.883) a Quien mucho habla, mucho yerra27 b Quien mucho ḫadrea28, mucho yerra
19 caźźar = casarse 20 landra = peste, epidemia 21 Interpretación: Crítica de quien hace las cosas con prisa, sin tener en cuenta las consecuencias. 22 Interpretación: Cuando se hace algo en un momento inoportuno, o cuando se comporta uno de manera incongruente. 23 Interpretación: Cada uno se siente bien en su lugar, o con sus comodidades propias, etc. 24 fuquear = ayudar, sacar de apuro 25 sobḥea = madrugar 26 Shed = diablo (del hebreo) 27 yerrar = errar 28 ḫadrear = hablar, charlar
6 Yaakov Bentolila
3 Fraseos corrientes
En su tránsito hay refranes que acaban en boca de hablantes rústicos que los desmantelan de sus fraseos poéticos para traducirlos en lenguaje ordinario, como lo muestran las versiones (b) de los ejemplos siguientes:
(22.388) a El que roba a un ladrón, tiene cien años de perdón b Un ladrón que roba otro ladrón, tiene cien años de perdón (23.358) a A el que diere sus bienes en su vida, que le vengan unas ḳamaras29 de seguida b El que da sus bienes en su vida merece palos
4 Actuaciones erróneas
Las versiones toscas revelan casos en los que el hablante manifiesta no haber comprendido el tema ni, por consiguiente, el mensaje:
(24.295) a El día que no escombrí, vino quien no pensí30 b El día que nos escombrí, vino lo que menos lo pensí
Obviamente el complemento “nos” y el sujeto “lo” en (b) no cuadran con ninguna imagen o idea coherentes. Hay desviaciones que resultan de una insuficiencia de audición; un hablante que no habrá bien oído un refrán inaugura una versión aproximativa, basada en sustituciones de índole fonética, que desfigura más o menos la que suponemos haber sido la original:
(25.66) a Ande va la barca, va Bachicha b Donde va la vaca, va la bachicha
Quien produjo (b) dijo “vaca” en vez de “barca”, no comprendió que “Bachicha” es un nombre propio,31 e inventó una palabra, “bachicha”, sin tener idea de lo que puede significar, sino algo o alguien susceptible de ser atraído por una vaca…
29 ḳamaras = no he conseguido enterarme del sentido de esta palabra en el contexto del refrán, pero se entiende que refiere a alguna pena o castigo. 30 escombrí, pensí = escombré, pensé 31 La Sra. Orna Stoliar, editora lingüística, sugiere una interpretación interesante de este refrán: “En la Argentina y otros países de América Latina, Bachicha es el apodo despectivo
7 Cómo se trokan los proverbios
En los proverbios siguientes “rey”, en (a), ha sido mal oído y sustituido por “regar”, en (b), y este en su turno por un derivado de “beber”. Los temas cambian, el mensaje no tanto (“no siempre logra uno llevar a cabo por completo sus proyectos”); pero su mejor aderezo está desde luego en (a), probablemente el original.
(26.284) a El rey va hasta donde puede, no hasta donde quiere b El regar hasta donde puede y no hasta donde quiere c El beba hasta donde puede y no hasta donde quiere
En el ejemplo siguiente, la frase “cedacito nuevo”, mal entendida, se transformó en la locución enigmática “será sito nuevo”:
(27.128) a Cedacito nuevo, hoy al clavo, mañana al suelo b Cedaźito nuevo c Espérate, será sito nuevo
La variante (c) intenta reproducir (b), que es disminución de (a). El caso más curioso de refrán “trokado”, es aquel que se transformó, creo yo, en el transcurso de tres etapas, la primera por desconocimiento de un término, combinada con la segunda, sustitución fonética, y la tercera por simple antojo; así propongo analizar la diferencia entre las dos versiones siguientes:
(28.339) a El ocio madre de todos los vicios b El seis madre de todos los vicios
El refrán, tal como está fraseado en (a), se comprende muy bien, tanto en el plan del tema como del mensaje. Las tres etapas son las siguientes: 1) Un primer hablante desconoce la palabra “ocio” 2) Por sustitución fonética la cambia por “ocho” 3) Otro hablante, habiendo oído “ocho”, numeral que no tiene ninguna responsabilidad en la promoción de vicios, puede ingenuamente haberlo sustituido por cualquier otro numeral, “seis” en la circunstancia, lo que nos da la versión (b).
con que se designa a los inmigrantes italianos. En ese caso, el significado de ‘Ande va la barca, va Bachicha’ podría ser que los italianos están tan interesados en emigrar de Italia que no les importa demasiado el lugar de destino”. Es muy probable que este refrán haya sido incorporado al repertorio jaquético por intermedio de judíos de Marruecos Español, que emigraron a América Latina en gran número.
8 Yaakov Bentolila
Conclusión
Casi todos los refranes presentan variantes. Éstas reflejan no sólo el aspecto de originalidad e inspiración (así se trokan los proverbios, en el sentido que tiene este verbo en ladino turco), sino también el de las equivocaciones, los fallos e incluso los disparates de los usuarios de proverbios (así se trokan los proverbios en jaquetía).
9
David M. Bunis
On Judezmo Terms for the Proverb and Saying: A Look from Within*
David M. Bunis Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Lo·ké es la mas buena koza en el ben adam? La luenga! I lo·ké es la mas negra koza? La luenga! Máved vehayim beyad lashón (What is the finest thing man possesses? His tongue! And the worst thing? His tongue! Life and death are in the power of the tongue) Rabbi David Ha-Lewi of Bucharest, 1860.1
1. Terminology for Jewish folklore genres
Like many other Jewish subgroups forced to migrate from one region to another, the Jewish Ibero-Romance speakers who arrived in the Ottoman Empire following the late fifteenth-century expulsions from Iberia created a vibrant new folk culture in the realm of the sultans. Ottoman Sephardic folk culture arose as a synthesis of elements brought from Iberia, elements selectively incorporated from the cultures of the new ethnic groups with whom the Sephardim came into contact, and elements from the Jewish religious core culture which had been inherited from earlier generations, reaching back long before the Jews set foot on Iberian soil. What made the Ottoman Sephardic folk culture in its totality more than just the sum of these disparate parts was the unique creative spirit and philosophy of life that embodied this Jewish subculture group, and its distinctive filtering processes, by means of which all
* This research was undertaken with support from Israel Science Foundation grant no. 1105/11. 1 David Ha-Lewi, Sefer ṭov wĕ-yafé, Bucharest, f. 16a.
11 On Judezmo Terms for the Proverb
potential folklore elements ultimately adopted by the group became integral parts of its unified, internally cohesive cultural world. The folklore traditions of the Jews of modern times—those of the Judezmo- speaking Sephardim, of the Yiddish-speaking Ashkenazim, of the Judeo-Arabic- speaking Macaravim and Mustcarabim, and of other Jewish subcultures—began to receive scholarly scrutiny in the second half of the nineteenth century, with the birth of Jewish studies. But the orientation, methodology, and lines of development of research on the folklore of those diverse subcultures were not all of one kind. The most striking divergence is perhaps to be found in the analytical approach brought to the study of Yiddish folklore, on the one hand, and that assumed by many of the most prominent researchers of Judezmo folklore, especially those active in the twentieth century, on the other. Among scholars interested in Yiddish folklore there were some, particularly the Austrian ethnographer and folklorist Friedrich S. Krauss (1859-1938), editor of Am Ur-Quell and Anthropophyteia, who argued that the folklore of Yiddish speakers should be analyzed as a component of German folkloristics. But this approach was ultimately rejected by the majority of Yiddish folklorists, most of whom themselves belonged to Jewish communities in Germany and Eastern Europe. While taking into consideration the medieval German roots of some elements of Yiddish folk traditions, these scholars sought to establish Yiddish or Jewish folkloristics as an independent field of inquiry, the aim of which was to study all facets of Jewish folklore, reflecting all of its diverse sources. The early Yiddish folklorists, such as Abraham Tendlau
(b. Wiesbaden, 1802, d. 1878),2 generally wrote in German. In 1898, Rabbi Max
Grunwald (b. Zabrze, 1871, d. Jerusalem, 1953),3 who lived in Hamburg, Vienna, and Jerusalem, established a society for the study of Jewish folklore, with its own journal, Mitteilungen (der Gesellschaft) für Jüdische Volkskunde, which continued to appear through 1929.4 In their works in German, the early Yiddish folklorists tended to employ the folklore terminology commonly used by German scholars in analyzing Germanic folk traditions, such as Redensart ‘folk saying’, Märchen ‘fable’, and Volksmärchen
2 Tendlau authored Sprichwörter und Redensarten deutsch-jüdischer Vorzeit, Heinrich Keller, Frankfurt am Main 1860, and other pioneering Yiddish folklore collections. 3 On him see Dov Noy, “Dr. Max Grunwald—The Founder of Jewish Folkloristics”, in Max Grunwald, Tales, Songs & Folkways of Sepharadic Jews, Dov Noy (ed.), Magnes Press, Jerusalem, 1982, pp. ix-xiv. 4 The journal is available online: http://www.compactmemory.de/.
12 David M. Bunis
‘folktale’.5 But in the writings of later Yiddish folklorists, especially those who wrote in Yiddish, English, and other languages, the German folk-genre denotations were often abandoned in favor of the native terminology and internally generated technical neologisms, such as vertl ‘folk saying’, moshl ‘fable’, and fólksmayse ‘folktale’.6 From an examination of the Yiddish folkloristics literature one forms the impression that the texts which were of greatest interest to the Yiddish folklorists were those which, in form and content, were most characteristically ‘Jewish’, by which I mean rich in Hebrew-Aramaic lexical items and directly connected with distinctively Jewish religious and social life. The study of Judezmo folklore started off on a somewhat different footing. The authors of some of the earliest collections of Ottoman Judezmo folk literature and their analysis were not members of the speech community itself, but Western European specialists in the literature and folk traditions of the Hispanic world. These scholars tended to see Ottoman Sephardic folklore through the prism of Hispanic folk traditions, and applied the terminology and categorizations accepted among scholars of those traditions to the folk culture of the Ottoman Sephardim. In choosing the specific genres of Sephardic folklore on which they chose to focus their attention, too, the European scholars were influenced by their school of research, investing almost all of their efforts in the investigation of genres which they recognized as having a historical connection to Western European, especially Hispanic, folklore traditions.
5 Cf. Max Grunwald, Mitteilungen der Gesellschaft für Jüdische Volkskunde 1 (1898), pp. 46, 72. 6 Cf. Uriel Weinreich, Modern English-Yiddish Yiddish-English Dictionary, YIVO, New York 1968. See also the folklore terminology employed in Uriel Weinreich and Beatrice Weinreich, Yiddish Language and Folklore: A Selective Bibliography for Research, Mouton, The Hague 1959. Internally derived Yiddish folklore terms and genre categorization are presented in the handbook, Voz iz azoyns yidishe etnografye? (hantbikhl far zamler) (What Is Jewish Ethnography? [Handbook for Collectors]), published by the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research, New York, in 1929 (esp. pp. 16-30). For discussion, see Beatrice Silverman-Weinreich, “Toward a Structural Analysis of Yiddish Proverbs”, YIVO Annual of Jewish Social Science 17 (1978), 1-20, and the following articles by Barbara Kirshenblatt- Gimblett: “Problemen fun yidisher folklor-terminologye”, Yidishe shprakh 31 (1972), pp. 42-48; “Problems in the Early History of Jewish Folkloristics”, World Congress of Jewish Studies 10.D2 (1990), pp. 21-32; and “Folklore, Ethnography, and Anthropology”, The YIVO Encyclopedia of Jews in Eastern Europe (http://www.yivoencyclopedia.org/article. aspx/Folklore_Ethnography_and_Anthropology).
13 On Judezmo Terms for the Proverb
The Hispanists essentially ignored those components of Ottoman Judezmo folklore adopted from the peoples of the Ottoman regions, alongside whom the Sephardim had lived since their arrival in the empire following the expulsions from Iberia, and they also paid little or no attention to elements of Judezmo folklore having specifically Hebrew or Jewish roots. To use the term introduced by sociologist William Graham Sumner (d. 1910), the approach followed by many of these scholars exemplified the ethnocentrism characteristic of their school and times, and ran counter to the fundamental anthropological principles guiding the contextual study of culture, or cultural relativism, later established by Franz Boas (d. 1942) and others. The earliest Judezmo folk ballad to appear in a European scholarly journal was a single stanza included in the brief article “Los judíos españoles de Oriente: Lengua y literatura popular”, published in 1885 by Haim [Moshe] Bidjarano (1850-1931) in the Boletín de la Institución Libre de Enseñanza (Madrid).7 Rabbi Bidjarano, who in 1920 would be appointed chief rabbi of Turkey, was himself a native Judezmo speaker who enjoyed great prestige in the Jewish community. His knowledge of Judezmo folk traditions was also appreciated by Hispanists. In fact, he was appointed a corresponding member of the Real Academia de la Lengua Española, and sometimes used the Castilian name Enrique—ordinarily never used among Judezmo speakers in his time—instead of Hebrew-origin Haim. As was to become characteristic of most other Sephardim of the Levant who devoted themselves to Judezmo folklore documentation and research, in his pioneering publication Bidjarano revealed his acceptance of the folklore terminology and categorizations of the Hispanists with whom he was in contact as being applicable to Judezmo. For example, although the hero of the ballad the stanza of which he published in his article is known in its Judezmo variants primarily by names such as Don Argilis, Doverdjeli, Doverchile, or
Underdjile,8 Bidjarano referred to the ballad as a “canto” concerning “Don Vergil”, thus bringing it under the Virgilios ballad type by which its Spanish analogues are known among Hispanists. Judezmo does not have an exact analogue to Spanish canto;
7 Vol. 9, pp. 23-27. I am pleased to thank Elena Romero and Aitor García Moreno for supplying me with a copy of this rare article. 8 E.g., see Moshe Attias, Romancero sefaradi, Jerusalem 1961, p. 72; Margaret Sleeman, “Estrea Aelion, Salonica Sephardic Tradition and the Ballad of Imprisoned Virgil”, in Philip E. Bennett and Richard Firth Green (eds.), The Singer and the Scribe: European Ballad Traditions and European Ballad Cultures, Rodopi, Amsterdam-New York 2004, pp. 153-168.
14 David M. Bunis
the closest words denoting types of ‘songs’ are kante, kantar, and kantiga/-ika.9 Rabbi Bidjarano also agreed with Hispanists of his time who classified the language of the Ottoman Sephardim as a kind of “jargon”; in an introductory letter at the beginning of his article addressed to the Spanish man of letters, Joaqín Costa (1846-1911), to whom the article was dedicated, Bidjarano wrote “Ya en otra ocasión, en la carta que vió la luz en el núm. 149 del Boletín, me lamenté de que el dialecto español en Oriente estuviese tan lejos de la verdad, que nos cuesta gran trabajo entendernos reciprocamente”. Showing still greater acceptance of Hispanist terminology, subsequent folklore collectors who emerged from the Judezmo speech community, such as Abraham Danon (1857-1925) and Abraham Galante (1873-1961), referred to the Judezmo ballad genre by the term romance,10 the Modern Spanish word used by contemporaneous
Hispanists—such as Antonio Sánchez Moguel,11 Marcelino Menéndez y Pelayo,12 and
Ramón Menéndez Pidal,13 who at the turn of the twentieth century took a great interest in the ballad tradition cultivated by the Sephardim of the Ottoman Empire—although Judezmo speakers generally refer to an epic song of this kind as a romansa (cf.
Old Spanish romança) or romanso.14 The same deference to the terminology of the prestigious European Hispanists was later to be seen in the use by scholars from the Judezmo speech community, such as Alberto Hemsi (1898-1975), of the Spanish term copla for the rhymed verse genre more commonly known among Judezmo speakers as
9 Joseph Nehama, Dictionnaire du judéo-espagnol. CSIC, Madrid 1977, pp. 266-267. 10 E.g., Abraham Danon, “Recueil de romances judéo-espagnoles chantées en Turquie”, Revue des Études Juives 32 (1896-97), pp. 102-123, 263-275; 33, pp. 122-139, 255-268; Abraham Galante, “Quatorze romances judéo-espagnols”, Revue Hispanique 10 (1903), pp. 594-606. 11 E.g., A. Sánchez Moguel, “Un romance en el dialecto de los judíos de Oriente”, Boletín de la Real Academia de la Historia 16 (1890), pp. 497-509 12 E.g., M. Menéndez y Pelayo, “Romances castellanos tradicionales entre los judíos de Levante”, Antología de poetas líricos castellanos 10, nos. 45-56 (Madrid 1900), pp. 303- 357. 13 E.g., Ramón Menéndez Pidal, “Catálogo del romancero judeo-español”, Cultura española no. 4 (1906), pp. 1045-1077; no. 5 (1907), pp. 161-199. 14 E.g., see Nehama, Dictionnaire du judéo-espagnol (Note 9), p. 483 s. románsa; and the texts reproduced in Samuel G. Armistead and Joseph H. Silverman, The Judeo-Spanish Ballad Chapbooks of Yacob Abraham Yoná, University of California, Berkeley 1971, pp. 389, 419.
15 On Judezmo Terms for the Proverb
kompla;15 and the use by Moshe Attias (1898-1973) and others of Castilian cancionero for a ‘collection of songs’, where Judezmo has no such word.16 Following the late nineteenth-century beginnings of the ‘Hispanist school’ of Ottoman Sephardic folklore research, its orientation, terminology, and methodology tended to be adopted, consciously or unconsciously, by most subsequent Ottoman Sephardic folklore scholars, particularly those who were native speakers of Spanish. In doing so these scholars rejected the community’s own folklore lexicon and genre categorizations, often without even raising as a methodological problem the discrepancy between the terminology they preferred and that used by the community whose folklore they were studying. Few scholars have departed from this strictly Hispanic-oriented ethnocentrism. One was Baruch cUzi’el, who immigrated to Israel from Salonika and in 1927 began to contribute pioneering articles on Judezmo folklore to the Hebrew-language Jewish folklore journal Rĕšumot, founded by H. N. Bialik, A. Druyanov, and H. Ravnitski, and other periodicals.17 Preferring the native Judezmo terminology to that of the Hispanists, cUzi’el employed konsežas and maasiyod for various types of folktales and rabbinical legends,18 ečas de Djohá for the tales involving the folk hero Djoha, romansas to denote the traditional ballads, komplas (de purim, del felek, etc.) to designate the rhymed strophes on Jewish themes, kantigas (de novya, de parida, etc.) for the lyric songs (sung to brides, new mothers, etc.), and širé kodeš and pizmonim for various religious song genres.19
15 E.g., Alberto Hemsi, Coplas sefardíes, Alexandria 1932. 16 E.g., Moshe Attias, Cancionero judeo-español, Jerusalem 1972. 17 cUzi’el’s collected works have been published as Min hafolklor el hasifrut bi-yhudit-sĕfaradit (ladino), in Shmuel Refael (ed.), Hamaxon lĕ-ḥeqer Yahadut Saloniki, Tel Aviv 1988. 18 Baruch cUzi’el, “Ha-folklor šel ha-yĕhudim ha-sĕfaradim”, Rĕšumot 5 (1927), pp. 332, 334. Citations here transcribed in romanization from Hebrew-letter Judezmo sources are presented in italics. The vocalization in the romanizations is based on the Judezmo dialects of the major cities, such as Salonika, Istanbul and Izmir. Note the phonetic values of the following special characters: ch = [č], d = [d], d (denoting dalet unmarked by a diacritic or syllable-finaltaw ) = [ð] and đ (denoting dalet marked by a diacritic) = [ð] (in the dialects in which this sound occurs, otherwise = [d]), dj = [ǧ], g = [g], g = [γ] (in dialects in which this sound occurs, otherwise = [g]), h = [x], j = [ž], s = [s], sh = [š], u = [u] or, when functioning as a glide adjacent to a vowel, [w], v = [v], z = [z]. Stress is ordinarily penultimate in words ending in a vowel or -n or -s, and ultimate in words ending in other consonants; irregular stress is marked with an acute accent over the stressed syllable. 19 See cUzi’el, “Ha-folklor šel hayĕhudim hasĕfaradim” (Note 18), pp. 359, 363 and 368, 375, 395.
16 David M. Bunis
Another such scholar is Tamar Alexander-Frizer. Whether documenting and exploring the Judezmo folktale (Alexander-Frizer 1999, Alexander 2008a), the proverb
(Alexander 2004, Alexander-Frizer & Bentolila 2008b), healing incantations,20 or other genres of Judezmo folk literature, Alexander-Frizer, and those younger scholars whose work she has influenced, have always taken into consideration the myriad sources of the Sephardic texts, and the culture bearers’ own perceptions of them.
2. Native qualifications of the Judezmo proverb and proverbial saying
One of the folklore genres highly appreciated by Judezmo speakers throughout the ages, and one which still plays a prominent role in their everyday conversational as well as written language, is that of the proverb and saying. By these terms I mean short, pithy statements in widespread use among members of the culture, generally of anonymous authorship. Stating a general truth or practical precept, or offering wise advice, the succinctness of the proverb and saying makes them easy to remember, and convenient to insert at opportune moments. Yehuda Hatsvi, a native of Salonika living in Israel, offered the following remarks on the use of proverbs and sayings among Judezmo speakers:
<“... entre los sefaradim en todos los niveles de edukasion o intelijensia, uzar los refranes era una parte integral de los moabetes i de las konversasiones, i en las derashot en las kehilot ... Los refranes eran tan konosidos por el puevlo, ke ni se nesesitava sitar el refran entero mientras avlando. Basta de pronunsiar una sola parte del refran; porke todos konosian la segunda parte del refran... Dunke, el refran era (i pekado ke ya no es mas) komo una “palavra dizidera” ke se kulaneava en kada nada. En la kreensia del puevlo, “refran mentirozo no ay”, i el refran era komo la esensia de una saviduria kolektiva”.>.21 “… among the Sephardim of all levels of education and intelligence, using proverbs was an integral part of chats and conversation, and sermons in the
20 E.g., Tamar Alexander and Eliezer Papo, “On the Power of the Word: Healing Incantations of Bosnian Sephardic Women”, Menorah 2 (Belgrade 2011), pp. 57-117. 21 Personal communication from Yehuda Hatsvi dated 30 April 2012, for which warm thanks are hereby expressed. Textual citations originally appearing in the Roman alphabet are here enclosed within angular <> brackets.
17 On Judezmo Terms for the Proverb
synagogue. The proverbs were so well known by the people that it was not even necessary to cite a proverb in its entirety while speaking. It was sufficient to say just a part of it; because everyone knew the rest ... Thus the proverb was (but, unfortunately, no longer is) like a “wise word” that was used at every opportunity. The popular belief is that “There is no false proverb”, and the proverb captures the essence of a collective wisdom”.
Among Judezmo speakers, the ‘Jewish’ or ‘Sephardic’ quality of the proverbs and sayings in common use by the speech group is sometimes alluded to by referring to them as refranes djidyós (Jewish proverbs)22 or
Rishar: Anfén, bonjur, e me felisitasyón osí!24 [Trokando de tono i sonriendo] Para munchos anyos, komo dizen las mujeres, ugurlía i bereketlía! Alberto: Mersí.25 “Richard: And so, good day, and my best wishes too! (Changing his tone and smiling) For many years to come, as the women say, with luck and plenty! Alberto: I thank you”.
When the earliest substantial collection of proverbs began to appear in the Judezmo press at the turn of the twentieth century, it was entitled “Refranes de mujeres”
(Womens’ Proverbs).26 Around the same time, in connection with their reactions to
22 El Rizón 12, no. 12 (Salonika 1937). 23 Yehuda Hatsvi, 5 February 2012, http://www.esefarad.com/?p=30707. 24 Fr. Enfin, bonjour, et mes félicitations aussi! 25 ‘Alexander’ (=Gavri’el) Benghiatt, El Trezoro de Yerushaláyim, Jerusalem 1901, pp. 145- 152 (republished from the Izmir Judezmo periodical El Meseret). 26 El Trezoro de Yerushaláyim 1, Jerusalem 1901, pp. 135-136, 143-144, 160, 176, 182-184, 192; the collection is reproduced in romanization in David M. Bunis, “Una introducción a la lengua de los sefardíes a través de refranes en judezmo”, in Neue Romania 12 = Judenspanisch 1 (1992), ed. Winfried Busse, pp. 7-36.
18 David M. Bunis
a certain popular newspaper series, historian Abraham Galante made the following comparison between Judezmo-speaking women of the older, culturally more traditional —and often illiterate—generation in the Ottoman regions, and their younger, more westernized and highly literate counterparts:
En la mujer apartenyendo a la vyeja djenerasyón, ... eya komenta según su pensar, i según saver lo ke eya sintyó meldar, i adjunta en vezes algún reflán o alguna ekspresyón endjenyoza. En la lektrisa de la nueva djenerasyón, egziste el plazer de meldar i remeldar ..., de komentar las ekspresyones djudías, sin abordar akeyas turkas i gregas.27 “In the woman belonging to the older generation, ... she comments according to how she thinks, and based on her knowledge of what she has heard [someone else] read to her, and sometimes she adds some proverb or ingenuous expression [of her own]. In the woman reader of the newer generation, there is the pleasure of reading and re-reading [the series installment herself], ... commenting on the Jewish expressions, without touching on those of Turkish and Greek origin”.
In the Judezmo press one notes numerous other instances in which the use of proverbs and sayings is ascribed to ‘(Jewish) women’, for example:
“Las mujeres djuđias dizen ke ‘Enverano es kolcha de prove’” “The Jewish women say that ‘Summer is the blanket of the poor’” (El Djugetón 5, no. 16 [Istanbul 1913], p. 4). “Las mujeres dizen ‘Enverano tyene ojos’: no es komo envyerno, ke tođo está tapađo i nađa no se ve” “The women say ‘Summer has eyes’: it is not like winter, when everything is covered up [by clothing] and nothing is seen” (El Djugetón 6, no. 50 [1914], p. 5). “Las mujeres uzan a dezir un proverbyo: ‘Lo·ke se uza non se eskuza’” “The women are accustomed to saying a proverb: ‘What is customary cannot be abandoned’” (El Punchón 2, no. 74 [Salonika 1924], p. 3). “Esto es lo·ke28 dizen las mujeres: ‘Mazal de perro’” “This is what the women call ‘A dog’s luck’” (El Djugetón 21, no. 20 [1929], p. 5).
27 Abraham Galante, El Meseret 8, no. 20 (Izmir 1904), p. 4. 28 A middle dot (·) will be used to separate words which are written separately in modern Judezmo but appear as a single word in the cited text.
19 On Judezmo Terms for the Proverb
In a satirical series published in Salonika between the world wars, a cantankerous old husband accuses his wife of constantly peppering her conversation with proverbs; she answers by arguing that there is no other way of making her meaning clear to him:
BOHOR: Ke vamos akomer oy? DJAMILA: Lo·ke trushites. Non saves lo ke dizen, “Komed kon dos lo·ke trayésh kon vos”? BOHOR: En kada palavra metes un refrán. DJAMILA: Otra manera se puede dar a entender kon ti?29 “BOHOR: What are we going to eat today? DJAMILA: Whatever you brought. Don’t you know what they say? “Eat, you two, what you bring with you!” BOHOR: You never say a sentence without adding a proverb. DJAMILA: Is there any other way to make myself understood by you?”
In a brief overview of the folklore genres cultivated by Judezmo speakers, Dora Niyego offered the following comments on the proverb and saying, at the same time citing some of the native terms used today to denote them:
<“Los proverbos sepharadis ke pasaron de boka en boka son muy presiozos porke kontienen muncho saverisyo en pokas palavras. Los sepharadis dizen “refraniko mintirozo no ay”. Munchos de estos refranes son vinidos de la Espanya. Puedemos sitar unos kuantos “Ken mas tiene, mas kere”, “Mas vale un pasharo en la mano, ke sien bolando”, “Ken bien te kere, te aze yorar”. Ay otros proverbos i dichas ke entraron al judeo-espanyol de los puevlos ke tuvieron relasyones kon los Sepharadis. Por egzamplo, los Sepharadis de Romania utilizan el proverbo “Azete amigo kon el guerko, fin ke pasas el ponte”. De las dichas ebreas, la maksima rabinika ke es sitada en Pirke Avot “Si no yo para mi, ken para mi?” es muy konosida. Ay refranes ke tienen komo sujetos los uzos i kostumbres de los Sepharadis. Todos konosemos la dicha “Duspues de Purim, platikos”.>30 “The Sephardic proverbs which passed by word of mouth are very precious because they contain much wisdom in a few words. The Sephardim say ‘There is
29 Mesajero 5, no. 1557 (Salonika 1940). 30 Şalom gazetesi, 9 January 2008 (http:www.salom.com.tr/news/print/3447-La-kultura- popular-de-los-Sepharadis.aspx).
20 David M. Bunis
no false proverb’. Many of these proverbs came from Spain. We can cite a few: ‘The more one has, the more one wants’, ‘A bird in hand is worth more than 100 in flight’, ‘One who loves you makes you cry’. “There are other proverbs and sayings which entered Judeo-Spanish through the peoples with whom the Sephardim interacted. For example, the Sephardim of Romania use the proverb ‘Make friends with the devil, until you cross the bridge’. Of the Hebrew sayings, the rabbinic maxim cited in Ethics of the Fathers, ‘If I am not for myself, who will be for me?’, is very well known. There are proverbs that have as their subjects Sephardic habits and customs. We all know the saying ‘After Purim, little plates [of food given as gifts are an anti-climax]’”.
Matilda Koen-Sarano contributed the following remarks on the categorization of the Judezmo proverb and saying:
<“Munchos i mas grandes de mi en este kampo krearon kategorias, komo Alkalay, Perahya, Kolonomos i Gaon. Otros los dieron en orden alfabetiko, komo Saporta y Beja i Moscona. Ay ken dio solo reflanes, komo Gaon. Ay i ken metio adientro dichas, komo Moscona. Ay ken metio adientro de todo, komo Perahya. Mi tendensia es de divizarlos en kategorias: reflanes, dichas, bindisiones i maldisiones, ekspresiones verbales i mas. Todos estos apartienen al mundo del reflan, mizmo si no lo son”>.31 “Many [scholars], greater than me in this field, created [typological] categories, such as [Arye] Alkalay, [Klara] Perahya, [Žamila] Kolonomos i [Moshe David] Gaon. Others, such as [Enrique] Saporta y Beja and [Isaac] Moscona, gave them in alphabetical order. Some, such as Perahya, put sayings of all kinds in their collections. My tendency is to divide them into [the following] categories:
As in the collection Erensya Sefaradi, collected and edited in Istanbul, 1994, by Klara
Perahya and other women,32 Niyego and Koen-Sarano distinguish primarily between
31 Matilda Koen-Sarano. “El reflan djudeo-espanyol: Espejo de las komunitas sefaradis”,Aki Yerushalayim 75 (2004), http://www.aki- yerushalayim.co.il/ay/075/075_08_reflan.htm 32 Klara Perahya et al. (eds.), Erensya Sefaradi (Proverbos i Diças), Gözlem, Istanbul 1994.
21 On Judezmo Terms for the Proverb
two principal sub-genres, the proverb—for which they use the seemingly synonymous terms proverbo, refrán/reflán, and diminutive refraniko, and the saying—denoted by dicha and maksima. Koen-Sarano adds additional categories. In fact, the terms cited by these authors are but a few of those which have been used by Judezmo speakers and by the scholars who have attempted to analyze their folk culture. The following paragraphs offer a critical look at the scholarly and popular terminology used to denote the Judezmo proverb and saying.
3. External (‘scientific’ or ‘scholarly’) terminology
In his 1885 article cited above, Haim Bidjarano also included 155 Judezmo proverbs and sayings;33 a much larger collection he had compiled still remains in manuscript. Again conforming to the terminology accepted among Hispanists, Bidjarano referred to his proverbs and sayings as proverbios, máximas, and refranes. The first scholar to publish a major collection of Judezmo proverbs as collected from native speakers was Rabbi Meyer Kayserling (1829-1905), who in Budapest, in 1889, published a small volume entitled Refranes o proverbios españoles. As its title demonstrates, Kayserling, too, used the two terms most widely employed by Hispanists in denoting examples of this genre: refrán and proverbio. His collection was soon followed by that of the French Hispanist, Raymond Foulché-Delbosc (1864-1929), who employed similar terminology in his article “Proverbes judéo-espagnols”, published in 1895 in the Revue Hispanique (vol. 2, pp. 312-352). So, too, did folklore collectors from the Judezmo speech community itself, who adopted the Hispanists’ terminology, or their equivalents in various European languages, in collections which, together, were to establish a rich paremiological data base.34
33 Haim [Moshe] Bidjarano, “Judíos españoles de Oriente”, Boletín de la Institución Libre de Enseñanza (1885), pp. 26-27. 34 The early proverb collections by Judezmo-speaking scholars included: A. Moscuna, “Spaniolische Sprichwörter (aus Tatar-Bazardzyk in Ost Rumelien)”, Der Urquell 1 (1897), pp. 84-86, 204-205; Joseph Passy, “Spaniolische Sprichwörter aus Philippopel”, Der Urquell 1 (1897), pp. 205-206; Abraham Galante, “Proverbes judéo-espagnols”, Revue Hispanique 9 (1902), pp. 440-454; Abraham Danon, “Proverbes judéo-espagnoles de Turquie”, Zeitschrift für romanische Philologie 27 (1903), pp. 72-96.
22 David M. Bunis
In one of the most recent works devoted to the subject,35 the Judezmo proverb repertoire is referred to as refranero sefardí, although in Judezmo refranero traditionally denotes a ‘frequent user of proverbs’ rather than a ‘collection of proverbs’, as in Spanish.36 The work’s Spanish author characteristically refers to the proverb traditions of Judezmo speakers as “una pieza clave en la evolución cultural española” (emphasis mine). The author concedes that “nuevas voces […] fueron incorporándose a este español singular debido a las influencias recibidas por las distintas comunidades sefardíes”, although he felt no need to specify any of the sources of those ‘influencias recibidas’; nor did he make any mention of the fact that numerous proverbs and expressions were original creations arising within the speech group, and some others were translations or adaptations of Hebrew and Aramaic antecedents. In prefaces to their proverb collections and analysis, Tamar Alexander Frizer,37 and her predecessor, Isaac Jack Lévy,38 devoted considerable attention to the terminology used by scholars to distinguish between various types of proverbs and sayings. Lévy in particular discussed the popular and scientific terms used by speakers of Castilian to denote types of proverbs and sayings. But, perhaps because of their literary-folkloristic rather than linguistic orientation, neither of them analyzed the internal proverb and saying terminology used by Judezmo speakers themselves. As a complement to the paremiological scholarship of Alexander Frizer and her colleagues, the remainder of this article will be devoted to an examination of the Judezmo lexicon for the proverb and saying, on its own terms and in comparison with the terminology used by Hispanists, in order to focus attention on this tradition as viewed ‘from within’.39
35 Jesús Cantera Ortiz de Urbina, Diccionario Akal del refranero sefardí, Ediciones AKAL, Madrid 2004. 36 See, for example, Nehama, Dictionnaire du judéo-espagnol (Note 9), p. 469. 37 Tamar Alexander, Words Are Better Than Bread, Ben-Gurion University Press and Ben- Zvi Institute, Beer Sheva and Jerusalem 2004, esp. pp. 17-19, 20-22, 25. 38 Isaac Jack Lévy, Prolegomena to the Study of the Refranero Sefardí, Las Americas, New York 1969. 39 A few basic works on the proverb genre include: Archer Taylor, The Proverb, Peter Lang, Bern 1985; Wolfgang Mieder and Alan Dundes, The Wisdom of Many: Essays on the Proverb, University of Wisconsin Press, Garland, Madison 1994; Wolfgang Mieder, International Proverb Scholarship: An Annotated Bibliography, Garland, New York 1982- 2001; Wolfgang Mieder, Proverbs: A Handbook, Greenwood Press, Santa Barbara, CA. 2004.
23 On Judezmo Terms for the Proverb
4. Internal (‘native’, ‘folk’, or ‘popular’) terminology
In accordance with the distinction made by Perahya et al., Koen-Sarano, Dora Niyego, and other researchers belonging to the contemporary Judezmo speech community, the following discussion will be subdivided into sections dealing with the proverb, and the saying.
4.1 PROVERB
4.1.1 Proverbyo, proverb cf. Sp. proverbio ,פרובירביו ,In the sixteenth century, the term proverbyo (or proberbyo “... el proverbyo antigo ... dize ‘Kyen es tu enemigo, el ke es de tu ofísio” “… the old proverb … says ‘Who is your enemy? He who is of your same profession’” (Almosnino 1564, 111a).40 “traen un proverbyo antigo en nuestro talmud ke dize ke esto es lo·ke los ombres komún mente dizen ke ‘Asegún es el game(l)yo, ansí es la karga”41 “they bring an old proverb in our Talmud which is like that which people commonly say, that ‘According to the [capability] of the camel, such is the weight [he is able to carry]’” (Almosnino 1564, 72b). It must be noted, however, that Moshe Almosnino was a member of a small elitist group of intellectuals in Salonika, some of whom were linguistically de-judaized conversos who had returned to Judaism there. His work was written in a variety of language which evidently exemplified the style used by this elite group, which, 40 For lack of space I am forced to do what would be unthinkable in serious folkloristic research: I list proverbs without offering any context. I hope to rectify this error in an expanded version of the present article. 41 In the margin of Almosnino’s text he offers the Hebrew equivalent of the proverb, ,which is attributed to Rabbi Yishmac’el (Talmud Bavli, Massekhet Soṭa ,לפום גמלא שיחנא Pereq 1, f. 13b). 24 David M. Bunis unlike the everyday Judezmo speakers of more humble origins in contemporaneous Salonika, tended to look toward contemporaneous literary Spanish as its linguistic model. Members of this elitist group tended to refer to their language as romançe whereas the name appearing in sixteenth-century works more closely ,(רומאנסי) resembling the variety of language used by the popular sector of Ottoman Sephardim 42.(לאדינו) was ladino A parallel to this terminological divergence is to be seen in the traditional Jewish calque Ladino versus former converso ‘Spanish’ translations of the Hebrew word mašal] ‘exemplum, parable, proverb’),43 in] משל mišle, the construct plural of) משלי the opening sentence of the Book of Proverbs. From the sixteenth century into the modern era, the traditional Ladino calque translations published by the Jews of the Ottoman Empire translate mišle as enshen-/enshemplos.44 This is similar to the form Biblia Escorial or E3, which follows the Hebrew canon.45 The Judezmo term may be 42 E.g., Livro (l)yamado en lashón hakódesh shulhán (h)apanim i en ladino meza de el alma ‘Book Called in the Language of Holiness [=Hebrew] Table of Showbread and in Ladino Table of the Soul’, Salonika 1568, title page. Mišle Šĕlomo ben Dawid) משלי שלמה בן־דוד מלך ישראלMišle is the first word of the phrase 43 melex Yisra’el) “The proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel”, with which Proverbs begins. 44 E.g., the translation published in Salonika 1572 (the text is reproduced, without vocalization, in Moshe Lazar (ed.), The Ladino Scriptures: Constantinople – Salonica [1540-1572], Labyrinthos, Lancaster, CA 2000, vol. 2) and in that in Yisra’el Bĕxar Ḥayyim (ed.), Sefer arbaca wĕ-esrim ... ḥeleq rĕvici ... kĕtuvim cim ... targum ladino, Vienna 1816. 45 The Latin Vulgate instead offers parabolae. It should be noted that, from the sixteenth century on, Judezmo enshemplo was used primarily in the sense of ‘example, parable, exemplum’, e.g., “Deprende a·leer turkesko i farsí i a (h)azer koplas a·metro i trovas i kantos i adevinasyones agudas i enshenplos maravi(l)yozos” “Learn to read Turkish and Persian and to compose couplets in meter and verses and songs and sharp riddles and marvelous proverbs” (Baḥye ben Yosef ibn Paquda, Ḥovat halĕvavot ... en ladino, Yosef Formón (trans.), Salonika c1568, 2:67a). See also Nehama, Dictionnaire du judéo- espagnol (Note 9), p. 177; and the analysis of the use of enshemplo in Almuth Münch, “Šəlomo ben Yacaqov Hakohen: Ḥešeq Šəlomo (Mecam locez, Qohelet), Yerušalayim 1893: Aspectos retórico-poetológicos de la obra”, in David M. Bunis, Languages and Literatures of Sephardic and Oriental Jews, Misgav Yerushalayim & Mossad Bialik, Jerusalem 2009, pp. *319-340. 25 On Judezmo Terms for the Proverb compared with Old Spanish enxemplo, from Latin exěmplum, which was one of the terms for ‘proverb’ or ‘saying’ used before the word proverbio became popular.46 However, similar to Almosnino’s terminology for the ‘proverb’, the 1553 Ferrara Bible, published by former conversos in a variety of language differing in important respects from the traditional Jewish Ladino calque translation language, instead uses “...el rey de·los savyos disho en Mishlé ke ‘La mujer savia fragua su kaza, i ke la loka kon su mano la deroka” “… the king of the wise men said in Proverbs that ‘The wise woman builds her house, and the insane one with her own hand destroys it’” (cAtias, La guerta de oro, 1778, p. 54b).51 Following the sixteenth century, proverbyo does not seem to appear in Judezmo texts until the late eighteenth century, offering support for my hypothesis that it did 46 Joan Corominas and José A. Pascual, Diccionario crítico etimológico castellano e hispánico, Gredos, Madrid, vol. 2 (1984), p. 548, s. ejemplo, and p. 939, s. fracción (refrán). 47 Biblia en lengua española, Ferrara 1553, p. 31. 48 In BNM, 26 David M. Bunis not originally constitute a part of everyday popular Ottoman Judezmo. At the end of the eighteenth century we suddenly find the word in La guerta de oro (Livorno 1788), by David Bĕxar Moshe cAtias, where it appears in the phrase “Proverbyos o sean refranín”, serving as the title placed over a column of Judezmo translations of Italian proverbs, themselves headed “Proverbi” (f. [ii]a). cAtias—who was born in Sarajevo but had established himself in Livorno—knew Italian and was familiar with and influenced by Western European literary terms and concepts, presumably used proverbyos under Italian influence (cf. It. proverbio), but felt the need to explain its meaning for the everyday, unwesternized Judezmo reader, unacquainted with Italian, by means of another, apparently more familiar term for ‘proverb’ used in popular Judezmo, refrán. Over a century later, Dani’el Balansí of Izmir, who translated the Thousand and One Nights into Judezmo, used a variant of the same word to explain proverbyo, suggesting that the word had still not become an integral part of Judezmo: “El fue enganyado i el se repentía agora de averse kreído tan presto a las palavras de este indyano. Ma, era tadre! Komo dizen un proverbyo (reflán) en turko, ‘Son pishmán, faydá etméz’, ‘Después ke akontese una dezgrasya, repentirse no aze ningún provecho’” “He had been deceived and now he regretted having believed so quickly the words of this Indian. But it was too late! As they say in a Turkish exemplum (proverb), ‘After a mishap occurs, regretting what might have been does no good’” (Dani’el Balansí [trans.], Los mas enteresantes kuentos de·la ermoza estorya de mil i una noche, Izmir 1913, p. 31).52 We will return to the term refrán/reflán in section 4.1.2.1 below. Of cAtias’ translations or adaptations of the Italian proverbs into Judezmo ‘as we [speak it]’ (or in the words of cAtias, “syertos lakirdís i refranín deklarados palavra por palavra komo nos otros” ‘certain conversations and proverbs explained word for word as we [speak them]’, f. 11a), one of them actually seems to be a Judezmo proverb preceded by an Italian translation: [Italian:] <“Avanti che t’ammogli, guarda quel che fai”> [= Judezmo:] “Antes ke te kazes, mira lo ke azes” “‘Before you marry, watch what you’re doing’”’ (cAtias, La guerta de oro, p. 13a). The appearance of proverbyo became more frequent in Judezmo publications in the second half of the nineteenth century when, with the beginnings of the Europeanization 52 Cf. Tk. Son pişmanlık fayda etmez. “It is too late for repentance”. 27 On Judezmo Terms for the Proverb of the ethnic groups of the Ottoman Empire—including its Jews—the folklore terminology used in the modern languages of Europe, especially in Italian (proverbio) and French (proverbe), were adopted in more popular Judezmo throughout the Ottoman regions and beyond. Primarily after the publication in European academic journals of Judezmo proverb collections, with which the Judezmo authors might have been familiar, the form proverbyo, reflecting Italian or Spanish, began to enjoy popularity in the European-influenced Judezmo press and popular literature with reference to proverbial sayings in Judezmo, Hebrew, Turkish, and other language.53 Examples of its use include: “... asigún el proverbyo ‘En midrásh beló hidush’,54 ansí no ay estanpar koza sin renovar” “... just as the proverb says ‘There is no treating of a subject without disclosing something new,’ so there is no publishing of a book without some innovation” (Moshe David Alkalay, Ḥinnux lĕšon civri, Belgrade 1871, [iv]a). “La mujer en el proverbyo, i el livro para reir” “Women in the proverb, and the book for laughing” (=title of an anonymous anthology of proverbs, jokes and humorous stories published in Ruse in 1893). “Proverbyos en versos ebráikos” (Proverbs in rhymed Hebrew) (El Trezoro de Yerushaláyim 1 [Jerusalem 1901], p. 64).55 “‘La okazyón aze al ombre ladrón’, dize un proverbyo” “‘Opportunity makes a man a thief,’ says a proverb” (El Meseret 8, no. 24 [Izmir 1904], p. 5). “Proverbyos espanyoles; Proverbyos turkos” (Yacaqov Avraham Yona, Romansos, Salonika, before 1909, pp. 7-11 [104 proverbs]; pp. 11-13 [46 proverbs]).56 “Yo no entendí byen este proverbyo ke disho mi papú i le rogí de esplikarme” “I hardly understood this proverb which my grandfather used, and I asked him 53 See also the entries in Nehama, Dictionnaire du judéo-espagnol (Note 9), p. 454; Klara Perahya et al., Diksyonaryo Judeo Espanyol, Gözlem, Istanbul 1997, p. 184. .אין מדרש בלא חידוש .Heb 54 55 This collection, with linguistic comments, is reproduced in Bunis, “Una introdución a la lengua” (Note 26). 56 The text is reproduced in Armistead and Silverman, Judeo-Spanish Ballad Chapbooks (Note 14), pp. 462-468. It should be noted that, on the title page, the same proverbs are depicted as “refranes ... en espanyol i en turko”. For a study of the proverbs published by Yona, see Leonor Carracedo and Elena Romero, “Refranes publicados por Yacacob A. Yoná (edición concordada) y bibliografía del refranero sefardí”, Sefarad 41 (1981), pp. 389-560. 28 David M. Bunis to explain it” (El Djugetón 1 [Istanbul 1909], p. 313). “Eyos se ulvidan del proverbyo ke dize: ‘O kadar pará, o kadar boyá’” (Este karar de parás por este karar de boyá) “They forget the proverb that says: ‘That amount of money [buys] that amount of paint’” (El Martío 1, no. 3 [Salonika 1914], p. 2). At the end of the nineteenth century, the Judezmo variant proverbo became popular as well, especially among westernized speakers. This form derives from French proverbe, with final -e in masculine nouns replaced by -o, as is the rule in the incorporation of Gallicisms into Judezmo (e.g., Fr. élève > Jud. elevo ‘pupil [esp. in a secular-oriented school]); for example: “No se avía araygado byen este proverbo befí aberiyod” “This proverb had not become deeply rooted in popular speech” (Y. Y. D. Abba, Sefer leḥem Yĕ’uda, Izmir 1891, p. 95a). Tu entenderás en las profetas lo ke es dicho kon alegoria (remez), lo ke es en figurado (medjáz) i en proverbos “You will understand in the Prophets what is said allegorically, what is figurative (metaphoric) and what in the form of proverbs” (H. B. Arye, Kestyón djudía: Estudyos, vol. 1, Sofia 1900, p. 10). “El proverbo dize, ‘Un loko kita syento’, un rashá, un masid umadíah kita mil’” “The proverb says, ‘One crazy person is enough to make a hundred others crazy’, and one villain–one instigator and seducer–is enough to incite a thousand to evil” (El Djugetón 1 [1909], p. 2). “Esta semana tyene ke venir el haham … nuevamente engajađo por la komuniđađ de Kirklisya… Arían muy bueno akeos ke no partisipavan a·las orasyones mesmo en shabad i profitar de·la okazyón de·las fyestas, komo dize el proverbo, ‘Sheytanín ayagí kirmak’ i azersen djuđyós fin alkavo” “This week the rabbi ... just hired by the community of Kırkkilise is scheduled to arrive ... Those people who have not participated in the prayer services even on the Sabbath would do well to take advantage of the opportunity of the holidays and, as the saying goes, ‘to finally decide to do something after a long interval’ and become Jews in the end” (El Djugetón 5, no. 28 [1913], p. 4).57 “Le azíamos konoser el proverbo del poeta Shelomó, ‘Al tomar lereahá leh vashuv umahar etén’” “We acquainted him with the proverb of the poet, King Solomon: 57 Cf. Tk. şeytanın ayağını kırmak (literally, ‘to break Satan’s foot’). 29 On Judezmo Terms for the Proverb ‘Say not to thy neighbor, “Go, and come back, and tomorrow I will give”’” (El Djugetón 5, no. 45 [1914], p. 1).58 “Proverbos turkos al séder álef bed” “Turkish proverbs in alphabetical order” (El Djugetón 21, no. 18 [1929], p. 5). “Ay un proverbyo popular ke dize: ‘Te kyeres vengar? La ora de la shaká’” “There’s a popular proverb that says: ‘You want to take revenge? Do it when people are telling jokes’” (Aksyón 10, no. 2719 [Salonika 1938]). A frequent user of proverbs is described in a text by a westernized writer as an “ombre a proverbyos”.59 As illustrated above in Niyego’s observations, proverbo is still used in contemporary Judezmo. In 2008 Şeli Gaon wrote in the Istanbul Judezmo periodical Şalom about: <“... los proverbos, dichas i refranes i los desenes (çizim)”>.60 And yet, unlike most of the other Judezmo words used to denote proverbs, no diminutive form of proverb(y)o seems to be documented, suggesting that this term remained somewhat literary in register, never being fully absorbed into the informal, popular spoken register. Although most of the proverbs documented in the collections appearing in the Judezmo press and popular literature beginning in the late nineteenth century were in Judezmo (or “espanyol”), it should be noted that the number of Turkish proverbs which evidently formed part of the Ottoman Judezmo speakers’ proverb repertoire, and which also received some documentation in the Judezmo press, was not insignificant. Nor were the proverbs in the collections necessarily segregated by language: for example, in the collection entitled “Proverbyos o dichas” appearing in the literary 58 Cf. Proverbs 3:28. 59 La Gata (series 2) 8, no. 44 (Salonika 1931), 2, reproduced in David. M. Bunis, Judezmo: An Introduction to the Language of the Ottoman Sephardim [in Hebrew], Magnes, Jerusalem 1999, p. 220. Nehama (Dictionnaire du judéo-espagnol [Note 9], p. 469) offers refranéro and refranísta in that sense; but the latter, like his entry refranéro in the sense of ‘proverb collection’, would seem to be an ad hoc incorporation from Castilian based on the terminology used by Hispanists. In this connection Yehuda Hatsvi kindly sent me the following remark: <“En mi umilde opinion, “refranista” es una palavra “inventada” en vano, i no djugava ningun rolo entre los djidyos sefaradim (al menos los ke biviyan aki en Erets Yisrael en los anyos ’30 i ’40”> (e-mail dated 30 April 2012). 60 “La ventana de vuestra ermana / Limmud” (http://salom.com.tr/news/print/10220-La- ventana-vuestra-ermana--Limmud.aspx). 30 David M. Bunis periodical El Kismet Poeta (1, no. 9 [Izmir 1909], pp. 3-4), edited by ‘Alexander’ Benghiatt (c1863-1924), the 21 Judezmo and 7 Turkish proverbs are intermingled. 4.1.2 Refrán/Reflán and variants In the first half of his dissertation on the Judezmo proverb, Isaac Jack Lévy (1969) noted the distinction sometimes made in Spanish between proverbio, used in certain contexts to denote a learned dictum, and refrán, denoting a more popular saying.61 The learned, literary, and somewhat foreign nature of proverb(y)o in Judezmo was already alluded to in the preceding section of this article. Of the Judezmo reflexes of Romance proverbio/proverbe and refrán (cf. Sp. refrán < Occitan refranh, Fr. refrain),62 refrán—and its variants, re-/riflán and le-/lifrán—are the more popular, spoken and widespread.63 As noted above, paralleling one of the uses of refrán in the eighteenth-century La guerta de oro of cAtias, the variant form reflán was used parenthetically by a nineteenth-century author to explain the meaning of proverbyo, with which he evidently suspected some readers would be unfamiliar: “Era tadre! Komo dizen un proverbyo (reflán) en turko, ‘Son pishmán, faydá etméz’, ‘Después ke akontese una dezgrasya, repentirse no aze ningún provecho’” “It was too late! As they say in a Turkish proverb, ‘After a mishap occurs, regrets over what might have been do no good’” (Balansí, Los mas enteresantes kuentos..., p. 31).64 One of the earliest occurrences of refrán in a Judezmo text is in the anti-Christian polemical work Fuente klara (Salonika 1595), in which we find: “... dize el refrán ke ‘Muchas vezes el ortelano avla buenas sentensias’” “... the proverb says that ‘Many times the gardener speaks wise words’” (6a).65 61 Cf. also proverbio ‘sentencia, adagio o refrán’ vs. refrán ‘dicho agudo y sentencioso de uso común’ [my emphasis] (Diccionario de la lengua española, 22d. ed. [http://buscon.rae.es/]). 62 Cf. Corominas and Pascual, Diccionario crítico etimológico (Note 46), vol. 2, 1984, p. 939, s. fracción (refrán). 63 E.g., Nehama, Dictionnaire du judéo-espagnol (Note 9), p. 469; Perahya, Diksyonaryo Judeo Espanyol (Note 53), p. 187. 64 Izmir 1913. 65 For a romanized edition, see Pilar Romeu Ferré (ed.), Fuente clara (Salónica 1595), Tirocinio, Barcelona 2007. 31 On Judezmo Terms for the Proverb In the eighteenth century the term occurs several times in David ‘Atias’ La guerta de oro (1788) to denote popular sayings; for example: “... el refrán dize ke ‘Kyen avla la verdad perde la amistad’” “... the proverb says that ‘One who speaks the truth loses friendship’” (5b). “... el refrán dize ‘De la manyana se ve el buen día’” “... the proverb says ‘One sees a good day from the morning’” (38a). “ ... el refrán ... dize ‘Vende i arepyéntete’” “... the proverb ... says ‘Sell and regret’” (42b). In his manual ‘Atias also illustrates the use of the plural of refrán formed with the im > -ín): refranín (‘Atias, La guerta de oro, f. iia refranín-) -ים Hebrew morpheme savyozos, also f. 13a). Perhaps this plural marker was attracted to the word because of its formal resemblance to words of Hebrew origin with -án in the singular, -anim in the .zemán ‘time’, pl זמן ;lamdanim למדנים .lamdán ‘learned man’, pl למדן ,.plural (e.g zemanim). Refrán with pluralizing –im continued to be used into the twentieth זמנים century, both in the Eastern and Western dialect regions of Ottoman Judezmo; for example: “... en refranim o meshalim” “in proverbs or wise sayings” (Bĕxar Ḥayyim, Sefer arba‘a wĕ-‘esrim ... ḥeleq šĕliši ... nĕvi‘im, f. 2b). <“No avia ovra ke el venerable def[o]nto [Abraham Cappon] no eksponia a mi modesto gjuzgamiento literario. »El Angustiador«, los proverbios versifikados, sus refranim arabos trasladados—jo tuve la diča de los konoser antes de mučos”> “There was not a work which the venerable deceased [Abraham Cappon] did not expose to my modest literary evaluation. El Angustiador, the rhymed verses, his Arabic proverbs in translation—I had the fortune to become familiar with them before many others did” (Jevrejski glas 6, no. 43 [Sarajevo 1932], p. 6). Although seemingly less popular among the rabbinical writers of the eighteenth century than mashal, refrán was prominent in the nineteenth-century rabbinical Judezmo of Yehuda Papo; for example: “... komo dizen en el refrán ‘El ke no se konsyente no vyene de djente, i lo kita a unto de enoshiyut’” “... as they say in the proverb, ‘One who does not voice his opinion obviously comes from a common family, and he is not considered a person’” (Yĕhuda ben Elicezer Papo (trans.), Elicezer ben Yiṣḥaq Papo, Pele yoceṣ ... trezladado en ladino, [vol. 1.], Vienna 1870, p. 108). 32 David M. Bunis “Lo toman por mashá el refrán ke dize ‘La linpyeza es medya rikeza’” “They make full use of the proverb that says ‘Cleanliness is half of wealth’” (ibid., p. 203). “Dize el refrán ‘Konushea kon los buenos i serás tu uno de eyos’ “The proverb says ‘Speak with good people and you will be one of them’” (ibid., p. 272). “Al ken le dyo el She[m] yid[barah] el byen, ... si eskarsea de dar en todas las kozas ke está enkomendado de los syelos de dar, es komo el refrán ke dize ‘Los amos lo dan, los esklavos lo yoran’, ‘Saybí verir, telal vermés’, ‘El patrón ya se kontenta darlo, el telal no lo da’. I dize otro refrán ‘Ata el azno onde te dize el patrón’” “He to whom the Name Blessed Be He has given wealth, ... if he refrains from giving generously to all things which he is commanded by heaven to give, it is like the proverb that says, ‘The owners give it, the slaves cry about it’; ‘The owner is willing to give it up, but the auctioneer won’t’. And another proverb says ‘Tie the donkey where the owner tells you’” (ibid., p. 220). In the twentieth century refrán was widely used in the titles of modest collections of popular proverbs, and in citations of proverbial sayings, Jewish and otherwise; for example: Refranes akojidos por Shelomó Yisrael Sherezlí “Proverbs collected by Salomon Israel Cherezli” (Jerusalem 1903). Refranes ... en turko muy djaveres “Very precious proverbs in Turkish” (Yona [before 1909], p. 1). “Ya savésh muncho byen el refrán de vyejo: ‘Setam tinyozo es venturozo’” “You are very familiar with the old saying, ‘Someone who is just mangy is lucky’” (El Djugetón 1 [1909], p. 70). “El refrán dize ‘Ninguno kyere sentir la “eshkavá” del padre, ma el hazán se la echa’” “The proverb says ‘No one wants to hear the funeral oration for his father, but the cantor recites it over him’” (El kirbach 2, no. 19 [Salonika 1911], p. 2). “Un refrán franko dize: ‘Tu pas, tu kas, tu las’,66 ke kyere dezir, de djidyó a djidyó: “Todo pasa en este mundo’” “A French proverb says ‘Everything passes, everything breaks, everything wears out’, which means, speaking from one Jew to another [in plain Judezmo]: ‘Everything passes in this world’” (El Kulevro 5, no. 48 [Salonika 1923], p. 3). 66 Cf. Fr. Tout passe, tout casse, tout lasse. 33 On Judezmo Terms for the Proverb <“Ves, yo yevi mučo en mi vida, i nunka no avli, komo tu konoses tu akel refran: ‘Por esto akea vieža no se kižo murir’”> “You see, I’ve borne a lot in my life, and I never complained, as [expressed in] that proverb you know ‘For that reason the old woman didn’t want to die’” (Jevrejski glas 2:34 [Sarajevo 1929], 9-10). “... bueno dize el refrán ke ‘Kyen aspera, se dezespera’” “... the proverb puts it well that ‘One who is forced to wait becomes desperate’” (Aksyón 10, no. 2570 [Salonika 1938], p. 2). <“... segun dize el refran: Todo lo ke azes kon plazer es kolay”> “... as the proverb says: Whatever you do with pleasure is easy” (Benni Aguado, Ladinokomunita, 6 April 2012). 4.1.2.1 Reflán (pl. reflanim) In Spanish historical texts, the variant reflán is extremely rare, as it is in modern Spanish.67 In Judezmo, however, the occurrence of this form, and of its plural with Hebrew-origin -im/-ín, became increasingly documented from the early twentieth century; for example, in the popular writings of journalist ‘Alexander’ Benghiatt: “Bizim yibí adamlar kreemos en reflanes, komo kreer en aperkantar i otros bedugilikes ansina “People like us believe in proverbs, like believing in magic spells and other such imprecations” (El Meseret 8, no. 9 [Izmir 1903], p. 5). “Es komo el reflán ke dizen, ‘Enriva pendones i debasho … adí, bendén yelmesín [i.e., razgones/remendones]” “It’s like the proverb they say, ‘On the outside, penants; on the inside…’ well, let it not come from me! [i.e., “rags”]” (El Meseret 8, no. l9 [1904], p. 4).68 “Ay de estos reflanim ke, por mil ke pase tyempos i anyos, kon todo esto eyos están en sus lugar... Nunka no me vo burlar de los reflanim” “There are some of these proverbs that—though times may change and years may pass—continue 67 Spanish reflán occurs in the anonymous Cancionero de Pero Guillén (written not later than 1492), Brian Dutton (ed.), Universidad de Salamanca, Salamanca 1990, f. 195r. (also plural reflanes, ibid., f. 534v); and in Cantalicio Quirós y Miterio Castro, written in a style representing local rural speech, written in 1883 by the Uruguayan Antonio Lussich (Jorge Luis Borges & Adolfo Bioy Casares (eds.), Fondo de Cultura Económica, Mexico 1955, p. 556) (REAL ACADEMIA ESPAÑOLA: Banco de datos (CORDE). Corpus diacrónico del español. 34 David M. Bunis nevertheless to be appropriate... I’ll never make fun of the proverbs” (El Meseret 9, no. 19 [1904], p. 5). The form reflánis the only one cited by José Benoliel for Moroccan Ḥaketía,69 and the form re-/riflán is still current among Judezmo speakers, as demonstrated by citations such as <“36 pajinas de reflanes djudeo-espanyoles kon la traduksyon en lashon”> (36 pages of Judeo-Spanish proverbs with a translation into Hebrew) and the variant proverb <“Reflan mintirozo no ay”>, which appeared on the internet site esefarad. com in November 2011.70 The expression <“riflan dulse”> (sweet proverb) appeared in the 20 October 2006 issue of the Istanbul Judezmo periodical <“El reflan djudeo-espanyol es una fraza lapidaria, de forma fiksa, munchas vezes en rima, ke puede deskrivir una situasion o traer una similitud, enunsiar una idea o niegarla, kritikandola i burlandose de eya, para trokarla. El reflan puede ayudar, puede konsolar, puede amonestar, puede meter en guardia i puede azer riyir”> “The Judeo-Spanish proverb is a lapidary phrase, of fixed form, often in rhyme, that can describe a situation or make a comparison, express an idea or negate it, while criticizing and poking fun at it, in order to change it. The proverb can help, console, annoy, put one on guard, and make one laugh”.72 A further evolved variant, le-/lifrán, is documented from 1914: “‘Sivdađ sin estorya es venturoza’, dize el lefrán” “‘A city without a [sordid] history is fortunate’, says the proverb” (El Djugetón 5, no. 43 [Istanbul 1914], p. 3). 4.1.2.2 Diminutive Refraniko One of the markers of the popular nature of the term refrán/reflán in Judezmo is the existence of the diminutive form refraniko.73 A fictional character with a propensity for the use of proverbs, who was regularly featured in a Judezmo satirical series appearing between the world wars in several Salonika Judezmo periodicals, prefaced 69 José Benoliel, Dialecto judeo-hispano-marroquí o hakitía, 2d ed., Madrid, p. 243. 70 Edmond Cohen, “Reflanes de Matilda” (http://www.esefarad.com/?p=27812). 71 www.scribd.com/doc/50018833/Nnumero-20-Oktubre-2006. 72 Koen-Sarrano, “Reflan djudeo-espanyol” (Note 31). 73 E.g., 35 On Judezmo Terms for the Proverb critical remarks about a westernized character in the series with the statement: “Tyene razón ... un refraniko ke dize, ‘De·los mios no kyero dezir, ma no kyero ni sentir’” “Very true ... is the little proverb that says, ‘I want neither to talk about those close to me, nor to hear them spoken about’” (Aksyón 10, no. 2582 [Salonika 1938], p. 8). The well-integratedness of reflán/refrán and diminutive refraniko in popular Judezmo is also illustrated by the use of the word in several variants of a proverb already noted above, which attributes supreme veracity to the proverb genre in general, and to a specific proverb of Turkish origin in particular: “… este bayle es a·la franka… Si lo bushkávamos de antes, no topávamos este bayle, i sin bushkar lo topimos. Es por esto ke ‘Reflán falso no ay’—‘Aramaklán bulunmás, inlá rastyelir’” “... this dance is in the European style... If we had looked for such a dance from the start we’d never have come up with it; and without looking for it we found it. It’s for that reason that ‘There is no untrue proverb’—‘If you were to look for such a thing you wouldn’t find it; it only happens by chance’” (El Meseret 8, no. 9 [1903], p. 5).74 Another variant of the first proverb, with the diminutive form, appears in a recent issue of the Jerusalem Judezmo periodical Aki Yerushalayim: <“Refraniko mentirozo no ay”.>75 Refrán is also used in the saying: “En tus apuros i afanes, toma konsejo de los refranes” “In your worries and cares, seek advice from the proverbs”.76 4.1.3 Mashal/Masal ,’mašal) is often used in the sense of a ‘parable, exemplum) משל Although in Hebrew or brief story used to make a point in an argument or to illustrate a moral truth, in the Mišle), which is the construct) משלי biblical Book of Proverbs—called in Hebrew plural of mašal—it denotes a proverb, or short, pithy saying expressing a basic truth or practical, general precept. In the same way, in popular Judezmo rabbinical works 74 Cf. Tk. Aramakla(n) bulunmaz, illâ rastgelir. 75 www.aki-yerushalayim.co.il/.../004-elrefran.htm 76 See discussion in Marc Shanker, “Traces of Sepharad”, in Marc Shanker, Antonio Muñoz Molina, and Theodore Anthony Perry, Traces of Sepharad (Huellas de Sefarad Etchings of Judeo-Spanish Proverbs), Gravity Free Press, New York 2008, pp. 33-39 36 David M. Bunis from the eighteenth century on, as well as in some journalistic and other essentially secular writing, mashal—or, as the word is often pronounced popularly, masal—is the term often used for a proverb or proverbial saying.77 There may be influence here from cognate Arabic-origin Turkish mesel (or darbımesel) ‘proverb’. Although Judezmo writings of various types offer numerous illustrations of the use of mashal/masal in the sense of ‘proverb’, the term is not discussed in the research literature on the Judezmo proverb by scholars from outside the community.78 Of those emerging from within the community itself, only Baruch cUzi’el noted the use of this term. In fact, cUzi’el stated: “It is worth noting that, for the concept ‘proverb’, the Sephardic Jews use the Hebrew word mashal—in the plural meshalim or mishlayós (with a Spanish suffix)—and only rarely, the Spanish wordrefrán ’ (cUzi’el 1927: 325). But fifty years later, cUzi’el’s fellow Salonikan, Joseph Nehama (Dictionnaire du judéo-espagnol, p. 349, s. masál) cited only the other, more widespread sense in which the word is used in Hebrew and Judezmo, ‘conte, allégorie…’ The absence of the other meaning in Nehama’s dictionary was noted, with no little chagrin, by Yehuda Hatsvi, an active 77 See also discussion of Judezmo mashal in cUzi’el, “Ha-folklor šel hayĕhudim ha-sĕfaradim” (Note 18), p. 325, and mashal and enshemplo in Münch, “Šəlomo ben Ya‘aqov Hakohen” (Note 45). Singular 37 On Judezmo Terms for the Proverb contributor to the contemporary Judezmo press and internet sites. In a message to Ladinokomunita dated 24 August 2011 Hatsvi wrote: <“El biervo ebreo ‘mashal’ no es solamente ‘fabula’, ma tambien un kuento imajinario o alegoriko, aforizmo i proverbo. El diksionario ekselente de Nehama lo ekspliko bien, en parte, ma, ‘me suvieron los fumos a la kavesa’ de notar una vez mas la lakuna del autor en la kultura judia: Nehama eskrive en su diksionario ke el biervo ‘masal’ derive del turko. I ande desho i abandono Nehama al Rey Shelomo ke peno i eskrivio, i mos regalo el livro de MISHLE, ke entro a la Biblia…? De toda manera, me akodro de los selaniklis viejos ke konosia yo en mi chikez; eyos raramente kulaneavan los biervos ‘proverbio’ o ‘refran’. Eyos dizian: ‘mashaliko.’ Oy no topo esta palavra ni en los diksionarios… Al kuaderno de YYY (Yitzhak Yehezkel Yehuda) el total de los mashalikos ke mos trae el autor es 139. En akea epoka del siglo 20, kada mujer de las muestras savia i empleava en sus konversasiones algunas sinko vezes mas de esta kantidad…”>79 “The Hebrew word mashal means not only ‘fable’, but also an imaginary or allegorical story, or an aphorism or proverb. Nehama’s excellent dictionary explains it well, in part, but ‘fumes rose to my head’ when I saw once again the gaps in the author’s knowledge of Jewish culture: Nehama writes in his dictionary that the word mashal derives from Turkish.80 Where and why did he abandon King Solomon, who strove and wrote and bequeathed to us the Book of Proverbs, a part of the Biblical canon...? “In any case, I remember the elderly Salonikans whom I knew in my youth; they rarely used the words proverbio or refrán. They said: mashaliko. Today I don’t even find that word in the dictionaries... “In the proverb collection published by Yiṣḥaq Yĕḥezqel Yĕhuda, the total number of proverbs the author brings us is 139. In that [early] part of the twentieth century, every one of our women knew and used in their conversations five times that number...” 79 https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/#search/mashaliko/131fbc3d397726be 80 Actually, it is possible that the Spanish editors of Nehama’s dictionary, which was published posthumously, were responsible for the erroneous etymologies proposed for many of his entries. From Nehama’s other writings, there is every evidence that he had a thorough grounding in Jewish sources and traditions. 38 David M. Bunis The earliest examples of the use of mashal in connection with Judezmo proverbs are in Hebrew. In the marginal notes in Hebrew used by Moshe Almosnino to summarize the lengthier vernacular discussion in his Hanhagat ha-ḥayyim ... Rejimyento de la mašal hedyoṭ, or ‘proverb of common people’) to) משל הדיוט vida (1564), he used characterize two proverbs cited in the body of the text: “Suelen dezir ‘No kon kyen nases sinó kon kyen pases’” “They are used to saying ‘It is not among whom you are born but among whom you spend your time’” (14b). “... un komún i vulgo proverbyo sakado de·los djuris konsultos havlando del ofiçio del pretor o djuez ke dize ‘La mucha konverçaçion es ramo de menospreçio’” “... a common and popular proverb taken from the attorneys of law speaking about the office of the pretor or judge says ‘Much conversation is a kind of scorn/ disrespect’” (35a). In another Hebrew marginal note, Almosnino denoted the proverb used in his vernacular ha-mašal ha-qadmoni) ‘the early proverb’, and he added a) המשל הקדמוני text as "המשל הקדמוני אמ]ר[' "צער רבי]ם[ חצי נחמה" :Hebrew analogue, also used in Judezmo (“The early proverb said: Ṣa‘ar rabi[m] ḥaṣi nĕḥama ‘A sorrow shared by many is half a consolation’):81 “... el proverbyo antigo komún en todas las nasiones ke dize ‘Mal de muchos es k[o]nsuelo’” “... the old proverb common in all nations that says ‘The sorrow of many is a consolation’” (108a). mašal hedyoṭ) is also used to introduce two) משל הדיוט Interestingly, the phrase Judezmo proverbs cited by Rabbi Yom Ṭov Ṣahalon (or ‘Mahariṭaṣ’, b. Safed, 1559– d. after 1638) to bring home points of Jewish law raised in his responsa collection (1694): Because it is a“) "כי הוא משל הדיוט קין נו אדובא גוטירא אדובה קאזה אינטירא" proverb of common people: Ken no adova gotera adova kaza entera [‘He who does not fix a leak fixes a wholehouse’]”) 82 appearing for example in Giṭṭin 58b, Maharsha 4, is ,צרת רבים חצי נחמה The Hebrew variant 81 employed in the context of rabbinical Judezmo in Rĕfa’el Ḥiyya Pontrémoli, Sefer me-cam locez ’Ester, 2d ed., Constantinople 1899, p. 258. 82 Yom Tov Ṣahalon, Responsa (old series), Venice 1694, no. 74. 39 On Judezmo Terms for the Proverb וכל אחד יזהיר את חבירו כמו שאומרים משל הדיוט מאש ויאין קואטרו אוג'וש קי" And everyone should warn his fellow man, as they said in the common“) "דוש proverb: Mas veen kuatro ojos ke dos [‘Four eyes see more than two’]”).83 Ṣahalon introduced another Judezmo proverb by means of the cognate Aramaic :”mĕtalin mitla) “they use the proverb) מתלין מתלא expression They use the proverb: De“) "מתלין מתלא די באשו דימי מאנטו אאיל ריי מאטו" basho de·mi manto a·el rey mato [‘Under my cloak I kill the king’]”).84 In texts in Judezmo itself, the use of mashal/masal in the sense of ‘proverb’ continued from that time into the modern era. Numerous occurrences are found in the three volumes of the exegetical composition Me-cam lo locez authored by Rabbi Yiṣḥaq Magriso, where it is generally preceded by expressions stating that the cited expression is a mashal ke dizen (la djente) “proverb which they (the people) say”. For example: “Esto es el mashal ke dizen la djente ‘Ken la myel menea, algo se le apega’” “This is [like] the proverb that the people say ‘One who mixes honey, some of it sticks to him’” (Yiṣḥaq Magriso, Sefer me-cam locez ḥeleq šeni mi-sefer šĕmot ... en ladino, Constantinople 1746, p. 109b). “Era komo el mashal ke dizen la djente ‘A·ti te lo digo, nuera; óyelo tu suegra’” “This was like the proverb that the people say ‘I say it to you, daughter-in-law; hear it, mother-in-law’” (Yiṣḥaq Magriso, Sefer me-cam locez ḥeleq šĕliši, sefer wa-yiqra ... en ladino, Constantinople 1753, 39a). “... el mashal ke dizen la djente ‘El vyejo en kaza, entronpeso es en la kaza; la vyeja en kaza, trezoro es en la kaza’” “... the proverb that the people say ‘An old man in the house is an obstacle in the house; an old woman in the house is a treasure in the house’” (Magriso, Sefer me-cam locez ḥeleq šĕliši, 181a).85 “I esto es el mashal ke dizen la djente ‘El She[m] yid[barah] mos de byen i un lugar onde meter’” “And this is the proverb that the people say ‘May the Name Blessed Be He give us good things and a place to put them’” (Magriso, Sefer me- cam locez ḥeleq šeni, p. 27b). 83 Ṣahalon, Responsa, no. 240. 84 Ṣahalon, Responsa,, no. 231. 85 On variants of this proverb, see Alexander, “‘Cast Thy Bread Upon the Waters’” (Note 51), p. *294. 40 David M. Bunis “Ansí es el mashal ke dizen la djente ‘La nave ke tyene munchos reizes, su kavo es de undirse’” “Thus is the proverb that the people say ‘The ship that has many captains is destined to sink’” (Magriso, Sefer me-cam locez ḥeleq šeni, p. 63b). “Esto es el mashal ke dizen ‘A la abizba, ni de tu myel ni de tu punchón’” “This is the proverb that they say ‘To the bee, [I want] neither your honey nor your sting’” (Magriso, Sefer me-cam locez ḥeleq šeni, p. 110a). “Esto es el mashal ke dizen la djente ‘El pozo ke bevistes agua, no eches pyedra en·el’” “This is the proverb that the people say ‘Into a well from which you drank water do not cast a stone’” (Magriso, Sefer me-cam locez ḥeleq šeni, p. 146a).86 In the Judezmo rabbinical literature produced by rabbis in diverse parts of the Ottoman Empire, the term mashal/masal continued to enjoy use in the sense of ‘proverb’ or ‘popular saying’ into the modern era; for example: “Asemeja a el mashal … ‘El djidyó no tyene nada otro ke sus enemigos’” “It resembles the proverb ... ‘The Jew has nothing but his enemies’” (Yosef ben Ma’ir Sason and Yiṣḥaq Bĕxor Amarachi, Sefer darxe ha-adam, 2d ed., Salonika 1849, p. 45b). “Según dizen mashal la djente ‘Achakes de lo seko se kema lo verde’” “As the people say in the proverb, ‘Because of the dry (wood), the green burns’” (Raḥamim Mĕnaḥem Mitrani, Sefer me-cam locez ḥe[leq] a[lef] cal sefer Yĕhošuac, Salonika 1849, p. 104a). “Mashal dizen la djente, ‘Dale a bever un poko de vino al soytarí del rey i te alavará onde el rey’” “The people say a proverb ‘Give the king’s clown a little wine to drink and he’ll praise you to the king’” (Avraham Fintsi, Sefer leqeṭ ha- zohar en ladino, Belgrade 1859, p. 157a). “Mashal dizen la djente ‘El pato non se aparta del fuego; ezmola el kuchío, vale detrás’” “The people say a proverb ‘The duck doesn’t move far from the fire; sharpen the knife, and go to it from behind’” (Fintsi, ibid., p. 141b). was also employed by the popular (מאסאל) In the twentieth century, the form masal Judezmo journalist ‘Alexander’ Benghiatt of Izmir to denote proverbial expressions used by Judezmo speakers, whether they were perceived to be of European origin, as for example: 86 For discussion of a variant of this proverb see Alexander, “‘Cast Thy Bread Upon the Waters’” (Note 51), pp. *289-290. 41 On Judezmo Terms for the Proverb “Buyuk sozumé tové,87 valla ke tyenen razón los frankos ke dizen un masal ‘Ken apromete, en devda se mete’” “I hate to talk big, but by God the westerners are right to use the proverb, ‘He who makes a promise acquires a debt’” (El Meseret 8, no. 7 [Izmir 1903], p. 5; cf. Fr. Qui promet, en dette se met; Sp. Quien fía o promete, en deuda se mete). or of Turkish/Ottoman origin, as for example: “Dushuneo i digo de no eskrivir mas, no sea ke kachiree algún lakirdí demazía i me venga algún hal a·la kavesa, porke ay un masal ke dize: ‘Buyuk lokmá ye, buyuk lakirdí soylema’” “I think about it and say I won’t write [for the press] any more, just in case I make some blooper and bring a problematic situation on my head; because there’s a proverb that says: ‘Don’t be too sure of yourself” [literally, “Eat a big mouthful of food, but don’t take a big word in your mouth”]” (El Meseret 8, no. 16 [1904], p. 5).88 “Un masal dize ‘Ne suyá dayán, ne kariá inán’” “A proverb says ‘Neither hold water nor believe an old woman’” (El Meseret 8, no. 24 [1904], p. 5).89 mashal edyot), too, was employed) משל הדיוט ,The longer Hebrew-origin expression in Judezmo texts into the modern era; for example: “Sus kazas están yenas de todo lo bueno, ke por esta razón no kreen a el prove, komo dizen el mashal edyot, ‘Asavea enó maamín ed araev’, ‘El arto non kree a el ambrento’ ” “Their houses are full of plenty, and for this reason they do not believe the poor; as the popular proverb says, ‘A man who is full does not believe a man who is hungry’, ‘The sated man does not believe the hungry man’” (Rĕfa’el Yiṣḥaq Ma’ir Benveniste, Me-cam locez cal mĕgillat Rut, Salonika 1882, p. 167). Like reflán/refrán, the well-integrated status of mashal in popular Judezmo is demonstrated, among others, by its use in the diminutive form, mashaliko, as insisted upon by Yehuda Hatsvi, and as demonstrated by its appearance in a variant of the popular proverb emphasizing the truth of proverbial statements: Mashal mentirozo non ay (Baruch cUzi’el, “Ha-folklor šel ha-yĕhudim ha-sĕfaradim, Rĕšumot 5 (1927), p. 326 no. 1). 87 Cf. Tk. Büyük sözüme tövbe! 88 Cf. Tk. Büyük lokma ye, büyük lakırdı/söz söyleme. 89 Cf. Tk. Ne suya dayan, ne karıya inan. 42 David M. Bunis 4.1.4 Pasuk, mizvá Another two terms, also of Hebrew origin, connect the popular Judezmo proverb or saying with verses in sacred sources such as the Bible and Talmud which bear (pasuq/פסוק .a resemblance to the proverb in structure and character: pasuk (Heb miṣwa). In some instances the Judezmo proverbs are actually/מצוה .and mizvá (Heb adaptations of verses in the sacred-sources. For example, a volume of the Me-cam locez series offers the second part of the original Hebrew text of Proverbs (14:1) with its Judezmo adaptation. For a section of La guerta de oro, the Judezmo translations of Proverbs 1:8 and 14:1 are sufficient, and then the text of Proverbs 18:22 is presented in Hebrew only. A popular periodical from Salonika advises readers to heed the message expressed in Avot 2:5, presented in Judezmo translation. In each of these texts, the proverbial statement is denoted as a pasuk: kere ,(ואולת בידיה תהרסנו) ’Dize el pasuk ‘Wĕ-’iwwelet bĕ-yadeha tehersennu“ dezir ke ‘La loka kon sus manos deroka su kaza’” “The verse says ‘But the foolish plucketh it down with her hands’ [=JPS], meaning that ‘The insane woman with her own hands destroys her house’” (Magriso, Sefer me-cam locez ḥeleq šeni, p. 82a). “En dita letra se deklara el pasuk ke dize ‘Oe mi ijo kastigeryo de tu padre, i non deshes ley de tu madre’ ... [En] dita letra ... se deklara el pasuk ke dize ‘Mujer savia fragua su kaza, i la loka kon su mano la deroka’, komo tambyén el pasuk ke Maṣa ’iša maṣa ṭov) “In this letter is explicated the verse) מצא אשה מצה טוב dize that says ‘Hear, my son, the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the teaching of thy mother’ [=JPS] … [In] this letter … is explicated the verse that says ‘Every wise woman buildeth her house, but the foolish plucketh it down with her hands’ [=JPS], as well as the verse that says ‘Whoso findeth a wife findeth a great good’ [=JPS]” (‘Atias, La guerta de oro, [iib], 55b-56a). “No saves ke el pasuk dize: ‘I no djuzges a tu haver asta ke ayeges a su lugar’?” (“Don’t you know the verse that says, ‘Do not judge your fellow man until you have been in his position’?”) (El Rizón 13, no. 15 [Salonika 1938]). In the popular satirical press the same term is also used, perhaps facetiously, to denote Judezmo folk proverbs and even international political mottoes bearing no direct relation to verses in sacred texts. In some instances the apparent irony is intensified by referring to adherence to the message of the proverb as afirmar la mizvá del pasuk(to fulfill the commandment of the verse). For example: 43 On Judezmo Terms for the Proverb “El pasuk disho… ‘Ija fuetes, mađre serás, lo·ke azes resivirás’90 … Los masadjís kijeron este anyo afirmar la mizvá del pasuk: ‘Ni pan niagua por mano de djuđyó’” “The verse said … ‘You were a daughter, you shall be a mother, what you do you will receive’ ... The matzah bakers wanted to fulfill the commandment of the verse ‘Neither bread nor water from the hands of a Jew’” (El Djugetón 6, no. 5 [1914], p. 4). “Este chiko negosyo está muncho reushendo grasyas a·la ahadud de sus aderentes; por esto disho el pasuk: ‘La unyón aze la fuersa’” “This little business is thriving thanks to the unity of its members; for this reason the verse said ‘In unity there is strength’” (El Djugetón 6, no. 11 [1914], p. 8; cf. Fr. L’union fait la force). “El pasuk dize ‘Alado de lo seko se kema i lo vedre’” (“The verse says: ‘Near dry wood, green wood too will burn’”) (El Rizón 13, no. 7 [1938]).91 In some contexts this phrase is abbreviated to (la) mizvá (de), which then functions as a denotation for a proverb—even one of Turkish origin; for example: “Kerésh afirmar la mizvá de ‘Kuando vesh el igito, apareja el vestiđiko’” “Do you want to fulfill the commandment of ‘When you see a little fig, prepare the little suit [to give to children of the poor]’?” (El Djugetón 5, no. 24 [1913], p. 4). “Kijimos afirmar la mizvá de ‘Ya ich, ya uch’” “We wanted to fulfill the commandment of ‘Either nothing or everything’” (El Djugetón 5, no. 1 (13), p. 3).92 4.1.5 Literary terms of restricted use In addition to the terms for ‘proverb’ discussed thus far, there are several denotations which are restricted to literary Judezmo. The first of these terms is already documented from the turn of the seventeenth century, and appears in the writing of an author whose language was influenced by contemporaneous Castilian. The other terms are documented from the end of the nineteenth century or later, and are found in the writings of authors influenced by modern Western European languages and literatures, from which they probably borrowed them: 90 For discussion of variants of this proverb, see Alexander, “‘Cast Thy Bread Upon the Waters’” (Note 51), pp. *287-288. 91 Note that, in an example in the preceding section, a variant of this proverb was referred to by a rabbinical author as a mashal. 92 Cf. Tk. Hiç üç, or Ya üç, ya hiç. 44 David M. Bunis 4.1.5.1 Sentensya This may be compared with Castilian sentencia (< Lat. sententĭa), denoting a succinct, sober statement: “... lo·ke dize el refrán, ke ‘Muchas vezes el ortelano avla buenas sentensias’” “… what the proverb says, that ‘Many times the gardener speaks wise words’”) (Fuente klara 1595, 6a). Probably under the influence of Frenchsentence , Spanish sentencia or Italian sentenza, the word appears again in the modern era; for example: <“sentensyas dogmatikas i refleksyones de vyejos savyos”> (dogmatic sentences and reflections of old sages) (Perahya 2008). 4.1.5.2 Adadjyo Given the presence of word-medial -dj-, the term probably reflects Italianadagio : “Por dezir ke una persona persiste en su idea, en sus demandas, dizen ‘Está en sus tredje.’ No es solamente onde los djudyós espanyoles ke emplean este adadjyo, ma tambyén en los kristyanos de·la Europa, onde los almanos partikolarmente” “To say that a person persists in maintaining his own idea, or his own demands, they say ‘He keeps to his thirteen’”.93 It is not only the Spanish Jews who use this adage, but also the Christians of Europe, and especially the Germans” (El Enstruktor 1:18 [Constantinople, 9, August 1888], 171). 4.1.5.3 Máksima The term is apparently a late-nineteenth century learned borrowing from Spanish (máxima), perhaps with influence from Frenchmaxime or Italian massima: “Sharl Limozén, Kontra el antisemitizmo: máksimas i refleksyones, imitado por un eskrivano djudyó “Charles Limousin, Against anti-Semitism: maxims and reflections, adapted by a Jewish writer” (title of a book published in Vienna, 1889). “Mi buketo ... dichas de oro, máksimas i proverbyos” (My bouquet ... golden sayings, maxims and proverbs) (title of a folklore collection published in Salonika c1920). 93 Cf. the Thirteen Articles of Faith of Maimonides. 45 On Judezmo Terms for the Proverb 4.1.5.4. (pl.) Refleksyones Seemingly an adaptation of French (réflexions) or Spanish (reflexiones), perhaps with influence from Italianriflessioni .94 Sharl Limozín, Kontra el antisemitizmo: máksimas i refleksyones, imitado por un eskrivano djudyó (title of a book published in Vienna 1889). 4.1.5.5 Aforizmo Apparently a twentieth-century adaptation of French aphorisme, Italian aforismo/-a, or Spanish aforismo. <“El biervo ebreo ‘mashal’ no es solamente ‘fabula’, ma tambien un kuento imajinario o alegoriko, aforizmo i proverbo”> “The Hebrew word mashal means not only ‘fable’, but also an imaginary or allegorical story, or an aphorism or proverb”.95 4.1.5.6 Ekspresyón This is a general term for an ‘expression’ of various kinds, and may be compared with French expression, Italian espressione, and Spanish expresión. <“... muchos de mozotros konosen bien la ekspresion ke dize: ‘Ya vendio el kezo!’”> ‘... many of us well know the expression that says: “Now he’s sold the cheese”’ (Yehuda Hatsvi, Ladinokomunita, 26 August 2011). 4.2 SAYING In this section we discuss Judezmo terms for concise expressions of wisdom or truth, as well as various types of idioms. 4.2.1 Dicha To denote a ‘saying’, Castilian generally uses masculine dicho, the past participle of decir ‘to say’, and this is the term used in the sixteenth century by Rabbi Moshe Almosnino of Salonika, whose literary language, as was noted, represented that of the small elite group of his time which saw Castilian as its normative model. For example: 94 Cf. Klara Perahya et al., Diksyonaryo Judeo Espanyol (Note 53), p. 187 s. 46 David M. Bunis “... el vulgo dicho ‘El tyempo pasado pareçe mejor ke el prezente’” “... the common saying ‘Past times seem better than the present’” (Almosnino 1564: ‘44b’ [=45b]). “... el dicho del vulgo, ke komun mente (l)yaman ‘kruel’ a el muy airado” “... the saying of the popular sector, who commonly call a very angry person ‘cruel’” (Almosnino 1564: 88b). (ămaray’) אמרי Masculine plural (mis) dichos is also used as the translation of Hebrew ‘my words (or sayings)’ in Proverbs 2:1, in the Bible translation published in Ferrara, 1553, by former conversos, as it had been in the pre-Expulsion Hispanic Bible translations E5/E7, EV, E4, BNM. In the traditional Jewish translations of Proverbs, however, the feminine gender imra) ‘word, saying’ instead led to the innovative use of feminine’) אמרה of Hebrew dicha, for example, mis dichas in Proverbs 2:1 (dichas also appears as the translation of ’ămaray in Proverbs 4:10 and 4:20) in the Ladino calque translation published in Salonika, 1572,96 and in that edited by Yisrael bĕxar Ḥayyim in Vienna, 1816. Dicha continued to be employed among Judezmo speakers to denote a ‘(proverbial) saying’ into the modern era,97 for example: “Proverbyos o dichas” ‘Proverbs or sayings’ (El Kismet Poeta 1:9 [Izmir 1909], 3-4). <“Siempre estava kon lu uno i lo esteso komo ke de eia veniva akeja diča: »La vieža kon sus tarajinas«”> “She was always preoccupied by the same thing, as if it were about her that the saying arose, ‘The old woman with her noodles’” (Jevrejski glas 2:5 [Sarajevo 1928], 4).98 “Mi buketo ... dichas de oro, máksimas i proverbyos” “My bouquet ... golden sayings, maxims and proverbs” (title of a folklore collection published in Salonika c1920). <“Ay otros proverbos i dichas ke entraron al judeo-espanyol...”> “There are other proverbs and sayings that entered Judeo-Spanish...” (Dora Niyego, Şalom, 9 January 2008).99 96 Reproduced, without vocalization, in Lazar, Ladino Scriptures (Note 44), vol. 2. 97 Cf. Perahya, Diksyonaryo Judeo Espanyol (Note 53), p. 82 s. 47 On Judezmo Terms for the Proverb 4.2.2 Palavra, byervo The use of the terms palabra (< Lat. parabŏla) and verbo (< Lat. vĕrbum), literally denoting ‘word’, in the sense of ‘saying’ or ‘expression’, is old in Spanish.100 The use of corresponding Judezmo palavra and byervo probably has a long history as well, although documented examples seem to appear only in the modern era; for example: Palavra “‘Varda’ es una palavra ke signifika ‘dar el paso’ a uno ke está koryendo; i ke los arabadjís de Bey oglú, en pasando, gritan ‘Varda’ después ke ya echan en basho a las personas” “Varda [‘Look out! Keep clear! Cf. Tk. varda < It. guarda] is a saying which means ‘to give way’ to someone who is running, and which the wagon drivers of Beyoğlu [Constantinople] shout after they have deboarded their passengers) (El Tyempo 1, no. 75 [Constantinople 1873], p. 17). “Avlimos … por la kriatura ke se topó sola en su kamareta i ke su mađre se divertía en la kaza de djugo… Syertos ombres dezían ke si se muryó la kriatura, no es la kavza del djugo si no ke su mazal, la ora, ke le vino; i kon una palavra byen dicha en turko: ‘Edjil ímish, edjil!’” “We spoke about the child who [died when he] was left in his bedroom while his mother was enjoying herself in a gambling casino. Some people said that if the child died, it wasn’t because of the gambling, but rather his fate, his time, had come; and using a well-formulated saying of Turkish origin, ‘His hour of death had come’” (El Djugetón 5, no. 13 [1913], p. 2). Byervo “‘Enkoyamal’ ... dizen este byervo kuando avlan de alguna koza triste o de algún muerto i se boltan agora adresándosen a un amigo. Entonses le dizen ‘En kuyo mal’, lo ke kere dezir en espanyol puro: en akel esté el mal. El byervo ‘enkoyamal’ lo dizen tambyén en vezes por burla. Entonses el depende del lashón akódesh ‘im ko yomar’, lo ke iguala a ‘sozum yabaná’” “Enkoyamal ... they say this expression when someone speaks of something sad, such as a death, and then he begins to address his companion. In pure Spanish en cuyo mal means ‘may misfortune be upon him.’ But sometimes enkoyamal is said in jest. Then it reflects im ko yomar], meaning the same as Turkish sözüm yabana] אם כה יאמר Hebrew [‘pardon the expression’]” (El Meseret 8, no. 52 [Izmir 1904], p. 5). 100 Cf. Corominas and Pascual, Diccionario crítico etimológico (Note 46), vol. 4 (1985), s. palabra; ibid., vol. 5 (1986), s. verbo. 48 David M. Bunis “No saves... el byervo ke dize ke ‘Kuanta mas eskura está la nochada, mas deprisa amanese’?” “Don’t you know ... the saying that says ‘The darker the night is, the earlier the day dawns’?” (Mesajero 4, no. 1069 [Salonika 1939]). 4.2.3 Palavra de-/dizidera This phrase designates a ‘turn of phrase’, ‘manner of speaking’, or ‘common saying’, not to be taken literally, or a ‘proverb’ or ‘wise saying’:101 < “Esta mađre kitó al mundo bulá de fižos; palavra deziđera: tyene očo kriaturas”> “This mother produced a flood of children; that’s just a manner of speaking: she has eight children” (Nehama, Dictionnaire du judéo-espagnol, p. 138 s. deziđera: palavra deziđera). <“...el refran era ... komo una “palavra dizidera” ke se kulaneava en kada nada”> “... the proverb was like a ‘wise saying’ that was used at every opportunity” (Yehuda Hatsvi, e-mail dated 30 April 2012). 4.2.4 Memrá This Hebraism in Judezmo denotes a ‘saying’ or ‘expression’ and is documented in the early-twentieth-century manuscript dictionary of Nissim de Yehuda Pardo of Izmir: “Una memrá de fulano” “Someone’s expression”. 4.2.5 Fraza/Fraze Another term for ‘expression’ or ‘saying’ which was probably part of the language of the elite Hispanizers in the sixteenth century and then disappeared from Judezmo, only to re-emerge in the modern era under the influence of Italianfrase , French phrase, or Spanish frase is fraza or fraze: “Yo veo kon mis propyos ojos ke tođo el ke melda mis artíkolos se topa muy kontente, i la fraze ke kita después de eskapar es estos byervos: ‘Bueno darsa si’[nyor] haham, si ay ken lo oya”. “I see with my own eyes that everyone who reads my articles is very content, and the expression he utters after finishing them consists of these words “You lecture well, honored Rabbi, but is anyone listening?”’ (El Djugetón 5:13 [1913], p. 1). <“El reflan djudeo-espanyol es una fraza lapidaria, de forma fiksa...”> “The 101 Cf. Šĕlomo Rosanes, Divre yĕme Yisra’el bĕ-Togarma, vol. 1, Dvir, Tel Aviv, 1930, p. 291. 49 On Judezmo Terms for the Proverb Judeo-Spanish proverb is a lapidary phrase, of fixed form...” (Koen-Sarano, 2004, “El reflan djudeo-espanyol: Espejo de las komunitas sefaradis”,Aki Yerushalayim 75 (http://www.aki-yerushalayim.co.il/ay/075/075_08_reflan.htm) 4.3 Expressions of Vox Populi, the Voice of the People In both speech and writing, proverbs and proverbial sayings are perhaps most often introduced not by stating terms denoting the genre, but rather by employing various phrases expressing the fact that they are statements reflecting the vox populi, what ‘we’, or ‘they’, or ‘the people’ say. Some of the most frequent of these formulations in Judezmo are the following: 4.3.1 Dizen ‘They say’ / Uzan a dezir ‘They are accustomed to saying’ / Me dizen ‘They tell me’ “Kuando keren dezir por algún ombre ke es muy vyejo, dizen ‘Fulano tyene los anyos de Térah’” “When they want to say of some man that he is very old, they say, ‘So and so is as old as Terah’” (Xulí 1730: 95a). “Me dizen ke ‘Non kale despertar a·kyen durme’” “They tell me that ‘One should not wake someone who is asleep’” (cAtias, La guerta de oro, f. 48b). “Dizen ke ‘Las parás tyenen alas.’ Beemé ke es vedrá” “They say that ‘Money has wings’. Really it is true” (Jacques Danon, La Epoka 28, no. 1373 [Salonika 1903], p. 9). <“De ay es ke dizen: “Guadrarse en las aldas de la madre”> “It is from this that they say ‘To hide/take refuge under your mother’s skirts’” (Rachel Amado Bortnick, Ladinokomunita, 8 October 2011). When an author disagrees with the lesson apparently taught by a saying, he may refer to its users as algunos dezmeoyados ‘senseless people’ or some other derogatory expression; for example: “... algunos dezmeoyados ... dizen, ‘Los males no kaminan por las montanyas’, ... esta es una avla muy fea” “... some senseless people ... say, ‘Troubles don’t travel through mountains’, ... this is a very ugly expression” (Šabbĕtay ben Ya‘aqov Vitas, Sefer mĕšivat nefeš, vol. 1, Constantinople 1743, p. 50b). 50 David M. Bunis 4.3.2 Komo/Asegún/Konforme dizen (la djente / el olam / el mundo) ‘As they (the people / the world) say(s)’ “Komo dizen la djente, ‘El ke tyene enforkado en su mishpahá, no le digan, “Enkólgame este peshkado”’” (“As the people say, ‘To one who has had someone in his family hanged, they should not say, “Hang this fish for me”’”) (Avraham ben Yiṣḥaq Asa (tr.), Yiṣḥaq Abohav, Sefer mĕnorat ha-ma’or … en ladino, Constantinople 1762, p. 28a). “‘Lo medyano es syempre lo bueno’, asegún dizen la djente; ‘Emsaí shalem The middle road is always best’, as the people say; ‘The middle‘“ ”’(אמצעי שלם) road is perfect’”) (Yiṣḥaq Magriso, Sefer me-cam locez ḥeleq šĕliši, sefer wa-yiqra ... en ladino, Constantinople 1753, 129a). “Según dizen la djente, ‘Kuando el Dyo está kon tigo no te espantes de tu enemigo’” “As the people say, ‘When God is with you, do not fear your enemy’” (Mitrani, Sefer me-cam locez ḥe[leq] a[lef] cal sefer Yĕhošuac, p. 29b). “Konforme dizen la djente, ‘En pleyto no se desparte konfites sinó malas kuchiadas’” “As the people say, “In a fight one does not distribute hard candies but piercing words” ’ (Mitrani, Sefer me-cam locez ḥe[leq] a[lef] cal sefer Yĕhošuac, p. 114b). “Ya dizen la djente, ‘De·la manyana ya se vee el buen día’” “The people say, ‘From the morning a good day is seen’” (Eli‘ezer ben Šem Ṭov Papo, Sefer Dammeseq ’Eli‘ezer, vol. 1, ’Oraḥ ḥayyim, Belgrade 1862, p. 41b). “Komo dizen ‘A la bizba, ni tu myel ni tu punchón’ ” “As they say, ‘To the bee, [I want] neither your honey nor your sting’” (Fintsi, Sefer leqeṭ ha-zohar en ladino, 180b). “Bivía en Bagdad un buen ombre ke ‘No tenía katilaká’, komo dizen, ‘kon ninguno’” “There lived in Baghdad a good man who, as they say, ‘Wanted nothing to do with anyone’” (Balansí [trans.], Los mas enteresantes kuentos de ..., p. 339). <“... dizen la djente ke ‘El kamino al Gan Eden esta basho de los pies de la mujer’”> “... the people say that ‘The road to heaven is under the feet of a woman’” (Eliezer Papo, esefarad.com, 11 December 2011). 4.3.3 Es verdad lo·ke dizen ‘It’s true what they say’ “La tos i el balgam ke nos salía por la naríz era a karar ke no pođíamos yorushear kon ningún adam hay… De kuando meldimos el avizo … por el rakí ke vende si[nyor] Ventura, … mandamos a tomar kon bilik, i kon poko ke bevimos mos 51 On Judezmo Terms for the Proverb alegra, i … birdén biré mos se kurtó la tos. Es verdađ lo·ke dizen: ‘Ne versan onú alirsin, ekmek istersan ekmekchidén al’” “The coughing and the phlegm that came out through our nose was such that we couldn’t speak with a living soul. But since we read the advertisement for the rakı that Mr. Ventura sells, we send for it by the demijohn; and with the little that we’ve drunk, it gladdened us, and all at once our cough stopped. It’s true what they say: ‘Whatever they give, take, if you want bread, buy it from the baker’” (El Djugetón 5, no. 4 [1913], p. 7).102 <“Es verdad lo ke dizen los turkos, ke ‘El guerko se meskla en todo lo ke se aze kon adjele’”> “It’s true what the Turks say, that ‘The devil mixes into everything that one does with haste’” (Rachel Amado Bortnick, Ladinokomunita, 7 March 2012). 4.3.4 Komo/Según dezimos ‘As we say’ “Komo dezimos kuando keremos loar alguna ovra, ‘Bendichas manos ke tal fizyeron’” “As we say when we want to praise some work, ‘Blessed are the hands that did such a thing’” (Fuente klara 1595, 49a). “No egziste ke un solo órgano seryo ke ‘Syerve por patah i por kamés’, komo dezimos vulgarmente” “There’s only one periodical that’s ‘Worth it’s salt’, as we say in the vernacular” (Aksyón [Salonika 9.2.1936], p. 1). 4.3.5 Non dezir ‘One shouldn’t say’ “ ... non dezir ‘Asprikos i diavlikos non pueden estar solikos’, ni menos dezir ke ‘El ganar enbeza a·la persona a·gastar’” “... one shouldn’t say ‘Little money and little devils shouldn’t be alone’, nor should one say ‘Earning money teaches a person to spend’” (cAtias. La guerta de oro, 57a). 4.3.6 Es ditado ‘It is said’ The spoken-language character of the Judezmo proverbial saying is also alluded to in introductory remarks such as es ditado ‘it is said’; for example: “Es ditado, ‘Asegún sale el hamín i el yerno’ ‘It is said, “How one’s Sabbath stew and one’s son-in-law turn out [is a matter of luck]”’ (Asa 1733: 81b) 102 Cf. Ne verirsen onu alırsın, ekmeği istersen ekmekçiden al. 52 David M. Bunis In introducing sayings, verbs of expression other than ‘say’, such as responder ‘to reply’, are also used; for example: “Si me responderá alguno akí ke ‘Kyen non se resyente, non vyene de djente’, le diré ...” “If someone here replies to me that ‘One whose voice is not heard is not of respectable background’, I shall say ...” (cAtias, La guerta de oro, 25a). 5. Concluding remarks The present article has focused on some significant divergences between the terminology denoting Judezmo proverbs and sayings used by members of the Judezmo speech community, and that employed by Hispanists who have collected and studied this Sephardic folk genre. For over a century, Hispanists have analyzed Judezmo folk traditions in terms reflecting Hispanic culture and its accepted academic lexicon and categorizations. But demonstrating a cultural independence of their own, Judezmo writers today, like Baruch cUzi’el in the 1920s, increasingly employ terminology and categorizations rooted in the folk traditions of the Judezmo speech community itself, for example, the denotation of the ‘proverb’ as reflán by Matilda Koen-Sarano, as mashaliko by Yehuda Hatsvi, and as proverbo by Dora Niyego, and of the ‘saying’ as dicha by all. Perhaps one day scholars too will honor the bearers of this culture by analyzing its folk genres using the terminology and categorization preferred by Judezmo speakers, thereby adhering to a fundamental principle in the study of anthropology and culture. 53 Paloma Díaz-Mas Actitudes de los españoles hacia los sefardíes: descripciones de las costumbres de boda de Marruecos en libros y periódicos publicados en España (1873-1971) Paloma Díaz-Mas CSIC, Madrid Es casi un tópico afirmar que la primera guerra de África produjo el descubrimiento de los sefardíes por parte de los españoles. El establecimiento de la administración española en Tetuán (1860-1862) y luego el Protectorado (1912-1956) propiciaron que militares, funcionarios y periodistas de España tomasen contacto con un otro que era observado a un tiempo como exótico y como propio, como lejano y como próximo.1 Los sefardíes eran exóticos y lejanos no sólo por ser judíos, sino también por ser percibidos como orientales, ya que en la época –y hasta por lo menos la primera mitad del siglo XX– Marruecos, ese extremo sudoccidental del Mediterráneo, era considerado Oriente desde la mentalidad europea; por ello se proyectan sobre los sefardíes muchos de los tópicos del orientalismo, frecuentemente en combinación con prejuicios antijudíos.2 1 Sobre el reflejo de los primeros contactos con los sefardíes en la literatura y laprensa españolas puede verse Uriel Macías, “El primer encuentro de los españoles con los sefardíes en la Guerra de África”, en Tamar Alexander et al. (eds.), History and Creativity in the Sepharadi and Oriental Jewry, Misgav Yerushalayim, Jerusalén 1994, pp. 333-351; Uriel Macías,”Los cronistas de la Guerra de África y el primer reencuentro con los sefardíes”, en Uriel Macías et al. (eds.), Los judíos en la España contemporánea, Universidad de Castilla- La Mancha, Cuenca 2000, pp. 45-60; Pablo Martín Asuero, “El encuentro de los españoles con los sefardíes de Marruecos a la luz de Pedro de Alarcón”, El Presente: Estudios sobre la cultura sefardí, 2 (2008), pp. 67-80 y Aldina Quintana, “El Mellah de Tetuán (1860) en Aita Tettauen (1905) de Benito Pérez Galdós: Cambios de actitud frente a los estereotipos antisemitas en la España de la Restauración”, El Presente…, 2 (2008), pp. 81-110. 2 El libro clásico sobre la visión de Oriente desde Occidente es el de Edward Said, Orientalismo, que hemos consultado en su edición española: Debate, Madrid 2002. Sobre 55 Actitudes de los españoles hacia los sefardíes Pero los sefardíes fueron también percibidos como algo propio o cercano precisamente porque hablaban judeoespañol (haketía, en el caso de los de Marruecos), una lengua que los españoles identificaban con un español arcaico, primitivo e incluso infantil, balbuciente. Pese a esa actitud un tanto paternalista (también muy propia de la visión de lo oriental como primitivo, arcaico y no evolucionado), lo cierto es que la afinidad lingüística propició que los ocupantes encontrasen más fácil comunicarse con los sefardíes del norte de Marruecos, con los que compartían una lengua común, que con los musulmanes o beréberes de la misma zona, produciendo una impresión de proximidad que a veces se tiñe de sentimentalismo patriótico en los relatos de españoles. La imagen que España ha tenido de los sefardíes del Norte de África ha estado durante más de un siglo intermediada por la presencia colonial española en Marruecos. En este artículo pretendemos ofrecer algunas observaciones sobre la actitud de los españoles hacia los sefardíes, tomando como ejemplo las descripciones de las costumbres de boda judías marroquíes que se publicaron en España para un público lector español.3 El porqué hemos elegido precisamente las costumbres de boda merece alguna explicación. En principio, nuestro interés vino suscitado por el hallazgo del artículo periodístico que se publicó en el diario El Globo de Madrid en 1877, que editamos en Texto 2. Pero, además, en las costumbres de boda se mezclan una serie de elementos que facilitan un análisis de la visión del otro sefardí desde la perspectiva del nosotros el antisemitismo es fundamental el libro de Gonzalo Álvarez Chillida, El antisemitismo en España: la imagen del judío (1812-2002), Marcial Pons, Madrid 2002. Para las visiones orientalistas de los judíos aporta interesantes observaciones (aunque no trata de los sefardíes) el libro de Ivan Davidson Kalmar y Derek J. Penslar (eds.), Orientalism and the Jews, Brandeis University Press, Hanover y Londres 2005. Sobre las visiones orientalistas desde España, José A. González Alcantud (ed.), El orientalismo desde el Sur, Anthropos, Barcelona 2006; Víctor Morales Lezcano, Africanismo y orientalismo español en el siglo XIX, Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia, Madrid 1988; y Gonzalo Fernández Parrilla y Manuel C. Feria García (eds.), Orientalismo, exotismo y traducción, Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha, Cuenca, 2000. Específicamente para la producción literaria y la prensa africanista españolas es útil la guía bibliográfica de Vicente Moga Romero, La cuestión marroquí en la escritura africanista, Edicions Bellaterra, Barcelona 2008. 3 Este artículo es producto del proyecto de investigación FFI2012-31625 “Los sefardíes ante sí mismos y sus relaciones con España III” del Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad de España. 56 Paloma Díaz-Mas español. La boda es al mismo tiempo un acto religioso, un rito de paso en el ciclo vital, una manifestación de las relaciones sociales y familiares y de la moral sexual, un compendio de usos y costumbres que abarcan desde la indumentaria hasta la gastronomía, la música y la danza, la poesía epitalámica o los gestos rituales de magia protectora. En la descripción de todo ello por y para un público ajeno, no sefardí y no judío, se trasluce la mentalidad de los creadores de ese discurso, sean filólogos, musicólogos, periodistas o propagandistas y, por tanto, puede ser un buen caso de estudio para analizar algunos aspectos de la actitud española hacia los sefardíes. La labor de filólogos y musicólogos durante los últimos años del Protectorado La obra más conocida de un español sobre la boda sefardí es un trabajo filológico: la edición de Manuel Alvar de su colección de cantares de boda,4 libro que, aunque publicado en 1971, es producto del trabajo de campo realizado en dos viajes a Marruecos durante los últimos años del Protectorado español, cuando Alvar era profesor en la Universidad de Granada: Mis materiales son de 1949-50 (Tetuán) y 1951 (Larache). En 1953 recibí, gracias a la amable gestión de la Srta. Blanco Tonda, un cuaderno de Melilla. Sólo hemos logrado saber que el cuaderno es copia de otro. Sus textos proceden, sin duda, de Tetuán (Alvar 1971, xviii). El núcleo central del libro es la edición filológica de los cantos de boda, que se acompaña de un estudio lingüístico y literario. Pero, como no podía ser menos, incluye también una descripción del ritual del matrimonio sefardí en el capítulo “Los cantos de boda sefardíes y su determinación folklórica” (27-39), que va precedido por otros sobre “Los cantos de boda en la tradición literaria peninsular. Referencias medievales a las costumbres judías” (11-18) y “Los cantos de boda en las costumbres peninsulares” (19-26). Se establece así una comparación entre el folclore peninsular 4 Manuel Alvar, Cantos de boda judeo-españoles, CSIC, Madrid 1971. Datos biográficos de Manuel Alvar en http://bib.cervantesvirtual.com/bib_autor/manuelalvar/ y en José María Enguita et al. (eds.), Jornadas internacionales en memoria de Manuel Alvar, Institución Fernando el Católico (CSIC)-Gobierno de Aragón, Zaragoza 2005, consultable en http:// ifc.dpz.es/recursos/publicaciones/25/32/_ebook.pdf. 57 Actitudes de los españoles hacia los sefardíes y el folclore sefardí, sugiriendo paralelos que apuntan a pervivencias de costumbres hispánicas y medievales en la tradición judía marroquí. Por otra parte, ni Alvar ni ninguno de los españoles que tratan de las costumbres de boda distingue qué usos son cumplimiento de prescripciones religiosas del judaísmo (halajá) y cuáles son simplemente costumbres (minhag). Es posible que muchos de los sefardíes del momento no fuesen tampoco capaces de establecer con claridad qué partes del ritual eran cumplimiento de la halajá y cuáles minhag; pero desde el punto de vista de los españoles, el resultado de no diferenciar entre normativa religiosa y costumbre es que todo el ritual de la boda se presenta como folclore. Un folclore muy ritualizado, como muestra el intento de Alvar de identificar cada paso de la boda con un cantar concreto de su colección. El editor parte de la base de que todos y cada uno de los cantos de boda que ha recogido se entonaban con una función específica en una fase de la boda (y sólo en ésa); cosa que –si es que alguna vez fue así– no parece que se ajustase a la realidad en la época en que Alvar realizó sus encuestas, en la que, por lo que sabemos, los cantos de boda se entonaban sobre todo en la fiesta del saftarray (el sábado anterior a la boda), en la celebración que las mujeres hacían en torno al baño ritual de la desposada, o en la noche de novia, víspera del matrimonio, y solían cantarse mezclados sin seguir un orden preciso.5 Pese a haber hecho trabajo de campo para recopilar sus cantos epitalámicos, en la descripción de las costumbres de boda Alvar no indica haber usado testimonios de primera mano, sino que remite a un pasaje de una narración de Isaac Benarroch,6 a algunos datos ofrecidos en una de las entregas del artículo de José Benoliel sobre la haketía7 y a las informaciones de Manuel Ortega (de quien hablaremos más adelante) y de Michael Molho,8 que se refieren a las costumbres de Salónica. Resulta llamativo que Alvar no mencione haberse servido de la descripción de las costumbres nupciales 5 Véase Sarah Leibovici, “Nuestras bodas sefarditas: Algunos ritos y costumbres”, Revista de Dialectología y Tradiciones Populares, 41 (1986), pp. 163-188. Una grabación documental en la que se cantan unidos varios cantos de boda sin seguir un orden preciso puede escucharse en Susana Weich Shahak, Cantares y romances tradicionales sefardíes de Marruecos, Tecnosaga, Madrid 1991, pista.7. 6 Isaac Benarroch, El indiano, el kadi y la luna, Editora Marroquí, Tetuán 1951, pp. 70-76. 7 José Benoliel, “Dialecto judeo-hispano-marroquí o haquitía”, Boletín de la Real Academia Española, 32 (1952), pp. 255-289. 8 Michael Molho, Usos y costumbres de los sefardíes de Salónica, CSIC, Madrid 1950. 58 Paloma Díaz-Mas que había publicado años antes Arcadio de Larrea Palacín,9 pero su reticencia a usar como fuente a Larrea puede explicarse por lo que señala en una nota: Tales textos [los cantos de boda publicados por Larrea] son de Tetuán y coinciden muchas veces con los míos: es inevitable, ya que buscó las mismas recitadoras que yo había tenido. (Cuando en abril de 1951 di varias conferencias en Marruecos sobre literatura tradicional de los sefardíes, el señor Larrea –colector entonces– asistió a mi lectura de Tetuán. Un año antes, estaban elaborados algunos de mis materiales, según es público y notorio, vid. Endechas p. 184, nota 7). Creo, sin embargo, que la repetición de los poemas no será inútil para futuros investigadores, pues los trabajos de Larrea y los míos suelen ser de naturaleza dispar. (Alvar 1971, p. 6, nota 21) Larrea (1907-1985) fue autor de estudios etnomusicológicos sobre la tradición de Aragón y sobre el flamenco; realizó su recolección de romances, canciones y cuentos sefardíes mientras trabajaba en la Sección de Estudios Musicales del Instituto “General Franco” de Investigación Hispano-Árabe de Tetuán.10 Pese a su orientación primordialmente musicológica, como introducción a la edición de los textos y las músicas de los cantos de boda ofrece una descripción bastante detallada del ritual del matrimonio (Larrea 1954, 13-19), advirtiendo que en su mayor parte se trata de costumbres ya caídas en desuso por la introducción de costumbres modernas: La boda que aquí se describe ha pasado, en gran parte, a ser un simple recuerdo, vivo todavía afortunadamente en muchas personas [...] del complicado ceremonial que se expone tan sólo se celebran, además de los ritos estrictamente religiosos, las fiestas delapalabramiento y de la boda propiamente dicha y, a veces, el día del pescado, suprimido con la mayor frecuencia por causa del viaje de los novios. (13) En general, la búsqueda de la antigüedad etnográfica –de forma que muchas veces lo que se describe no es una costumbre viva, sino unos usos periclitados que sólo viven 9 Arcadio de Larrea Palacín, Cancionero judío del norte de Marruecos: Canciones rituales hispano-judías, Instituto de Estudios Africanos del CSIC, Madrid 1954, pp. 13-19; edita textos y música de cantos de boda en pp. 20-122. 10 Una semblanza de Larrea puede verse en el artículo de Javier Lacasta, Carlos González Sanz y Álvaro de la Torre, “Arcadio de Larrea, in memoriam”, Rolde: Revista de cultura aragonesa, 103 (2003), pp. 9-16; todo ese número de la revista es un monográfico “Dossier: Arcadio de Larrea Palacín”. 59 Actitudes de los españoles hacia los sefardíes en la memoria de los más ancianos– es una tendencia común en la mayoría de los estudios filológicos y etnográficos de ese momento (y aun de muchos años después), se refieran o no a los sefardíes. En sus viajes a Marruecos, Manuel Alvar sin duda se relacionó con Juan Martínez Ruiz (1922-1992), quien desde 1946 era profesor del Centro Oficial de Enseñanza Media español en Alcazarquivir. Posteriormente Martínez Ruiz ocupó otros cargos de la administración española en Tetuán (donde fue inspector de enseñanza media desde 1956) y en Melilla (1958-1974), como catedrático de lengua y literatura españolas en el Instituto Hispano-Marroquí de Bachillerato, del que fue también director. A partir de 1974 volvió a la Península como profesor en la Universidad de Granada.11 Martínez Ruiz aprovechó sus años de residencia en Alcazarquivir para, como dialectólogo, estudiar la lengua y las manifestaciones de cultura oral de esa comunidad sefardí, hasta entonces poco explorada. Resultado de ello fue su tesis doctoral Lengua y literatura de los judíos sefardíes de Alcazarquivir (dirigida precisamente por el profesor Alvar) que se defendió en la Universidad de Madrid en 1952 y de la cual derivaron varios artículos, dos de los cuales contienen textos relacionados con la boda sefardí: en uno edita, con algunas notas, varios cantos de bodas, endechas y, sobre todo, romances.12 Otro es un artículo dialectológico en el que edita y estudia varios testimonios orales de sus informantes de Alcazarquivir sobre temas como la celebración de Pésah, “Prácticas de hechicería” y –el que nos interesa aquí– la descripción de “Una boda en Alcazarquivir” (pp. 107-113).13 Aquí Martínez Ruiz ofrece la transcripción del texto y no lo interpreta ni lo comenta salvo en sus aspectos estrictamente lingüísticos, por lo que su intervención es mínima y concede totalmente la voz a su informante sefardí, de cuya narración se deduce que en Alcazarquivir –ciudad más pequeña y tradicional que Tetuán– pervivieron durante más tiempo algunos usos, que además en esta comunidad tenían características específicas, bastante diferentes de las tetuaníes. 11 Un perfil biográfico de Juan Martínez Ruiz en Juan Paredes Núñez, (ed.), Estudios dedicados al profesor Juan Martínez Ruiz, Universidad de Granada, Granada 1991, pp. 11-31. 12 Juan Martínez Ruiz, “Poesía sefardí de carácter tradicional (Alcazarquivir)”, Archivum, 13 (1963), pp. 79-215. 13 Juan Martínez Ruiz, “Textos judeo-españoles de Alcazarquivir (Marruecos)”, Revista de Dialectología y Tradiciones Populares, 19 (1963), pp. 78-115; pp. 107-112. 60 Paloma Díaz-Mas Testimonios de los primeros años del Protectorado: Africano Fernández y Manuel Ortega Frente al carácter académico, de orientación filológica o musicológica, que tienen esas descripciones de la boda sefardí, en los primeros años del Protectorado encontramos relatos de los usos y costumbres sefardíes insertos en testimonios de viajeros y residentes, y entre ellos algunos en libros francamente propagandísticos. Merecen especial mención, por su delicadeza carente de prejuicios, las observaciones sobre la boda sefardí como modelo de moral sexual publicadas por César Juarros y Ortega (1879-1942), eminente psiquiatra que fue médico militar en Marruecos.14 Pero aquí queremos centrarnos en otros dos testimonios propagandísticos de distinto signo. El primero es el incluido en España en África y el peligro judío, de Africano Fernández, seudónimo del franciscano español Ramón Fernández Lestón.15 Su libro es un dechado de los más rancios tópicos del antisemitismo religioso (por ejemplo, da por verdaderas las calumnias sobre crímenes rituales y afirma que la matzá de Pésah se amasó muchas veces con sangre de cristianos), unido a una visión colonial de Marruecos como tierra de misiones (uno de los apartados del libro, en pp. 21- 29, se titula “¿Por qué no se convierten?”, refiriéndose a los musulmanes), con encendidos elogios a la labor de los misioneros españoles y de la Acción Católica, de las conferencias de San Vicente de Paúl, del apostolado femenino y la adoración del Santísimo. Su postura es ampliamente antisemita (no sólo antijudía): “el árabe es afeminado, muelle y voluptuoso mortal” (p. 24) y por tanto entregado a la indolencia 14 César Juarros y Ortega, La ciudad de los ojos bellos (Tetuán), Mundo Latino, Madrid 1922, pp. 166-168 y 185-187. Su visión de los sefardíes y, en especial, la descripción de la boda, han sido analizadas por Jacobo Israel Garzón, Los judíos de Tetuán, Hebraica Ediciones, Madrid 2005, pp. 177-206, donde también comenta el tratamiento del tema de los sefardíes de Marruecos por parte de algunos otros escritores y pintores orientalistas españoles. Datos biográficos sobre Juarros en Pedro Samblás Tilve, “César Juarros y el Tratamiento de la morfinomanía: ¿cura u ortopedia?”, Frenia, I.1 (2002), pp. 123-137 y, del mismo autor, “El Dr. César Juarros (1879-1942) y la Escuela Central de Anormales”, en José Martínez Pérez et al., La medicina ante el nuevo milenio: una perspectiva histórica, Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha, Cuenca 2004, pp. 539-550. 15 Africano Fernández, España en África y el peligro judío, El Eco Franciscano, Santiago de Compostela 1918. La identificación con Fernández Lestón se debe a Álvarez Chillida, El antisemitismo... (nota 2), pp. 277-278. 61 Actitudes de los españoles hacia los sefardíes y al vicio; en cuanto a los judíos, son traidores y vengativos, “dominadores, tiranos y absorbentes” (248), “no olvidan ni perdonan” (201) pues es “el odio, característica de la raza hebrea” (328); dedica numerosas páginas a atacar la tarea de las escuelas de la Alliance Israélite Universelle en Marruecos, institución a la que califica de “anticatólica y antiespañola”, y critica duramente la campaña prosefardí del senador Ángel Pulido y a sus seguidores. Pero al final incluye un capítulo titulado “Los judíos por dentro” (pp. 261-302) en el que ofrece –aunque sea para denigrarlos– datos de interés etnográfico, descritos en una época (1918) en que seguían vigentes muchas de las costumbres que pocas décadas después habían desaparecido. Tras la observación de que “el judío no es piadoso, porque no se le enseña la piedad verdadera; es únicamente ritualista porque así se le educa: amor a Dios y odio al goi, es la fórmula de sus relaciones humanas” (269), pasa a describir las juderías, la sinagoga, la celebración del shabat y lo que él llama “Ritualismos domésticos”, para acabar con un capítulo dedicado al “Folklore sefardita marroquí” (303-323) en el que ofrece el texto y algunas notaciones musicales de romances y endechas. En la parte de los “ritualismos” hay unas páginas dedicadas a “Bodas y entierros” (274-281), en las que describe cómo el pueblo judío “conserva con amor sus ritos, pueriles, a veces, acaso ridículos, en parte, pero majestuosos, impresionantes, tradicionalmente venerables siempre” (276). En el caso de la boda, describe de forma bastante minuciosa las distintas fases desde el jueves anterior a la boda hasta los ocho días después de celebrado el matrimonio y ofrece información sobre detalles como la cuantía de las dotes según la clase social. Incluye también una fotografía con el pie “Hebreas: traje típico de ceremonia” (p. 279), que representa a dos mujeres, una vestida a la occidental y otra con el traje de paños o de berberisca propio de las novias sefardíes de Marruecos. Su información, abordada desde la distancia de un observador que es a la vez colonialista y antisemita, tiene el valor de estar tomada, según parece, de testimonios de primera mano, cuya veracidad se hace especialmente evidente en los puntos en que el autor muestra no entender bien lo que le han contado. Por ejemplo, describe que la habitación de la casa del novio donde está el tálamo al que se conduce a la novia se adorna con “el Mapa del Sefer, o sea la cubierta de los rollos del Pentateuco que se lee en la sinagoga o eznoga”; el enigmático mapa es, naturalmente, la mapá, funda o envoltura de tela bordada que arropa los rollos de la Torá en la sinagoga y con la que, en efecto, se engalanaba a veces la sala donde iba a celebrarse el matrimonio. Pero su error de interpretación indica indirectamente que sigue una fuente oral fiable, que él reproduce sin entenderla. 62 Paloma Díaz-Mas Cabe preguntarse si no fue como respuesta a Fernández Lestón como se gestó uno de los más conocidos libros sobre los sefardíes de Marruecos: el de Manuel Ortega,16 que apareció al año siguiente (1919) y que se reeditó por lo menos en 1929 y en 1934. Manuel Ortega Pichardo (1888-1943)17 era periodista y fundador de la Compañía Iberoamericana de Publicaciones, una editorial financiada por Ignacio Bauer, representante de los Rothschild; vivió durante varios años en Tánger, donde fundó en 1925 el periódico El Heraldo de Marruecos. También fundó otros periódicos en España y dirigió la Revista de la Raza, que se publicó entre 1915 y 1930. Su perfil es, por tanto, el de un periodista y publicista liberal, cercano a las incipientes comunidades judías españolas y seguidor de las tesis de Ángel Pulido, sobre quien también escribió un libro.18 Por su ideología y por su actividad profesional parece, por tanto, la contrafigura de Fernández Lestón. Los hebreos de Marruecos es también un libro opuesto a España en África y el peligro judío, del que en algunos aspectos parece seguir la estructura, poniéndola al servicio de ideas contrarias. Ofrece una descripción laica y liberal de la acción de España en Marruecos, presenta la acción de la Alliance Israélite Universelle como un modelo que España debería imitar, defiende las tesis de Pulido con respecto a los sefardíes y acaba con una “Parte segunda: Estudio Social” (pp. 137-346), en la que incluye observaciones sobre la lengua, la familia, los usos y costumbres y los “viejos romances de Castilla”, con edición de una buena colección de textos. La parte dedicada a la boda (177-186) empieza con la observación de que: Las ceremonias de casamiento son interesantes. En la actualidad muchos israelitas marroquíes, especialmente los de las clases elevadas que habitan en las ciudades de la costa, influenciados por las costumbres de Europa, suprimen el antiguo aparato, que es, sin embargo, el que generalmente usan en sus bodas los hebreos de las clases media y proletaria. 16 Manuel Ortega, Los hebreos de Marruecos, Editorial Hispano Africana, Madrid 1919; reed. Compañía Ibero-Americana de Publicaciones, Madrid 1929; 3ª ed., Ediciones Nuestra Raza, Madrid 1934. Hay edición facsímil en Algazara, Málaga 1994. 17 Pueden encontrarse datos sobre su biografía en el artículo de Julia Sáez-Angulo “Manuel Luis Ortega Pichardo, periodista, escritor y editor de la Compañía Iberoamericana de Publicaciones CIAP”, accesible en http://www.euromundoglobal.com/noticia/46188/ y http://lamiradaactual.blogspot.com/2011/01/manuel-luis-ortega-pichardo-periodista.html. 63 Actitudes de los españoles hacia los sefardíes Y a continuación describe, en un discurso objetivo y sin valoraciones, las distintas fases del ritual, incluyendo también una traducción de la ketubá al castellano, que debió de proporcionarle alguno de sus amigos judíos. Ese interés por el texto del contrato matrimonial establece, como veremos más adelante, un paralelo con la descripción de la boda que cuarenta años antes se había publicado en el periódico liberal El Globo, aunque la versión de la ketubá de Ortega y la del periódico madrileño difieren, por lo que hay que suponer que se trata de dos traducciones independientes. Dos testimonios periodísticos de 1873 y 1877 Entre la primera guerra de Marruecos y la época del Protectorado hay alguna otra descripción de la boda marroquí, como el breve apunte del médico Felipe Ovilo Canales en 1881;19 en ese período se sitúan también los dos testimonios inéditos que presento aquí.20 El más antiguo es un grabado (véase en Imagen) que se publicó en La Ilustración Española y Americana, revista que apareció desde 1869 hasta 1921 y que constituye la representante más conspicua de la prensa ilustrada en España;21 en todos los números, además de las imágenes que acompañaban a las informaciones, se incluían grabados artísticos con un pequeño texto explicativo. El Texto 1, que editamos, acompaña a nuestro grabado, obra —según se indica allí— del “malogrado Bécquer”, es decir, del pintor y grabador Valeriano Domínguez 18 Manuel Ortega, El doctor Pulido, Editorial Ibero-Africano-Americana, Madrid 1922. 19 Felipe Ovilo Canales, La mujer marroquí: Estudio social, Imprenta Manuel G. Hernández, Madrid 1881. Véase Francisco J. Martínez Antonio, Miradas y reflexiones de médicos españoles sobre la realidad marroquí a finales del siglo XIX, Miraguano, Madrid 2009, pp. 248-249 y biografía del autor en pp. 22-30. 20 Utilizo los ejemplares de la Hemeroteca Digital de la Biblioteca Nacional de España, http://www.bne.es/es/Catalogos/HemerotecaDigital/. 21 Era continuadora de El Museo Universal (publicado entre 1857 y 1869). La pionera de las revistas ilustradas fue la británica Illustrated London News, que se publicó como hebdomadario desde 1842 hasta 1971, pero en la gran difusión de este tipo de publicaciones por toda Europa influyó el éxito de dos francesas,L’Illustration (que se publicó desde 1843 a 1944) y Le Monde Illustré (aparecido desde 1857 hasta 1948, año en que se fusionó con France Illustration). También en Italia existió una Ilustrazione Italiana y en Alemania el Illustrierte Zeitung. 64 Paloma Díaz-Mas Bécquer (Sevilla 1833-Madrid 1870), hermano del famoso escritor romántico Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer (y autor del retrato más famoso de éste). Domínguez Bécquer recibió en 1864 un encargo del Gobierno español para realizar una serie de pinturas que reflejasen las fiestas populares, las costumbres y los trajes típicos de las distintas regiones españolas, proyecto que se frustró luego por falta de financiación; los grabados de las dos mujeres marroquíes, judía y musulmana, se encuadran por tanto en la tradición de la pintura costumbrista que le resultaba familiar; familiar incluso en el sentido más literal de la palabra, ya que su padre José (1805-1841) y, sobre todo, su tío Joaquín (1817-1879) fueron también conocidos pintores costumbristas. El texto explicativo que en La Ilustración acompaña al grabado no ofrece apenas información acerca de lo que la imagen representa, hasta el punto de que, si no fuera por el pie que reza “Hebrea en traje de boda”, los lectores de la revista no podrían imaginar que la indumentaria de la mujer judía es un vestido de novia. Pero, pese a la inanidad del comentario, hay algún detalle significativo de la visión que la mirada española arroja sobre la imagen de la novia sefardí (y de la mujer musulmana en traje de fiesta que le sirve de pareja), cuando alude a las “blancas gasas, finísimos vestidos de seda bordados de colores brillantes, joyas ricas y de gusto oriental, y otras prendas propias de cada una de las dos razas, pero no menos lujosas en la una que en la otra”, en donde se encarnan los tópicos del Oriente lujoso, exótico y sensual, de incitantes mujeres sólo apenas veladas por gasas y sedas. Un discurso que con toda evidencia contradice lo que en el grabado se ve: la “hebrea” lleva el traje de novia de berberisca, con sus gruesos tejidos y su pesada falda de terciopelo, que obligan a su portadora a adoptar una pose envarada y un tanto rígida; las “blancas gasas” y los “finísimos vestidos de seda” no están ni en la realidad ni en la imagen del grabado, sino sólo en la mente del comentarista. Por lo que respecta a nuestro Texto 2, se publicó en 1878 en El Globo, un diario madrileño fundado en 1875 que siguió publicándose hasta 1930, aunque con varios cambios en su trayectoria. Durante las primeras décadas fue un periódico liberal, portavoz de la corriente llamada posibilista del republicanismo moderado, cuyo máximo representante fue Emilio Castelar (seguidores de Castelar eran, por ejemplo, Joaquín Costa22 o el propio Ángel Pulido). En los años setenta del siglo XIX 22 Para las relaciones de Joaquín Costa con los sefardíes véase Jacobo Israel Garzón “Joaquín Costa, la Revista de Geografía Comercial y los judíos”, Raíces: Revista judía de cultura 55-56 (2003), pp. 31-34. 65 Actitudes de los españoles hacia los sefardíes se distinguió por su postura a favor de la ley de libertad religiosa, en oposición al movimiento integrista Unidad Católica, que defendía la confesionalidad del Estado. Como periódico liberal, otra de sus características era no ser antijudío en una época de auge del antisemitismo en Europa. En las páginas de El Globo se incluyen con cierta frecuencia noticias, editoriales o colaboraciones literarias en las que los judíos aparecen retratados positivamente, entre ellas algunas informaciones sobre los sefardíes de Oriente.23 Ocasionalmente aparecen también informaciones sobre los sefardíes de Marruecos, en especial en las cartas de un anónimo corresponsal que escribe desde Tánger. Una de ellas contiene la descripción del ritual de una boda sefardí de Marruecos y la traducción del texto de la ketubá que damos a conocer aquí (Texto 2). La carta se publicó cuando hacía más de quince años que había terminado la ocupación española de Tetuán y faltaban todavía casi treinta y cinco para que se estableciese el Protectorado. Es un período en el que, como ha señalado Víctor Morales Lezcano:24 La política marroquí de los gobiernos de Madrid osciló entre la tentación de intervenir más a fondo en el Norte de Marrruecos, e incluso en Fez y su comarca, y el mantenimiento escrupuloso del statu quo, es decir, de la soberanía del Majzén y de la integridad de su territorio. De una parte, se repitió en España, hasta la saciedad, que la frontera meridional de la Península se encontraba en las montañas del Rif, cuando no en la cordillera del Atlas. Esta fue la expresión geopolítica más rotunda de una proclividad intervencionista que nunca pasó, en el siglo XIX, de ser una formulación ocasional a la que, muy pronto, se opusieron los africanistas hispanos, partidarios de un rapprochement mercantil y cultural con Marruecos canalizado pacífica y civilmente. 23 Véase Paloma Díaz-Mas, “El judeoespañol en la prensa española de la Restauración: informaciones en el diario El Globo”, en Yvette Bürki, Manuela Cimeli y Rosa Sánchez (eds.), Lengua, Llengua, Llingua, Lingua, Langue. Encuentros filológicos (ibero) románicos. Estudios en homenaje a la profesora Beatrice Schmid, Peniope, Munich 2012, pp. 190-202. 24 Víctor Morales Lezcano, España y el Norte de África: El protectorado en Marruecos (1912-56), Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia, Madrid 1984, p. 19. 66 Paloma Díaz-Mas Acorde con esa ambigüedad de la política española, la carta del corresponsal de Tánger empieza con unas consideraciones sobre el apego “a sus tradiciones, a su sistema de gobierno y a su peculiar manera de ser” de los marroquíes y su enemistad hacia “toda clase de reformas que tengan un colorido, aunque sea levísimo, de algo que a civilización y progreso se parezca”. Es decir, la imagen del pueblo oriental como tradicional, atrasado y renuente al progreso, pese a la cercanía física con respecto al mundo civilizado (“no se encuentra separado de Europa más que por unas cuantas millas”) y a tener “trato frecuente en esta ciudad con un gran número de europeos”. A continuación viene una defensa de lo que constituyó uno de los mayores problemas para la soberanía de Marruecos, el régimen de protecciones consulares que las potencias occidentales otorgaban a algunos nacionales del país a fin de sustraerlos a los malos tratos que en nombre del Sultán muchas veces se les da por los bajaes o gobernadores: malos tratos que unas veces son corporales y otros [sic] pecuniarios, en proporción a sus medios de subsistencia, y sin que para aplicarlos haya habido nunca otra ley que el capricho de los gobernantes. La carta insiste en las arbitrariedades cometidas por el gobierno de Marruecos contra sus naturales, para acabar con una declaración de la superioridad política de España: “basta de esto, de lo cual a Dios gracias y a la Constitución nos encontramos libres”. Y a continuación, y sin solución de continuidad, se pasa a describir una boda sefardí, con la entradilla: Días pasados, asistí a un casamiento de hebreos, que por lo curioso y nuevo para mí de sus ceremonias, y porque en una de ellas se dedica un recuerdo a nuestra patria, haré de él una sucinta descripción. La concatenación de las consideraciones acerca de la tiranía del gobierno marroquí sobre sus súbditos, la necesidad del sistema de protecciones consulares y la descripción de la boda “de hebreos” pone de relieve la condición de los judíos como minoría sometida por el gobierno de su país y necesitada de la protección de las potencias coloniales (y, por tanto, como aliado potencial de los estados occidentales). Una minoría que, al mismo tiempo, presenta algunas de las características que la visión del orientalismo colonial atribuyó tradicionalmente a los pueblos orientales: el atraso, ejemplificado en la falta de higiene (el baño al que “no son las judías muy aficionadas”) y en el apego casi supersticioso e infantil a las tradiciones y preceptos (“algunos […] en extremo pueriles”). 67 Actitudes de los españoles hacia los sefardíes Por otra parte, la justificación del corresponsal para ofrecer una descripción de la boda sefardí y una traducción del texto de la ketubá muestra la doble consideración de lo sefardí como otro exótico y como próximo: “por lo curioso y nuevo para mí de sus ceremonias” versus “en una de ellas se dedica un recuerdo a nuestra patria” (el “recuerdo a nuestra patria” es la mención que en la ketubá se hace de “las leyes […] que regularon y establecieron las comunidades que fueron expulsadas de Castilla”). Ese discurso dúplice, difundido en este caso a través de un periódico liberal y republicano, defensor de la libertad religiosa, constituye una buena muestra de la ambigüedad del discurso español con respecto a los sefardíes desde la época de la primera Guerra de África hasta el final del Protectorado… y aun después. Imagen La Ilustración Española y Americana, año 17, núm. 13 de 1 de abril de 1873, p. 205 68 Paloma Díaz-Mas Texto 1 [La Ilustración Española y Americana, año 17, núm. 13 de 1 de abril de 1873, p. 196, dentro de la sección “Nuestros grabados”]: Costumbres de Marruecos. Mora y hebrea en traje de gala. Tipos completamente diferentes, en religión, en idioma y en costumbres, suelen ser los que representan nuestros dibujos de la pág. 205; pero los dos se igualan, por decirlo así, al menos en las familias acomodadas de Marruecos, cuando tratan de presentarse en traje de fiesta, y procura siempre el uno superar al otro. Blancas gasas, finísimos vestidos de seda bordados de colores brillantes, joyas ricas y de gusto oriental, y otras prendas propias de cada una de las dos razas, pero no menos lujosas en la una que en la otra, son los detalles especialísimos de los trajes de fiesta que usan en ocasiones solemnes las hijas de Mahoma y las hijas de Abrahan [sic] que moran en el imperio de Marruecos. Y como existe entre estas dos razas una rivalidad antigua e inextinguible, tal vez nacida de la diferencia de religiones, lo mismo las moras que las hebreas hacen esfuerzos prodigiosos para salir vencedoras en esa especie de justa que libran la coquetería, la riqueza y el buen gusto de las mujeres de Marruecos –parecidas a todas las mujeres, en punto a satisfacer sus caprichos de tocador. Los dos grabados que citamos, dibujo del malogrado Bécquer, darán a nuestros lectores una idea exacta de los trajes de fiesta que visten las moras y las hebreas de Marruecos. Texto 2 [El Globo, año 3 (segunda época), número 651 de 23 de julio de 1877, p. 2, cols. a-c] Cartas a El Globo. Señor director de El Globo: Tánger 15 de Julio de 1877 Muy señor mío: Parece imposible que un pueblo que no se encuentra separado de Europa más que por unas cuantas millas ocupadas por el Estrecho de Gibraltar, y teniendo trato frecuente en esta ciudad con un gran número de europeos, sea tan apegado a sus tradiciones, a su sistema de gobierno y a su peculiar manera de ser, y 69 Actitudes de los españoles hacia los sefardíes tan enemigo de toda clase de reformas que tengan un colorido, aunque sea levísimo, de algo que a civilización y progreso se parezca. Constantemente se han visto obligados a luchar en este país los gobiernos europeos que tienen en él representantes, con la especie de esclavitud en que los súbditos marroquíes se encuentran en sus relaciones con el Sultán, habiendo sido indispensable que a muchos de ellos se le dispensase por los representantes aquí acreditados una protección decidida, a fin de sustraerlos a los malos tratos que en nombre del Sultán muchas veces se les da por los bajaes o gobernadores: malos tratos que unas veces son corporales y otros pecuniarios, en proporción a sus medios de subsistencia, y sin que para aplicarlos haya habido nunca otra ley que el capricho de los gobernantes. Claro es que estas protecciones no se han dispensado nunca arbitrariamente, sino que han estado sometidas a ciertas reglas y condiciones, tales como los servicios prestados por el protegido a la nación protectora, u otros hechos análogos que han obligado a considerar al súbdito marroquí como perteneciente en cierto modo o naturalizado en el país extranjero, cuya bandera la ampara en adelante. Las arbitrariedades del gobierno marroquí y la ciega dependencia en que todos los súbditos se encuentran respecto a él han hecho que sean muy solicitas las protecciones extranjeras, y esto ha dado margen a que por algunas naciones se cometan abusos, concediéndoles a algunos que no llenaban las condiciones que para ello son necesarias, abusos que, aun cometidos con la buena intención de sustraer víctimas a la acción del gobierno de Marruecos, han obligado a éste a reclamar contra tales abusos, a fin de hacer que las protecciones se ajusten a los límites que deben tener y se disminuyan todo lo posible. A dilucidar este asunto parece que están encaminadas unas reuniones de todos los representantes extranjeros, que se están celebrando en estos momentos, y cuyas decisiones esperan con impaciencia multitud de hebreos acaudalados, comerciantes todos, y cuyo comercio ha podido ejercerse en grande escala, merced a estar protegidos los unos por Italia, otros por Francia, España, etc., etc.; pues todos ellos convienen en que una vez quitadas tales protecciones, tendrán que meterse en su choza, por temor a que el gobierno se eche sobre sus caudales, obtenidos a costa de tantos sacrificios. Porque el sistema usado por el Sultán o por los bajáes en nombre de aquel o en el suyo propio, es ya conocido: necesita el Sultán o un bajá cualquiera dinero; sospecha que Fulano o Mengano lo tiene, manda un par de soldados de rey que lo llevan a la cárcel, y no sale de ella hasta que entrega la cantidad que le piden, téngala o no la tenga, y hasta otra vez en que se repita la misma operación. 70 Paloma Díaz-Mas Basta de esto, de lo cual a Dios gracias y a la Constitución nos encontramos libres. Días pasados, asistí a un casamiento de hebreos, que por lo curioso y nuevo para mí de sus ceremonias, y porque en una de ellas se dedica un recuerdo a nuestra patria, haré de él una sucinta descripción, y copiaré la traducción, que me he procurado, del documento que por el sabio se lee como fía del acto. Dos días antes del fijado para la ceremonia, se sumerge a la novia en un baño, tal vez con el propósito de limpieza, a la que no son las judías muy aficionadas. La víspera del casamiento, la visten con el traje clásico, que consiste en una falda de terciopelo bordada de oro, cuerpo de lo mismo, grandes pendientes y alhajas riquísimas al cuello, y una especie de tiara o diadema de terciopelo, también bordada, que se coloca en la cabeza, teniendo especial cuidado en llevar la cabellera suelta, última vez que se permite a la desposada lucir sus galas naturales, pues en lo sucesivo llevará la cabellera cubierta con un pañuelo de seda, porque sólo el esposo tendrá derecho, según la ley, para disfrutar de esa vista. Observan los hebreos con tanta exactitud estos preceptos, algunos de los cuales son en extremo pueriles, que aquellas cuyos gustos les hacen vestir el traje europeo y usar sombrero como nuestras damas, se cubren su cabello natural con una peluca, la que, unida al sombrero hace parecer enorme su cabeza. Desde las dos de la tarde de la víspera de la ceremonia, ha de estar la novia vestida como hemos descrito, sentada en un sitio elevado del salón, rodeada de todas sus amigas y de los convidados, que al compás de la extraña música árabe, hacen desaparecer sendas bandejas o bateas, como ellos las llaman , de empalagosos dulces de fabricación doméstica; mientras la protagonista, cubierta con un tupido velo y con los ojos constantemente cerrados, presencia impasible tan desoladora escena. A las ocho de la noche es trasladada en una carroza cerrada, con acompañamiento de hachones encendidos y una numerosa comitiva, a la casa del novio, en cuya sala principal se ha dispuesto de antemano una especie de trono que llaman tálamo, al que la conducen después de pasearla un momento por la habitación. Después que ha estado un buen espacio de tiempo sentada en el tálamo, con cuyo acto ha tomado ya posesión de su nueva casa, se acuesta en el lecho nupcial, donde pasará la noche acompañada de su madre y de su más íntima amiga. Al día siguiente, a las nueve o diez de la mañana, llegan todos los convidados y, estando la novia en el tálamo, también en la misma actitud que en la tarde anterior, esto es, con los ojos cerrados, se verifica la ceremonia del casamiento, que consiste en beber los dos novios vino en una copa, que se rompe a continuación, y en leer, o 71 Actitudes de los españoles hacia los sefardíes salmodiar, mejor dicho, el sabio rabino el documento que, con ligeras variantes según los casos, copiamos a continuación: “En tal día de tal año de la creación del mundo, Fulano, hijo de Mengano, habló a la joven X, hija de Z, y la dijo: sé a mi como mujer, según la ley de Moisés y de Israel, y con el ayuda de Dios, yo te mantendré y te vestiré como es costumbre entre los hebreos, trabajar, y honrar, y mantener, y vestir sus mujeres en toda seguridad. Yo te daré la dote de tu virginidad y además veinticinco monedas de plata; yo proveeré a tu manutención y a todo aquello que necesitares, como es costumbre en el mundo. Y la novia consintió en este arreglo y fue su mujer. Luego el novio fue añadiendo de su propia voluntad a la suma principal antes citada, hasta formar un total de tantas onzas de plata, de moneda corriente en esta ciudad. Además, el novio se comprometió también, por promesa legal, a dar a su joven esposa tantas onzas de la misma moneda antes mencionada. Después de recibir el ajuar que la novia le ha traído de casa de sus parientes, consistente en efectos de vestir, de cama, alhajas, etc., el novio declaró aceptarlo todo por su cuenta, mediante el valor de tantas onzas, lo que constituye, tanto en principal como en aumento, regalos y ajuar, la suma total de tantas onzas en monedas de plata, valor corriente del país. El referido novio se comprometió formalmente a no tomar otra mujer al lado de la suya, y a no sacarla de esta ciudad para habitar en otra parte, sin su consentimiento. Si faltare a este compromiso, si tomase otra mujer al lado de la suya, o si quisiese hacerla salir del lugar para establecerse en otras partes contra su voluntad, la pagará aquello en que se ha convenido más arriba y la devolverá en el acto, por divorcio. Estas estipulaciones tendrán fuerza y vigor, como las condiciones que se establecieron entre los hijos de Rubén y los hijos de Gad. Y el referido novio asumió la responsabilidad de lo contenido en este contrato: esto es, principal, aumento, regalos y ajuar sobre sí mismo y sobre sus herederos después de él, y sobre sus bienes, propiedades e inmuebles, etc, que ha comprado o que compre con arreglo a la ley. Y el referido novio ha dado su palabra sagrada de atenerse rigurosamente a la letra de la presente acta, después de declarar que los usos, las condiciones y las leyes en ella citadas están en un todo conformes con las que regularon y establecieron las comunidades que fueron expulsadas de Castilla. ¡Que Dios se apiade de 72 Paloma Díaz-Mas sus almas y proteja y se digne mirar con ojos de misericordia, los restos de sus descendientes, desterrados ahora y para siempre! Aceptadas las condiciones, el ajuar entró en la posesión del novio antes citado. Todo esto es claro y es formal”. Hasta aquí el documento, después de cuya lectura queda terminada la ceremonia y se sirven espléndidos almuerzos y comidas durante ocho días consecutivos. Suyo afectísimo. El corresponsal 73 Michal Held “Ansina pueden dizir loke keren” (This way they can say whatever they wish) – Expressions of Gender in the Personal Narratives of Judeo-Spanish (Ladino) – Speaking Women Storytellers Michal Held Hebrew University of Jerusalem For Tamar Alexander, who opened a gate for many Sephardic women’s voices and paved a path for their understanding. Best of luck in the paths to come: “Una puerta se serra, sien se avrin” (when one door closes, a hundred doors open). Introduction: Conceptual and Methodological Keys The woman’s voice, and the way in which it is expressed and interpreted in the Personal Narrative,1 has recently received growing attention in Israeli folkloristic research. For example, both Ilana Rosen, focusing on the PN’s of Hungarian female Holocaust survivors,2 and Nili Arye-Sapir, dealing with the PN’s of women who belonged to the pioneering generations of Zionism and the shaping of Israeli society,3 aim at deciphering the feminine voice and the messages it carries. Similar concerns are being 1 In short “PN”. 2 See Ilana Rosen, Sister in Sorrow: Life Histories of Female Holocaust Survivors from Hungary, translated & edited by Sandy Bloom, Detroit 2008; idem, “Women and Time in the Life Histories of Female Holocaust Survivors of Austro-Hungarian Origins”, Cadernos de Língua e Literatura Hebraica, vol. 4 (2004), pp. 36-48; idem, “Personal Historical Narrative Shaping the Past and Present”, in European Journal of Jewish Studies, 3:1 (2009), pp. 103-133. 3 See Nili Arye-Spir, “Collective Messages in the Personal Narrative of Leah Horowitz” [in Hebrew], Sadan 6 (2007), pp. 65-80; Nili Arye-Sapir, “A Proverbial Dialogue between 75 “Ansina pueden dizir loke kerenˮ dealt with in the research of written personal narratives (diaries and autobiographies) of Zionist and Israeli women by researchers of literature4 and of communications.5 Within the wider context of which these works form a part, the following essay shall ask whether the PN’s of Sephardic women stepping out of traditional society and earning acceptance as equal members of modern society may be defined as feminine manifestos, and furthermore, if they may be regarded as a distinctly feminine genre. Questions such as these are central to the exploration and interpretation of the PN’s of the Judeo-Spanish6–speaking women storytellers with which this essay is concerned.7 Created and performed in the linguistic and cultural climate of contemporary Israel, in an ethnic language that is ceasing to exist as an essential communications tool, the narratives evoke the constantly changing process of reconstructing their narrators’8 understanding of themselves, their lives, and the world. They may be regarded as a Pioneers’ Daughter and her Mother” [in Hebrew], Massechet 5 (2006), pp. 69-81; Nili Arye-Sapir and Michal Held, “Queen Esther of the Tel Aviv Purim Carnival – A Personal Narrative in its Cultural Context” [in Hebrew], Massekhet 8 (2008), pp. 97-116. 4 See, for example, Tamar Hess, “The Confessions of a Bad Reader: Embodied Selves, Narrative Strategies, and Subversion in Israeli Women’s Autobiography”, Prooftexts, 27:1 (2007), pp 151-187; Yaffa Berlovitz, ed., A Wounded Bird: Dora Bader Diary (1933-1937) [in Hebrew], Tel Aviv 2011. 5 Esther Schely-Newman, Our Lives Are But Stories: Narratives of Tunisian-Israeli Women, Detroit 2002. 6 Judeo-Spanish is mainly a Romance language with embedded Hebrew, Aramaic, Arabic, Turkish, and Balkan components. Originating in medieval Spain, it became a widespread Jewish language when the descendants of Jews expelled from the Iberian Peninsula in 1492 continued to use it in oral and written form in their newly established communities in the Ottoman Empire and Northern Morocco. The language received various names down the centuries, including the term “Ladino”, which originally referred to the dialect used in the translation of the Bible and other sacred Jewish texts from the sixteenth century on. This dialect differs from the spoken and written language used by Sephardic Jews. The language used in the personal narratives analyzed in this paper is thus referred to as “Judeo- Spanish” (and in short “JS”), and the culture it represents is referred to as “Sephardic”. The term “Ladino” is used only when quoted directly from the storytellers as such. 7 For further information and analysis, see Michal Held, Let Me Tell You a Story / Ven te kontare: The Personal Narratives of Judeo-Spanish Speaking Storytelling Women, An Interdisciplinary Study [in Hebrew], Jerusalem 2009. 8 The informants are members of a group of Judeo-Spanish–speaking storytellers: women in their sixties, seventies, and late eighties who since 1986, mainly in Jerusalem, have been meeting once a month for over twenty years to tell each other folk tales in Judeo-Spanish— 76 Michal Held identity formation mechanisms, consisting of a fusion of realistic, fictional, and folkloric materials. Their dialogic nature is also central to their definition. The following analysis shall focus on the way in which Sephardic women conceive themselves while creating their PN in their ethnic language, using the PN as a vehicle for understanding the feminine awareness that is being voiced through it, as well as the other worldviews and values that the narrators (consciously or unconsciously) convey. Prior to the close reading of the PN’s, an organizing phenomenon at work in all of them should be presented. Traditional formalist theories, such as the influential model of Vladimir Propp9 and his followers in the study of folklore, are based upon an analysis of the internal aspects of folk literature: plot, characters, etc. In the PN, more components, such as material culture and intertextuality, are at work. Looking at several recurring characteristics appearing in the corpus of PN’s I studied led to the definition of the “narrative package”, which is characteristic of the PN and includes both internal/fictive and external/realistic categories. The specific narrative packages identified and analyzed in my research of the PN’s of Sephardic women storytellers are the following: Story and the storyteller; Loss of a meaningful other; Birth and giving birth; Geographical locations and the movement between them; Womanhood and independence; Match-making and marriage; War and traumatic historical events; Sephardic characteristics/traits (language, culture, ethnicity); Objects of material culture; Food and recipes; Intertextuality; Childhood; Past and present. Each of these packages illuminates the individual and collective messages channeled through the PNs. Three of these packages were studied in depth: Birth and giving birth – demonstrating how plot is dealt with in the PN; Loss of a meaningful other – demonstrating psychological notions at work in the PN, and intertextuality – demonstrating the way in which their mother tongue. Many of their folktales were transcribed and published by the group’s founder, Matilda Koen-Sarano, born in Milan, Italy, in 1939. The other storytellers who contributed to the research are (in alphabetical order of their last names) Ester Levi, born in Jerusalem in 1920; Sol Maymaran, born in Jerusalem in 1915, died in Jerusalem in 2000; Miriam Reymond, born in Milan, Italy, in 1945, Malka Simha, born in Seres, Greece, in 1914, died in Jerusalem in 2010; Levana Sasson, born in Jerusalem in 1942; and Ester Ventura, born in Izmir, Turkey, in 1930, died in Jerusalem in 2014. 9 Vladimir Propp, Morphology of the Folktale, ed. Laurence Scott, trans. Louis A. Wagner, Austin 1968. 77 “Ansina pueden dizir loke kerenˮ different textual materials (especially folktales, proverbs, and idio-proverbs)10 are interwoven and utilized in the PN. The following discussion focuses on questions of gender expressed through two relevant narrative packages: Birth and giving birth, and Match-making and Marriage. 1. The Feminine Voice and the Question of Gender Traditional Jewish society differentiates between female and male folkloristic and canonic genres and performances: roughly, women deliver babies, while men commit the act of circumcision; women cook while men say the blessing over the food; women lament for the dead, while men study the Torah in their memory. Studies of the role of women in the different fields of folklore in many human societies support the understanding that it is characterized by the duties that are associated with the woman in the framework of the family and the working cycles in which she functions.11 It is in this context that we should ask ourselves whether the narratives that this essay sets out to explore may be defined as a feminine genre. Folklore genre scholarship, especially that which is concerned with the PN, acknowledges the fact that genres are not neutral classification systems, but part of the politics of interpretation in which meaning and the authority to propose and ascribe categories is contested.12 In most cases, the PN of a man or a woman may be defined as masculine or feminine respectively, as aspects of gender often occupy a central place in the identity of the individual who creates it. Ilana Rosen explains the mechanism enabling the PN’s of Jewish women to become a powerful tool for feminine identity formation: Men tend to discuss communal tradition, especially its religious components, whereas women tend to private discourse, which enables them to tell their own experiences. Men present the collective, whereas women present the personal, 10 Short phrases created by the narrators that follow the traditional characteristics of proverbs. For detailed definition and analysis see Note 7, pp. 198-218. 11 See, for example, Linda Degh, Narrative in Society: A Performer-Centered Study of Narration, Helsinki 1995, pp. 62-69. 12 See Amy Shuman, “Gender and Genre”, in Feminist Theory and the Study of Folklore, ed. Susan Tower Hollis et al., Chicago 1993, p. 71. 78 Michal Held men express authority and norm, whereas women describe specific events and their affective impression upon their consciousness. Men describe their bygone world in its glory, whereas women recount its destruction.13 To connect these observations to our corpus, we should point out that women have rarely played an active public role in the communities that form the Sephardic narrators’ social background. Their PN’s compensate for this social situation enabling them to construct a feminine identity while illuminating questions such as womanhood and independence, match-making and married life, birth and birth giving. On another hermeneutic level, the storytellers use the PN’s to negotiate and understand the place that their individual identity occupies within their collective identity and memory. Moreover, the identification of the PN’s we are looking at as a feminine genre derives from the fact that the women who created them were active members of an exclusively feminine storytelling group. The definition of the group as a territory inaccessible to men influences the narrators’ tendency to conceive their traditional folktales (and indirectly their PN’s too) as feminine. An example of this conception is found in the PN of Matilda Koen-Sarano: Michal: Porke ay solamente mujeres en el hug? Matilda: Esto es mijor. Muncho mijor. Porke ansina pueden dizir loke keren. I no te digo loke sale afuera! De mil kolores, de mil kozas! Porke son viejas, somos viejas, no mos emporta nada. No tenemos busha, komo se dize… I despues, los ombres no vienen a estas kozas. Ke ombre vas a traer? Traimos un musafir, ma no es ke tenemos ombres ke partisipan en esto. Los ombres, a los ombres no les va a agradar… I los ombres kontan kuentos mui diferentes ke las mujeres. No son los mizmos kuentos. Munchos kuentos de mujeres les paresen patranyas a los ombres: todos los kuentos de mazal, todas las konsejas, de reyes, de bodas i esto todo. Para los ombres no son emportantes. Eyos tienen kuentos morales, kuentos del Me’am Loez, kuentos del kal, kuentos de... si. Mi padre kontava kuentos de, de… Kere dizir kuentos de estados, de reyes kon kozas de polotika, estas kozas kontava. Ma no, no estos kuentos. Estos son kuentos de otra manera. (Michal: Why are there only women in the group? Matilda: This is better, much better … because this way they can say whatever they wish. And I can’t tell you what comes out! In thousands of colors! Thousands 13 See Note 2, item 2, p. 4. 79 “Ansina pueden dizir loke kerenˮ of things! Because they are old, we are old ladies, we don’t care about anything. We have no shame, as they say. And men don’t come to these sorts of things. What man will you bring? We brought a [male] visitor, but it doesn’t mean that we have men who participate in this [regularly.] Men are not going to like this… And men tell stories that are different than the ones women tell. These are not the same stories. Many women’s stories seem to men like lies: all those stories of luck, the folktales about kings, weddings etc. They are not important for men. They have their moral tales; tales from the Me’am Loez, stories from the synagogue, stories… yes. My father used to tell stories of, of… of estates, of kings with political things. This sort of things he used to tell. But no, no, these are other kinds of stories). Another example of the conception of the group as a feminine territory is given by Ester Levi, an active participant in the storytellers’ activities since it was founded: Ester: Ombres no ay ande mozos. Michal: Porke? Ay kuentos de mujeres i kuentos de ombres? Ester: El kuento ke kotni yo de la zona no es ermozo de kontar al lado de ombres. Ya lo oites? Michal: Si. Son diferentes, los kuentos de los ombres. Zehava: Porke no ay ombres? Es meanyen. Ester: Ay, mira, todas son bivdas a lo mas. Munchas bivdas vienen, munchas… (Ester: There are no men with us [in the group]. Michal: Why? Are there tales of women and tales of men? Ester: The tale I told about the whore, it is not nice to tell it next to men. Did you hear that tale? Michal: Yes. Are men’s tales different than women’s? Zehava: But why are there no men [in the group]? It is interesting. Ester: Look, they [we] are all widows. Most [of us]. Many widows come, many …) Tamar Alexander-Frizer explained the importance of inter-feminine folktales: The existence of stories about women in women’s circles proves that the audience of women […] needs an art that reflects an internal group point of view and reinforces it. In this case, the common dominator of the group is gender.14 14 Tamar Alexander-Frizer, The Heart Is a Mirror: The Sephardic Folktale, translated by Jacqueline S. Teitelbaum, Detroit c2008, p. 376. 80 Michal Held Borrowing her insight for the understanding of the PN, we can see how the views expressed by Matilda and Ester convey the fact that gender is a central factor in the formation and manifestation of the self and the collective identity of the women whose PN’s were addressed to me, a woman myself, within a feminine network. Thus, the PN’s with which we are concerned may be defined as a feminine, and I shall now try to decipher the feminine voice that is heard through them. According to the Talmudic proverb, “Out of ten measures of talking that were brought down to the world, women took nine” (Tractate Kiddushin 49a). Based on a male dominance, the traditional Jewish canon de-legitimizes the right of women to express themselves in elevated contexts, regarding their speech as useless conversation. Rachel Elior studied a wide range of traditional Jewish texts in which the voice of women had been muted.15 Missing in her model is folk literature, which enables women to express themselves in a relatively free and uncensored way outside the cultural canon. According to Galit Hasan-Rokem, the folk narrative is a creative field that allows a co-existence of a multitude of voices, including those of women. She goes on to claim that the folk narrative is a dialogue between paternalistic views and those that undermine them within the boundaries of the same text.16 Similarly, the PN’s explored here are hermeneutic tools for representing reality through a set of feminine voices and consciousness. 2. Match-Making and Marriage Exploring womanhood in the PN’s of the Sephardic storytellers I analyzed evokes a situation more complex than that of liberating the woman’s voice. The complexity may be demonstrated through the narrators’ interpretation of issues such as female independence, match-making and marriage. Matilda Koen-Sarano recalls her refusal to give up her wish to study literature at the university, when her mother, portrayed 15 See Rachel Elior, “‘Present but Absent’, ‘Still Life’ and ‘A Pretty Maiden who has No Eyes’: On the presence and absence of women in the Hebrew Language, in Jewish Culture and in Israeli life”, in Streams into the Sea: Studies in Jewish Culture and Its Context, Dedicated to Felix Posen, eds. E. Reiner and R. Livneh-Freudenthal, Tel Aviv 2001, pp. 191-211. 16 Galit Hasan-Rokem, The Web of Life – Folklore in Rabbinic Literature: The Palestinian Aggadic Midrash Eikha Rabba [in Hebrew], Tel Aviv 1996, pp. 121-123. 81 “Ansina pueden dizir loke kerenˮ in her PN as the more traditional female character, expected her to acquire a practical profession or terminate her studies altogether and get married: I kuando ‘skapi el liseo, mi mama keria ke vo a estudiar alguna koza de komersial. Porke no somos rikos, porke, porke. Ma yo kijo estudiar literatura, estudios umanitikos, i me fui yo i me ‘skrivi a los umanistikos malgrado ke mi madre no kijiera. Kijo una koza fasil para lavorar. Ma yo no entyendo d’estas kozas komersyalas. Kiji estudiar literatura i latino, sovre todo latino, muncho latino. I linguas. I me ‘skrivi a linguas. No, no izi kuento… Kuando ‘skapi el liseo me ‘skrivi al universidad. [Kuando] Aaron vino a Milano i la prima vez ke mos konosimos, le tomo un anyo i medio para konversarme a mi, porke no tenia la mas chika entensyon de kazarme. Yo keria ‘studiar”. (And when I finished high school, my mother wanted me to study something commercial. Because we are not rich, because, because. But I wanted to study literature, humanistic studies. And I went and registered myself for the humanities despite of what my mother wanted. She wanted something easy that would enable me to work. But I don’t understand these commercial things. I wanted to study literature and Latin, more than anything Latin, lots of Latin, and languages, and I registered myself for languages. I didn’t make a story [=a big deal] … When I finished high school I registered for university. [When] Aaron came to Milan and the first time we knew each other, it took him a year and a half to convince me [to marry him], because I didn’t have the slightest intention to get married. I wanted to study). Surprisingly, the meeting with her future husband is the only event that the same narrator who insists on pursuing her higher education and not giving it up for married life refers to as “a story” in its own right when reconstructing it in her PN: “Te kero dizir de la primera vez ke lo vidi [a Aaron], porke esto es un kuento, si? (I want to tell you [about] the first time that I saw him, because this is a story, yes?) The importance of meeting the potential husband and raising a family justifies the choice Matilda eventually made to give up her studies for marriage. Female independence and Match-Making and Marriage are two contradictory narrative packages that eventually balance in Matilda’s PN, as they do in the narratives created by some of the other members of the storytellers’ group she leads. The conglomerate of these narrative packages employed in the PN of Malka Simha evokes a tension between social attempts to make a match for marriage for the narrator and her wish to take control of her life. She addresses the dilemma at an early stage of her narrative: 82 Michal Held Vino una tia mia, una ermana de mi mama, en Gresia, para vijitarmos despues de esta desgrasia [de la muerte de mi ermano]. I kijo ke me fuera kon eya a Stambol [...] Teniamos un vizino, un manseviko ke me keria bien [...] vino un dia el padre, esta diziendo a mi padre: ‘Yo keria a Rejin, la dieras para mi ijo.’ ‘Avlare kon eya.’ Yo, en entandant, prometia a mi tia ke me vo a Stambol. Ijika, kere trokamiento! Dishe ‘Me kero ir a Stambol!’ [...] Tenia un tio. Era kunyado de mi papa [...] lo yamimos una noche, ke me [???] el pasaporto. O me vo o me kedo es otra koza. (An aunt, my mother’s sister, came to Greece to visit us after this disaster [of my brother’s death]. And she wanted me to go with her to Istanbul. In Greece, we had a neighbor. A young guy who wanted me very much […] One day the [=his] father came, saying to my father: ‘I want Rejin, give her for my son’. ‘I shall speak to her’. I, while waiting, promised my aunt that I would go to Istanbul. A young girl wants a change. I said: ‘I want to go to Istanbul!’ […] I had an uncle, a brother-in-law of my father. We called him one night so that he [takes care] of my passport. If I go or stay is another thing). The theme develops as the narrator recalls a folktale her uncle told her: Kunado vino para tomar el pasaporto mio, me esta diziendo: ‘Rejin, te vo a kontar una ‘storia, no se si te la vas a kreer [...] Avia una, una ija mui ermoza, desido de partir. Akel tiempo otomobil no avia, era kon karrosa. Bueno. Ke se asovio ala karrosa, vino un mansevo, la demando a kazarse kon el. I akea, s’abasho de la karrosa, se fue. Dishe: ‘la konseja viene mui ermoza. Kualo es este klonso? Ke va asperar ke se va ir, asuvir a la karrosa para ir? [...] Tu deshas estas reflikasiones.’ ‘Esto todo te lo esto kontando porke vini a demandar al primero tu opinion. Ke vo ir ande tu padre a avlar, ke kero, te kero a ti para mi ermano. (When he came to pick up my passport, he is saying to me: “Rejin, I will tell you a story. Don’t know if you will believe […] There was a girl, a very pretty girl, [who] decided to leave. In that time there was no car, it was in a carriage [that she had to travel]. Good. When she got into the carriage, some guy came, asked her to marry him. And she got off the carriage, went [with him]. I said: “The story goes very well. What is this nonsense? To hope that I shall leave? That I shall get in the carriage for leaving? […] You let go of these reflections”. “I am telling you all this because I came to ask for your opinion first. That I am going to speak to your father, [to tell him] that I want you for my brother’). 83 “Ansina pueden dizir loke kerenˮ As the story progresses, we learn about the decisive sense of independence of the narrator—then a very young woman in an early twentieth century traditional Mediterranean society: Yo le dishe a mi padre: ‘Yo kale ke me vo a Stambol para pensar. Yo no puedo desidirme ansina [...] Al manseviko le dire ke me ‘sto indo a Stambol. [...] ‘Shimon, mira’ le dishe, ‘Yo ‘sto mui trista agora para pensar a espozar [...] Yo me ‘sto indo a Stambol’ por kinze, vente dias, d’ayi vo mandar la repuesta’. Me disho: ‘Estos ojos ke te ‘stan viendo agora, no te van a ver mas!’17 ‘Ke me estas mladiziendo?’ le dishe. ‘No ayi nada en el mundo, me ‘sto indo por kinze dias, no puedo ir kinze dias...’ ‘Yo ‘sto sintiendo aki ke no vas a tornar’. (I said to my father: “It is necessary that I go to Istanbul to think. I cannot decide like this […] I shall tell the young guy that I am going to Istanbul”. “Shimon, look” I said to him, “I am going to Istanbul for fifteen, twenty days, I shall send the answer from there”. He said to me: “These eyes that see you now, are never going to see you again!” “What are you cursing me?” I said to him. “There is nothing in the world, I am going for fifteen days, can’t I go [for] fifteen days…” I feel that you are not going to come back). Interwoven into the narrative packages relating to womanhood at this stage are those of geographical locations and the movement between them; and that of war and traumatic historical events: No torni. No me kazi no kon uno ni kon el otro. Todos fueron deportados. I yo kedi biva en Estambol. No es el destino de la persona? Son unas kozas mui, mui delikadas ke no se puede olvidar la persona. Mi padre ‘sta ‘sperando [la] repuesta [...] Ya me espozi en Estambol. i ansina kedo el echo. No los vidi mas. Eyos se fueron. Vino la gerra, se serarron los kaminos. Yo kedi en Estambol, eyos kedaron en Gresia [...] Tengo los papeles, para ansi demandavan a Yad VaShe, de todas las personas de la famiya. Sien personas de mi famia de fueron deportar. (I did not return. I did not marry nor the one neither the other. Everybody got deported. And I stayed alive in Istanbul. Isn’t that a person’s destiny? These are very, very delicate things that one cannot forget. My father is waiting for the answer […]. I already married in Istanbul, and this was how the business ended. I did not see them again. They went. The war came, the roads were closed. I stayed 17 The proverb was first recited by the narrator in Greek and then repeated in JS. 84 Michal Held in Istanbul, they stayed in Greece […] I have the papers, because this is what they asked for in Yad VaShem [=the Israeli Holocaust Memorial], of all the people of my family. A hundred people of my family who got deported.) What initially was planned to be a short stay with relatives in Turkey eventually, as an outcome of the Holocaust and the total destruction of Greek Jewry, turned into a horrible separation that has influenced the narrator ever since then. The juxtaposition between her insistence on maintaining her independence and on controlling her own life on the one hand, and the helplessness she expresses in this paragraph on the other, conveys that she beholds life as a multi-faceted system reflected in her PN and modifying it. This example reinforces the fact that Malka Simha and the other hand Sephardic women whose PN’s I analyzed do not rebel against the rules of the traditional world in which they grew up, but make them flexible, proving that wise and resourceful women may benefit from tradition by implementing their independence within its boundaries. At yet another level stands the PN itself, enabling the women who create it to speak up and interpret their lives after having inspected the values out of which they grew. Under the surface of the corpus of PN’s that this essay focuses on exists, therefore, an intuitive (as opposed to formal, political, etc.) feminist manifesto based upon a freedom to express independent thinking. Our narrators have incorporated into their PN’s materials that in their society represent male dominance, such as prayer and liturgy books in Hebrew and Ladino they independently chose to read out to me. Importing into their narratives a male territory and adopting it naturally, they implement a change in the traditional consensus by refusing to narrow themselves down to the “little tradition”, and becoming instead equal to the owners of male voices that form the “great tradition”, as was explained by anthropologist Robert Redfield18 and adopted to Sephardic culture by Levy & Levy Zumwalt.19 Thus, the contemporary feminine Sephardic PN becomes a field where women are no longer limited by patriarchal restrictions, but make their voice heard by adopting male tools and readjusting them for conveying their own messages. 18 For a detailed discussion of Redfield’s model see Milton Singer, “Robert Redfield’s Development of a Social Anthropology of Civilizations”, in John V. Murra, ed., American Anthropology: The Early Years, 1974 Proceedings of the American Ethnological Society, St. Paul 1976, pp. 208-215. 19 Isaac Jack Levy & Rosemary Levy Zumwalt, Ritual Medical Lore of Sephardic Women, Urbana and Chicago 2002, p. 5. 85 “Ansina pueden dizir loke kerenˮ Two important insights derive from the interpretation of womanhood and independence in the three PN’s of Sephardic women studied here. The freedom of expression provided to them when creating their PN in old age allowed them to reconsider the values that were characteristic of the traditional society from which they emerged and re-design their traditional world in their narratives. Reconsidering the rules of the old world, they make them flexible enough for proving that a wise, innovative woman may make the most out of it without revolting against its fundamental values. As already mentioned, the PN’s we read may also be seen as statements in their own right rather than as mere reflections of the lives that they reconstruct. The very existence of such narratives represents an unconscious revolt of the women who created them. They speak up and interpret their lives through their narratives, while adopting a conceptual stand point that enables them to question the traditional values of the society out of which they grew. The process represents a new kind of freedom of thought and speech that women were deprived of in earlier generations. Therefore, under the surface of the PN’s of the contemporary Sephardic women that we are looking at a feminist awareness exists. In this context it should be re-emphasized that as opposed to the fact that our narrators define the activity of the storytelling group as a feminine territory limited to the performance of female tales, in their PN’s they include intertexts whose nature is masculine (or at least is regarded as such by the norms of the traditional society to which the narrators belong): Jewish paraliturgical works, excerpts from prayers and from classical Ladino works—a process that we shall now proceed to analyze. 3. Books shifting from Male to Female Territory The PN is a linguistic attempt to represent life, yet language is naturally incapable of fully conceptualizing reality, which makes the embedding of objects into the narrative an act of validation, introducing parts of the narrator’s actual life into the narrative and thus validating her story and the identity it reflects. Anthropologist Janet Hoskins reports that: I could not collect the histories of objects and the life histories of persons separately. People and the things they valued were so complexly intertwined 86 Michal Held they could not be disentangled […] An object can become more than simply a metaphor for the self. It becomes a pivot for reflexivity and introspection, a tool of autobiographic self-discovery, a way of knowing oneself through things.20 Her observation reinforces the question of gender in the PN’s studied here. A book has a double presence: the physical object and its textual system of meanings. Bringing books into their PN’s, the storytellers use the object as a symbol for the world views they wish to convey. Moreover, once specific books that mark a male dominance are included in the oral feminine PN, they are anchored in a canonical meta-narrative. An example of how this process links the narrators’ individual views with their collective Jewish and Sephardic values and enables them to set foot in a world traditionally limited to men by performing paraliturgical and Midrashic texts is given by Malka Simha who chose to open her narrative with a description of her father, a leading cantor in the community where she grew up. The narrator builds up her own identity in relation to her father and her husband, who shared both his folktales and religious books with her. Out of her own choice and without being asked to do so, she brings into the storytelling event of her PN a copy of Meam Loez, which is considered to be the most important and influential Sephardic Midrash composed in JS. Malka reads out of the first volume of this Bible commentary series, published by Yaakov Khuli in 1730: Lo tengo el Meam Loez aki. Meldavamos kada semana kon mi marido. La perasha es kurto enfrente de todo ke es eskrito en el Meam Loez […] No tyenes visto el Meam Loez en Ladino? […] Ay munchas kozas de meldar ayi en el Meam Loez. Si, lo tengo, i esto es mui viejo. (I have the Meam Loez here. We have read every week with my husband. The perasha is short in front of everything that is written in the Meam Loez […] Haven’t you seen the Meam Loez in Ladino? […] There are many things to read in the Meam Loez. Yes, I have it, and this one is very old.) Following this introduction, she goes on into reading out loud from this book that is associated with her father and her husband; she uses the book as a metonymy of her own self interacting with the two influential men of her life. Following the above quoted definition of Janet Hoskins, we might say that books enable Malka to 20 Janet Hoskins, Biographical Objects: How Things Tell the Stories of People’s Lives, New York 1998, pp. 2, 198. 87 “Ansina pueden dizir loke kerenˮ reach an autobiographic self-discovery quite unusual for a woman from a traditional background like hers. Her incorporating this confident use of the traditional book in the contemporary feminine PN is especially striking since, as Alisa Meyuhas Ginio demonstrated, the specific volume ofMeam Loez that the narrator reads from supports the exclusion of women from the Sephardic cultural scene in the past.21 A similar use of the book’s physical and textual form was made by Sol Mymaran, who introduced her father’s prayer book into her PN. The father, she said, used to sing to her and to her brothers and sisters from this book “La ketuba de la ley” – a traditional Ladino liturgical work for the holiday of Shavuot.22 The book represents the father as well as the traditional process of transmitting the traditional text while indicating its decay in the present, when the narrator claims that her children and grandchildren cannot understand it anymore: “Mi padre, Shavuot, mos asentava todos i mos kantava la ketuba de Shavout. Kuando se murio mi padre, mi ermana Matilda mos asentava i mos kanto […] Yo lo kero kantar a mis ijos. No entyenden. Aval alguna vez les digo ‘Atem rotzim lishmoa shel Shavuot?’ Keren, aval no, no se ‘stan entendiendo. (My father, Shavout, sat all of us down and sang the ketuba of Shavuot for us. When my father died, my sister Matilda sat us down and sang to us […] I want to sing to my children. They don’t understand. But each time I tell them “Do you want to hear [the song] of Shavuot?” They want, but no, they don’t understand). Having told me that, Sol opens the book and performs a long portion of the work, which was restricted in the past to men who performed it during the Shavuot prayers in the synagogue and repeated it at home. Incorporated into the contemporary feminine PN, the traditional Piyyut becomes part of the narrative and enables Sol to locate herself as an equal part of the traditional chain to which she belongs and from which women had been excluded in the past. The words of the traditional text function in her 21 Alisa Meyuhas Ginio, “Esklava de su marido: A View of the Daily Life of the Sephardic Woman according to Rabbi Ya’akov Khuli’s Me’am Lo’ez”, in Tova Cohen and Shaul Regev, eds. Woman in the East, Woman from the East: The Story of the Oriental Jewish Woman, Ramat-Gan 2005, pp. 25-33. [in Hebrew] 22 “La Ketubah de la Ley” is a Ladino Kopla appearing in the Sephardic Shavuot prayer book and performed during the services of this holiday. Composed in Salonika in the eighteenth century by Yehuda Bar Leon Kalai, the song describes Moses’ descent from Mount Sinai and the giving of the Torah. 88 Michal Held contemporary PN as an intertext reflecting various levels of creativity and awareness. The book out of which they are read is an object that shapes individual, family, and collective memory. Through the object and the text held in it, Sol expresses her view of the traditional Sephardic culture that is ceasing to exist. Her freely performing the text that in the past could not have been performed by women is a part of her message regarding her feminine independence and the ability of women to defy the decay of the JS text in particular, and Sephardic culture in general. 4. Exchange and Reflexivity The PN’s performed for my research were created by women for a woman, in a situation that encourages the shaping of feminine messages on both the personal level and on that of the conception of womanhood in general. The wider discussion from which this essay derives offers an elaborated view of the researcher’s position in the research.23 Unfortunately it may not be further investigated within the limits of the present analysis, which, nevertheless, cannot possibly be completed without at least shortly referring to it. Being a woman from a Jerusalem Sephardic family made me an “ingroup researcher”—a definition offered and closely analyzed in the context of Sephardic studies by Tamar Alexander-Frizer).24 One of the many points of reference used in my research of the PN’s of Sephardic women included an attempt to understand the reflexive dynamics on which it is based. Vincent Crapanzano discusses the epistemology of hermeneutics and his method of looking at a narrative through the dimension of depth: What mediates between the possibility and impossibility of a best reading is the notion of depth: a plunge, ‘downward’ to some ‘archi-text’, ‘deep structure’, ‘unconscious significance’ or ‘true meaning’. The metaphor of depth is compelling. Reading, interpretation and understanding become archeology or philology.25 The downwards movement into the text and the attempt to extract a deep structure from it are relevant to the creation and analysis of the PN’s presented here. Consciously or 23 For full analysis see Note 7, pp. 127-147. 24 See Note 14, pp. 579-586. 25 Vincent Crapanzano, Hermes’ Dilemma and Hamlet’s Desire: On the Epistemology of Interpretation, Cambridge 1992, p. 120. 89 “Ansina pueden dizir loke kerenˮ unconsciously, the narrators extract from their narratives a deep structure, through which they understand themselves and transmit their self-image and set of values to their addressee, who, on her part, forms her own deep structure in response to theirs. Anthropologist Ruth Behar described a similar interaction she was involved in while writing the book based upon fieldwork she conducted with a Mexican woman: As the one who is no longer expanding her capacities to listen, but sitting here snipping and snipping at the historias Esperanza told me, only to sew them back […] as a life history, I fear I am somehow cutting out Esperanza’s tongue. Yet when I am done cutting out her tongue, I will patch together a new tongue for her, an odd tongue that is […] the language of a translated woman.26 In the case of the PN’s of Sephardic women I studied, the process worked both ways: like my informants, I too acquired a new tongue as a result of the interaction that evolved around the narratives I received. One example of this dynamics is a poem I wrote in response to the fieldwork with the women who created their PN’s for the research.27 The decision to expose the poem within an academic discourse has to do with my seeing no other way to look at the complex cultural phenomenon of the PN’s I heard from elderly women storytellers. Only a careful fusion of the intellectual and the emotional perspective may, I believe, allow us to reach the most inclusive possible understanding of a human experience transformed into a narrative. Originally written in Hebrew with some JS phrases embedded in it, the poem echoes a traditional Sephardic folk song opening with the line “Arvoles yoran por luvias i montanyas por aires” (Trees are crying for rain and mountains for air). The traditional folk song’s fictional narrator laments his or her fate, while wandering far from their beloved to die in foreign lands. It was re-versed and performed during World War II, when Balkan Sephardic Jews transported to the death camps by the Nazis found its words particularly relevant. The echoing of it in the contemporary bi- lingual poem captures the double dialogue that I maintain, as both a researcher and a participant in the Judeo-Spanish culture, with the women who unfurled their personal narratives for my research and kindly took me into their world. 26 Ruth Behar, Translated Woman, Boston 1993, p. 19. 27 See Appendix for the poem in English translation. 90 Michal Held Closing remarks Dov Noy defined the feminine folktale according to its internal and external characteristics as a story told by women to women, and containing a message referring to women.28 His definition is applicable to the PN’s investigated here, too, yet the answers to the questions regarding the narrators’ feminine messages posed at the beginning of this essay are rather complex. According to Tamar Alexander-Frizer, even in folktales of women who encourage other women to be active, the system of traditional social conventions is still operational.29 Similarly, our narrators declare in their PN’s that their voices should be heard and their independence be allowed, but they also imply in the hermeneutic interpretation of their lives that feminine freedom should be achieved within the traditional social setting rather than in rebellion against it. The above reading of their PN’s leads to the understanding that their unresolved conception of themselves moving between independence and surrender to traditional boundaries should not be disentangled, for it is the heart of the process of their individual (each one reflecting her own life in her PN) and collective (as active members of the storytellers’ group) negotiation for feminine identity. In her analysis of the PN of a woman who belonged to the Biluim, the first group of Zionist immigrants stepping out of traditional society to create a modern one in Eretz Israel, Nili Arye-Sapir demonstrated the complex process of a narrator’s negotiating for her identity and womanhood through many levels of individual and collective awareness and the links between them.30 Her context is, of course, quite different than the one of our narrators, yet the process itself is similar. The women who created their PN’s for this study represent the turn from a traditional Sephardic society to a modern Israeli one, with JS – their ethnic language – marking the vanishing traditional world. By the very creation of their PN’s they make heard a feminine voice that has been silenced in previous generations and enable the expression of an individual and collective feminine identity and the interaction 28 Dov Noy, “Folktales in the Jewish Tunisian Family” [in Hebrew], in Hagut Ivrit be-Artzot Ha-Islam: Studies on Jewish Themes by Contemporary Jewish Scholars from Islamic Countries, ed. Menachem Zohori et al, Jerusalem 1981, pp. 181-188. 29 See Note 14, p. 391. 30 See Note 3. 91 “Ansina pueden dizir loke kerenˮ between them that have not been legitimate in the past.31 This tendency implies that their narratives are forming a feminine discourse. The PN’s investigated in this essay form a genre of folk literature that enables women to present and interpret life using their own voice and consciousness. Central to all of them, the narrative package of womanhood and independence reflects the narrators’ attempt to decipher themselves as women without being subjected to the boundaries that their socio-cultural environment imposes on their voices. The PN’s of women who grew out of a traditional society tending to silence their voice have a special status, as they provide their narrators with an uncensored channel of feminine expression. Tamar Hess argues that Israeli autobiography has provided a space, albeit a narrow one, in which ethnic, class, national, and gender borders are channeled and refigured […] and allows subversive voices to he heard.32 The PN’s of Sephardic Israeli women form a similar zone, which may even be more powerful, as the orally transmitted narrative is free of the traces of the self-editing convention at work in a written autobiography. The narratives I collected and interpreted center around the “heroine” who created and performed them. Through her PN, she becomes capable of portraying her world as she understands it, free of the traditional dependence on an authoritative male point of view. A new stage is created within the framework of the PN: one on which the women’s voice is not threatened by any external factor whatsoever. The women whose PN’s were explored in this essay may be struggling to define the boundaries and capabilities of their voice. Yet, the voice itself is heard loudly and clearly, and the messages it conveys are exposed even when shaped in JS, the Sephardic language that changes its status from a collective, social tool to an individual-emotional one that I defined in a previous study as “personal ethnicity”.33 31 Yael Azmon discusses the exclusion of women from Jewish public life and the silencing of their voices from the middle ages on and points out that this tendency still exists in contemporary Israel. Nevertheless, she demonstrates the creation of social islands in which women may create and express their identity (see Yael Azmon, “Judaism and the Exclusion of Women from the Public Sphere”, in Yael Azmon, ed., A View into the Lives of Women in Jewish Societies: Collected Essays [in Hebrew], Jerusalem 1995, pp. 13-46). The storytellers’ group with which we are concerned, and their personal narratives, is an example of such an island. 32 See Note 4, p. 176. 33 Michal Held, Contemporary Literary Creation in Judezmo and Its Meaning, MA thesis, The Hebrew University, Jerusalm 1995, p. 108-125. 92 Michal Held The process confronts the silencing of the feminine voice in the traditional society from which the narrators emerged, and sets free their independent expression in the modern society in which they live today. Appendix - The poem written in response to the research Tree / Arvoles34 A Ladino song torno i digo ke va ser de mi Wandering i ask what shall become of me In the song trees cry for rain and mountains for air arvoles yoran por luvias i montanyas por aires In the song an angel stands upon me beholding me with his eyes and i beg to cry but cannot And you in the song are draped in white white flowers are dropping from you from your beauty When i sing this song once chanted by Sephardic women draped in white and shedding white flowers in Izmir and Salonika in Jerusalem and Tangiers When i sing this song trees cry tears of rain and mountains tears of air cry for you singing women who have vanished from the world leaving your song inside me deserting me to wander and sing ke va ser de mi what shall become of me and to seek the angel 34 Michal Held, Over the Face of the Waters: Poems, Jerusalem 2009, p. 27 (in Hebrew); Translated by Michal Held. 93 Aviad Moreno An Insight into the Course of European-oriented Modernization among Oriental Jewries – the Minute Book of the Junta of Tangier1 Aviad Moreno Tel-Aviv University and Ben-Gurion University of the Negev “Having had the affairs of this community, may God protect it, neglected and [since we are] desiring to adopt and imitate the good conditions of the communities of our brethren of Europe, the notables and majority of this community have been invited to attend a general Junta [assembly] ….”2 This study is based on an interpretive reading of the “Minute Book of the Governing Junta of the Hebrew Community of Tangier”, which was written during a momentously historical time, between 1860 and 1875, in the city of Tangier.3 The Minute Book provides a novel insight into what is commonly identified as the process of European- oriented Modernization among Eastern societies through the viewpoint of a few of its local agents in one of its most central locations during the nineteenth century. 1 This article is based on my MA thesis conducted under the guidance of Prof. Tamar Alexander and Prof. Dror Ze’evi during 2008. A full and renewed, Hebrew version of the MA thesis was published earlier this year, as the first volume of a new series by the Ben- Zvi Institute named “Pe’amim Supplement” (see: Aviad Moreno, Europe from Morocco: the Minutes of the Leadership of Tangier’s Jewish Community (the Junta), 1860-1864, Pe’amim Supplement, vol. 1, Ben-Zvi Institute, Jerusalem 2015 [Hebrew]). 2 Retrieved from the initial protocol in the Minute Book [hereinafter in the notes MB] depicting the Junta’s inauguration; MB 1.1 (22.10.1860). 3 I cite here the transcribed MB edition published in 2010: Libro de actas de la Junta selecta de la comunidad hebrea de Tanger 1860-1975 transcripcion por Gladys Pimienta y Sidney Salomon Pimienta, JEM, Paris-Jerusalem 2010. I kindly thank the siblings Gladys and Sidney Pimienta for allowing me access to this valuable material previous to its publication. 95 An Insight into the Course of European-oriented Modernization This single manuscript, which is in fact restricted in its scope and description of the broader and complex historical events, proposes a new theoretical and methodological approach for reconstructing the history of the imperative period of time of European expansion. At first glance, the local leaders of the Junta, who started the Minute Book with a public declaration of their desire to “adopt and imitate” Europe’s Jewish communal organizational norms, demonstrate a supposed internalization of this positivist Eurocentric narrative. This narrative depicted the adoption of ‘ready-made’ European organizational models as fundamental when modernizing the ‘backwards’ Oriental societies. Further examination of the motivations for composing the Minute Book while employing a pro-European discourse, reveal some deeper implications embedded in the Junta’s declaration. Through the perspective of the Minute Book and the circumstances of its writing and subsequent publishing, I propose looking at the historical process of European- oriented modernization as the result of changing ontology and epistemology among local power elites who benefited from promoting the process. In this study, I specifically point to the internal discourse reflecting and sustaining the evolving self- perceptions among the Junta, the local newly established governing committee of the Jewish community of Tangier. I confine myself to the first four years of the Junta’s activity and their documentation through the Minute Book, mainly around 1863. This was a crucial period of time with the 1864 founding of the first European school of the Alliance Israélite Univeselle (AIU) in the city, which consisted of its second branch in the entire world and would become a symbol of European-oriented modernity and westernization among Oriental Jewries during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The Historiographical Framework My historiographical approach correlates with neither conservative positivist historiography nor with its common revisionist critics. Rather, I change the focal viewpoint from the relationship between the large binary categories ‘West’ and ‘East’, to the smaller resolutions of the historical process generating the categories and their conceptions through the evolving encounter between people and ideas across the world. In the following section, I shall elaborate on this historiographical contribution. The transition taking place throughout the Middle East and North Africa in the context of growing European influence during the nineteenth century gave birth to two 96 Aviad Moreno central, opposing schools of thought. The first approach, which dominated academic discourse until the 1970s, generally depicted a positive process of benevolent European intervention that was essential for breaking the traditional cachets of local societies through the adoption of the models of enlightened Europe. The second school of thought, gaining greater influence since the 1970s under the banner of postcolonial revision, highlighted the dark side of the uneven power relations between east and west embedded in the colonial process and its antecedent manifestations in European imperialism. According to scholars associated with this often Marxist-oriented school of thought, European models modernized local societies while positioning them as inferior in the set economic and power dogmas dominated by Europe. 4 This perception was highly supported by the intellectual revolution led by Edward Said who identified the cynical practices through which the colonial west placed a dichotomy between itself and the east as a discursive tool for the management of the colonial project. 5 This critique paralleled, in many aspects, the vigorous discussion among scholars who focused on the modernization of Oriental Jewries. With regard to Moroccan Jewries as an example, the classic approach towards the modernization of this group highlights the eminent role of European intervention on behalf of Moroccan Jews for their salvation from the traditionally oppressive Islamic regimes. The adoption of European modernity was fundamental for breaking the status of pariah Dhimma (covenant) and leading the local Jews towards European-oriented emancipation and enlightenment. This notion was most typically expressed in the concept of mission civilisatrice (the civilizing mission of non-Western society) originally embedded in the narrative of the AIU.6 Toward the 1980s, scholars who were probably influenced by Said and subscribed to the conceptual revolution of the postcolonialist school of thought suggested revising 4 Dror Ze’evi, “Back to Napoleon? Thoughts on the Beginning of the Modern Era in the Middle East”, Mediterranean Historical Review 19 (2004), pp. 67-85. 5 Edward Said, Orientalism, Pantheon Books, New York 1978. 6 The relevant studies are too many to enumerate, a few examples being Michael M. Laskier, “Aspects of the Activities of the Alliance Israelite Universelle in the Jewish Communities of the Middle-East and North Africa: 1860-1918”, Modern Judaism 3, no. 2 (1983), pp. 147-171 and S. Leibovici, Chronique des juifs de Tetouan:1860-1896, G.-P. Maisonneuve & Larose, Paris 1983. For other references, see Daniel J. Schroeter and Joseph Chetrit, “The Transformation of the Jewish Community of Essaouria (Mogador)”, in Harvey E. Goldberg (ed.), Sephardi and Middle Eastern Jewries: History and Culture in the Modern Era, Indiana University Press, Bloomington, 1996, pp. 100-101. 97 An Insight into the Course of European-oriented Modernization the conservative narrative by focusing on the European intervention itself as the cause for turmoil in the relatively stable and sound relationship maintained between Jews and Muslims in Morocco.7 Nevertheless, the historiographical query on modernity’s roots is still left unsettled. A new stage in the efforts to create alternative paradigms for the conceptualization of local modernity has emerged as a new critique regarding the generalized postcolonial approach. Said developed a counter-narrative that reduced complex local histories no less than the colonial-oriented Eurocentric narrative he had so severely criticized. 8 In this context, and yet not necessarily in direct correspondence, other voices of critique were expressed. Schroeter and Chetrit criticized the general tendency to depict the modernization process of Moroccan Jewries as equated with westernization through a determinist dichotomy between “tradition” and “modern”. They alternatively identified aspects of “orientalization” embedded within local responses to exogenous influence.9 In the course of turning Moroccans from historical objects into active subjects, this study and others reflect an attempt to reduce the historical position of 7 The Moroccan historian Jirman cAyyash argued that while comparing their situation to European Jewries, some historians presented a twisted image of Moroccan Jewries. See Jirman cAyyash, “al-Aqaliyya al-yahudiyya fi maghib ma qabl al-isti’mar”, Majalt Dar al-Niaba 12 kharif (1986), pp. 6-23. For other studies pointing at stable relations between Jews and Muslim on the eve of colonialism, see, for example, Yehoshua Frenkel (“Jewish- Muslim Relations in Fez at the turn of the 19th Century in Light of Juridical Documents”, The Maghreb Review 29 [2004], pp. 70-77); Daniel J. Schroeter, “Royal Power and the Economy in Precolonial Morocco: Jews and the Legitimation of Foreign Trade”, in In the Shadow of the Sultan: Culture, power and Politics in Morocco, Rahma Bourqia and Susan Gilson Miller (eds.), Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA, 1999, pp. 74-102; Susan Gilson-Miller, “Apportioning Sacred Space in a Moroccan City: The Case of Tangier, 1860-1912”, City & Society 13, no.1 (2001), p. 64. 8 For more on the broader historiographical problématique embedded in the postcolonial concept of modernization among oriental Jewries, see Yaron Tsur, “The Israeli Historiography and the Ethnic Problem”, in Benny Morris (ed.), Making Israel, University of Michigan Press, Ann Arbor 2007, p. 159. 9 Schroeter and Chetrit, “Transformation of the Jewish Community” (Note 6), pp. 100-101. For another study by these two scholars that supports this notion regarding the colonial era, see Daniel J. Schroeter and Joseph Chetrit, “Emancipation and Its Discontent: Jews at the Formative Period of Colonial Rule in Morocco”, Jewish Social Studies: History, Culture, Society 13, no.1 (2006), pp. 170-206. 98 Aviad Moreno European influence on local modernization, rather than enhance its pro-active role in an ongoing global transformation. Within this context of dispute over the roots of modernity in the region, Ze’evi suggests a third option. Rather than grasping the ‘west’ as the source of change and the ‘east’ as the receptacle for modernity, or on the other hand, rather than undermining the historical influence of European models on local modernity, he focused on the emerging encounter between what we identify as ‘west’ and ‘east’ as a historical phenomenon per se. According to this approach, modernity and colonialism are inseparable, and yet they are not created in the west and brought to the east but rather take shape throughout a set of conceptual, technological, and organizational changes taking place across the world being effected by and affecting Europe’s expansion. 10 It seems that Ze’evi’s concept of modernity would benefit from further socio- political examination once cross-read vis-à-vis Foucauldian discourse analysis. According to Foucault, the way we view reality is shaped by and confined to our language, which is per se the result of the dynamics of power relations in our society. Inspired by these two general notions, I propose that significant aspects of what we have been identifying as European-oriented modernity is constantly shaped by the discourses generated by power elites across the world that gradually learn about the political advantages of the overall process. Thus, this study is not simply an insight into local manifestations of global change, but an insight into one of the numerous fragments shaping the broader process taking place in the world intensively since the nineteenth century. In this study, I focus on the roots of the process using the case of the power elite of the Junta and the way it was choosing to represent realities, playing their small and yet imperative part in promoting and feeding the broader project of European-style modernity gradually taking shape. Thus, similar to Said’s notion, I suggest that European modernity is indeed embedded in new sets of power relations and their representations during the period of European expansion. Yet differently, I highlight the foundation of the process across the world and among a variety of local power relations coming about in the light of colonialism. 10 Dror Ze’evi, “Back to Napoleon?” (Note 4), pp. 73-94. 99 An Insight into the Course of European-oriented Modernization An Outlook onto Changing Power Relations The nineteenth century marked the beginning of a new peak in the the transformation of power relations between Morocco and its European neighbors. The process’s roots may be traced back to the Spanish Reconquista. In the course of reaction to growing European power, since the seventeenth century, the Moroccan sultans were defined as Sharifs, a term not only associating them genealogically with the Prophet Muhammad, but moreover granting them the status of Baraka, innate holiness. The Moroccan sultans promoted the concept that the state existed to wage the jihad as the principal sign of their right to rule. Under the growing impact of European imperialism, especially from the French invasion of Algeria in 1830 and onward, jihad dialectics gained further significance.11 Yet, a series of Moroccan military defeats fed the emerging notion among the local intellectual and governing elite of Moroccan inferiority and the disadvantages of launching a direct holy war.12 The climax of this process came after a Moroccan defeat to the declining European power of Spain that occurred during the Spanish- Moroccan War of 1859-1860. This war ended with a Moroccan indemnity to Spain which subsequently drained Morocco of its gold and silver reserves.13 The makhzan (a nickname for the central government) and the governing elite sought to deal with the changing circumstances through a set of military, economic, and political reforms, which tremendously impacted greater society.14 The growing penetration of European elements, which within the context of perceivably and objectively changing power relations had begun to grasp themselves as superior, brought about a series of economic treaties. In 1856, a most-favored nation treaty was signed with Great Britain and served as a model for subsequent similar arrangements with other European powers. The treaties became a subject of abuse by the European community in Morocco. In this context, European merchants 11 Amira K. Bennison, Jihad and Its Interpretations in Pre-Colonial Morocco, Taylor & Francis, London, 2002, pp. 9-11. 12 Kenneth L. Brown, People of Salé: Tradition and Change in a Moroccan City 1830-1930, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA, 1976, p. 81. 13 Edmund Burke, Prelude to Protectorate in Morocco: Pre-Colonial Protest and Resistance, 1860-1912, University of Chicago Press, Chicago 1976, pp. 19-21. 14 Ibid., pp. 31-33. 100 Aviad Moreno facilitated commerce by working with local Moroccan assistants and granting them protection by European governments. These locals were known as protégés, and they soon developed into a new powerful class of a semi-independent, quasi-Europeanized notable bourgeoisie affecting the change of old local socio-economic and socio- political values.15 Parallel to some extent to the events that transpired under the rule of the Ottoman Empire, the social strata that was most heavily affected during the aforementioned social dislocation was the ethno-religious minorities of ahl al-dhimmah (people of covenant); namely Jews in the Moroccan context. Over the course of several generations there was a tendency to employ Jews in professions that were generally despised in Muslim culture and society, such as cleaning cesspits or hanging the individuals who had been condemned to death. Religious minorities also were appointed to professions that required contact with ‘infidels’ such as banking, diplomacy, and foreign trade. Under the new circumstances, however, the Jewish minority’s traditional role was reshaped. The sultans’ trade with Christian Europe was justified for the purpose of furthering the kingdom’s readiness for jihad and was supported by the religious elite. Correspondingly, in adhering to religious norms, the sultans initially fostered a group of religious minorities, comprising mainly Jews, to handle global commerce.16 Towards the end of the century, this process further evolved with the establishment of the AIU French-Jewish schooling system which joined large parts of the local Jewish population with European interests.17 In the context of the evolving economy, urbanization rapidly increased, mainly in Morocco’s coastal towns. New opportunities in such port cities, which acted as the gateways for European infiltration, attracted large numbers of rural migrants and a new workforce from the country’s interior wishing to try their luck in the new export- oriented economy. An extraordinary case in Morocco was the city of Tangier. This process began as early as the last part of the eighteenth century as the Moroccan Sultan transferred the diplomatic corps from the city of Tetuan, further inside Morocco’s interior, to Tangier, at the northwest corner of the kingdom. “The city of the consuls” situated just few miles away from European shores became one of the 15 Ibid., p. 44. 16 This elite was called tujjar al-sultan (the Sultan’s merchants). Daniel J. Schroeter, “Royal Power” (Note 7), pp. 85-94. 17 Burke, Prelude to Protectorate In Morocco (note 13), p. 37. 101 An Insight into the Course of European-oriented Modernization main centers of the European expansion. Towards and during the nineteenth century Tangier’s port became among the most important centers of commerce in the region. As a result, it served as a gateway for European missionaries, merchants, diplomats, and adventurers.18 Tangier enabled its newcomers to integrate quickly into the newly transformed city. At the same time, Tangier became a safe haven for Jewish minorities seeking European protection.19 Tangier’s subsequent development generated a large wave of internal migration from surrounding Riff towns, which were some of the poorest in the entire sultanate, as well as from other towns in the inland region.20 As a result, Tangier’s population increased sharply in just a few decades.21 Simultaneously, a wave of Jewish immigration to the city began with notable families from Tetuan, Meknes, and Salé arriving in Tangier. The Jewish community, including the newcomers, constituted more than a third of the population, 5,000 out of a total of 14,000.22 At the top of the Jewish population’s social pyramid, a few neo-aristocratic oligarchic families engaged in banking, diplomacy, and foreign trade.23 This also had a tremendous impact on the local socio-political fabric. Similar to the general events in the course of Morocco’s developing relations with Europe, the start of the 1860s was a turning point in the history of the Jews of Morocco, and in particular the Jews of Tangier. Following the Spanish-Moroccan War (1859-1860), during which many locals from Tangier sought refuge in the 18 Susan Gilson-Miller, “Kippur on the Amazon: Jewish Emigration from Northern Morocco in the late Nineteenth Century”, in Harvey E. Goldberg (ed.), Sephardi and Middle Eastern Jewries: History and Culture in the Modern Era, Indiana University Press, Bloomington, 1996, p. 109. Khalid Bin al-Saghir, “Al-Kharaka al-Tijariyya bi-Marsa Tanja fi-al-Nisf al-Thani min al-Qarn al-Tis’a cAshar”, in Tanja fi al-tarikh al-mu’asir: 1800-1956, Jamiat Muchammad al-Khamis. Kulliyat al-Adab wa-al-Ulum al-Insaniya and Jamiat Abd al- Malik al-Sadi Madrasat al-Malik Fahd al-Ulya lil-Tarjama (eds.), al-Nashr al-cArabi al- Ifriqi, Cairo 1991, p. 91. 19 Graham H. Stuart, The International City of Tangier, Stanford University Press, Stanford, CA, 1955, p. 16. 20 C. R. Pennell, “Review: The Discovery of Morocco’s Northern Coast”, British Journal of Middle Eastern Studies 20, no. 2 (1993), p. 227. 21 Burke, Prelude to Protectorate in Morocco (Note 13), pp. 24-25. 22 Joseph Bengio and J. L. Miege, “La Communauté Juive de Tangier dans les années 1860, ‘Les Actas’”, Maroc Europe 6 (1994), pp. 152-54, 157. 102 Aviad Moreno proximate British-dominated enclave of Gibraltar, European elements developed a growing interest in subventioning them. The phenomenon of Jews seeking European protection dramatically increased. One symbolic event was a circular sent by Sir Moses Montefiore to the wardens of vestry of the British synagogues in which he noted that “an event so unforeseen and so appealing as this calls for the most liberal demonstrations of our sympathy”. As a result more than £40,000 was raised. During the same year, a Moroccan Relief Fund was founded and the Board of Deputies of British Jews sent Moses H. Picciotto as a commissioner to report the conditions of Moroccan Jews. 24 In Paris, the AIU was established. A few years later, the AIU opened its first two world branches; the first in the proximate northern Moroccan city of Tetuan (1862) and the second in the city of Tangier (1864).25 It was in this context of change that the new communal committee of the Junta was founded during October 1860. Promoting European power The process brought about and was fed by the broad mutual conceptual change in the way both parties learned to perceive each other. Historical developments in Europe during the nineteenth century, which indirectly were affected by European expansion, changed, similarly to the Moroccan events, the destiny of many local Jews. For the first time in many centuries, they attained influential positions in their countries of dwelling. The newly developed class of European Jewish bourgeoisies adopted a paternalistic approach towards their ‘backwards brethrens’ in the east believing that their own efforts for emancipation should be implemented also on them. The local Jewish press, which fulfilled the demands of Jewish intellegentsia in Europe, fed this notion constantly while contributing to the discourse on the poor conditions of ‘Jewries in distress’. The Minute Book implies that such developments were not 23 Susan Gilson-Miller, “Apportioning Sacred Space” (Note 7), p. 64. 24 Tudor Parfitt, “Dhimma Versus Protection in Nineteenth Century Morocco”, in Tudor Parfitt (ed.), Israel and Ishmael: Studies in Muslim-Jewish Relations, Curzon, Richmond 2000, pp. 142-43. 25 Eliezer Bashan, Yahadut Maroqo: cAvarah ve-Tarbutah, Hakibbutz Hameuhad, Tel Aviv 2000, pp. 43-47. 103 An Insight into the Course of European-oriented Modernization one-sided and occurred simultaneously among the leaderships of these ‘Jewries in distress’ as a result of the evolving dialogue between the parties. One of the first missions the Junta had taken upon itself was disseminating information concerning its founding, particularly to the emerging philanthropic bodies in Europe developing in light of the events of 1859-1860. One dispatch was sent to Sir Moses Montefiore and the second was directed to Albert Cohen, chair of the AIU. Interestingly, the decision came about only two months after the Junta’s founding.26 The two-month deliberation period comprised a series of internal discussions regarding the conditions of hardship following the Spanish Moroccan war. The Junta was also preoccupied with collecting the Jizya (poll tax), which had not been paid to the authorities during the war, presenting the local leader with a precious gift, dealing with mounting kosher meat prices as well as financially supporting the local rabbi.27 In this context, it is no wonder that the newly emerged elite that gained status in the context of growing European hegemony over Tangier pinned their hope on the emerging philanthropic organization in the north. This hope was embodied in the initial idea of forming the Junta following the post-war crisis. As soon as Montefiore’s response arrived, the Junta expressed great satisfaction with their ability to forge ties, mentioning it clearly in the protocol. 28 It appears that the Junta realized they had a partner for their ambitious plan to reorganize the communal framework. The reaction and support of European elements became essential in sustaining their sense of mutual interests. The influence of communication with the European parties soon became apparent. For example, it was a fundamental element in one of the key projects of European intervention. During its very first weeks of operation, the Junta set sight on reforming the field of communal education. 29 Several years before the inauguration of the local branch of AIU, and parallel to the emerging call for an AIU branch in Paris, the Junta raised funds within the community and beyond for promoting a European-imported educational framework. Following the Junta’s initial activity in this realm until the school’s official opening and beyond, the Junta hosted a series of correspondences for the sake of promoting the idea of a new European-supported school.30 26 MB 6.2 (1/11/1860); Ibid 9.5 (18/12/1860). 27 Ibid., 4.1, 4.4, 4.5 (29/10/1860); 5.2 (1/11/1860); 6.1 (1/11/1860). 28 MB 20.1 (13/3/1861). 29 Ibid., 29 (8/10/1861); ibid., 34 (25/10/1861); ibid., 54(29/8/1862). 30 See, for instance, the initial discussions: ibid., 14.5 (31/12/1860); ibid., 16.2 (15/1/1861); ibid., 18.2 (15–21/2/1861; ibid. 22.4 (26/4/1861). 104 Aviad Moreno The Junta learned about the potential benefits of such institutions during its correspondence. Imperative to this effort was a dispatch from the proximate Junta of Tetuan with which it shared common cultural background and maintained a tightly knit network. Tetuan was the location where the initial branch of the AIU was launched in 1862. In August 1863 the Junta read and discussed the content of the dispatch summarizing its impression in the following words: “Our colleagues … present us with the benefits resulting from the [activity of the] society of the “Alianza Isrealit Universal” established in Paris …”. The content left a very good impression on the Junta that sought to improve the deteriorating local education system. The protocol of the assembly describes how the Junta nominated two of its members to present the idea to those among the public who would be capable of paying the tuition of the “respectable society”.31 The Junta also discussed the need to conduct outreach to the lower strata of the community. The Junta corresponded with the Morocco Relief Fund in London for assistance on the matter and in November, the Junta received the MRF’s positive response, expressing agreeing to help fund the school. The communication also contained the agreement of the MRF to the Junta’s suggestion to include the school and its staff under British diplomatic protection. The Junta expressed in its Minute Book great satisfaction with this success story, writing: “this Junta left extremely satisfied with and thankful to this consideration of the council [MRF] as one hopes that this honorable venture would have good results and will prosper for many happy years”.32 The Junta then contacted the management of the AIU, with the mediation of the Junta of Tetuan, and began searching for a qualified teacher. During the following month, the Junta received a response which demonstrated, as the Minute Book notes, his high qualification. According to the Minute Book, the Junta wanted to find out further information. During the same meeting, Junta member Moses Pariente took the initiative to contact the community of Gibraltar searching for a female teacher to serve at the girls’ school they were interested in founding as well.33 Another critical element contributing to the discourse surrounding philanthropic Europe’s local involvement was the “Safi Affair”. A Spanish recadador had been 31 Ibid., 82.1 (24/8/1863). This dispatch was preceded by another one, dated December 16, 1862, in which the Junta was informed of the news of the inauguration of the first branch of the AIU in Tetuan (see ibid., 66.1 (26/1/1863)). 32 Ibid., 97.1 (8/12/1863). 33 MB, 102, 1; 102.2 (28/1/1864). 105 An Insight into the Course of European-oriented Modernization found dead in the city of Safi and the Spanish Minister accused his Jewish servant in connection with the murder, demanding that the local authorities execute him. The Jewish servant was indeed publicly executed by order of the Sultan. During his investigation the poor Jewish servant, who was only 14 years of age, gave the name of another Jew who was allegedly involved, and he in turn contributed to the arrest of two other Jewish men. One of the suspects was transferred to Tangier and was subsequently publicly executed.34 The Junta was outraged by this local incident which had been taking place in their city of operation, especially due to the fact that the other two Jewish people were awaiting a similar sentence. Their solution, documented in the Minute Book was as follows: “The Junta decided not to allow this outrage to pass in silence and agreed to address our brethren in Europe”. 35 The aforementioned “brethren” were, namely, Sir Montefiore and Albert Cohen. Three weeks later, the Junta published the reaction of Sir Montefiore in which he declared he was adamantly working for the release of the two imprisoned Jews. The same minute also describes the reaction of Albert Cohen and the activity of Mayer Alphonse James Rothschild from Paris, with regards to the matter. The relevant article in the Minute Book ends with an exclamation mark illustrating the great influence of this reaction to the Junta’s request upon its members.36 Montefiore was on his way to Tangier from where he planned to travel to Marrakesh to meet the Sultan, as a result of the efforts of the Junta, at least as it is reflected in the Minute Book. In anticipation of Montefiore’s arrival, the Junta discussed at length in the same protocol the appropriate way to greet their honored guest. Moshe Nahon, one of the wealthiest among the Junta’s members volunteered to prepare a house and a personal chef who would adhere to the demands of Montefiore. The Junta expressed their admiration for the willingness of Nahon to undertake this important mission on behalf of Moroccan Jewries with a round of applause.37 The members of the Junta agreed to meet at the port at the appropriate dock where Montefiore’s ship was due to anchor. 38 The Minute Book does not spare details about this contact with Montefiore, 34 M. Mitchell Serels, A history of the Jews of Tangier in the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries, Sepher-Hermon Press, New York 1991, pp. 28-29; Bashan, Yahadut Maroqo (Note 25), pp. 45-47. 35 MB, 87.1 (18/9/1863). 36 Ibid., 90.2(8/10/1863) . 37 Ibid., 95.1 (23/11/1863). 38 Ibid., 94 (9/11/1863). 106 Aviad Moreno illustrating the great impact of this event on the developing pro-European discourse. The Safi affair further invoked the Junta’s discourse on the significant role European intervention played in the emancipation of local Jews, or in the words of the Minute Book: “the terrible galut (literally exile) that our brethren in inland Morocco suffer”.39 Simultaneously, other diplomats strengthened their ties with the Junta. This was obviously a result of the diplomats’ own evolving aspiration to gain influence through contact with other local agencies such as the Junta. Yet the Junta’s book presents these developments rather differently. For instance, the Minute Book describes how the British Minister in Tangier, Sir John Drummond Hay, summoned the president and vice-president of the Junta following two dispatches he had received from the governments of Netherland and Austria concerning their strong recommendation to grant Moroccan Jews their consular protection. The Minute Book emphasized the importance of this development adding, “So that they [the Jews of Morocco] would not be inflicted with injustices in the future”.40 The next protocol boasted the results of the mission of Montefiore; a Dhahir (Royal Decree) that awarded equality to the religious minorities in Morocco. The Junta mentioned in its Minute Book that Montefiore wrote to the Junta, “Since there is no doubt regarding this decree’s influential power, the Junta shall do good if it would make it public allowing the improvement of the situation of our brethren in Morocco”. The letter’s content, as reflected from the Junta’s correspondence with Sir Hay, most typically expressed the discourse. It gave the impression that the persecution of local Jews was entirely a result of their status as subjects to the jurisdiction of Moroccan authorities and that the salvation of the “civilized powers” was the only solution to their miserable conditions.41 While this decree was nothing more than a fine-sounding statement of thestatus quo, it had a tremendous effect on the self-perceptions of those investing in its attainment.42 The Minute Book entry discussing the need for benevolent European intervention on behalf of the well-being of Moroccan Jewry, which was associated by many scholars with colonial representations, appears here as rooted in the evolving discourse of the local Junta leadership. Throughout their ongoing contact with Europe, the Junta 39 Ibid., 98.1 (13/1/1864). 40 Ibid., 102.1 ( (28/1/1864. 41 Parfitt, “DhimmaVersus Protection” (Note 24), p. 150. 42 Ibid., p. 151. 107 An Insight into the Course of European-oriented Modernization developed and maintained a discourse on the benefits of European intervention, which was constantly translated into pro-active attempts to forge further ties and promote advanced European-oriented modernization. Reading the Junta The internal political system of Jewish communities in the Maghreb had never been tightly bound by a set of defined rules. It used to be a common practice, however, for the wealthy upper class notables, called in Hebrew Yeḥide Qehila (the notables of the community), or Anshe ha-Macamad (the men of status), to provide for the community’s necessities. By looking after the poor, the notables earned the right to govern the various communal affairs. The system was based on the religious obligation to give charity to the poor, but soon turned the community into an oligarchic political system in which the affluent systematically gained control over communal institutions.43 At the same time, the official commissioner of the community before the local authorities was the Nagid (or the sheikh), who in addition to other community services, was charged with collecting the Jizya. The Nagid was appointed based on the nature of his set of connections with the local authorities. Most often the Nagid had the blessing of local notables but there were incidences where he was nominated against the will of the wealthy communal leaders. 44 In October 1860, following the Spanish-Moroccan War, the new body of communal leadership, the Junta, was established. The Junta’s name itself implied its innate aims to conduct a broad reorganization in the old apparatus. The Junta’s members came from the most honorable families in town and the vast majority of them (nine out of ten) were active employees of the diplomatic corps.45 Aharon Abensur, the first secretary of the Junta, served for example, as the interpreter of the British Consul in town, and later on was employed as Denmark’s consul. A portion of the Junta’s members were among the outstanding merchants in Morocco. For example, Moshe 43 Bashan, Yahadut Maroqo (Note 25), pp. 76-78. 44 Shlomo Deshen, Tsibbur ve-Yeḥidim: Sidre Ḥevra bi-Qehillot Yehude Maroqo ba-Me’a ha-18-19. Misrad ha-Bitahon, Tel Aviv 1983, pp. 77-78. 45 Joseph Toledano, La saga des familles: les juifs du Maroc et leurs noms, Editions Stavit, Tel Aviv, 1983, pp. 14, 184, 265, 328. 108 Aviad Moreno Pariente, the Junta’s vice president was famous for founding the first bank in Morocco in 1840.46 Furthermore, in traditional Jewish Moroccan communities, being the owner of a synagogue was a sign of wealth and also a source of political power in a society based on patron-client relations. The privilege of owning a synagogue was reserved to the very wealthy, thereby creating a highly oligarchic society, in which the rich prevailed.47 Many among the Junta’s members owned such synagogues.48 Likewise, many members of the Junta, being the richest in town, demonstrated their superior status by heading Ḥevrot (social welfare organizations), which for generations were considered to be exclusive and imbued their members with great honor.49 Those involved with the “Ḥevra de Biqur Ḥolim” (Society for Visitation of the Sick), headed by Yosef Eshriki, and the “Ḥevra de Gemilut Ḥasadim” (burial society), headed by Yaacob Toledano, came from the most respected and notable families in the city. In addition, they were some of the outstanding members of diplomatic personnel in the city.50 In this context, the nomination of the Junta’s member did not lack political tension. The new leadership body of the Junta, which was controlled by the oligarchic Jewish bourgeoisie of Tangier, caused anxiety on the part of the Nagid; the time-honored representative of the community. The tension evolved not only around official recognition by the authorities, but also around the control over the communal financial resources. For instance, the Nagid’s responsibility to levy taxes on kosher meat was disputed, as this was a central resource for the livelihood of the Nagid himself. This dispute ended up with the intervention of the local authorities that sided with the Junta, ultimately subjugating the Nagid to the Junta’s control, simultaneously strengthening the newly established Junta’s mandate and self-esteem. 51 46 Ibid., 158. 47 Shalom Bar-Asher, “Bate Keneset Peraṭiyyim ve-Horashat Tafqidim Datiyyim be- Maroqo”, Zion 51, no.3 (1986), pp. 2-3. 48 Bashan, Yahadut Maroqo (Note 25); Gilson-Miller, “Apportioning Sacred Space” (Note 23). 49 Bashan, Yahadut Maroqo (Note 25), pp. 99-100. 50 MB, 2.3, 6 (22/10/1860). 51 MB, 77.1 (4/8/1863); ibid. 78.1 (9/8/1863); the Nagid continued to play a symbolic role while the Junta took advantage of this position. For instance, the Junta employed him in the crucial task of collecting the Jizya following the war years’ crisis (see MB, 14.2 (31/12/1860)). 109 An Insight into the Course of European-oriented Modernization This growing self-confidence was embodied in the Junta’s initiatives to amend wrongdoings and promote a general well-being in the community under its leadership. For instance, during the first weeks of activity to improve the public order, the Junta addressed the unjustified increase in the price of kosher meat in town. TheJunta reorganized the price structure by classifying meat according to its quality and supervising its pricing, imposing penalties on disobedient butchers.52 In another case, when a member of the elite approached the Junta with a request to raise funds for a poor girl wishing to marry, perhaps a relative of one of his acquaintances and under his patronage, the Junta refused claiming that no young woman deserves more than another five others in the community waiting in line to receive funds for the same purpose.53 Despite their ambitious aspirations for political absolutism, the motivation for the Junta’s initiative and activity were mainly rooted in the perceived elitist commitment of its notable members to promote welfare and equality among the lower classes of the community. The Junta was perceived by its members as a leadership body that had been granted political power by the broad elite of the community based on their appreciation of the Junta’s capability to manage communal affairs to their best overall interest. In this context, from the beginning of their activity the Junta members decided that every Rosh Ḥodesh (the first day of the month in Jewish tradition) two commissioners would visit the sick at the local hospital and observe the management of the parnas, the person in charge. Subsequently, the Junta decided to send two members each week to collect the tamid, or the charity traditionally collected on the eve of Sabbath.54 The Junta members provided vital services to the community with funding for their activity from their own pocket. The Junta members donated bedding to the local hospital, publishing each contribution in their Minute Book.55 Once when a shortage occurred, the Junta members individually distributed personal funds to charity for the holiday of Sukkot, listing their contributions in the Minute Book.56 They also personally underwrote the organization’s expenses, including the stenographer and 52 Ibid., 4.2 (29/10/1860). 53 Ibid., 9.4 (18/12/1860). 54 Ibid., 9.3 (18/12/1860); ibid., 59.4 (27/10/1862); 63.4 (9/12/1862). 55 Ibid., 27.2 (27/8/1861). 56 Ibid., 28.2 (23/9/1861). 110 Aviad Moreno other associated services.57 In March 1864, the unrevealed criticism and gap between their actual willingness and self-representation was exposed only to further support their entries on their aspiration to promote public commonwealth. The Minute Book mentioned that members of the Junta who tended to be absent from meetings with no good reason would be fined, stating: [T]his neglect caused major parts of the affairs of the Junta to be delayed … one cannot see any other remedy than to create those regulations that would [allow] the affairs to be conducted well … as is required from Juntas that bear responsibility similar to ours; not only to take care of the public affairs of our city, but rather the responsibility of [maintaining] a continuous and vivid correspondence with all the communities of Morocco and all the respectable Juntas of Europe.58 While reading the Junta’s initiatives displaying their concern for the common man’s well-being, it is important to take into account the Junta’s perception of the Minute Book in which such entries were documented. The Junta’s charter outlined the need for a Minute Book in the following way: The Junta shall be required to maintain a book for documenting all the minutes that were agreed on in the [meetings of the] Junta … for the sake of our affairs and decisions being conducted in order and by authority.59 The Junta sought to define and reinforce its control over the community through circulars distributed throughout the local synagogues; they comprised recent announcements, decisions and rules.60 Its officially published communiqués were perceived as influential tools of communication. One clear example is the very first announcement regarding its founding, stating, “for the sake of reinforcing our authority, all the above-written had been declared and published throughout all the synagogues and became acceptable with no resistance”.61 This was also one of the unique cases in which an entry was recorded in official Hebrew, aimed at enforcing their authority with religious-based command. Overall, the book was composed in a formally condensed outline and in 57 Ibid., 33.3 ((24/10/1861. 58 Ibid., 110.2 (20/3/1864). 59 Ibid., 2.11 (22/10/1860). 60 Ibid., 38,1 (3/1/1862); 52.2 (31/7/1862); 83.2 (2/9/1863); 109.4 (15.3.1864). 61 Ibid., 1.3 (22.10.1860). 111 An Insight into the Course of European-oriented Modernization high language promoting an aura of official authority among its readers.62 The Junta did not hide its aspiration for formality, forbidding its members to publicly discuss the affairs of the Junta outside of its official forums.63 The available historical manuscript was composed by an employee of the Junta who had copied a summarized sequence of events narrating the Junta’s final decisions, most often in third person past tense. While the narrative is documented in the form of recollections, the book reflects observations made within days of each of the Junta’s meetings. In this context, the Junta omitted from the summarized narrative elements that were seen as inappropriate for documentation and emphasized others that were deemed worthy and beneficial for promoting its goals, while many aspects remained open for further discussion.64 Due to its narrative quality, the manuscript might be grasped by some as historiographically frail and incomplete. Yet, in fact, it may provide unique and productive insights for interpretative research on the viewpoints and priorities shaping the common discourse within power elites such as the Junta at this critical time and place during expanding European influence in the region. That being the case, I propose analyzing the Minute Book while bearing in mind its subjective quality embedded not merely in its literal content but also encompassing its changing graphics, its editing styles—including many deviations along the way—as well as the terminology and the circumstances of its writing per se. All of these elements serve as testimony to the evolving discourse among the Junta which reflected and sustained its members’ collective notions.65 One may conclude that the Minute Book itself was part of the Junta’s aspiration for control, and it served simultaneously as a tool for actualizing this goal. Throughout the Minute Book, the Junta presented, and at the same time reflected, its evolving orientations and discourse on the essentialness of its broad reorganization. The Minute Book thus provided a unique insight into the broad course of its changing mindset, which gave birth to what we identify as modernity during the age of European hegemony. 62 Moreno, Europe from Morocco (Note 1), pp. 68-74. 63 MB, 2.10 (22/10/1860). 64 Moreno, Europe from Morocco (Note 62). 65 Iris Agmon, Family & Court: Legal Culture and Modernity in Late Ottoman Palestine, Syracuse University Press, Syracuse, NY, 2007. 112 Aviad Moreno Photograph by Philip Abensur 66 The Motivations behind the Pro-European Orientation During the era of growing European intervention in Morocco and the acquisition of additional rights by local groups (i.e., the transformation from Dhimmis to protégés), an unprecedented change had occurred in the concept of patron-client relations. In a society where many would fall under the political custody of a local notable (who under pre-colonial circumstances was mainly a Muslim), the power elite of protégé Jews was seen as the ultimate patron. 67 The unique location of the Junta, in the city of consuls and a port of global commerce, shaped the esteem awarded it in the eyes of its members as well as in the eyes of others. Community leaders in inland Morocco addressed the notables of the Junta from the very first months of their operation. For instance, in the protocol summarizing the assembly on April 12, 1861, the Junta dealt with two major issues, the first of which was a letter sent by the Board of Deputies in London, in which the 66 The Minute Book measures 25.5 cm x 38.5 cm. The binding is hard cardboard and the book contains 251 pages out of which 235 contain the records of the Protocols and 16 are an index. 67 Daniel J. Schroeter, “Trade as a Mediator in Muslim-Jewish Relations: Southwestern Morocco in the Nineteenth Century”, in Mark R. Cohen and Abraham L. Udovitch (eds.), Jews Among Arabs: Contacts and Boundaries, Darwin Press, Prinston, NJ 1989, pp. 122-127. 113 An Insight into the Course of European-oriented Modernization Board offered the MRF partial annual support for financing a local physician and medical supplies for the community of Tangier. The Junta decided to refuse stating that since the money was raised by the MRF during the Spanish Moroccan war for the Jews of Tangier, they have the right to decide what to the with the money. The second issue was a dispatch sent by two residents of Rabat for the Junta to discuss, concerning the “unjust” extradition of one Jew to the local Muslim authorities by a British protégé Jew named Benatar. The Junta decided to take action, approaching the local consul who was the figure in charge of Benatar. The Minute Book mentioned that its president and vice-president kindly accepted their duty to pass this message to the British Minister.68 This protocol illustrates the political benefits the Junta gained by initially taking upon itself the task of mediating between the “benevolent” European figures and the “suffering” Jews of Morocco as the Minute Book’s pro-European orientation consistently depicts. In this context, addressing powerful European figures on behalf of the well-being of Moroccan Jewries was obviously calculated against the potential cost and benefits for the Junta’s well-being. The Junta approached European figures with “injustices”, constantly bearing in mind its own reputation. The edited Minute Book apparently did not refer to such requests, which were considered incongruous, yet reading between the lines of several protocols may reveal the Junta’s concealed intentions. For instance, soon after its founding, the Junta was addressed by the community of Tetuan to help them relieve the harsh living conditions under the newly established Spanish regime. The Junta avoided intervening in that matter, clearly justifying its decision that they were not equipped to address the authorities on such matters.69 It seems that the Junta understood that stirring the inter-European empirical pot by addressing one European element in a request to intervene in the matters of another would be politically unproductive, and potentially politically damaging. This attitude would change dramatically during the following few years. As its self- confidence as a powerful mediating body grew, and obviously along with Europe’s constructively positive reactions, the Junta gained further courage to address freely the representatives of various European powers. Positive results further sustained the organization’s ability to represent itself as a crucial mediator in bringing welfare to the underprivileged among Moroccan Jewry. 68 MB, 21.1, 21.2 (12/4/1861). 69 Ibid., 28.1 (23/9/1861). 114 Aviad Moreno Perhaps the most influential event in supporting the Junta’s standing at the time was the above-mentioned “Safi Affair”. The visit of Montefiore not only impacted the perception of European power as beneficial for the well-being of Moroccan Jewries but more importantly had reinforced the Junta’s ability to represent itself as an ultimate mediating factor. Even though the meeting with the Junta of Tangier was a minor event in Montefiore’s schedule, the members of the Junta referred to his visit to Morocco as their own success story. The series of correspondence with Jewish communities in inland Morocco leading up to and following Montefiore’s visit were crucial in supporting and sustaining this notion. In this context, it is no wonder that the European-oriented terminology, which would be grasped as Eurocentric positivism, appears again in all its glory. For instance, the Junta described in great detail the reasons the Jewish community of Fez originally contacted them for assistance, stating: [The Fez Community] had known about the arrival of the venerable gentleman Sir Moshe Montefiore to this [town of Tangier], and they presented succinctly the lamentable situation of that community and the horrible galut (exile) that our brethren suffer in the interior of the Macarav (Morocco) and they earnestly beg this Junta to turn to the gentleman and provide the necessary explanations so that he would lobby [for achieving] some relief to the yoke of the galut under which they suffer today.70 During its meeting in August 1863, the Junta discussed the chain of responses that it had received from philanthropic Jewish bodies in Europe in reply to its own requests regarding the Safi Affair. It was at this specific meeting that the Junta referred for the first time in its Minute Book to the possibility of approaching the local diplomatic corps in Tangier so as to obtain their intervention on behalf of the well-being of Moroccan Jewry as a whole. Following a letter from the representatives in Mazagan regarding the imprisonment of two local Jews, the Junta decided to approach the local British consul in Tangier. The Junta phrased its intentions as follows: “[T]hat this gentleman would favor us writing his honorable words to the British vice consul in Mazagan for the sake of obtaining the liberty of the two boys in prison…”. The important message of that protocol exceeds the simple idea of facilitating benevolent European intervention. The protocol clearly states that three respectable 70 Ibid., 96.1 (8.12.1863). 115 An Insight into the Course of European-oriented Modernization members of the Junta suggested taking care of this obligation by addressing this figure, once again marking their crucial role in the endeavor for European intervention. The next item in the same entry further reveals the Junta’s growing role as a powerful body. The issue concerns a rebellious member of the Junta who had established an independent welfare society (strictly prohibited by the Junta during its formative stages). Since that member was a French protégé, the French consul sided with him in this internal quarrel, writing to the Junta on his behalf. The Junta decided to write back to the consul in confrontation with this senior member. The next and last item described the Junta’s intention to write to the community of Tetuan informing it about the “good news aforementioned”, referring to its ability to recruit Montefiore and Albert Cohen for intervening in the Safi Affair.71 It seems that Junta’s changing self-perception as crucial mediator following the Safi Affair altered to some extent its accessibility to and relationship with leading European figures. During its handling of the Safi affair the Junta strengthened its relationship with these global bodies in an unprecedented way. The direct result of this conceptual shift is reflected throughout its activities. Beginning with the first letter sent to Montefiore in September 1863 and continuing with correspondence through the end of 1864, an unprecedented preoccupation with external affairs involving direct contacts with Europe is documented in the Minute Book, comprising almost half of all matters documented. The shift is even marked in an administrative remark. During May 1864, the Junta’s clerk had demanded a raise in his salary owing to the increase in correspondence and the Junta subsequently agreed.72 Even before it had become clear that Montefiore had notably succeeded in his mission to acquire equality of non-Muslims in Morocco, the Junta foresaw a great advantage in thanking all the world Jewish bodies involved in finding a solution to the affair.73 The unfolding events obviously inflated the Junta’s self-perception, supporting the self-esteem and self-representing narrative found in the Minute Book. As their success stories accumulated, the Junta gained additional prestige which further sustained its discourse. The Junta’s contact with the local consular representatives in Tangier concerning the well-being of Moroccan Jews also reached its peak during the period. The notable 71 MB, 90.3, 90.5, 90.6 (22/10/1863). 72 Ibid., 120.3 (17/5/1864). 73 Ibid., 99.4 (19/1/1864). 116 Aviad Moreno members of the Junta reported their successful meetings with the Portuguese and Italian representatives, stating that the latter had promised to lobby for the well-being of Moroccan Jewry. The Junta members then felt confident to lobby the Italian consul to promote a policy of granting local Jews Italian protection. The Junta reported the response in which the consul promised to take the required actions.74 During this period, the Junta was somewhat apprehensive to disturb the delicate balance maintained in local power relations. A week after their report on the successful meeting with the European consuls, the Junta members dealt with a letter received from Tetuan discussing violations of the Sultan’s decree granted to Montefiore under the open eye of the local Basha. The Junta addressed the British Consul in Tangier asking him to contact his representative in Tetuan and command him to warn the Basha. The Junta dealt subsequently with the response of the Tetuan community’s depiction of the Basha’s apology and promise to guarantee their safety.75 The Junta clearly displayed its ability to manipulate the local authorities by addressing the European elements in Tangier. The unfolding events were all described in the same protocol through hindsight, illustrating the narrative quality of this description, which further fed the discourse on the need for benevolent European intervention and most importantly the Junta’s imperative role within the process. Following this event, the Junta recorded a series of other successful meetings of its members with local consuls. For instance, a week after the Junta wrote about the positive results obtained from addressing the local British Consul on the Tetuan affair, the Junta reported about its successful meetings with the Spanish and American representatives, during which the latter promised to have its other representatives along the coastal towns of Morocco lobby for the well-being of local Jews as well. The Junta proved both to itself and to the readers of the book that this promise indeed came through. Moshe Pariente, a Junta member and an interpreter at the American Consulate of Tangier, reported that indeed such a request had been sent and that “one cannot expect better results”.76 It was in this context and at this point that the Junta decided to reinforce its contacts with the community under its leadership and make its documented achievements more accessible. At the peak of its attained political success as a worthy communal 74 Ibid., 109.2, 109.3 (15/3/1864). 75 Ibid., 111.2, 111.4 ((25/3/1864. 76 Ibid., 113.1–3 (1/4/1864). 117 An Insight into the Course of European-oriented Modernization leadership in this time of European hegemony, and after reinforcing its ties with such elements, the Junta recruited two additional members and published in the local synagogues their names along with the entire list of names of the Junta members. In addition, it publicized its records, allowing the public to address the Junta with suggestions for discussions in upcoming Junta meetings.77 Considering the ensuing political crisis, perhaps the Junta exaggerated its self- confidence while proposing this reform. Yet, this decision can only reflect the impact of the evolving communication with Europe on its self-perception and simultaneously on the hopes it had for its self-representation as a powerful and critical entity serving as mediator during this specific time of geopolitical evolution. Conclusion An initial reading of the Minute Book, which opens with the Junta’s ambition to “imitate and adopt” the superior values of European communities, challenges the common revision regarding the essence of European-oriented modernization and simultaneously embraces Eurocentric positivist perception. It strongly suggests that importing ready-made European models or the need for European intervention for the sake of amending Oriental societies was internalized by the local leadership group. Going a step further, the course of European-style modernization appears to be rather complex and grants the local agents with a proactive role in the course of change, not merely locally but rather globally. On the one hand, not merely had the process of European intervention and its sustaining discourse been crucial in generating modernity among eastern societies, but moreover, some of the most influential local community members proactively promoted it, insisting to forge ties with Europe and strengthening its perceived standing as an almighty empire. The Junta, a local leadership apparatus, generated and sustained the essence of the ‘positivist Eurocentric’ discourse on the value of the benevolent intervention of Europe on behalf of the underprivileged Oriental Jewish pariah, as repeatedly stated in its Minute Book. On the other hand, one should not perceive the Junta’s aspirations for European intervention as an internalization of an imported colonial discourse generated in the west and absorbed by the eastern societies, nor should the essence of the process be 77 Ibid., 109. 4-5 (15/3/1864). 118 Aviad Moreno understood as an arousing encounter between two opposing cultural structures. An in-depth reading of the Minute Book reveals that the ongoing pro-European discourse as well as its maintenance was no less a creation and an aspiration of power elements among the ‘receptive’ east. This aspiration and its evolution reflected the new interests taking shape during the age of European hegemony among those who most benefited from the process around the world, thus further sustaining it. As it appears, the Junta promoted a discourse depicting the benevolent European intervention through which it granted itself unprecedented opportunities to represent itself as a crucial mediating body. As successes stories mounted throughout the various encounters with Montefiore, the AIU, local diplomats, and Jewish Philanthropic bodies, it constantly fed this notion, affecting in return the Junta’s discourse as well as their overall orientation. (Other cases of perceived failure were often employed for other political aspirations, which exceed the scope of this essay). The inherited by-product discourses of these changing epistemologies and ontologies were embodied in a variety of sources that serve as our historiographical basis for retracing the related course of change. As historians, we ought to carefully read them and perceive their underlying motivations to better understand what they may entail below the surface. While the Minute Book provides an incomplete picture of historical developments, it does allow an in-depth insight into microscopic and yet essential historical fragments not only depicting but generating the broad historical change during this period. The Junta’s declaration regarding its aspiration to imitate and adopt the customs and stature of European communities in October 1860 was one component in the lengthy and reciprocal process of evolutionary epistemological and ontological change that laid the foundations of European intervention in the context of changing interests and reality as understood by the powerful elite. As the encounter evolved, it altered the way influential elements, such as the Junta, thought and wrote about reality, further sustaining the encounter, and so forth. The case of the Junta of Tangier is an exemplar, yet it constitutes one of the most imperative cases, particularly for the study of the modernization of Oriental Jewries. It implies that the very first branches of the AIU as well as the notion of “civilizing mission” or European philanthropy, the symbols of European-oriented modernization across these societies, were not a ready-made French idea that was granted to the east or imposed on it at certain time. The Minute Book, while solely providing a gaze into the daily operations of the Junta, offers an insight into an evolving inspiration that took shape, ultimately corresponding with the constructed notion of “west” versus 119 An Insight into the Course of European-oriented Modernization “east” as the encounter developed. Cases of discontent among the local society were part of this multifaceted evolution of European-oriented modernity and require further research that exceeds the scope of Junta’s epistemology and ontology as described here. 120 Gérard Nahon Les Pĕqide-Qushṭa, les Officiers pour la Terre sainte d’Istanbul face aux Ămarkalim, les Surintendants d’Amsterdam, 1827-1828 Gérard Nahon Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes, Sorbonne Depuis 1726, le Waʿad Pěqide Ereṣ Israʾel bě-Qushṭa, le Comité des Officiers de la Terre Sainte à Constantinople, créé à l’initiative de Mordekhai Alfandari, un notable fortuné d’Istanbul, centralise les secours financiers destinés aux communautés juives de Terre Sainte. Il collecte de fonds venus de l’Empire Turc et d’autres pays. Il accrédite les émissaires de la Terre Sainte qui parcourent la diaspora afin d’obtenir des dons pour Jérusalem, Hébron, Safed et Tibériade. Il opère le transfert des fonds qui lui parviennent vers la Terre Sainte. Le Waʿad opére lui-même dans l’empire ottoman dit Turkia dans les sources rabbiniques. Les dons provenant de l’Occident européen appelé Frankia dans ces mêmes sources, ou de l’Amérique, parviennent à la Nation juive portugaise d’Amsterdam. Celle-ci envoie ces fonds à Istanbul. Une correspondance concernant ces opérations relie ainsi Amsterdam à Istanbul et plus généralement l’Occident à l’Orient autour des secours destinés à la Terre Sainte.1 1 La source majeure est le Pinqas du Waʿad, conservé au Jewish Theological Seminary of America à New York, ms 4008 (0151) = Jérusalem Ben Zvi Institute, microfilm 1857, partiellement édité et magistralement exploité par Jacob Barnai, Pinqas dont une édition complète demeure un desideratum. Il contient la correspondance au départ du Waʿad – plus de cinq cents lettres envoyées entre 1741 et 1771 ainsi qu’une lettre de 1729 –. Sur la fondation et le fonctionnement de cet organisme, cf. Izhak Ben-Zvi, Ereṣ Israʾel under Ottoman Rule; Four centuries of History, Jérusalem, Yad Ben Zvi 1969 [en hébreu], pp. 265-270 et les recherches neuves à partir du registre des Pěqide Qushṭa de Jacob Barnai, 121 Les Pĕqide-Qushṭa Dans le courant du mois de kislew 5570, décembre 1809, les banquiers ashkénazes d’Amsterdam Isaac Breitbart (Gutaiende), Abraham Prins et Zvi Hirsch Lehren fondent un organisme nouveau, les Pěqide wa-Ămarkale de ʿAre ha-Qodesh, les Officiers et Surintendants des cités saintes. Cet organisme se fixe pour objectif de collecter des fonds pour la Terre Sainte d’une manière méthodique, grâce à un système de comités locaux opérant dans des dizaines de localités hollandaises ainsi qu’en Belgique, en France, en Allemagne et dans les pays scandinaves. En 1824 les rabbins de Jérusalem reconnaissent les Pěqide wa-Ămarkale de ʿAre ha-Qodesh comme l’organisme exclusif de collecte des fonds pour la Terre Sainte et lui délèguent le pouvoir de traiter en leur nom. Sous la direction des frères Zvi-Hirsch Lehren (1784-1853), Jacob-Méir Lehren (1795-1861) et Aqiba Lehren (1795-1876) fils du banquier Abraham-Moïse Lehren, ce dernier originaire de Lehren-Steinfeld en Wurtemberg, les Pěqide wa-Ămarkale de ʿAre ha-Qodesh reprennent sur des bases neuves les objectifs et les ambitions du Waʿad Pěqide Ereṣ Israʾel bě-Qushṭa, fonctionnant à Istanbul depuis près d’un siècle. Les administrateurs hollandais dirigeront désormais la collecte des secours pour la Terre Sainte en Europe Occidentale, et d’abord en Hollande, en Angleterre, en France, en Allemagne et dans d’autres pays ensuite.2 Cependant, afin d’acheminer leurs «Pekidei Erez Israel be-Kushta», Encylopædia Judaica, Year-Book 1974 Jérusalem 1974, pp. 248-249, The Jews in Ereṣ Israʾel in the Eighteeenth Century under the Patronage of the Constantinople Committee Officials of Ereṣ Israʾel, Jérusalem, Yad Izhak Ben-Zvi Publications 1982 [en hébreu], pp. 129-154, The Jews in Palestine in the Eighteenth Century under the patronage of the Istanbul Committee of Officials for Palestine, translated by Naomi Goldblum, Tuscalosa Alabama, The University of Alabama Press 1992, pp. 84- 102. Sur la correspondance entre Amsterdam et Istanbul au XVIIIe siècle, cf. G. Nahon, “Les relations entre Amsterdam et Constantinople au XVIIIe siècle d’après le Copiador de Cartas de la Nation juive portugaise d’Amsterdam”, Jozeph Michman & Tirtsah Levie. éd., Dutch Jewish History, Proceedings of the Symposium on the History of the Jews in the Netherlands, November 28-December 3, 1982, Tel Aviv-Jerusalem. Jérusalem 1984, pp. 157-184. J’ai présenté une première communication—restée inédite—sur ce thème intitulée «Les Pěqidé-Qushṭa, ‘Officiers de Terre sainte à Istanbul et le poste de pilotage d’Amsterdam», communication qu’a bien voulu lire en mon absence Riva Castoriano —au colloque The Jewish Communities in the Balkans and Turkey in the 19th and 20th centuries through the End of the World War II, Tel Aviv University, Diaspora Research Institute (5-8 juin 1995). 2 Sur les fondateurs, cf. Jozeph Michman, «Lehren», Encylopædia Judaica, vol. 10 col. 184- 185, Mordechai Eliav, «R. Akiva Lehren: the Man and his Work», Dutch Jewish History. Proceedings of the Fourth Symposium on the History of the Jews in the Netherlands 7-l0 december l986—Tel Aviv Jerusalem 1986, vol. II, éd. Jozeph Michman. Jérusalem-Assen 122 Gérard Nahon envois d’argent et leurs lettres à Jérusalem, à Hébron, à Safed et à Tibériade comme pour en recevoir des informations indispensables, les frères Lehren restent tributaires du concours de leurs homologues d’Istanbul, les dirigeants du Waʿad Pěqide Ereṣ Isra’el bě-Qushṭa. Entre le réseau occidental mis en place et contrôlé par la nouvelle institution ashkénaze hollandaise d‘une part, et la Terre Sainte d’autre part, le Waʿad Pěqide Ereṣ Israʾel bě-Qushṭa d’Istanbul demeure un intermédiaire incontournable, d’autant qu’il contrôle toujours la gestion financière des communautés juives de la Terre Sainte. Comment réagirent ces dirigeants d’Istanbul face à l’action, aux initiatives, aux directives, à la politique du nouvel organisme d’Amsterdam? Quels problèmes d’accommodation se posèrent entre les deux organismes ? Les ashkénazes d’Amsterdam se substituèrent-ils entièrement aux Portugais d’Amsterdam ou ceux-ci poursuivirent- ils leur collaboration et leur correspondance avec Istanbul? Plus généralement se pose la question des changements introduits par les nouveaux interlocuteurs ashkénazes l989, pp. 207-217 et du même Mordechai Eliav, Ereṣ Israʾel and Its Yishuv in the 19th Century 1777-1917. Jérusalem, Kéter 1978 [en hébreu], pp. 118-125. Sur l’organisation et son activité, cf. Jacob Barnai, «Vaʿad ha-Pěqidim ve-ha-Ămarkalim», Encylopædia Judaica, Year-Book 1974 Jérusalem 1974, pp. 270-271, Arieh Morgenstern, The Pěqidim and Ămarkalim of Amsterdam and the Jewish Community in Palestine 1810-1840, Ph. Thesis, Hebrew Univ. 1981 [en hébreu]. J. S. Hirsch, « Les premières années de l’association des Pěqidim et Ămarkalim à Amsterdam», Zion 47 1982, pp. 83-88 [en hébreu],, Jozeph Michman, «The Emergence of Pěqidim and Ămarkalim of Amsterdam», Cathedra, 27 1983 pp. 69-84 {en hébreu]. Pour une perpspective d’ensemble Jozeph Michman, Hartog Beem, Dan Michman, Pinkas Hakehilot Encyclopædia of Jewish Communities, The Netherlands, Jérusalem, Yad Vashem 1985, pp. 32-33. Sur la correspondance cf. Joseph Joel et Benjamin Rivlin, Letters of the Pěqidim and Ămarkalim of Amsterdam 5586-5587, Jérusalem 1965, Letters of the Pěqidim and Ămarkalim of Amsterdam 5588, Jérusalem 1970, Letters of the Pěqidim and Ămarcalim of Amsterdam 5589 Introduction d’Israel Bartal, Jérusalem 1978 [en hébreu], Arieh Morgenstern, «The correspondance of Pěqidim and Ămarkalim of Amsterdam as a Source for the History of Erez Israel», dans Cathedra 27, mars 1983, pp. 85-108 [en hébreu], trad. anglaise dans Dutch Jewish History. Proceedings of the Symposium on the History of the Jews in the Netherlands. November 28-December 3, 1982 Tel-Aviv-Jerusalem, Editor Jozeph Michman, Tirtsah Levie, Tel-Aviv-Jérusalem 1984, pp. 433-463. Sur l’impact du nouvel organisme sur l’essor de la Terre sainte au XIXe siècle, cf. Arieh Morgenstern, Rédemption par une voie naturelle dans les écrits du Gaon de Vilna et de ses disciples, recueil d’articles [en hébreu], Elqana, Mikhlalat Orot Israel, s.d. pp. 277-300, du même auteur, Hastening Redemption. Messianism and the Resettlement of the Land of Israel, trad. Joel-A. Linsider, Jérusalem, the Shalem Center 2006. 123 Les Pĕqide-Qushṭa sur le plan de la langue de communication comme celui des objectifs et des méthodes d’aide financière à la Terre Sainte. A la lumière des changements survenus dans le rapport existant depuis un siècle au moins entre Istanbul et Amsterdam et des relations entre les deux organismes, perçoit-on une stratégie spécifique des leaders stambouliotes face à la volonté d’hégémonie des Ashkénazes d’Amsterdam? Nous proposons ici de dresser un état du problème: Istanbul face à Amsterdam entre 1827 et 1828. Si les archives propres des Pěqidim et des Ămarkalim d’Amsterdam— quelque 11.000 pièces—sont déposées à la Bibliotheca Rosenthaliana de l’Université d’Amsterdam, nous disposons des registres des lettres envoyées par les Pěqide wa- Ămarkale de ʿAre ha-Qodesh d’Amsterdam ou de La Haye entre 1826 et 1870, soit quinze registres couvrant 6700 pages, aujourd’hui conservés à l’Institut Ben Zvi à Jérusalem. Trois volumes comprenant les lettres envoyées entre 1827 et 1829 ont été publiés et leur exploitation s’est montrée extrêmement féconde. Plusieurs articles ainsi qu’une thèse de doctorat ont été consacrés aux Pěqide wa-Ămarkale de ʿAre ha- Qodesh à partir des registres publiés et de ceux restés inédits.3 Ne disposant pas de la correspondance au départ d’Istanbul, nous avons tenté de la reconstituer en partie d’après le courrier que les Pěqide we-Ămarkale de ʿAre ha-Qodesh amstellodamois adressèrent à leurs aînés du Waʿad Pěqide Ereṣ Israʾel bě-Qushṭa stambouliote. De la sorte avons-nous identifié dix-huit lettres du Waʿad aux Pěqidim entre 1824 et 1828, lettres citées dans les réponses des Pěqidim (§ 82, 87, 120, 158, 159, 183, 219, 231, 249, 260). Pour quelques unes de ces lettres datées selon le calendrier hébreu, nous indiquons leurs dates selon le calendrier civil dans la liste figurant en appendice. I. Istanbul face aux freres Lehren: Pour cette période nous ne connaissons que trois dirigeants du Waʿad stambouliote: Isaac Hattim, Poliqaron Yerushalmi et Isaac Chelebi Bekhor Carmona tragiquement décédé le 15 juillet 1826. Ce dernier, chef de la communauté, financier influent, était un intermédiaire efficace auprès de la Sublime Porte. Sa disparition réduira le pouvoir 3 Cf. Moshe Davis, «The Letters of the Communal Leaders from Amsterdam: A New Source Concerning the Relationship between American Jewry and Eretz Yisrael», Salo Wittmayer Jubilee Volume on the occasion of his Eightieth Birthday, Hebrew Section, Jérusalem, American Academy for Jewish Research, New York et Londres 1974, Columbia University Press, pp. 91-109. 124 Gérard Nahon effectif tant du Waʿad que de la communauté stambouliote.4 Le Waʿad Pěqide Ereṣ Isra’el bě-Qushṭa contrôle encore le système des secours à la Terre Sainte. Il confirme les accréditations des émissaires envoyés dans le monde par les cités saintes de Jérusalem, Hébron, Safed et Tibériade pour collecter des sommes d’argent. Abraham Chalom Mizrahi est ainsi désigné comme émissaire vers l’Allemagne vers 1827.5 Le Waʿad supervise les transferts de fonds vers ces villes et contrôle leur distribution. Les besoins financiers de la Terre Sainte avaient augmenté par suite d’une importante immigration ashkénaze. Aussi le Waʿad Pěqide Ereṣ Israʾel bě-Qushṭa. confirme-t- il en 1810 la décision des rabbins de Jérusalem de reconnaître au nouveau Comité hollandais le droit de lever des fonds en leur nom. Dans la pratique le Waʿad Pěqide Ereṣ Israʾel bě-Qushṭa envoie des émissaires- quêteurs dans la diaspora. Il adresse aux Pěqide wa-Ămarkale de ʿAre ha-Qodesh des lettres décrivant, voire exagérant, la misère des juifs de Terre Sainte. Il reçoit d’Amsterdam la confirmation qu’une somme d’argent est disponible à son intention. Il tire alors sur les frères Lehren une polissa, c’est-à-dire une lettre de change correspondant à cette somme. Ainsi apprend-t-on par une lettre de 8 mars 1827 au départ de La Haye que le Rishon lě-Ṣiyyon, le Grand Rabbin Salomon-Moïse Suzin6 a tiré une polissa (en italien) sur les Pěqidim hollandais. L’argent est encaissé à Istanbul par les banquiers Abraham et Nissim Foa. Les Pěqidim transmettent alors la somme reçue à Jérusalem avec un plan de ventilation ou ḥӑluqqa aux pauvres et aux talmide ḥӑkhamim, les pensionnaires des yěshivot. Les cités saintes doivent adresser à Istanbul des accusés de réception et des rapports sur l’emploi des fonds.7 Le cas échéant Istanbul envoie des coureurs spéciaux en Palestine: une lettre envoyée de 4 Une lettre du 5 mai 1827 part sans la signature de Polikaron Yerushalmi. Letters of the Pěqidim and Ămarcalim of Amsterdam 5586-5587, Jérusalem 1965, § 120 t. I pp. 261-264. Sur la mort de Carmona et son impact sur les juifs de l’Empire cf. Document infra et Esther Benbassa, Une diaspora en transition Istanbul, XIXe-XXe siècles, Paris, Editions du Cerf 1993 p. 18. 5 Lettre s.d. indiquant l’envoi de l’émissaire Raphaël-Abraham Chalom Mizrahi en Allemagne; sur cet émissaire, cf. Abraham Yaari, Emissaires de la terre Sainte. Histoire de la mission du pays vers la diaspora de la destruction du Second Temple au XIXe siècle. Jérusalem 1951, réimpression 1977 [en hébreu] pp. 603, 713. 6 Sur cet éminent rabbin qui fut aussi émissaire en Turquie, Cf. Moshe David Gaon, Oriental Jews in Ereṣ Israʾel, Past and Present, Jérusalem 3ème éd. 2000 [en hébreu], p. 478 et Abraham Ya‘ari, cité supra pp. 567-568. 7 Lettre de La Haye, Letters of the Pěqidim § 79, t. I, pp. 146-147. 125 Les Pĕqide-Qushṭa La Haye le 24 février 1828 demande ainsi qu’on expédie un courrier par le premier coureur en partance pour la Terre Sainte. Istanbul transmet enfin à Amsterdam les documents issus de la Terre sainte.8 Le secrétariat du Comité d’Istanbul rédige la correspondance en italien — si l’on en croit le Comité hollandais —, mais dans un italien truffé de mots espagnols et qu’on ne comprend ni à La Haye ni à Amsterdam.9 Rappelons ici que Zvi Hirsch Lehren se trouve exilé d’Amsterdam à La Haye de 1823 à 1232 pour avoir ouvert une synagogue privée de rite Sefard: la gestion des Ămarkalim basés à Amsterdam est de ce fait plus lourde. Il faut faire traduire les lettres reçues d’Istanbul. Une lettre partie d’Istanbul 10 juin 1828 arrive — assez rapidement — le 9 juillet à Amsterdam, mais huit jours seront nécessaires pour la faire traduire en hébreu.10 Pour sa part, le 8 Lettre de La Haye à Simon Bresler, en yiddish, Letters of the Pěqidim § 200, t. II pp. 120-121 9 Sur une correspondance en italien reçue à La Haye, Letters of the Pěqidim, § 159 t I pp. 36-41. Les relations commerciales de l’Empire Turc avec l’Italie expliquent en partie cet emploi de l’Italien par les Pěqidim d’Istanbul, cf. Minna Rozen «Strangers in a Strange Land: the Extraterritorial Status of Jews in Italy and the Ottoman Empire in the Sixteenth to Eighteenth Century», dans In the Mediterranean Routes. The Jewish-Spanish Diaspora from the the Sixteenth to Eighteenth Centuries, Tel Aviv University, Chair for the History and Culture of the Jews of Salonika and Greece, 1993, pp. 24-64 [en hébreu]; une allusion à l’absorption de l’italien et du Yiddish dans le Judéo-espagnol par Ilber Ortayli, «Ottoman Jewry and the Turkish Language», dans Minna Rozen éd., The Late Ottoman Century and Beyond. The Jews in Turkey and the Balkans 1808-1945, t. II, Tel Aviv University, The Chair for the History and Culture of the Jews of Salonika and Greece, 2002 p. 132; le 11 octobre 1798, Mosé de Daniel Burla se fait délivrer par le chargé d’affaires de l’ambassade de Grande Bretagne à Istanbul une lettre de protection en italien, lettre publiée par Eliezer Bashan, «A Jewish Economic Elite in Eighteenth-Century Salonika—New documents on the Burla Family (1763-1793)» dans Minna Rozen éd., The Days of the Crescent. Chapters on the history of the Jews in the Ottoman Empire, Tel Aviv University, The Chair for the History and Culture of the Jews of Salonika and Greece, The Diaspora Research Institute 1996, p. 231. En fait l’élite de la société juive d’Istanbul, les Francos venus pour la plupart de Livourne au XVIIIe siècle, pratiquaient autant l’italien que le judéo-espagnol, cf. Abraham Galante, Histoire des Juifs d’Istanbul, Istanbul 1942 t. 2 pp. 213-314, Attilio Milano, Storia degli Ebrei italiani nel Levante, Florence 1949, Simon Schwarzfuchs, «Sulam Saloniki», Sefunot 15, 1971-1981, pp. 79-69. Cf. Aron Rodrigue «Abraham de Camondo of Istanbul: the transformation of Jewish Philanthropy», dans Frances Malino et David Sorkin, éd. From East and West: Jews in Changing Europe 1750-1870, Oxford Basic Blackwell 1990, pp. 45-56. 10 Lettre citée dans Letters of the Pěqidim § 249, t. II pp. 218-220. 126 Gérard Nahon Comité hollandais s’astreint à écrire en hébreu, en employant la cursive dite Rashi pratiquée par les Sépharades. Il faut compter entre deux et trois mois pour qu’une lettre partie de Hollande parvienne en Turquie. En fait Istanbul utilise ses propres réseaux de communication tandis qu’Amsterdam se sert de la poste. Une dizaine de lettres par an circulent dans les deux sens. Entre 1822 et 1827, le nouveau Comité semble n’avoir pas écrit à Istanbul. Aussi le 29 mars 1827 Hirsch Lehren envoie-t-il de La Haye un long rapport sur l’action des années écoulées. Le Comité d’Istanbul pourra ainsi prendre connaissance des réalisations de l’organisme dont il assume la direction.11 A la correspondance entretenue avec Amsterdam s’ajoutent des relations directes avec des agents des Ămarkalim de passage à Istanbul comme le rabbin Salomon- Zalman Shapira ou Simon Bresler.12 Le premier négociera avec le Waʿad leur garantie des traites signées au profit des Ashkenazim de Jérusalem et plus généralement les conditions du retour des Ashkenazim bannis de Jérusalem depuis l’assaut contre leur quartier en 1720. Une lettre que lui adresse de La Haye Hirsch Lehren le 2 ḥeshwan 5588 lui indique très longuement les enjeux et les voies de la négociation à mener auprès du Waʿad sépharade.13 Plus que toute autre, cette lettre montre à quel point les Ămarkalim ont conscience du pouvoir et des moyens dont dispose le Waʿad. Les Pěqidim d’Istanbul répondent brièvement aux longues lettres et aux demandes des Pěqidim hollandais. Ils ne se privent pas d’exprimer, le cas échéant, leur colère contre les décisions ou les choix de leurs lointains correspondants occidentaux. A cet égard une lettre en italien de mars 1828 à Hirsch Lehren — sans signature de Poliqaron Yerushalmi —, tire une police de 650 fl. En faveur de Tibériade signée Isaac Hattin à l’ordre de J. Comondo [sic] & Compagnie, Leon Adut à Vienne, à Aernickel & Gulcher à Vienne et à Coudrid & Branteer à Amsterdam. Cette lettre expose les malheurs de la Terre Sainte. Elle exhale sa colère, refuse de confirmer le pouvoir de Lehren, n’écrit pas les noms des destinataires d’Amsterdam, renvoie à la prochaine génération l’arrêt du système des émissaires. Comme le remarque fort justement Israel Bartal «Les Pěqidim de Constantinople soumirent à leur domination 11 Ce rapport relate la mort d’Isaac Chelebi Carmona, lettre du 19 mars 1827, Letters of the Pěqidim § 82, pp. 162-170. 12 Abraham Salomon Zalman Shapira, disciple de Hayim de Volozin fut émissaire des Perushim de Jérusalem; à Istanbul il s’employa à obtenir l’annulation de la dette ancienne des Ashkenazim de Jérusalem, cf. Ya‘ari, cité supra pp. 762, 770, 772, 782. 13 Letters of the Pěqidim §143 t. II, pp. 14-22. 127 Les Pĕqide-Qushṭa le système des émissaires mais ne l‘abolirent point».14 Conscients de leur capacité irremplaçable d’intervention auprès de la Sublime Porte en faveur des juifs de Terre Sainte, les Pěqidim soulignent à l’intention des leaders ashkénazes amstellodamois le fait qu’ils ont déboursé 100 ӑdummim pour l’obtention d’un firman autorisant des ashkénazes de Russie à vivre à Jérusalem, ils informent ces mêmes leaders de leurs démarches à Istanbul auprès du ministre de Prusse.15 II. Istanbul et la Communidad Judaica Portugueza d’Amsterdam Les dirigeants d’Istanbul ont en face d’eux une organisation qui représente un très grand nombre de communautés européennes, donc financièrement plus puissante que la Nation juive portugaise d’Amsterdam, leur interlocutrice depuis un siècle. Ils ont pratiquement affaire à Zvi Hirsch Lehren seul qui réside à La Haye tandis que le siège des Pěqide wa-Ămarkale de ʿAre ha-Qodesh se trouve à Amsterdam: c’est un rapport très personnalisé. Mais, à la différence des relations entretenues autrefois avec la Nation juive portugaise, il existe au niveau du langage une difficulté de communication dont se plaint Zvi Hirsch Lehren à Salomon Zalman Shapira. Hirsch Lehren ne comprend pas les lettres italiennes d’Istanbul et leur traduction ne le satisfait pas: «Ne nous écrivez pas dans la langue italienne que nous ne comprenons pas et nous avons besoin d’un traducteur. Il vaudrait mieux que vous ordonniez au secrétaire d’écrire en langue sainte» écrit-il le 11 juillet 1827.16 Il revient sur cette demande le 23 décembre 1827, précisant que son bureau amstellodamois dispose d’un secrétaire italophone, mais les lettres venues d’Istanbul sont truffées de mots espagnols: «ce n’est pas du bon italien pur que l’on connaît dans notre pays. De grâce ne nous écrivez désormais qu’en langue sainte».17 Quant à la Nation juive portugaise d’Amsterdam, elle reçoit la lista justifiant l’emploi des sommes envoyées à la Terre sainte, mais—écrit Lehren le 11 juillet 1828—les Pěqide wa-Ămarkale de ʿAre ha-Qodesh ne reçoivent aucune somme d’argent des Portugais. Cependant ils transmettent une copie de cette lettre 14 Joseph Joel et Benjamin Rivlin, Letters of the Pěqidim and Ămarcalim of Amsterdam 5589 Introduction d’Israel Bartal, Jérusalem 1978 [en hébreu] p. 15. 15 La Haye, 21 iyyar 5588, Letters of the Pěqidim § 219, t. II, pp. 149-152. 16 La Haye, 15 tammuz 5587, Letters of the Pěqidim § 107, p. 239. 17 La Haye, 5 ṭevet 5588, Letters of the Pěqidim § 159, II p. 38. 128 Gérard Nahon à ces mêmes Portugais et les invitent à s’associer à leurs efforts au profit de la Terre sainte. Les Parnassim des Portugais répondent positivement et envoient une polissa.18 Par ailleurs ces mêmes Parnassim adressent trois lettres aux Pěqidim d’Istanbul, lettres dont la teneur figure dans le Copiador de Cartas de la Nation juive Portugaise d’Amsterdam.19 Le 17 août 1827 une première lettre signée par Mozes Lopes Salzedo et J. Buenos de Mesquita annonce un envoi de fonds pour les quatre cités saintes provenant d’un legs d’Ab[raha]m et de Sara Pereira. Elle déclare avoir protesté une lettre de change en faveur de la yěshiva Magen David de Jérusalem, mettant en doute son authenticité. Cette même lettre aborde un sujet délicat relative à la candidature du rabbin Abraham Belais à la chaire rabbinique des Portugais d’Amsterdam. Son savoir étant reconnu tant par des attestations d’éminents rabbins, par des recommandations octroyées par Isaac Chelebi Bekhor Carmona, l’autorité communautaire par excellence d’Istanbul et même par des chrétiens, des méchants bruits courent sur ses mœurs. Les Parnassim d’Amsterdam prient le Waʿad d’Istanbul de les éclairer. Par une demande du même ordre postée par Ămarkalim le 26 août 1827 à Istanbul, il appert qu’un soupçon d’homosexualité, voire d’affiliation à la Franc-maçonnerie pèserait sur le personnage.20 La convergence de ces demandes des Ămarkalim ashkénazes et de la Nation Portugaise d’Amsterdam démontre que les Pěqidim d’Istanbul exercent encore en dernière analyse sur les uns et pour les autres une pré-éminence incontestée : ils détiennent le vrai. 18 La Haye, 11 av 5588, Letters of the Pěqidim § 249, II p. 218. 19 Sur le Copiador de Cartas, cf. G. Nahon, «Une source pour l’histoire de la diaspora sefarade au XVIIIe siècle: le Copiador de Cartas de la communauté portugaise d’Amsterdam», Proceedings of the First International Congress for the Study of the Sephardi and Oriental Jewry. Jérusalem 1981, pp. 109-122. Mme Odette Vlessing a bien voulu rechercher à mon intention dans les registres du Copiador ces lettres adressées à Istanbul et m’en adresser les photocopies: je lui en exprime ici ma très vive reconnaissance. 20 Amsterdam Stadsarchief Pa 334. 100 p. 402, infra document 1. Lettre des Ămarkalim du 3 ělul 5587, Letters of the Pěqidim § 120, t. I pp. 261-264. Sur la brillante carrière et les publications d’Abraham Belais, cf. David Cazes, Notes bibliographiques sur la littérature juive tunisienne Marseille, Editions Jazyber 1988 (réédition de l’ouvrage paru à Paris en 1893, avec une Préface de Charles Haddad et de Ady Steg), pp. 20-28. G. Levi, Rassegna Mensile di Israel 12 n° 3-4, 1937, pp. 129-162, Albert-M. Hyamson, The Sephardim of England. A History of the Spanish and Portuguese Jewish Community 1492-1951, Londres Methuen 1951, 19912. pp. 208-209, 291, David Corcos, «Belais(h), Abraham ben Shalom (1773-1853)», Encyclopædia Judaica 4 col. 412. Sur des Odes et prières hébraïques 129 Les Pĕqide-Qushṭa Une deuxième lettre des Portugais d’Amsterdam du 7 ab 5588, répond aux reproches formulés par les Pěqidim d’Istanbul. Ils réclament des secours substantiels en faveur des rabbins de Jérusalem accablés d’une atroce misère. Les temps ont changé: d’une part—écrivent-ils—nous n’avons plus le pouvoir d’exiger une contribution financière ad hoc des membres de la communauté portugaise, d’autre part nous ne pouvons puiser dans la caisse que pour le secours partiel de nos pauvres. A la suite des changements politiques consécutifs à la main mise française sur la Hollande et à la fin de l’autonomie de la Nation juive, son pouvoir sur ses membres s’amenuise en même temps que la misère s’accroit dans la communauté d’Amsterdam: Por lo que toca la representacion nos hizieron Vmds differientes vezes del miserables estado de los dichosos Hahamim, en Jerusalaim, sentimos con dolor de coraçon; pero hoy en dia no es como en tiempo passados, no pudimos pretender de los individuos de nuestra quehila, que contribuyessen por collecte o otra via para socorrer a estes miserables, pues los que antigam[en]te podian dar, lo que tienen no abasta para los pobres de la communidad, y de la caxa de la sedaca, no esta en nuestras manos, sino para ajudar en parte a nuestros povres, que aun es limitado bastante, de suerte que de ni una manera nos es possivel de dar a Vmds una respuesta favorable a su dezeo.21 Le comité stambouliote rappelant à l’ordre la Nation portugaise d’Amsterdam traduit sa ferme volonté de conserver son interlocuteur et son bailleur de fonds portugais, alors que les Ămarkalim ashkénazes imposent leur nouveau système de secours à la Terre sainte et leurs exigences. Un siècle de collaboration entre les Pěqidim d’Istanbul et les Portugais d’Amsterdam a créé des habitudes et des liens étroits en dépit des distances et des différences culturelles. Conscients de la réduction de leurs capacités financières et du déclin de leur pouvoir communautaire, l’une expliquant l’autre, les Parnassim des Portugais J. Mendes da Costa et M. Teixeire de Mattos répondent négativement aux objurgations d’Istanbul. Cette lettre du 7 ab 5588 [18 juillet 1728] traduites en français en l’honneur de S.M. Louis Philippe, Roi des Français, ainsi que de toute sa famille, par son serviteur Abraham Belais, ex-trésorier du Bey de Tunis, grand rabbin d’Alger et de Nice en 1835 [Paris, Bibliothèque Nationale de France Ya 971], cf. Jean-Marc Chouraqui, «Emancipation politique et tradition juive: quelques usages de la Bible et du Talmud au XIXe siècle d’après les rabbins de France», dans Danièle Iancu- Agou et Carol Iancu dir., L’écriture de l’histoire juive, Mélanges en l’honneur de Gérard Nahon, 2012 pp. 546-547. 21 Amsterdam Stadsarchief, Pa 334, 101 p. 35, infra doc. 2. 130 Gérard Nahon met pratiquement fin à leur prise en charge européenne du secours à la Terre sainte. Implicitement la Nation portugaise d’Amsterdam cède le gouvernail aux Ămarkalim ashkénazes d’Amsterdam qui s’en étaient emparé de facto dix-huit ans plus tôt. Bon gré mal gré, les Pěqidim d’Istanbul n’ont d’autre choix que de se soumettre à la tutelle des Ămarkalim. Leur correspondance avec les Ămarkalim dont l’écho nous parvient à travers les réponses de Zvi Hirsch Lehren traduit autant leur mauvaise humeur que leurs difficultés et leurs réticences à coopérer avec leur nouvel interlocuteur et à en adopter les méthodes. Sur deux points ils maintiennent leurs positions: l’usage entêté de l’italien dans leurs lettres, le soutien aux émissaires dont les Ămarkalim entendent supprimer les tournées pour une meilleure efficacité financière. Le 13 ḥeshwan 5589 [21 octobre 1828], une troisième lettre—en fait B[aruch] Texeira de Mattos la signe seul—annonce un virement de 603 florins, plus un reliquat de 180 florins sur le legs précédemment cité d’Ab[raha]m et de Sara Pereira. Teixera de Mattos. La lettre s’étend aussi longuement sur la manière d’adresser le courrier. Elle récuse l’appellation Diputati de Terra Santa accolée aux noms des Parnassim Moseh Teixeira de Mattos et Jacob Mendes da Costa, ainsi que l’indication nominative des destinataires des lettres d’Istanbul, elle requiert l’intitulé exclusif—nouveau depuis la disparition de la Nation consécutive à l’exportation de la Révolution française en Hollande — de Parnassim de la Communidad Judaica Portugueza.22 Mauvaise humeur motivée par la création en Hollande d’un organisme ashkénaze auto-proclamé pour la Terre Sainte? Amertume d’avoir perdu un pouvoir financier et politique? Par delà les motivations possibles, cette mise en garde formelle trahit un fait brut: en refusant jusqu’à la qualité de Diputati de Terra Santa, les Parnassim cèdent explicitement leur fonction séculaire.23 Entre ces lignes, les Pěqidim d’Istanbul liront leur abandon explicite au profit des frères Lehren qui justement se sont arrogé le titre et la fonction. Une divergence majeure sépare bientôt les nouvelles autorités ashkénazes d’Amsterdam et celles d’Istanbul. Elle concerne la cheville ouvrière des collectes d’argent, les émissaires de la Terre Sainte, ces rabbins chargés de solliciter partout des secours pour les villes saintes. Ces voyages coûtent très cher et la dépense vient 22 Amsterdam Stadsarchief Pa 334, 101 p. 50. 23 Sur la perte de pouvoir des Parnassim de la communauté portugaise et sur la pauvreté à Amsterdam cf. R.G. Fuks-Mansfeld, «Enlightenment and Emancipation from c. 1750 to 1814» et «Arduous Adaptation, 1814-1870», dans J.C.H. Blom, R.G. Fuks-Mansfeld and I. Schöffer, The History of the Jews in the Netherlands, Oxford, Portland, Oregon, The Littman Library of Jewish Civilization 2002, pp. 164-229. 131 Les Pĕqide-Qushṭa en déduction des sommes parvenant effectivement en Terre Sainte. Au XVIIIe siècle déjà plusieurs communautés avaient adopté des règlements pour limiter et décourager les tournées des émissaires. Elles proposaient de remplacer ces missions par des transferts bancaires afin de réserver aux cités saintes tout l’argent recueilli. Dans cette veine, Hirsch Lehren décide de supprimer purement et simplement les tournées des émissaires palestiniens en Europe. Il communique cette décision aux responsables de Terre Sainte ainsi qu’au Comité d’Istanbul. Pour des raisons évidentes, les cités saintes rejettent sa décision et Istanbul ne répond pas aux longues lettres de Lehren à ce sujet. Mieux, dans une lettre écrite vers la fin de l’année 1826—lettre citée dans une lettre de La Haye du 29 mars 1827—Istanbul annonce l’envoi en Allemagne de l’émissaire Raphaël-Abraham Chalom Mizrahi, un kabbaliste sépharade fils de Isaac Mizrahi et petit-fils de Shalom Sharʿabi. La mission prévue tourne court car le rabbin meurt à Jérusalem le 25 kislew 5587.24 Dans une lettre du 15 novembre 1828 les Pěqidim d’Istanbul récidivent et envoient de nouveaux émissaires avant même de répondre aux arguments d’Amsterdam au sujet de ces missions.25 Pour Amsterdam, l’entêtement des Pěqidim résulte d’une résistance opposée par les scribes d’Istanbul qui gagnent leur vie en écrivant les lettres d’accréditation des émissaires: ils tirent profit de l’écriture de la lettre des émissaires et du traitement de leurs actes».26 Le 8 novembre 1826, mécontents des décisions unilatérales de Hirsch Lehren, les rabbins de Jérusalem déclarent explicitement qu’ils ne le reconnaissent plus comme leur fondé de pouvoir. Lehren proteste contre leur attitude et bloque le départ vers Istanbul des sommes d’argent promises jusqu’à ce que Jérusalem change d’attitude.27 Cependant le Comité d’Istanbul présente—sans le visa d’Amsterdam—la polissa à l’encaissement. Lehren procède au paiement mais menace de laisser la prochaine traite impayée si Jérusalem et Istanbul ne reviennent pas sur leur position.28 24 25 décembre 1826, Letters of the Pěqidim § 82 pp. 162-170. 25 Citée dans une lettre d’Amsterdam du 17 janvier 1728 § 183, t. I pp. 66-68. 26 Letters of the Pěqidim § 159 p. 37. 27 Lettre de Jérusalem citée dans une lettre de la Haye du 1er tammuz 1728., Letters of the Pěqidim § 236 pp. 189-197 n°236 refusant de confirmer les pouvoirs d’Amsterdam. 28 Dans la lettre publiée dans les Letters of the Pěqidim § 260 t. II pp. 235-237. 132 Gérard Nahon III. Les pěqidé Qushṭa et les méthodes askhkénazes Le système des dons volontaires transmis à Jérusalem par l’intermédiaire des Pěqidé Qushṭa continue dans la relation entre les Pěqidé Qushṭa et les Portugais d’Amsterdam. Le système sépharade n’est donc pas complètement abandonné. Cependant voit le jour un nouveau réseau de communautés ashkénazes dirigé par les frères Lehren. La nouvelle organisation fonde des comités locaux, rationalise et centralise les appels de fonds pour la Terre Sainte. L’initiative de l’organisation de l’aide financière s’est déplacée vers l’Occident sous un leadership ashkénaze. Le fonctionnement du système durant les années 1827-1828 se ressent d’obstacles imputables aux distances, à la langue, au poids des habitudes, aux différences de mentalités. Les Ămarkalim entreprennent de rationaliser et d’accélérer leurs méthodes de collecte et de transfert des fonds et des informations. Afin de gagner du temps et améliorer la compréhension entre Amsterdam et Istanbul ils veulent employer l’hébreu comme langue unique de correspondance. Istanbul fait la sourde oreille et continue de faire rédiger son courrier en italien, tout en exigeant qu’Hirsch Lehren écrive en caractères Rashi, c’est-à-dire dans la graphie sépharade dans la correspondance à leur intention. Il obtempère mais confesse qu’il s’y habitue difficilement. Afin d’obtenir une réduction des dépenses,29 les Ămarkalim s’entêtent à abolir le système des émissaires, lequel établissait en fait une relation physique entre la Terre Sainte et les communautés de la Diaspora. Face à cette stratégie offensive de l’Occident, l’Orient répond en manifestant une activité redoublée jointe à une certaine inertie. Le Comité stambouliote réclame des secours de plus en plus conséquents, exagérant au besoin la misère de la Terre Sainte. Il transmet les polices et les fonds et présente ses traites à l’encaissement sans trop se soucier des formes requises. Est-ce le même comité ou des personnalités influentes du judaïsme stambouliote qui interviennent efficacement en faveur des Ashkénazes de Jérusalem? 29 De l’exigence des Ămarkalim sur l’emploi exclusif de l’hébreu dans la correspondance témoignent plusieurs lettres dont celles du § 159, II pp. 35-41, exigeant des lettres hébraïques en écriture Rashi, «qu’Istanbul n’écrive pas en italien truffé d’espagnol que nous ne comprenons pas», et celle La Haye du 22 juillet 1828, arguant engager un scribe hébréophone écrivant en Rashi à l’exemple des Pěqidim de Terre Sainte, § 249. II pp. 218-220. 133 Les Pĕqide-Qushṭa Un malheur supplémentaire s’abattit sur la Sainte Communauté des Ashkénazes de la Ville Sainte Jérusalem— qu’elle soit rebâtie bientôt et de nos jours — du fait qu’ils étaient depuis longtemps à l’ombre des ailes du consul de Russie. Or une dissension s’est produite entre le Togar [l’empire ottoman] et la Russie et l’on a voulu les chasser de la Ville Sainte. Grâce au Ciel, [les juifs ou le Waʿad]] s’entremirent à Constantinople auprès du ministre de Russie [pour obtenir] un firman ou un arrêt du vizir du Sultan [permettant aux Ashkénazes de résider paisiblement en la Ville Sainte]. Dieu soit loué, ils parvinrent à leurs fins, mais il leur fallut dépenser pour cela à Istanbul plus de cent ădummim.30 D’autre part Istanbul continue à écrire en italien, à moins que ce ne soit en espagnol. Istanbul remet régulièrement des lettres de créances aux émissaires en partance pour l’Europe, en ignorant le refus délibéré du nouveau Comité hollandais et des comités affiliés de les recevoir et de leur remettre de l’argent. De part et d’autre, on use de menaces et de mesures de rétorsion. La prise en mains des besoins matériels des cités saintes par l’Europe Occidentale commence à se concrétiser dans l’incompréhension, les oppositions, les rapports de force. Dans la perspective d’une ḥӑluqqa augmentant obligatoirement, les deux comités sont condamnés à s’entendre. Istanbul a besoin des ressources financières désormais contrôlées par Amsterdam. Amsterdam est tributaire d’Istanbul relais incontournable entre l’Occident et la Terre Sainte. Certes dans le long terme, comme le soutient Israel Bartal «la puissance de l’organisme des Pěqidim de Constantinople s’affaiblit considérablement»31 mais dans le court et le moyen terme, conscients des atouts qu’ils détiennent, les Pěqidim opposent une résistance efficace—dans des termes parfois violents—aux tentatives des Ămarkalim pour imposer leur hégémonie et leur programme. 30 Letters of the Pěqidim du 28 sivan 5588, 10 juin 1828, adressée au rabbin berlinois Jacob- Joseph, t. II § 234, p. 188. Selon Jacob Barnai, en 1756 107 ădummim correspondaient à 429 piastres, The Jews in Ereṣ Isra’el [hébreu] cité supra p. 299. Selon Izhak Ben-Zvi, Ereṣ Isra’el under Ottoman Rule, Jérusalem 1969 p. 466, il s’agit du ducat vénitien et florentin dit en hébreuĂdom-zahav , rouge-or. 31 Joseph Joel et Benjamin Rivlin, Letters of the Pěqidim and Ămarkalim of Amsterdam 5589 Introduction d’Israel Bartal, Jérusalem 1978 [en hébreu] p. 13. 134 Gérard Nahon 1 Lettres envoyées par les Ămarkalim d’Amsterdam à Istanbul Les numéros renvoient à ceux de l’édition Joseph Joel et Benjamin Rivlin, Letters of the Pěqidim and Ămarkalim of Amsterdam 5586-5587, I et II Jérusalem 1965 et 1970. § 79, pp. 146-157, 9 ӑdar 5587, 8 mars 1827, La Haye. Istanbul achemine les lettres vers Jérusalem; Salomon-Moïse Suzin tire une polissa (en italien) sur les Pěqidim, paiement en français. § 82, pp. 162-170, fin ӑdar 5587, 29 mars 1827, La Haye. Zvi Hirsch Lehren: long rapport. Mort d’Isaac Chelebi Bekhor Carmona le 15 juillet 1826. Annonce de l’impression d’une lettre des rabbins hollandais. § 87. pp. 189-190, 13 nisan 5587, 10 avril 1827. Les banquiers Abraham et Nissim Foa envoient un coureur en Palestine; ils acheminent les lettres imprimées venues d’Amsterdam. § 107. pp. 238-239, 16 tammuz 5587, 11 juillet 1827 La Haye. Istanbul présente une polissa sans visa, écrit ses lettres en italien; requis d’écrire en hébreu, n’adresse pas d’accusés de réception. § 120. pp. 261-264, 3 ělul 5587, 26 août 1827, La Haye. Aux Pěqidim dont Isaac Hattim. Requête d’information sur le rabbin Abraham Belais; les Pěqidim ne se servent pas de la poste. Istanbul refuse son accord à la suppression des tournées des émissaires. § [143], II, pp. 14-22, 2 ḥeshwan 5588, 23 octobre 1827 La Haye. Lettre à Salomon Zalman Shapira correspondant à Istanbul; que les Pěqidim contresignent les traites des sépharades § [158]. II p. 35, 5 teveṭ 5588, 23 décembre 1827. A Simon Bresler, correspondant à Istanbul. § [159], II pp. 35-41, t 5 teveṭ 5588, 23 décembre 1827 La Haye. Lettre à Salomon Zalman Shapira; Istanbul a dissimulé une réponse de Jérusalem. Istanbul exige des lettres hébraïques en écriture Rashi. Istanbul n’admet pas la position d’Amsterdam sur l’arrêt de la mission. Leur sofer défend son gagne-pain. Qu’Istanbul n’écrive pas en italien truffé d’espagnol que nous ne comprenons pas; délais trop longs: 1er tammuz-1er ělul; le trajet d’une lettre dure normalement deux mois, un temps qui peut se réduire à vingt jours. 135 Les Pĕqide-Qushṭa § 183. II pp. 66-68, 1er shěvaṭ 5588, 17 janvier 1828. On demande à Istanbul de formuler correctement l’adresse du destinataire de la correspondance; que cette correspondance soit rédigée en hébreu. §[185], II pp. 72-73, 5 shěvaṭ 5588, 21 janvier 1828. Lettre à Salomon Zalman Shapira. Zvi Hirsch Lehren fait savoir à Istanbul le mécontentement de ses collègues; il se fatigue à écrire en écriture Rashi, la cursive sépharade. § [200], II pp. 12-121, 7 ӑdar 5528, 22 février La Haye. Lettre en yiddish à Simon Bresler. § 201, II, pp. 121-122, 9 ӑdar 5528, 24 février 1828 La Haye. Sur le premier coursier chargé de lettres pour la Terre Sainte. § 219, II pp. 149-152, 21 Iyar 5528, 15 mai 1828, La Haye. Obéissance exigée. § 236. II pp. 189-197, La Haye. Lettre à Salomon Zalman Shapira. Amsterdam retiendra l’argent tant que Jérusalem n’aura pas restauré sa nomination. On a écrit longuement au Waʿad d’Istanbul sur l’abolition de la mission, et, en attendant, l’espacement des tournées de dix ans en dix ans. Tout l’argent récolté entre dans la caisse de Terre Sainte à Istanbul (p. 191). Istanbul doit arbitrer entre Jérusalem et Amsterdam. Shapira achète des livres pour Lehren. § 249. II pp. 218-220, 11 av 5588, 22 juillet 1828 La Haye. Lehren réclame encore un courrier hébraïque. Le scribe stamboulite ne comprend pas nos lettres; engagez un scribe hébréophone écrivant en Rashi à l’exemple des Pěqidim de Terre Sainte; le courrier aller-retour dure deux mois; exagération de la misère des rabbins de Terre sainte . § 260. II pp. 235-237, 12 ělul 5588, 22 août, Amsterdam. Colère contre Istanbul qui tire des polices sans permission. 136 Gérard Nahon 2 Lettres envoyées par le Waʿad d’Istanbul aux Ămarkalim, citées dans les précédentes 1. 12 siwan 5584, 8 juin 1824, (dans § 82). La Waʿad réclame et obtient un rapport d’activité depuis de 1821-1822; citation de cette lettre— considérée comme exagérée – dans le § 159 II p. 36. 2 s.d. (dans § 82). Lettre annonçant l’envoi l’envoi de l’émissaire Raphaël-Abraham Chalom Mizrahi en Allemagne. 3. e s.d. (dans § 82). Lettre exprimant l’irritation d’Istanbul. 4. 10 mai 1827 (dans § 107). Envoi de deux polissas sans visa. 5. 8 iyyar 5587, 5 mai 1827 (dans § 120). Manque la signature de Poliqaron Jerushalmi. 6. 1er tammuz 5587, 30 juin 1827 (dans § 120). 7. 1er av 5586, 4 août 1826 (dans § 120). 8. Fin iyyar 5587, 28 mai 1827 (citation dans t. II § 159 p. 37). Sur la suppression des tournées des émissaires: Istanbul a consulté à ce sujet les quatre cités saintes. 9. 1er av 5587 25 juillet 1827 (dans § 158). Lettre de Simon Bresler. 10. 25 septembre 1827(dans § 159) arrivée le 20 kislew, 20 décembre 1827. Lettre répondant au n° 17 en italien transmettant les plaintes de Jérusalem. Réponse § 183. 11. 8 ḥeshwan 5587, 8 novembre 1826. Lettre de Jérusalem citée dans § 236) refusant de confirmer les pouvoirs d’Amsterdam. 12. 25 ḥeshwan 5588, 15 novembre 1828 (dans § 183). Le Waʿad envoie des émissaires mais ne répond pas un mot aux reproches d’Amsterdam. 13. 10 et 26 moi [?] mars 1828 (dans §° 219). Lettres en italien adressées à Amsterdam ou à La Haye à Zvi Hirsch Lehren, sans la signature de Polikhron Jerushalmi. Le Waʿad tire une police de 650 fl. pour Tibériade 32 Il s’agit du frère ainé d’Abraham de Camondo, Isaac qui développa la banque dans les premières années du XIXe siècle, cf. Aron Rodrigue, art. cit. supra n. 18 137 Les Pĕqide-Qushṭa signée Isaac Hattin à l’ordre de J. Comondo32 & Comp., Leon Adut à Vienne, Aernickel & Gulcher à Vienne, Coudrid & Branteer à Amsterdam. Cette lettre décrit les malheurs de la Terre sainte. Elle exprime sa colère et refuse de confirmer le pouvoir de Lehren. N’inscrit pas les noms des destinataires d’Amsterdam et déclare: «à la prochaine génération cessera l’envoi des émissaires». 14. s.d. extraits dans § 231 p. 175, § 234 p. 188. Sur la lettre sur la détresse de Jérusalem; on a payé 100 ӑdummim pour obtenir un firman autorisant les ashkénazes de Russie à vivre à Jérusalem, démarches à Istanbul avec le ministre de Prusse. 15. & 16. 25 avril et 27 mai 1828 (dans § 249). Dans la deuxième lettre la lista [des bénéficiaires des envois de fonds en Terre sainte] concerne en fait la communauté portugaise à laquelle on a écrit. 17. 10 juin 1828 arrivée le 27 tammuz, 9 juillet (dans § 249). Huit jours de traduction de cette lettre. Recherches sur Simon Bresler; décès de Raphaël Poliqaron. 18. 1828 s.d. (dans § 260). Les Pěqidim ont tiré sans notre aval des polissas sur nous pour la Terre Sainte se plaignent des Pěqidim: «vous dépouillez les pauvres pour les réduire à votre volonté». 138 Gérard Nahon 3 Lettre de la communauté portugaise d’Amsterdam au Waʿad d’Istanbul Amsterdam, Stadsarchief Pa 334.100 p. 402. Amsterdam, 17 agosto 1827 A los Yllustrissimos S[eño]res Pěkidim de T[ierr]a S[ant]a en Constantinopola Muy Yllustres S[eño]res, A vuelta de la presente hallaran Vmds la cuenta de los legados y reditos que prosseden del año bissexto 5586 que pone a su buena disposicion f. 597, 80 c para las quatro Quehilot. Igualmente pueden Vmds disponer del legado de Ab[raha]m y Sara Pereire f. 180. 40. Havera algunos mezes nos fue presentada una lettra de fl. 300 del legado deMagen David, pero falta de avizo, la dexamos protestar por ignorar se era authentica. Devemos ahora, S[eño]res nuestros, importunar a Vmds para que sean servidos de nos render un gran servicio, visto que se halla en nuestra cidad un rabino que se llama Ab[raha]m Belais, nacido em Tunis y que fungio como Rab en la quehila de Nissa durante siete años y, segun por las attestaciones parece, es hombre de gran capacidad y gran Talmid Haham; dicho rabbino dezea occupar este eminente cargo en nuestra Santa Quehila, y por cierto nos seria de gran consuelo de verlo occupado por una persona digna della, y pudiera ser que le hallariamos en este sujeto; pero, no obstante que sea munido de las mejores attestaciones de Hahamim, de particulares judios y mismamente de Christianos, personas de grande distinccion, nos fue advertido que su character moral no es tan limpio, como necessita ser para servir tan eminente cargo, y experimentamos, que la mas grave accusacion relative su moralidad es que, antes de partir de Constantinopola, adonde estuve, havera diez o doze años el B[ien] A[venturado] y exelentissimo S[eño]r Carmona33 se vide reduzido a echarlo de su caza por motivo de grande importancia vileza, y que lo que mas admira es 33 Tchélébi Béhor Isaac-David Carmona banquier influent d’Istanbul sous le règne de Mahmoud II qui le fit assassiner le 15 juillet 1826: un émouvant poème en judéo-espagnol relate sa fin tragique, Moise Franco,Essai sur l’histoire des Israélites de l’Empire Ottoman depuis les origines jusqu’à nos jours. Paris 1897, pp. 131-139, Salomon A. Rozanes Histoire des Juifs de Turquie et du Moyen Orient, Tel Aviv-Sofia-Jérusalem 1945 t. VI, pp. 64-67 [en hébreu]. Informé du drame, Hirsch Lehren fait part de son émotion aux Pěqide Qushṭa en ădar 5587, mars 1827, Letters of the Pěqidim and Ămarcalim, I § 82, pp. 162-170. 139 Les Pĕqide-Qushṭa que dicho Rabbino produxo tres cartas, mui recommandables, firmado por dicho S[eño]r Carmona, de suerte que no sabemos lo que pensar desto, y tenemos menester delucidacion de parte vuestras mercedes para saber con certeza lo que hay del cazo, y ansi les rogamos, con toda veneracion, sean servidos de aclarar nuestros ojos, afin de descubrir si es la imbidia y blasphemia que saca mala fama, o si estas advertencias sean bien fundadas y communicadas por amor de la verdad, afim de prevenir que un indigno no sea realeado [?] en posto tan eminente por desdicho de la quehila, y lo que es de nuestra obligacion de prevenir. Perdonen sus mercedes nuestro importuno, Vmds mismos sentiran el pezo del cazo, y nos diran con toda la impartialidad lo que sucedio, sea para bien, o para mal por cuja merced nos favoreceran al extremo y imploramos al D[io] Bendito por la conservacion de sua dignas personas y familias por muchos y largos años. Veneradores de Vmds como Parnassim de la Communidad Judaica Portugueza, Mozes Lopes Salzedo J. B[uenos] de Mesquita. 140 Gérard Nahon 4 Lettre de la communauté portugaise d’Amsterdam au Waʿad d’Istanbul Amsterdam, Stadsarchief PA 334, 101 p. 35. Amsterdam 7 ab 5588 [18 juillet 1828] A los Illustres señores Pequidim de T[ierr]a S[sant]a en Constantinopola Muy dignissimos s[eño]res, La prezente sirve para les enviar la quenta de los legados para las quatro quehilot del a[ñ]° 5587 montante f. 603, 22 ½ corriente de Hollanda, de cujas sommas Vmd puede disponer como accustumbrado segun su voluntad, ansi mismo de f. 30. 40 del legado de Ab[raha]m y Sara Pereira. Por lo que toca la representacion nos hizieron Vmds differientes vezes del miserable estado de los desdichosos Hahamim en Jerusalaim, sentimos con dolor de coraçon; pero hoy en dia no es como en tiempo passados, no pudimos pretender de los individuos de nuestra quehila que contribuyessen por collecte o otra via para socorrer a estes miserables: pues los que antigam[en]te podian dar, lo que tienen no abasta para los pobres de la communidad, y de la caxa de la sědaqa, no esta en nuestras manos, sino para ajudar en parte a nuestros povres, que aun es limitado bastante, de suerte que de ni una manera nos es possivel de dar a Vmd una respuesta favorable a su dezeo. D[io]s se apiade de lo infelices y buelbe la afflicion y gran necessidad en alegria y prosperiad y guarde a Vmds y sus nobles familias por muchos años como le dezean con toda veneracion. Servidores de Vmds como Parnassim R.J[acob]. Mendes da Costa M[oseh]. Teixeire de Mattos 141 Les Pĕqide-Qushṭa 5 Lettre de la communauté portugaise d’Amsterdam au Waʿad d’Istanbul Amsterdam, Stadsarchief Pa 334, 101 p. 50. En 15 heshvan 5589 [23 octobre 1828] A los Yllustres S[eño]res Pěkidim de T[ierr]a S[ant]a a Constantinopola Muy dignissimos s[eño]res, Despues de haver avizado a Vmds por carta de 7 Ab A[ño] p[assado] que podian disponer sobre nosotros de f. 603, 22 segun la cuenta para las quatro quehilot, que enviamos al mismo tiempo, y mas f. 180, 40 del legado de Ab[raha]m y Sara Pereira, nos fue communicado por el s[eño]r Moseh Teixeira de Mattos que Vmds sacaran una letra de f. 783, 62 ½ sobre dicho s[eño]r y Jacob Mendes da Costa, como Diputati de Terra Santa, y siendo que esto es una cosa estraña a dichos s[eño]res que no tienen tal titulo, y aun menos la minima relacion con los assuntos de Tierra S[an]ta ni con Vmds, dexaron passar protesto de acetacion y pagamiento lo que mucho sentimos oir, aun que sea originado por haver Vmds olvidado lo que repetidas veces les avizamos de dirigir las cartas que nos escriben y las lettras que nos sacan, sin nombre de personas, pero solamente a nuestro titulo de Parnassim de la Communidad Judaica Portugueza, [y no] observando esto, semejantes desapuntos no podran succeder en lo futuro. Dichos S[eño]res Mendes da Costa y Teixeira de Mattos nos dexaron tomar lectura de la carta los dirigieron Vmds em 8 7bro 1828, y vimos por ella que se hallan Vmd en ignorancia de los pagamientos hizimos de los años 5584 y 5585 causado por indisposicion del diffunto escrivano, pero devemos observar a Vmds que yeron en esto, siendo que pagamos por el año 5584 f. 115, 72 ½; 5585 617, 65; 5586 597, 80. De suerte que las cuentas ultimam[en]te enviadas son verdaderamente del año 5587, no dudamos que, despues de haver hecho perquisicion, seran persuadidos de la veracidad desta informacion. Y bolviendo a recommendar a Vmds que observan lo que acabamos de prevenirles tocante la direccion de sus lettras y cartas a nosotros, afin de no estar expuesto a encuentros desagradables, rogamos al Dio Bendito g[uar]de a Vmds por muchos y felices años como les annuncian. Veneradores de Vmds, Parnassim de la Communidad Judaica Portugueza F[irmado] B. Teixeira de Mattos 142 Eliezer Papo Iberian Catholic Elements in Bosnian and Moroccan Judeo-Spanish Refraneros Eliezer Papo Ben-Gurion University of the Negev Introduction Following the 1492 expulsion from Spain, the Spanish (later in the text Sephardic) Jews scattered all over the world, carrying with them (among other things) their Iberian oral culture. Many of the expellees found a safe haven in the provinces of the then ever-growing, new world’s superpower, the Ottoman Empire, which happily embraced the influx of this eminently urban, highly professional, and skilled man- power as an unexpected blessing from Heaven. Others expellees opted for the immediate vicinity, migrating to northern Morocco (which will prove to be a better choice than neighboring Catholic countries) or to Portugal (where they were forcefully converted a few years later, this time even without the option of leaving the country to remain in one’s faith). Both groups that were spared forced baptism to Catholicism, namely the Ottoman and the North Moroccan Sephardim, have kept their distinctive Judeo-Hispanic character until our own times. This has been, primarily, through the preservation of their vernacular daily language and through the perpetuation of its rich oral culture. One of the oral genres that has remained dominant in Sephardic culture to this very day is, certainly, the genre of refranes or proverbs. During their five- hundred-year-long separation, both Sephardic groups, the Ottoman1 and the 1 For an exhaustive study on Ottoman Sephardic refranero see, for example, Tamar Alexander, ‘Words are better than Bread’: Studies in Ladino Proverbs Ben-Gurion University Press and Ben-Zvi Institute, Jerusalem 2004 [in Hebrew] 143 Iberian Catholic Elements in Bosnian and Moroccan JS Refraneros North-Moroccan2 Jews produced many new proverbs. Some of these were a Judeo- Spanish translation or an adaptation of local (Balkan or Moroccan) sayings, while others were produced by the ethnic group itself. Yet, the overwhelming majority of proverbs in both traditions stem from their common Iberian roots, some of which are shared with all speakers of different Iberian (especially Castilian) dialects, while others were particular to the Jewish population of the peninsula (to this category belong translations of non-biblical Hebrew and Aramaic proverbs deriving mostly from Rabbinic literature).3 Some of the mentioned common Iberian elements have an apparent Catholic origin, and the sole role of this study is to analyze the appearance of these eminently Catholic proverbs among the Sephardim in the Muslim Morocco and in the Muslim-dominated Ottoman Empire. As representative of the extensive Ottoman refranero, one single tradition was chosen as a point of reference: the Bosnian. Being the most northern autochthonous Sephardic tradition and also being an eminently continental one (Bosnia of the time did not have ports and Bosnian Jews did not live in them), Bosnian Sephardic common masses did not have much contact with their Moroccan brethren or with their common country of origin. No less important, during the first few centuries of Sephardic presence in Bosnia most of the Jews were concentrated in Sarajevo, where they have developed strong relations with the two biggest local communities: Muslims and Orthodox Serbs (whose liturgical language is Church Slavonic and not Latin). Catholic Croat presence in Sarajevo was not that numerous until the Austro-Hungarian occupation in 1878. Moreover, even the Catholics who lived in Sarajevo and were acquainted with Bosnian Sephardim were of Slavic stock and did not speak any Roman language (even if they prayed in Latin, without understanding much of what they said). Therefore, any residual Catholic elements in traditional Bosnian Judeo-Spanish refranero should be seen as traces of pre-Expulsion traditions and not as a result of local influences. Consequently, a comparison of these two Jewish ex-Iberian proverbial traditions might provide us with a usable criterion for a more precise dating of the absorption of Catholic elements in different Sephardic proverbial repertoires, helping us better define which of its 2 For a thorough study of the North Moroccan Sephardic refranero see, for example, Tamar Alexander and Yaakov Bentolila, La Palabra en su hora es oro: El refrán judeo-español en el Norte de Marruecos, Instituto Ben Zvi, Jerusalem 2008 [in Hebrew and Spanish]. 3 For the relations between the Ottoman Sephardic refranero and Hebrew/Aramaic sources, see, for example, Alexander (Note 1), pp. 207-257. For the relations between the Moroccan Sephardic refranero and Hebrew/Aramaic sources, see, for example, Alexander and Bentolila (Note 2), pp. 51-72. 144 Eliezer Papo elements could and should be seen as pertaining to some common, pre-exile Iberian tradition and which should be viewed as a result of post-exilic linguistic and cultural contacts of certain Sephardic communities (primarily the Moroccan one, due to geographic proximity) with their old Iberian motherland. As far as Bosnian Sephardic refranero is concerned, I have consulted more than 1,500 proverbs presented in eight different collections which embody this tradition. For the examination of Moroccan Sephardic tradition I have used 1,200 proverbs that were provided to me by Prof. Tamar Alexander and Prof. Yaakov Bentolila, even before their monograph on the subject was completed. I use this opportunity to thank both for their academic altruism. At the beginning of this study, I assumed that there should exist a firm shared base of Catholic Iberian elements in both refraneros, which would prove that most of them (if not all of them) were incorporated in these two traditions before their separation, in other words before the Expulsion. However, during the research I’ve discovered that my assumptions and the reality were not even remotely related. First of all, in both refraneros, in a corpus of almost 3000 proverbs I’ve discovered only ten proverbs of an evident Catholic origin or inspiration. To my great surprise, none of them coincided in both traditions. Out of ten mentioned proverbs, three were found in Bosnian Sephardic refranero and additional seven were found in the Moroccan one. Catholic elements in Bosnian Sephardic Refranero One of the most Christian proverbs in Bosnian Sephardic proverbial tradition says: Salir de Herodes y entrar en Pilatus.4 To get out from Herod and enter to Pilatus. Its Iberian parallel, attested by Gonzalo Correas Íñigo, in his famous Vocabulario de refranes y frases proverbiales from 1627 reads as follows: Andar de Herodes a Pilatos.5 To go from Herod to Pilatus. 4 Žamila Kolonomos, Proverbs and Sayings of the Sephardi Jews of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Federation of Jewish Communities in Yugoslavia, Belgrade 1976, proverb 1026. 5 Gonzalo Correas, Vocabulario de refranes y frases proverbiales (1627), Edición de Louis Combet, revisada por Robert James y Maïte Mir-Andreu, Editorial Castalia, Madrid 2000, proverb 1837, p. 86. 145 Iberian Catholic Elements in Bosnian and Moroccan JS Refraneros The proverb is accompanied by the following explanation by Correas: Cuando se anda a negociar con When going to negotiate with different diferentes personas en diversas partes; people, in different parts; and if it is with y si con juez, letrado, procurador y a judge, man of letters, procurator and escribano, viene mejor acomodada la notary, the metaphor of the Passion is metáfora de la Pasión. quite adequate. Both variants refer to two new-testamental personalities: Herod, the Tetriarch, and Pontius Pilatus, the Roman Procurator of Judah and to their role in the trile of Jesus. In Herod’s palace Jesus was condemned to a capital punishment. Later, Jesus was taken to an additional trile, at Pilatus, where the same punishment was confirmed. In Bosnian Sephardic tradition this proverb is used to describe perpetual deterioration. The mere fact that this proverb (at least until recently) was frequently used amongst Bosnian Sefaradim shows that one does not need to understand the meaning or know the ethimology of all the elements of a proverb in order to use it in a proper manner and context. Until the XX century, and the modern western education which it brought about, most of Bosnian Sephardim did not really know who were Herod or Pontius Pilatus. However, though, this did not prevent them from applying the proverb in proper situations. It is arguable that those Bosnian males who were versed in Rabbinc literature might have known who the King Herod was, but even they would have dificulties in recognising the other protagonist of the new-testamental story on Jesus’s trial. Still, hoewever, this evidently Catholic proverb was used in an eminently Jewish microculture in a predominantly Muslim context. Two other Bosnian Sephardic proverbs of an apparent Catholic origin represent references to Latin liturgy. The firsty one reads: Al fin se canta la gloria.6 [Only] At the end the “Glory” is sung. Both, Correas and Sebástian de Horozco (in his El libro de los proverbios glosados), brings identical wording, followed by these two explanations: Porque al fin de cada salmo se canta Because at the end of every Psalm Gloria “Gloria Patri, et Filio, et Spiritui Sancto” Patri, et Filio, et Spiritui Sancto, is sung, by por ordenación de San Dámaso, papa ordination of San Damaso, Spanish Pope; 6 Kolonomos (Note 4), proverb 40. 146 Eliezer Papo español; por metáfora se aplica el metaphorically it means: the premium is premio después del trabajo y semejantes received after the job is done etc. cosas.7 In the church, at the end of each Psalm Al fin de cada psalmo se canta enla Gloria Patri, et Filio, etc. is sung, and iglesia, Gloria Patri et Filio etc., from there came this popular saying: de donde provino este vulgar que al At the end the glory is sung, which fin se canta la gloria el qual se dize means that by the end of person’s life, y aplica, porque al fin de la vida de everyone receives the glory and the cada uno se le ha de dar la gloria y honor for his good deeds, or the rebuke honor de las buenas obras que hizo, o for the bad ones; because it is then that el vituperio de las malas porque, allí it is seen and known whether a person es quando se vee y sabe si el hombre was good or bad. Thus this proverb in fue bueno o malo. Y así este proverbio Latin says: Exitus acta probat, “The end, en latín dize, Exitus acta probat, “El the finish and the result of a person or fin, remate y salida del hombre o del of a transaction prove the acts, giving negocio prueba las obras y les da aquel them the value and the prize that they valor y quilate que merecen.” Y así se deserve”. In this same manner it is said: dice, Quod nemo est laudandus in vita, Quod nemo est laudandus in vita, “None “Que ninguno ha de ser loado en la should be praised in life”, because (only vida,” porque la muerte y fin suyo le his) death and end will give him the ha de dar la loa o vituperio...8 prize or the rebuke. Given the fact that this proverb refers to one of the most famous Latin Christian doxologies: Gloria Patri, et Filio, et Spiritui Sancto (Glory to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit), one has to ask himself to what extent Bosnian Sephardim, who used the proverb in a mostly Muslim or Christian-Orthodox-Slavic context, were aware of the fact that the word Glory refers to a passage form the Latin liturgy. As for its context, this proverb is used among Bosnian Sephardim as a warning that one should not pride himself about having accomplished anything before actually bringing it to a successful end. Once again, we see how the lack of information about the original 7 Correas (Note 5), proverb 1227, p. 57. 8 Sebástian de Horozco, El libro de los proverbios glosados 1570-1580, Edición del manuscrito, introducción y notas de Jack Weiner, Edition Reichenberg, Kassel 1994, two volumes, vol. 1, proverb 199, pp. 259, 260. 147 Iberian Catholic Elements in Bosnian and Moroccan JS Refraneros meaning of the components of the proverb does not prevent its oral carriers from using it in proper manner in well-known contexts. The last Bosnian Sephardic proverb of an eminent Iberian Catholic origin also has to do with the Christian dogma of Trinity, and it is used in reference to a person who does not have anyone to rely on in this world: No tiene ni padre ni madre ni Spiritu He does not have a father, or mother or Santo.9 a Holy Sprit. Unlike in the previous two examples in which there is no pun concerning the Christian faith (and, consequently, I tend to see them as examples of bona fidae usage of Iberian Catholic proverbs whose Christian origin, context, and significance were long forgotten), the last one might be seen as a deliberate parody on the common Christian formula that is uttered while making the sign of the cross over one’s upper body, at the beginning of any prayer or any endeavor: En el nombre del Padre del hijo y del Espiritu Santo! Amen! (In the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit!), and (as such) a continuation of a conscious usage of an originally Catholic expression, parodied with the purpose of mocking the rival religion. This notion is doubly reinforced by the fact that Correas attests in his Vocabulario the following variant, which might have well served as a base for the Bosnian Sephardic parody:10 Ni tengo padre ni madre, ni perro que I do not have a father, a mother or a dog me ladre. to bark me. To be honest, Bosnian Sephardic tradition contains many such traditional parodic distortions of expressions related to Catholic/Iberian beliefs and practices. As a notorious example I shall bring a passage from the Bosnian version of the Ladino translation of the Macase Rav (a Great Tale), which tells the story of how the famous Ribbi Moše ben Naḥman was introduced to qabala macasit (practical Kabbalah). Originally, this story was written in Hebrew by Ribbi Gedalya Ibn Yaḥya, in his famous Šalšelet haQabala.11 Later it was translated into Judeo-Spanish by AM Ribbi Yiṣḥaq ben Šelomo Amariyo, in his Sefer Lel Šemurim:12 9 Kolonomos (Note 4), 83. 10 Correas (note 5 above), proverb 332, p. 556. 11 Gedalya Ibn Yaḥya, Šalšelet haQabala, Venice 1586, p. 126-128. 12 Yiṣḥaq ben Šelomo Amariyo, Sefer Lel Šemurim, Thesalonica, 5632/1872, p. 40. 148 Eliezer Papo Macase Rav from Sefer Lel Šemurim A Great Tale from the Book of the Guarding Night13 Kuando se fueron aechar a dormir, le While they were getting ready to lie disho el ḥaxam ael zaqen: Una koza le down, the ḥaxam told the old man: kero a kavidar asu mersed, ke lo tenga [There is] one thing that I wanted to de avizo, ke aki ay una maldicha kaleja warn His Mercy, to have in mind, that de carelim, ke la tienen por muy santa here there is a damned street of the enhermada, ke Djidyo ke pasa por uncircumcised, which they esteem as eya, lo aferan en su punto i lo meten very holy, [may it be] cursed, that a Jew en karsel, para kemarlo, en dia de who passes through it, they catch him šabat davka. Ino pasa redja en esto, immediately and put him into a prison, ni moneda, ke ansi tienen esta mala in order to burn him, on the day of uzansa enkonada, ke tienen a la Maria Shabbath itself. And the presents do not zona i ael Taluy en esta kaye, el Š[em] help in this, or money, as they have this Yit[barah] kelos ateme – Amen! evil and impure custom, having there Mary the Prostitute and the Hanging- one [Jesus], may the Blessed God bring them to an end – Amen! Amariyo’s translation of the story was “copied” by the famous Bosnian Sephardic traditional pharmacist, Tio Avram Papo, in the following distorted and mocking way:14 Kuando se hueron a echar a dormir, le disho el rav al zaqen: Una koza le kero akavidar a su mersed, ke lo tenga de avizo, i es ke aki en esta sivdad ay una kaleja maldicha de carelim, ke la tienen por muy chanta enhermada, ke Djidyo ke pasa 13 According to popular belief, the night before the circumcision (which is traditionally performed on male children on the eighth day after the birth) is the most dangerous one for the newborn, as Lilith (a main female demon) might try to prevent him from entering Abraham’s Covenant and attaining the divine protection accompanied by it. Consequently, during this night the newborn is not to be left alone. Rather, he is surrounded by adult males, who engage in learning, for protective purposes. The night is called Lel Šemurim, the Night of Guardianship, and various special books with texts to be read on it were published in the Sephardic world, Sefer Lel Šemurim being one of the most famous in the genre. 14 For more information about this manuscript and its, author, see Eliezer Papo, “Healing the Sick, Subjugating the Spirits, Fighting the Magic and the Evil Eye: A Glance at Medical Lore of Bosnian Sephardic Men”, in preparation. 149 Iberian Catholic Elements in Bosnian and Moroccan JS Refraneros por eya, lo aferan en su punto i lo meten en prezo, para kemarlo, dia de šabat davka. I no pasa redja en esto, ni moneda, ke ansi tienen esta mala uzansa, ke tienen ayi a la chanta Maria, zona, i a el Taluy en esta kaleja, el Š[em] Yit[barah] kelos ateme – Amen!15 The first time the word santa (holy) was used in reference to a street held holy by Catholics, even though the adjective is immediately followed by the derogatory term enheremada (cursed), the Bosnian Sephardic author changes the adjective santa for the Turkish çanta (bag). Until World War II, there were still elderly pious Jews in Sarajevo who would never use the term santo/santa in relation to anything Christian. To avoid what they saw as a dangerous, eventual veneration of foreign deities, they would replace the adjective santa with the noun çanta, creating thus a mocking distortion. If am Ribbi Yiṣḥaq ben Šelomo Amariyo (unlike Tio Avram Papo) was ready to use the adjective santa in relation to a street venerated by the Catholics of Gerona as holy, when referring to Maria he calls her Maria zona (a prostitute), without the usual Christian honorific Santa, that precedes any mentioning of Mary. Yet, in his copy of the story, Tio Avram Papo, knowing that the name Maria is always preceded with the honorific adjective Santa, replaces it with çanta for the second time: chanta Maria, zona. These anti-Catholic puns were not reserved to the rabbinical or male population only. Thus in the play Pasensia Vale Mučo (Patience Is Worth a Lot), written by the most prolific Bosnian female Sephardic playwright, Laura Papo “Bohoreta”,16 one of the central female characters of the play, Grasia, says: Las kašas vazijas de ašugar para las The cases with the dowry for the fitižas y la kavesa me se vazja i me se daughters are empty and my head is ezvanese de tanto avlar y čijar kon los emptied and void of so much talking and salantonjos.17 screaming with the saint-anthonies. 15 (Tio) Avram Papo, Livro de Refua, unpublished ms., ca. 1840, p. 45 [38]. 16 For the biography of this prolific Sephardic dramatist, see Eliezer Papo, “Entre la modernidad y la tradición, el feminismo y la patriarquia: Vida y obra de Laura Papo ´Bohoreta´, primera dramaturga en lengua judeo-española” [Spanish: Between Modernity and Tradition, Feminism and Partiarchy], Neue Romania 40 (2010), pp. 97-117. For her bibliography, see Eliezer Papo, “Estado de la investigación y bibliografía anotada de la obra literaria de Laura Papo «Bohoreta»”, Sefarad 72 (1) (January–June 2012) pp. 123-144, as well as Eliezer Papo, “Bohoreta—Kommentierte Bibliographie”, Transversal (accepted). 17 Laura Papo “Bohoreta”, Pasensia Vale Mučo, unpublished ms., p. 6, 7. 150 Eliezer Papo Referring to her disobedient children, Grasia calls them salantonjos, in other words: San Antonios (Saint Anthonies). The pun of the metaphor is quite apparent: just like the statue of Saint Anthony does not hear when spoken to, thus the disobedient children do not hear. Just like the statue of Saint Anthony does not extend a hand to help to those praying to it, thus disobedient children are not helpful to their elders. This tendency to mock Catholic saints was not typical only to Bosnian Sephardim. In an age that was not marked by religious tolerance, it seemed to be cherished by all the Ottoman Sephardim. Thus, for example, in his Coplas de Yōsēf ha-Ṣaddīq (Constantinople 1732), Avraham Toledo puts following words into the mouth of Zevulun, when reproaching the paid professional lamenter Manaka: Quén la acarreó aquí Who brought her here Cal güerco endiablado What devilish devil Arremátate de aquí Go away from here Iǰa de un sanpavlo.18 Daughter of a saintpaul. Here, the name of an even more important all-Christian Saint, Saint Paul, is used as a pejorative: Ija de un sanpavlo – Daughter of a saintpaul. The indefinite article un (a) shows that the personal name of the saint is seen by the Sephardim as a noun, even as a derogatory one. On other occasions the expression: Ijo/a de un ... (son/daugther of a ...) is used in combination with such nouns as mamzer (bastard) or tal (anyone). In the compla Bejor Carmona, Yehezquel Gabay y el armenio Duz Oglú, edited recently by Elena Romero,19 one can show that the term sanpablo can be used in Judeo- Spanish as an adjective, noting the fact that it is preceded by a quantitative muy (very): Su pecado le alcanzó del arur el malo His sin has reached him the cursed and Porque era un haber con este diablo evil one Salio muy sanpablo se truǰo en este hal Because he was a friend of this devil a ĵudíos ya hizo mal He came out as very saintpaul le pagó el Dio presto a él y al resto. bringing himself to this condition To the Jews he already caused evil [things] God paid him rapidly to him and [to] the rest. 18 Re-published by Moshe Lazar in Joseph and His Brethren: Three Ladino versions, Labyrinthos, 1990, p. 184, verses 1280-1283. 19 Elena Romero, Entre dos (o más) fuegos. Fuentes poéticas para la historia de los sefardíes de los Balcanes, CSIC, Madrid 2008, pp. 218, 219. 151 Iberian Catholic Elements in Bosnian and Moroccan JS Refraneros Julius Subak, one of the first investigators of Balkan spoken Judeo-Spanish, registered a Sephardic curse in which Saint Paul and the Devil act together: El gṷérko i el Sam Pávlo ke se lo yéve (May the Devil and the Saint Paul take him).20 The analyzed examples seem to show that Ottoman Sephardim in general, and those from Bosnia in particular, after living for centuries in Ottoman urban centers, dominated by Islamic culture and concepts and without too much (if any) exposure to Catholic world and culture, developed a special sensibility (if not aversion) towards the Catholic concept of saints. The further away from Spain they were, the more the concept of veneration of statues and images seemed to them increasingly strange, abhorrent, and abominable. Interestingly, a well-known and very popular Bosnian Sephardic proverb asserts that Jews who live outside the greater Ottoman urban centers, in smaller towns, exposed to the popular culture of the Christian peasants, are themselves half-Christians: Al kazalito medio blahito.21 [A Jew] in a small town, half a Christian. Catholic Elements in Moroccan Sephardic Refranero Unlike their Bosnian brethren, the North Moroccan Sephardim did maintain different levels of contact with the peninsula from the time of their expulsion on. With the Spanish occupation of Northern Morocco, these contacts were deepened and accelerated, until they brought about the total adoption of the Iberian Castilian language among this Sephardic branch; and, consequently, gradual but total abandonment of Ḥakitia (Moroccan Judeo-Spanish). Aware of these historical circumstances, I was not surprised to find more Iberian-Catholic elements in the North-Moroccan tradition than the Bosnian. I was quite surprised, however, by what can be seen as thematic unanimity of these elements in the Moroccan Sephardic refranero. Out of seven proverbs, only the following one does not deal with the phenomena of veneration of saints: Hay quien va a misa todos los dias y There are people who go to a mass every comete los mismos pecados.22 day, and always commit the same offense. 20 Julius Subak, “Zum Judenspanischen”, Zeitschrift für Romanische Philologie 30 (1905), pp. 129-185 21 Kolonomos (Note 4), proverb 32. 22 Alexander and Bentolila (Note 2), proverb 475. 152 Eliezer Papo The message of the proverb is quite simple: the mere performance of religious duties of ritual character (such as attendance of a mass) is not enough for one’s perfection. In order to attain divine favor (and/or salvation), one needs to observe the moral demands of religion as well (refrain from sin). Similar ideas can be found in Jewish ethical literature, too, but the usage of the term misa (mass) as a representative for the ritual aspect of religious duties discloses the undisputable Catholic origin of the proverb. Interestingly, Moroccan Sephardim use this Catholic proverb in the same context and with the same meaning, thus ascribing to the word misa (mass) the positive status of the representative act of religious percepts of ritual nature. As already stated, all other proverbs from the Moroccan Sephardic refranero that refer to Iberian Catholic concepts and practices are related to the veneration of saints (a theme totally unheard of in Bosnian Sephardic refranero). Only one of them, to the best of my knowledge, is not recorded in the Iberian Catholic tradition: Santos de palo, no hazen milagros.23 Wooden saints make no miracles. And even this seems to be for a good reason. The proverb’s strong opposition to the very idea of expecting intervention and intercession from the wooden statues of saints makes it much more likely that this particular proverb was produced in Jewish circles, rather than in Christian ones. Even more importantly, it was probably inspired by the Psalm 115: 4 Sus idolos de plata i oro, ovra de 4 Their idols are silver and gold, the work manos de ombre. of men’s hands. 5 Boka a eyos, i non avlan; ojos a eyos, 5 They have mouths, but they speak not; i non ven. eyes have they, but they see not. 6 Oidos a eyos, i non oyen; naris a eyos, 6 They have ears, but they hear not; noses i non guezman. have they, but they smell not. 7 Sus manos, i non apalpan; sus pies, i 7 They have hands, but they handle not: non andan, non avlan kon su garganta. feet have they, but they walk not; neither speak they through their throat. Two additional Moroccan Sephardic proverbs, both unattested in Iberian Catholic tradition, seem to reflect Jewish criticism of the Catholic belief system. The first one proclaims: 23 Ibid., proverb 916. 153 Iberian Catholic Elements in Bosnian and Moroccan JS Refraneros Más cercano está el Dió que los santos.24 God is closer than the saints. and, according to the informants it actually laments the arrogance of the functionaries, as sometimes it is easier to obtain a solution for one’s problems from the highest instances then from lower level clerks. Another one reflects an eminently Christian idea, the idea of the celestial hierarchy of saints, but it also seems to be critical of it: Si no es este santo, sera otro mas alto.25 If it is not this saint, there will [surely] be another one, even greater. as one could argue that the content of the proverb is making fun of the multitude of Catholic saints, treating them in a dismissive and disrespectful manner. The rest of four saint-related proverbs in the Moroccan Sephardic refranero, all have Iberian Catholic parallels, all reflect Catholic beliefs and practices, and all are used in the same contexts with the same messages, without any special Jewish twist or addition. Thus, for example, the proverb Santo que mea, maldito sea.26 The pissing saint, may he be damned. has many parallels in Luis Martínez Kleiser’s Refranero general ideologico español, all of which reflect the same idea: A person who claims sainthood should first elevate him/herself above regular corporal needs: De santo que mea a la pared nunca me I never believed in a saint who pisses by fié.27 the wall. En santo y santa que mea nadie crea.28 No one should believe in a saint who pisses. Santa que mea, arimale una tea. 29 A pissing saint, a torch she should get. 24 Ibid., proverb 634. 25 Ibid., proverb 948. 26 Alexander and Bentolila, manuscript of the study (Note 2). This proverb was not included in the final version of the book. 27 Luis Martínez Kleiser, Refranero general ideologico español, edicíon facsímil, tercera reimpresión, Editorial Hernando, Madrid 1989, proverb 57-443 (recorded by Francisco del Rosal, Refranes, ms. 1560; Juan de Mal Lara, La Philosofía vulgar, 1568). 28 Ibid., proverb 57-444 (recorded by Rosal and Mal Lara, see above). 29 Ibid., proverb 57-445 (recorded by Rosal and Mal Lara, see above). 154 Eliezer Papo The function of urination has been chosen as a fitting representation of anything corporal, as it is commonly perceived as one of the lowest and most degrading corporal functions. Some other Iberian Catholic versions refer, in this context, to other bodily functions, such as eating or drinking: Santo que come y bebe, hacer peores A saint who eats and drinks can do even cosas puede.30 worse things Santo que come y bebe, a mas se A saint who eats and drinks will dare to atreve.31 do even worse things This demand upon all candidates for sainthood to overcome their physical nature is deeply Christian in its very nature. This popular Catholic preconception of a saint as a superhuman entity is well represented in the following Iberian proverb: Santo que come y bebe, Dios o el diablo A saint who eats and drinks, either God se lo lleve.32 or Satan should take him. Conversely, the Jewish “saints” (venerated rabbis and kabbalists) were not really expected to overcome their human/corporal aspects as a conditio sine qua non in order to be recognized as saintly. Perhaps the most blatant example of the built-in “humanity” of Jewish saints is to be found in the fact that not only does Rabbinic Judaism not preach celibacy for its spiritual elite —but, rather, Jewish candidates for sanctity are expected to marry and procreate. If they do not, it will seriously damage their public image; and, consequently, their claim to sanctity. From the many variants of this proverb existent in the Iberian Catholic refranero, as well as from its complete absence in the Ottoman Sephardic refraneros, one can deduce that the proverb: Santo que mea maldito sea (The pissing saint, may he be damned) reflects Catholic and not Jewish concepts. However, in both communities, the Iberian Catholic and the Moroccan Sephardic, it is used to convey the same message: people who claim a higher level of spirituality should not be caught engaging in mundane things. A similar discrepancy between rhetoric and behavior on the part of a religious hypocrite is the main subject of another Iberian Catholic proverb incorporated in a Moroccan Sephardic refranero: 30 Ibid., proverb 57-439 (recorded by Rosal and Mal Lara, see above). 31 Ibid., proverb 57-440 (recorded by Rosal and Mal Lara, see above). 32 Ibid., proverb 57-441 (recorded by Rosal and Mal Lara, see above). 155 Iberian Catholic Elements in Bosnian and Moroccan JS Refraneros Palabras de santo y uñas de gato.33 Words of a saint and nails of a cat. This proverb appears in Kleiser’s collection in the same form, followed by few additional variants: Uñas de gato y habitos de beato.34 Nails of a cat and costumes of a beatified man. Cuentas de beato y uñas de gato.35 A beading of a beatified man and nails of a cat. Beata, beata que rascuña como gata.36 Beatified, beatified, but she scratches as a cat. In all the variants, the term santo (saint) is replaced by the term beato/beata (blessed or beatified), a technical term from Catholic hagiology. At the same time, another Moroccan Sephardic proverb Lo que Dios no quiere, santos no What God does not want, saints cannot pueden.37 [do]. teaches that if the highest instance decides not to grant a certain petition—then the lower instances cannot do anything about it. Also this proverb has an Iberian Catholic parallel, attested by Kleiser: Cuando Dios no quiere, los santos no When God does not want, the saints pueden.38 cannot [do]. Interestingly enough, rabbinical tradition teaches quite the opposite. The famous anthology of classical rabbinical homilies known by the name of Midrash Bamidbar Rabbah39 elaborates the biblical verse from Qohelet/Ecclesiastises (12:11), “The 33 Alexander and Bentolila (Note 2), proverb 793. 34 Kleiser (Note 27), proverb 57-478 (recorded in Hernán Núñez, Refranes o proverbios, 1555). 35 Ibid., proverb 57-479. 36 Ibid., proverb 57-484 (recorded in Sebastian de Horozco, Teatro universal de proverbios, 1616). 37 Ibid., proverb 582. 38 Kleiser (Note 27), proverb 18-600 (recorded in Pedro Vallés, Libro de Refranes, Zaragoza 1549, Núñez (Note 34), Rosal (Note 27) and Mal Lara (Note 27). 39 Bamidbar Raba, Vilna edition, peraša 14, incipit “Bayom haševici”. 156 Eliezer Papo words of the wise are as goads, and as nails fastened by the masters of assemblies, which are given from one shepherd”, by stating the following: “In the same way that nails fastened in the gate maintain the wings of the door, thus when the ṣaddiqim pass their judgment, the Holy One Blessed be he affirms it”. Often, however, many times common Jewish masses are better versed in the popular culture of their immediate environment then in the writings of the rabbinical elite. Consequently, an eminently Catholic proverb, such as Desnudar a un santo para vestir a otro.40 Denude one saint to clothe another. is used among the Moroccan Sephardim as a way to criticize futile actions which while solving one problem create another of the equal rank. Correas brings a very similar version of this proverb: Quitar de un santo para darlo a otro To take from one saint to give it to santo.41 another. Conclusion The few Iberian Catholic elements attested in the traditional refranero of Bosnian Sephardim seem to belong to pre-Expulsion times, having survived in the oral patrimony of Bosnian Jews until modernity mostly because they were not necessarily recognized as such. As already stated, a person unacquainted with New Testament personalities such as Herod and Pilatus can proceed to use the proverb Salir de Herodes y entrar en Pilatus, as if referring to imaginary people, such as Ḥana (from the proverbs Ḥana detras de Mohulu,42 Si negra Ḥana mas negra su ermana,43 or from the expression Ḥana la pensadera),44 Ḥudara (from the proverb Viste Ḥudara lo de Shabat en simana),45 Ḥuro (from the proverb Izo Ḥuro loke no izo ninguno),46 40 Alexander and Bentolila (Note 2), proverb 245. 41 Correas (Note 5), proverb 919, p. 703. 42 Kolonomos (Note 4, proverb 526. 43 Ibid., proverb 1054. 44 Ibid., proverb 527. 45 Ibid., proverb 1166. 46 Ibid., proverb 544. 157 Iberian Catholic Elements in Bosnian and Moroccan JS Refraneros Marta (from the proverb Muera Marta, al menos arta),47 none of which refers to any actual people. Similarly, a person unacquainted with Latin mass would not recognize the Christian base of the proverb En fin se canta la gloria. In contrast, the proverb No tiene ni padre, ni madre ni Spiritu Santo might have been recognized by Bosnian Sephardim as a parody on the Christian Trinity and as such perpetuated in the community for reasons of religious mockery. At the same time, the dominant Iberian Catholic elements of the Moroccan Sephardic refranero are refranes de santos, proverbs related to the Catholic concept of veneration of saints. One of them (Santos de palo, no hazen milagros) is derogatory, while two others (Más cercano está el Dió que los santos and Si no es este santo, sera otro mas alto) seem to refer to the Catholic concept of veneration of saints in a critical manner. Consequently, all three proverbs seem to have originated in Jewish circles. Another five proverbs of apparent Iberian Catholic origin, attested in Moroccan Sephardic refranero but unknown in the Bosnian refranero (or in other Ottoman Sephardic traditions), seem to be borrowed from Iberian Catholic refranero and used by Moroccan Sephardim in the same way and same contexts they are used by their Spanish neighbors. One of them (Hay quien va a misa todos los dias y comete los mismos pecados) sees the Catholic mass in a positive light, while another four (Santo que mea, maldito sea, Palabras de santo y uñas de gato, Lo que Dios no quiere, santos no pueden, Desnudar a un santo para vestir a otro) reflect the centrality of the cult of saints in Iberian Catholic culture, as well as the ease with which Moroccan Sephardim borrow these apparently Catholic proverbs and quote them in their own proverb anthologies, without any change or intervention on their part. Conversely, in the Bosnian Sephardic refranero, there is not a single proverb, derogatory or affirmative, that relates to the Catholic cult of saints. Even more importantly, in traditional Bosnian Sephardic culture, the names of certain Catholic saints (San Antonio or San Pablo) were used as pejoratives and derogatory nicknames, while the Spanish adjective santa (saint) on many occasion would purposely be distorted into Ottoman Turkish çanta (bag), just to prevent the application of the adjective to a Catholic saint. It seems that vivid, direct, and constant contact with Spanish culture, with its deeply rooted veneration of the saints, attenuated among the Moroccan Sephardim the traditional Jewish reservations regarding the Christian concept of saints. Consequently, 47 Ibid., proverb 743. 158 Eliezer Papo in time, Moroccan Sephardim felt more and more at ease using the Iberian Catholic proverbs as semantic units, conveying agreeable and desirable messages, without paying too much attention to the question of the “halakhic legitimacy” of their content. At the same time, living in an Ottoman urban setting, dominated by Islamic concepts and culture, only fortified traditional Jewish reservations towards Christian veneration of saints, and especially towards their graphic or three-dimensional presentation. It should be noted, that Ottoman Sephardic tradition is much more puritan even when it comes to veneration of saintly rabbis and ṣaddiqim, so typical of Moroccan Jews, of Mustcarabim, however, much more than of Ḥakitia-speaking Sephardim of North Morocco. It seems, however, that even among Moroccan Sephardim these proverbs related to Christian saints are quite recent, as one would expect the mechanisms of mental self-protection of these two Sephardic sister-communities not to be all that different. Apparently, the Spanish occupation of Northern Morocco, the gradual westernization and secularization of Ḥakitia-speakers and their ever-growing identification with the potent and progressive West, created an environment in which the newly heard Spanish Catholic proverbs could penetrate traditional Moroccan Sephardic refranero and be absorbed into it, even before this group opted for definitive linguistic assimilation into Modern Spanish. Thus, the Iberian Catholic elements in the Moroccan Sephardic refranero reflect the gradual but ever-increasing absorption of the Spanish language, including its traditionally Catholic refranero, among the Ḥakitia-speakers. 159 Aldina Quintana Cuatro fragmentos de otros tantos cuadernos inéditos con recetas de medicina y farmacología sefardíes de la colección de la Genizah del JTS Aldina Quintana Universidad Hebrea de Jerusalén 1. Introducción Entre los documentos manuscritos en judeoespañol de la colección de la Genizah conservada en el Archivo del Jewish Theological Seminary de Nueva York (JTS) se encuentran varios folios de papel, escritos por las dos caras, que contienen fragmentos de ocho unidades codicopaleográficas cuyo contenido es la medicina y la farmacología, herederas de la tradición judeo-medieval española de raíces greco-árabes, además de la descripción de algunas prácticas mágicas. Los folios en cuestión, sin duda fragmentos de los que pudieron constituir ocho cuadernos de remedios medicinales empleados en la práctica popular, están catalogados con las signaturas Ena 2712.049; Ena 2799.002-008; Ena 2948.010; Ena 3232.008; Ena 3338.003-004; Ena 3672.001; Ena Ns 42.002 y Ena 2713.017 y Ena 2815.008. Los dos últimos pertenecen al mismo cuaderno. Excepto el folio Ena 3232.008 que, sin duda, forma parte de la obra mayor de un rabino, el resto corresponde a copias o anotaciones realizadas por personas con escasa formación, quienes probablemente ejercían la profesión de curanderos, según se deduce de la caligrafía, de las incongruencias ortográficas y de la transcripción de las palabras hebreas de acuerdo a principios fonológicos y no etimológicos. * Este trabajo se ha realizado en el marco de mi proyecto de investigación “From Old Spanish to Judeo-Spanish: Formation of New Linguistic Varieties Not Subjected to Standardizing Pressure in the Context of Migration (16th-17th Centuries)”, con el soporte de la Israel Science Foundation (Grant No. 473/11), y me complace dedicárselo a la Profesora Tamar Alexander quien tanto ha aportado y seguirá aportando al estudio de la cultura sefardí, en general, y a la médico-farmacológica en particular. 161 Cuatro fragmentos de otros tantos cuadernos Comunes en todos estos fragmentos resultan, además del contenido, el uso del español o judeoespañol –aunque dos de ellos también contienen algunas partes en hebreo– así como su pertenencia a la denominada “literatura de listas”, característica del género. Me ocuparé aquí de cuatro de estos documentos: Ena 2712.049; Ena 2713.017 y Ena 2815.008 que forman parte de la misma unidad codicopaleográfica; Ena 2948.010 y, por último, Ena 3338.003-004. Aparte de su interés lingüístico, en especial léxico, dado que en ellos se recogen nombres de enfermedades, de plantas, de minerales y de otras categorías de componentes que han desaparecido o han sido remplazados por otros nombres en el diccionario sefardí, cabe destacar su valor científico médico- farmacéutico, puesto que los remedios y parte de los componentes que los integran no se encuentran aún documentados en el repertorio médico sefardí. 2. Características de los cuatro documentos seleccionados 2.1 La escritura y la lengua La escriturade los cuatro cuadernos corresponde al tipo de letra cursiva hebrea típicamente sefardí sin influencias orientales. La lengua española utilizada varía de un documento a otro, aunque siempre se ajusta a las características lingüísticas del judeoespañol temprano (siglos XVI y XVII). Sus autores muestran no ser expertos en la escritura, lo cual se pone de relieve en la caligrafía en la que predominan las letras de tamaño desigual, los renglones torcidos, la ausencia de margen en la parte izquierda del texto y, en especial, en la inconsistencia ortográfica tanto en la representación de ciertos sonidos –por ejemplo [b] y [v] (sebo, sevo, cabesa, cavesa, oliba, oliva)– o las parejas de fricativas predorsodentales [s̪] y [z̪] y apicoalveolares [s̺] y [z̺] (mansebo por mançebo, cabesa por cabeça, basía por baçía, rozada por rosada, sumo por çumo), que entonces se confundían, excepto en el primer documento. La inconsistencia domina igualmente la separación de palabras en dos fragmentos (por ej.,1 en corporado, car 1 Abreviaturas empleadas: ár. = árabe; ár. clás. = árabe clásico; ár. hisp. = árabe hispano o andalusí; arag. = aragonés; aram. = arameo; cast. med. = castellano medieval; cat. = catalán; ej. = ejemplo; esp. = español moderno; fol(s). = folio(s); gr. = griego; heb. = hebreo; jesp. = judeoespañol; lat. = latín; lat. vulg. = latín vulgar; Lev. = Levítico; lín(s). = línea(s); lit. = literal; pl. = plural; port. = portugués; port. ant. = portugués antiguo; s.v. = sub voce; trad. = traducción de la autora; tur. = turco. 162 Aldina Quintana aturas, un tele, un güente), y la unión de otras (quele, questá, sinestar, deyo) en las que, sin duda, se representa su pronunciación en la cadena hablada. Destaca también la representación ortográfica de la terminología árabe y hebrea que, por lo general, se aleja del principio etimológico que primaba entre los sefardíes cultos, y sigue el principio fonológico característico en la grafía de los elementos romances en la que se trata de representar la pronunciación. Otros rasgos comunes en la escritura de todos los documentos que reflejan, sin duda, la pronunciación sefardí del lugar del que provenían los anotadores de estas unidades, son la intrusión de una vocal esvarabática, es decir, las secuencias formadas por oclusiva + líquida + vocal crean entre sus dos primeros componentes un elemento vocálico de timbre similar al de la vocal que les sigue (ej., belanca por blanca, fereirá por freirá, sanguere por sangre, landere por landre, ferente por frente, curudo por crudo, quiriatura por criatura),2 o la omisión de oclusivas [b, t, k] en posición explosiva precedidas por consonante nasal o sibilante y seguidas de líquida (omre, ombre, omros, temlor, lomrizes, amosrar, meslado).3 Estos rasgos reflejados a través de la ortografía de los autores o anotadores de los cuadernos ponen de manifiesto la ausencia de contacto con las tradiciones cultas sefardíes, al tiempo que dejan entrever su contacto con el árabe. De ellos se deduce que los fragmentos proceden de un lugar en el que el judeoespañol hablado se encontraba bastante arabizado, lo que hace suponer que los autores materiales de estos fragmentos eran bilingües con el árabe como lengua dominante. Otra característica de la lengua de estos fragmentos es su escasa coherencia: los predicados verbales pocas veces llegan a formar cláusulas completas, y estas son simples. Las recetas suelen ir redactadas en segunda persona de imperativo si es que las unidades van directamente dirigidas a los practicantes; así se pone de relieve en aquellas que contienen tratamientos que se han de administrar a niños o en las 2 Este sonido, carente de valor fonológico y de representación gráfica en español y judeoespañol, era percibido y marcado en la escritura por los mudéjares y moriscos, como consecuencia de que el árabe no permite los comienzos de sílaba con dos consonantes o como consecuencia de que reproducían el castellano hablado (Ana Labarta Gómez, “Una página aljamiada hallada en Torrellas (Tarazona)”, Tvriaso, 3 (1982), p. 231. En los fragmentos que tratamos aquí, se reproducen, sin duda, las características acústicas del español hablado por las personas que los copiaron. 3 Se podría sugerir que la grafía de estas palabras representa una pronunciación etimológica. Sin embargo, lomrisez (lat. vulg. lumbrīces) o amosrar (lat. monstrāre) muestran claramente la elisión de [b] y [t] respectivamente, lo cual también habría ocurrido en las demás palabras de origen castellano. 163 Cuatro fragmentos de otros tantos cuadernos prácticas mágicas (Ena 2712.049). Pero, por lo general, las indicaciones a seguir en la preparación de los remedios y en su aplicación están dirigidas a una clientela no determinada, es decir, a quien tiene la necesidad de recurrir a ellas, por lo que predomina el uso del tiempo futuro en tercera persona (Ena 2713.001 y Ena 2815.008; Ena 2948.010), o del infinitivo (Ena 3338.004r), la forma menos personalizadora. Estos usos verbales coinciden con los que presenta el castellano en este tipo de textos o en las recetas culinarias. 2.2 El léxico especializado En todos los documentos predomina la fusión de terminología lingüística de origen diverso, reflejo de la simbiosis cultural que caracterizaba esta literatura. Enlos remedios y medicamentos en los que la base es el castellano, son abundantes los términos de origen árabe, tanto hispano como local, y hebreo. En aquellos redactados en hebreo, se observa igualmente la presencia de terminología romance. Dado que volveremos al léxico de cada uno de los fragmentos editados más adelante, no entramos aquí en más detalles. 2.3 La estructura de las unidades médico-farmacológicas Por lo general, cada unidad médico-farmacológica abre con la descripción sumaria de la enfermedad: suele comenzar con la preposición para – o su equivalente hebreo en las anotadas en este lengua – seguida del nombre de la enfermada o molestia [ל-] (malaria, cólera, disentería, bronquitis, hemorragias, hernia, paños y cataratas, pujos, infección de heridas externas, temblor de manos, dolor de cabeza y jaquecas, tiña, landre, sarna, arestín, furúnculos y cualquier tipo de granos, así como remedios contra lombrices, para bajar la fiebre o para evitar la gestación y lo contrario) para la que se ofrece el remedio que seguidamente se detalla. Este suele consistir en la enumeración asindética de una serie de componentes (aceites, zumos, azúcares, aguas, semillas, raíces, hojas, resinas, extractos y limaduras; grasas, leches y quesos, huevos, huesos y dientes, excrementos y orinas; polvos) derivados de vegetales (almendras, limones, cidras, algarrobas, cebollas, áloes, laurel, violetas, malvas, jengibre, boj, ruda, manzanilla, perejil, comino, canela, manzanilla, azafrán, pimienta, cártamo, apio o sésamo), animales (vaca, asna, gallo, liebre, gato, cerdo, cabrón o ansarón) y minerales (calamita, oro, plomo, verdete y cardenillo), pocas veces con sus correspondientes cantidades (quilates, dracmas), y el estado o forma en que se ha de administrar (ungüentos o pomadas, electuarios, píldoras, jarabes, mechas o polvos). Cada unidad 164 Aldina Quintana suele terminar igualmente con una fórmula de cierre que en judeoespañol contiene el adjetivo bueno: (Ena 3338.003r, lín. 10; Ena 2815.008v, lín. 17); el participio perevado ʻprobadoʼ (Ena 2713.017v, lín. 17) o la afirmación[e]s bueno muncho (Ena 2948.010v, lín. 4). Las mismas fórmulas de cierre pueden aparecer en las unidades recogidas en hebreo: tōv (Ena 2948.010v, lín. 20; Ena 3338.004, lín. 11); bādūq (Ena 2712.049v, lín. 8). Fórmulas similares se encuentran en los recetarios judíos, mudéjares y cristianos del siglo xv,4 en los que, en muchas ocasiones, se aduce el nombre del médico a quien pertenece la autoría de la receta o de la cura.5 La ausencia de dicha información se puede interpretar como el resultado de la popularización de la medicina profesional que pasó a ser practicada por personas que carecían de autoridad frente a los médicos con reconocimiento profesional. A continuación ofrecemos una descripción más detallada de cada uno de los documentos, con su anotación en la columna de la derecha, y con su transcripción en la columna de la izquierda. En esta última se añaden las letras que se omiten en el original en algunas palabras. Las partes del texto afectadas por la mutilación del papel, por manchas de tinta o por haberse borrado ésta y que han podido ser reconstruidas, se indican en paréntesis cuadrados. Descripción y transcripción de los documentos 3.1. Fragmentos del recetario 1 (fol. Ena 2712.049) De este documento se conserva solamente un folio (Ena 2712.049) de 115 x 166 mm, deteriorado en la parte superior. El texto ocupa 95 x 147 mm y está escrito a una columna de 25 (recto) y 20 (verso) renglones. Contiene fórmulas de remedios en 4 Para los recetarios judíos, ver Cynthia Crews, “A Judeo-Spanish Medical MS (ca. 1400- 1450)”, Vox Romanica 22-2 (1963), p. 207, s.v. bādûq, cuyo equivalente castellano en el mismo manuscrito es cosa probada y melezina probada. Entre los recetarios de autores cristianos se puede consultar la Traducción del Libro de recetas de Gilberto. Madrid, Biblioteca Palacio 3063 (1471), María Teresa Herrera y María Estela González de Fauve (eds.), Hispanic Seminary of Medieval Studies, Madison 1997, en Real Academia Española: Banco de datos (CORDE) [en línea, 13.12.2012]. Corpus diacrónico del español 165 Cuatro fragmentos de otros tantos cuadernos hebreo (líns. 1-19 del recto) y en español o judeoespañol (20-25 del recto), incluido un sahumerio en el que se ha de quemar un talismán6 (1-8 del verso), así como la descripción en hebreo de una segunda fórmula mágica (9-20 del verso). Aquí me ocuparé únicamente de las partes del texto en español. La lengua de estas recetas no posee rasgos, ni gramaticales ni léxicos, por los que pueda ser identificada con el judeoespañol de Oriente o del norte de África, sino que es puro castellano de la época de la expulsión. Contiene algunas palabras hebreas (šemen šeqēdīm, tarnegōlīm, bōssēm), en cuya grafía se sigue el principio etimológico. La conservación de f- inicial (fará, fecho, fígado, farás) y la presencia de /š/ en ixico (lín. 20 del recto), en lugar de la forma estándar sefardí ijico [i'ǯiko], son indicadores de un texto sefardí temprano, probablemente de la época de la expulsión.7 Ello se ve respaldado por la presencia de ciertas formas léxicas como meçanilla (lín. 24 del recto), en lugar de maçanilla que es una de las variantes frecuentes en los documentos medievales, y la palabra caraturas (líns. 2, 6 del vuelto) ʻcaracteresʼ, a las que se atribuyen poderes mágicos. Si bien esta variante se encuentra en un documento castellano de principios del siglo xv,8 es evidente que las fuentes escritas muestran una indudable preferencia por la variante carateres.9 6 La diferencia entre amuleto y talismán la describe Ana Labarta en la introducción a su edición del Libro de dichos maravillosos (Misceláneo morisco de magia y adivinación). CSIC, Madrid 1993, p. 0.32. Según esta especialista, el talismán es “artificial, se basa en procesos de abstracción y asociación lógicas y requiere durante su confección especiales condiciones; su utilidad, además, está especializada… Generalmente el talismán es una imagen de metal a la que se le transfieren poderes astrales mediante una ceremonia, unos sahumerios, unos encantamientos”. 7 La desonorización de las sibilantes es un proceso que se inició ya en la Edad Media, aunque en los textos castellanos no se comience a manifestar hasta los primeros años del siglo xvi (Rafael Cano Aguilar, “Cambios en la fonología del español durante los siglos xvi y xvii”, en Rafael Cano (coord.), Historia de la lengua española, Ariel, Barcelona 2008, p. 853). 8 Este vocablo está solamente documentado en una traducción anónima de Lanzarote del Lago, “...e aquella su aya hera vna dueña vieja Que mucho sauia de caraturas e de encantamentos...” (fol. 200r) y “...que algun cauallero que andaba alas abenturas yazia folgando y luego llamo dos dueñas que yban conella y la vna hera morgai hermana del Rey artur y la otra hera sevilla y estas tres heran las dueñas del mundo que mas sauian de encantamientos de caraturas saluo la Reyna de norgales y la dueña del lago...” (fol. 299v) (Cf. Anónimo, Traducción de Lanzarote del Lago (c 1414), Harvey Sharrer (ed.), Hispanic Seminary of Medieval Studies, Madison 1999, en CORDE [12.12.2012]). 9 Fuera de la literatura artúrica, la variante empleada ya en el siglo xv era carateres: “Lo quarto es de guardar que con las palabras diuinas non se mezclen algunas cosas vanas & 166 Aldina Quintana Especialmente relevante para la datación del documento es el uso del futuro analítico con el auxiliar pospuesto y con clítico intercalado entre el infinitivo y el verbo auxiliar tirarle a (lín. 19) (cast. med. tirarle ha; esp. le tirará). Todas estas peculiaridades en el texto sugieren que este documento incluso podría haber sido anotado en España antes de 1492 o que lo ha sido poco después de la expulsión de 1492. Como en los textos españoles,10 en los que ya son muy escasas en el siglo xvi,11 estas formas analíticas de futuro con clítico interpuesto entre ambos, se pueden encontrar también en documentos sefardíes, como cartas privadas, responsa e incluso textos literarios, pero ya no se documentan en el siglo xvii, excepto en textos fosilizados, como las traducciones ladinas de la Biblia. En cuanto a su contenido, el sahumerio (líns. 1-8 del verso) es la recepta que ofrece mayor interés, a pesar de que el mal estado de la parte superior del folio no permita leer más que las dos últimas palabras del primer renglón del verso; por tanto, no es posible deducir contra qué dolencia estaba indicado el sahumerio. La receta incluye las instrucciones para la preparación de la tinta con la que se han de escribir los caracteres en tres trozos de tela que se han de quemar para producir el sahumerio.12 Esta se jlliçitas. Asi commo figuras o carateres sy non sola mente la señal dela cruz” (Lope de Barrientos, Tratado del dormir y despertar y soñar. Ms. Escorial h.iii.13 (c 1445), María Isabel Montoya (ed.), Hispanic Seminary of Medieval Studies, Madison 1995, fol. 58v, en CORDE [12.12.2012]) o “...començó hazer muchos signos y carateres y embocaciones y conjuros tan fuertes y espantosos...” (Jerónimo Fernández (1547), Belianís de Grecia, Lilia E. F. de Orduna (ed.), Reichenberger, Kassel 1997, p. 456, en CORDE [12.12.2012]). 10 Estas perífrasis de futuro analítico con el clítico intercalado desaparecen del español a finales del siglo xvi y primera mitad del xvii, cuando se fijaron los tiempos compuestos. Ver Concepción Company Company, “Tiempos de formación romance II. Los futuros y condicionales”, en Concepción Company Company (dir.), Sintaxis histórica del español: La frase verbal, vol. 1, FCE y UNAM, México 2006, pp. 367-368. 11 Por ej., en El tratado de la oración y meditación de Pedro de Alcántara que vivió entre 1499 y 1562, se encuentran 246 formas de futuro de indicativo de las que solamente dos se formulan a través de esta construcción perifrástica romance, tenida por arcaica en el siglo xvi (Raquel E. López Ruano, “Análisis del paradigma verbal a partir de un texto en prosa del siglo xvi”, Archivum lxi-lxii (2011-2012), pp. 262-263). 12 Según Labarta, Libro de dichos maravillosos (nota 6), p. 0.32-0.35, la pérdida de la conexión que antiguamente existía entre los planetas y los metales a la hora de crear los talismanes, permitió la introducción de otro tipo de soportes materiales de los poderes mágicos, como el papel, la tela o el pergamino. En estos se escribían los sellos, fórmulas mágicas, invocaciones o pasajes de textos sagrados, dando lugar a un objeto con unos 167 Cuatro fragmentos de otros tantos cuadernos hará de azafrán y bálsamo mezclados con agua rosada, componentes que recuerdan la tradición musulmana de la tinta utilizada en la escritura de los talismanes.13 Los caracteres se realizarán sobre un soporte de tela, tres trozos de la propia camisa del paciente que servirán como mechas para ser quemadas y producir el sahumerio, combinando así el poder de la palabra con el efecto purificador del fuego que tendrá sus efectos el tercer día que se inhale el humo. Caracteres que se encuentran en la parte superior izquierda de Ena 2712.049v Este folio contiene también los caracteres. Estos aparecen en su parte superior izquierda, a la altura del segundo renglón del vuelto del folio, y son denominados caraturas (líns. 2, 6) y hōtāmōt en hebreo en el propio manuscrito (lín. 1). Los caracteres consisten en cuatro letras con anteojos, llamadas así porque llevan en los extremos pequeños círculos.14 En tres de los caracteres se entrecruzan dos líneas, y el cuarto consiste en una línea curvada. caracteres portadores de energía mágica. Este se podía utilizar de distintas maneras; una de ellas consistía en trasferir la energía mágica a otro elemento, que entrara en contacto con el cuerpo del paciente, por ejemplo a través del humo. En este caso, se quemaba el escrito, de modo que el poder mágico de los caracteres se combinaba con el poder purificador del fuego, produciendo el sahumerio su efecto al ser inhalado. 13 Íbíd., p. 0.35. 14 Íbid., p. 0.38. 168 Aldina Quintana Ena 2712.049r 18. ]לה[סיר הקרירות תקח מושטיה Para bajar la convulsión febril toma mustia15 .18 ואניש עשוי אבק והשליכהו ביין y anís hechos polov y diluido con vino 19. וישתן קודם בואו הקור ,y orine antes de que llegue la convulsión .19 והשיעור מה שיכול על ]ה[אלה אי" [.y la cantidad que pueda de esto [trad 20. ]פ'אר[ה אל אישיקו שודר אי שנארא טומא far]á al ixico sudar y sanará. Toma] .20 אי אונטלי לוש פיג'וש קון y úntale los pechos con 21. ]ש[מן שקדים אי די ויאוליטאש אי מנטיקא šemen šeqēdīm y de violetas y manteca .21 די באקש אי אינשונדיאה de baca y enxundia 22. די תרנגולים אי טושנוש די באקא de tarnegōlīm y tosinos de baca .22 אין קורפוראדו פיגו אינגואינטי encorporado, fecho engüente 23. ]אי[ אונטאדו: אלא קוארטאנא סומו די y] untado. A la quartana, çumo de] .23 פיריג'יל אי די perejil y de 24. מיסאנילייא קון אזייטי פושטו איניל meçanilla con azeite posto16 en el .24 פיגאדו טירארלי אה fígado; tirarle a 25. פרט]י[ די לא קלינטורה .part[e] de la calentura .25 Terminología de la jerga de la medicina popular y farmacopea sefardíes: Aceite del fruto del .(שמן שקדים .šemen šeqēdīm (21)17 ʻaceite de almendrasʼ (heb prunus amigdalus. enxundia (21) ʻenjundiaʼ, es decir, unto o gordura de ganso o de ave, en general18 (lat. axŭngĭa ʻgrasa de cerdoʼ19); cast. med. enxundias;20 jesp. enshundia.21 .jesp. poyos ;(תרנגולים .pl ,תרנגול .tarnegōlīm (22) ʻpollosʼ (heb enxundia de tarnegōlīm (21-22) ʻgordura de polloʼ. Ver enxundia. tosinos de baca (22) ʻsebo de vacaʼ. engüente (22) ʻungüentoʼ. 15 Probablemente se refiere al saúco (lat.sabūcus ), puesto que en diversos recetarios aparece recomendado, junto con el anís, como diaforético o sudorífico. 16 La forma verbal posto se podría interpretar como de origen portugués, aunque también podría ser un arcaísmo castellano o incluso un simple error achacable al copista. 17 El número hace referencia a la línea o renglón del texto. 18 Joseph Nehama, Dictionanaire du judéo-espagnol, CSIC, Madrid 1977, p. 177, s.v. enšúndya. 19 Joan Corominas, Diccionario etimológico de la lengua castellana, Gredos, Madrid 1987, p. 235, s.v. enjundia. 20 Cf. Traducción del Libro de recetas de Gilberto (nota 4), fol. 7v, en CORDE [13.12.2012]. 21 Matilda Koén-Sarano, Diksionario Ladino-Ebreo, Ebreo-Ladino, Zack, Yerushalayim 2007, p. 129, s.v. enshundia. 169 Cuatro fragmentos de otros tantos cuadernos quartana (23) ʻfiebre quartanaʼ (heb. qaddaḥat revīʿīt):22 un tipo de paludismo o malaria en la que los paroxismos de fiebre se producen según un patrón repetitivo de dos días consecutivos seguidos de un día de remisión. El nombre está ocasionado por la reaparición de fiebre al cuarto día. Es la forma empleada en la lengua hablada, y figura en el manuscrito hebreo-español del siglo xv editado por Crews,23 que es la traducción del nombre científico Quartana febris que menciona Nebrija,24 y ésta del nombre original griego τεταρταικóς πυρετóς. meçanilla (24) ‘manzanilla’ (cast. med. maçanilla). Ena 2712.049v 1. [...... או החותמות[ [o los caracteres…………………] .1 2. או קאר אטוראש דזעפראן ,o caraturas de zaˁfran .2 3. בושם [משק[לאדו קון אגואה רושאדא bōssēm [mesc]lado con agua rozada .3 4. אי פראש ג 'מיג'אש די אקיל פידאסו די שו y farás tres mechas de aquel pedaço de su .4 5. קמישא אי אין קדא מיג'א אישקריויראש אישטש camiza y en cada mecha escreverás estas .5 6. [קאר]טוראש אי פון אה ארדיר קדה אונה אין שו cara]turas; y pon a arder cada una en su] .6 7. נוג'י אין קנדיל נואיבו אי אה לא טירסירה נוג'י noche en candil nuevo y a la terçera noche .7 8. וירנא. .verná .8 Terminología de la jerga de la medicina popular y farmacopea sefardíes: caraturas (2) ʻcaracteresʼ, es decir, ʻseñalesʼ o ʻfiguras mágicasʼ. Estigmas de ʻcrocus sativusʼ. Jesp. asafrán,25 safrán.26 .(זעפרן .zaˁfran (2) ʻazafránʼ (heb .(בושם .bōssēm (3) ʻbálsamoʼ (heb jesp. prevado. Ver perevado (Ena :(בדוק .bādūq (8) ʻprobado, comprobadoʼ (heb 2713.017v, lín. 17). 22 De acuerdo al manuscrito editado por Crews, “A Judeo-Spanish Medical MS”, p. 197 (nota 4). 23 Ídem. 24 Elio Antonio de Nebrija, Dictionarivm medicvm (El Diccionario médico de Elio Antonio de Nebrija) [Amberes 1545], introducción, edición y glosario. Avelina Carrera de la Red, Ediciones Universidad de Salamanca, Salamanca 2001, p. 123, s.v. Quartana febris. 25 Nehama, Dictionnaire (nota 18),p. 58, s.v. asafrán. 26 Koén-Sarano, Diksionario (nota 21), p.364, s.v. safrán. 170 Aldina Quintana 3.2. Fragmentos del recetario 2 (fols. Ena 2713.017, Ena 2815.008) Los folios Ena 2713.017 y Ena 2815.008 de esta colección del JTS pertenecen al mismo cuaderno. No solo la caligrafía coincide en ambos, sino también la lengua y el estilo de la descripción de los remedios. El tamaño del primer folio es de unos 114 x 163 mm y el texto ocupa 96 x 147 mm, mientras que las medidas del segundo son 113 x 162 y 98 x 135 mm, y están escritos a una columna que oscila entre los 18 y 20 renglones. Su buen estado de conservación facilita la lectura. Su escritura es particularmente interesante: destaca el empleo del principio fonológico para grafiar las palabras hebreas (ṭevilah, kōḥelet) y árabes (bálgam, marṭiq dahabi, far), en contra de la tradición sefardí culta. Particularmente significativo es zeraʿ ,עאקארה el empleo de ayīn con valor consonántico en palabras hebreas (ʿaqarah lo cual documenta su pronunciación ,(עאשפ׳ור ʿašfur,מאעאגון y árabes (maˁağun (זיראע faríngea que confirma que nos encontramos ante un texto redactado en unárea judeoespañola en contacto con el árabe, probablemente Tierra Santa o Egipto. Ello se corrobora, además, a través de la grafía del imperativo castellano kayentaldo (Ena 2815.008v, lín. 1), grafiada con kāf en lugar del convencional qōf. Estos son fenómenos bastante frecuentes en textos sefardíes redactados en las comunidades de las áreas mencionadas.27 La lengua de este recetario, además de léxico hebreo integrado (ṭevilah,ʿaqarah, zeraʿ, kōḥelet), árabe hispano (maˁağun, bálgam, ʿašfur, ḥanaṭit) e iberorromance de origen árabe (quirates), contiene tecnicismos árabes (marṭiq dahabi, tayyib, far, gindi). Por lo que al elemento hispano se refiere, el rasgo más destacado es el uso dehe (h en la transcripción) en lugar de f- inicial – excepto ferevirá ʻherviráʼ– sin que haya un solo caso antietimológico. Ello sugiere que la aspiración de f- podría ser un rasgo del habla de la persona que anotó las recetas o incluso del español hablado en su comunidad. También se debe mencionar qual se quer (Ena 2815.008r, lín. 1) y qual quer (Ena 2815.008v, lín. 10), jesp. kualseker/ kualsekier ʻcualquierʼ, formas documentadas como qual quer en otro texto de similares características de finales del sigloxvi .28 Los remedios descritos varían desde los recomendados para el tratamiento contra el temblor de manos, contra el dolor de las sienes, de muelas y de la parte superior de 27 Cf. Aldina Quintana, “From the Master’s Voice to the Disciple’s Script: Genizah Fragments of a Bible Glossary in Ladino”, Hispania Judaica Bulletin 6 (2008), pp. 211-212. 171 Cuatro fragmentos de otros tantos cuadernos las espalda, contra el cólera y hasta para teñir tejidos. Los remedios contra el “pelo de la teta”, contra la tiña y para bajar la fiebre de los niños (Ena 2815.008v, líns. 12-17) se encuentran recogidos también en el recetario Ena 2948.0 (lins. 5-12). Ena 2713.017r 1. פארה איל טימלור דילאש מאנוש קילי Para el temlor de las manos, que le .1 2. קולגין און פידאשו די קאלאמיטה אין -colguen un pedaso de calamita en .2 3. שימה אי שי לי קיטארה איל טימבילור .sima y se le quitará el tembelor .3 4. או טומארה קאבישה די ליברי אי לא O tomará cabesa de lebre y la .4 5. פיריירא ביין קון אזייטי די אוליבה האשטה fereirá bien con azeite de oliva hasta .5 6. קי שי קימי אי אקיל אזייטי שי אוטארה לאש que se queme. Y aquel azeite se ũtará29 las .6 7. מאנוש או לוש פייש קואנדו טימלארין .manos o los pies quando temlaren .7 8. פארא איל קיאישטה קיבראדו קומינו Para el que está quebrado, comino .8 9. קון וינאגרי פואירטי רימוגאדו אי פימיינטה con vinagre fuerte remojado y pimienta .9 10. בילאנקה אי ג'ינג'יברי אי קאנילה אי רודה אי belanca y jengibre y canela y ruda y .10 11. שיראן לאש פאטיש איגואליש אי מייל אין קורודו serán las partes iguales, y miel en curudo .11 12. אי דוש קיראטש די אורו היג'ו מאעאג'ון ,y dos quirates30 de oro hecho maˁağun .12 אי לו קומירה ,y lo comerá 13. אי לי הארה גאראנדי פורוויג'ו y le hará garande porovecho.31 .13 ]איגא אגואה \דיסנרי/[ [\echa agua /de sanre] 14. פילדורהש פארה איל באלגאם אי לא סאפרה ,Píldoras para el bálgam y la sapra .14 חנטית ḥanāṭīt 15. אי גינדי סיאנישטאר אמאשאדו קון אזייטי y gindi, sin estar32 amasado, con azeite .15 די אוליוא ,de oliva 16. היג'ו מאעאגון אי אנטיש קי לו קומה hecho maˁağun, y antes que lo coma .16 אירה אל באניו ,irá al baño 17. אי קומירה דיאיו דוש דיראמאש אקיא נוג'י .y comerá de eyo dos deramas aquea noche .17 18. פארה אונה קיריאטורא קי טייני מאל די בוקא ,Para una quiriatura que tiene mal de boca .18 19. און טלי לא בוקא קון ליג'י די אנשא .úntele la boca con leche de asna .19 28 Cynthia Crews, “One Hundred Medical Recipes in Judeo-Spanish of ca 1600”, Revue des Études Juives 126 (1967), p. 213. 29 Untará. 30 En concreto, la forma quirate se encuentra documentada en el anónimo Secuestro de bienes [Inventarios de bienes moriscos del Reino de Granada] (1563). Juan Martínez Ruiz (ed.), CSIC, Madrid 1972, p. 270, en CORDE [11.09.2012]. 31 Provecho. 32 En el texto syʼnyštʼr debido al cambio de orden de algunas letras. 172 Aldina Quintana Terminología de la jerga de la medicina popular y farmacopea sefardíes: calamita (2) ʻcalamita, calamida, imánʼ (ár. qaramīṭ, del gr. καλαμίτης): Relativo a la caña, nombre dado al imán en la Edad Media, porque los navegantes lo ponían sobre un trozo de caña en un recipiente con agua para que indicase el Norte.33 lebre (4) ʻliebreʼ (port.); jesp. lievre.34 Cabesa de lebre, probablemente se refiere a los sesos de liebre. En un manuscrito morisco se recomienda “miollo de la liebre o del conello” contra el temblor de manos.35 quebrado [estar] (8). Se dice de quien padece quebradura, es decir, hernia.36 quirates (12) ʻquilatesʼ (port. ant. quirate; cat. quirat, ár. hisp. qiráṭ; ár. clás. qīrāṭ; gr. κεράτιον ʻpeso de cuatro granosʼ): Unidad de peso que en España equivalía a 0,199 g37 entre los droguistas y los joyeros. En Turquía un kırat equivalía a la doceava parte de una dracma,38 por lo que su peso debía ser algo inferior. maˁağun (12, 16) ʻelectuarioʼ (ár. maˁğūn): medicamento pastoso o sólido de uso oral, compuesto de varios ingredientes, casi siempre vegetales, y cierta cantidad de miel, jarabe o azúcar.39 deramas (17) ʻdracmasʼ (cast. med. dramas). En España, como medida de peso para drogas y otros productos químicos, una dracma equivalía a 3,594 gramos,40 es decir, a un octavo de una onza.41 bálgam (14) ʻflema o cualquier secreción que se deposita en la faringe, la laringe, la tráquea o los bronquiosʼ. Probablemente del ár. hisp. en el que bálgam designaba la mucosidad 33 Diccionario RAE, 22o edición, Espasa, Madrid 2001, s.v. caramida. 34 Koén-Sarano, Diksionario (nota 21), p. 251, s.v. lievre. 35 Ver Labarta, Libro de dichos maravillosos (nota 6), p. 16. 36 Diccionario RAE, s.v. quebradura. 37 María Comerón Ramos, “Historia de la medida. Extremadura”, [en línea, 10.01.2013], http://centros4.pntic.mec.es/ies.zurbaran/REPERCUTEC/Actividades/Medidas/Historia_ de_la_medida.htm; María Eugenia Cortés Islas y Francisco Pablo Ramírez García, “Rescate de antiguas medidas iberoamericanas”, Boletín del Instituto Mexicano del Petróleo, [en línea, 10.01.2013],http://www.smf.mx/boletin/Ene-98/articles/medidas.html. 38 Crews, “One Hundred Medical Recipes” (nota 28), 253, s.v. qilaṭeś. 39 Íbid., pp. 245-246, s.v. maʿğūn; Diccionario RAE, s.v. electuario. 40 Comerón Ramos, “Historia de la medida” [en línea, 10.01.2013)]; Cortés Islas y Ramírez García, “Rescate de antiguas medidas iberoamericanas”, [en línea, 12.01.2013]. 41 Crews, “A Judeo-Spanish Medical MS” (nota 4), p. 209, s.v. dr. 173 Cuatro fragmentos de otros tantos cuadernos pegajosa que se arroja por la boca, procedente de las vías respiratorias.42 También uno de los cuatro humores en que la medicina antigua dividía los del cuerpo humano.43 safra (14) ʻcóleraʼ (tur. safra ʻbilis, hiel, cóleraʼ44) y este del ár. ṣafrāʾ ʻbilis’ (amarilla)45; jesp. colora (cast. med.), otro de los cuatro humores en que la medicina antigua dividía los del cuerpo humano. Ver heles. El origen andalusí de sapra no debe descartarse, una vez que esta raíz está presente en el adjetivo portugués açafrado ʻcoléricoʼ y en el extremeño cefrao ʻrendido, agotadoʼ.46 ḥanaṭit (14) ʻasa fétidaʼ (ár. ḥalatit47), lat. ferula assafoetida. Gomorresina de esta planta que se usa en medicina como expectorante en las enfermedades bronquiales, entre otros muchos usos. gindi (15) ‘sésamo, ajonjolí’, lat. sesamum indicum. Normalmente en los textos sefardies aparece como indi. Ena 2713.017v 1. פארה דולור די פולשוש טומי מוג'וקאש אי Para dolor de pulsos, tome muchocas y .1 2. לאש לאבא קון וינו לאש לאבאראש אי מאג'אדאש ,las laba con vino. Las labarás, y majadas .2 3. פיריטאש קון אזייטי די אוליבה אישירה אין גואינטי firitas con azeite de oliva, y será engüente .3 4. אי און טארה לוש פולשוש: אי טאנביין איש בואינו y untará los pulsos. Y tanbién es bueno .4 5. פארה לאשאנגרייא לא שאנגיריא קי שאנגארארון para lasangriya la sanguiría que sangararon .5 6. אי לא אינקונארון און פארלו לי שאנארה קי לי y la enconaron, untarlo.48.Le sanará. Que le .6 7. אין קונו לא וינה איקילידואילי לוש ניירווש enconó la vena y que le duele los ñervos .7 8. אי לוש טייני טיראואדוש לוש אישפאנדירה .y los tiene teravados, los espanderá .8 9. אפילו קי שיאן ניירווש די לאש פיירנאש שי איש -Afīlū49 que sean ñervos de las piernas, se es .9 10. פאנדיראן .panderán .10 42 Crews, “One Hundred Medical Recipes” (nota 18), p. 234, s.v. balgam. 43 Diccionario RAE, s.v. flema. 44 Crews, “One Hundred Medical Recipes” (nota 18), p. 253, s.v. qolora’. 45 Federico Corriente, Diccionario de arabismos y voces afines en iberorromance, Gredos, Madrid 1999, pp. 79-80, s.v. açafrado. 46 Ibíd. 47 Ḥalatit es la forma que figura en un glosario hebraico trilingüe que ha sido editado por José Ramón Magdalena Nom de Déu, Un glosario hebraico aljamiado trilingüe y doce «aqrabadin» de origen catalán (siglo xv), Universidad de Barcelona, Barcelona 1994, p. 14. .que se podría leer unfarlo, es decir, jesp און פארלו En el manuscrito aljamiado, escrito 48 unflarlo ‘incharlo’, pero untarlo tiene más sentido en este contexto. Por lo tanto, parece una errata del copista. 49 Heb. ʻinclusoʼ. 174 Aldina Quintana 11. פארה דולוריש די אומרוש טומי גואישוש Para dolores de omros, tome güesos .11 12. די מואירטו קי שייאן די אומרי אי לו]ש[ [de muerto, que seyan de omre, y lo[s .12 13. מאג'י אי לוש ביבא קון וינו .maje y los beba con vino .13 14. פארה לו מיזמו טומי קיזו וייג'ו די ואקה Para lo mezmo, tome quezo viejo de vaca .14 אי לו y lo 15. אמאשי קון שיוו די פואירקו או די אנאנשארון amase con sevo de puerco o de anansarón .15 16. היג'ו אינגואינטי אי שי און טארה טודוש לוש hecho engüente y se untará todos los .16 17. לוגאריש קי לי דואילין אי שי לי קיטאראן. .lugares que le duelen y se le quitarán .17 פיריואדו .Perevado 18. פארה דולור די מואילאש אי דיינטיש וירדיטו Para dolor de muelas y dientes, verdito .18 אי וינו y vino 19. כ פיריוידו ביין איג'אגוארה לוש דיינטיש .ferevido bien, ẽjaguará los dientes .19 Terminología de la jerga de la medicina popular y farmacopea sefardíes: pulsos (1) ʻsienesʼ (arag. pulso), significado que solo posee en la locución dolor de pulsos. Es voz usada todavía en Aragón.50 muchocas (1), probablemente las hojas o las semillas del ʻboj ordinarioʼ o ʻbujo comúnʼ (cast. med. box), un arbusto silvestre que crece en la costa del Mar Mediterráneo y del Mar Caspio, cuyo nombre científico esbuxus sempervirens. Se usa desde tiempos antiguos en medicina para la fabricación de lociones o lavados, entre otros remedios medicinales. En algunos pueblos del Pirineo aragonés a este arbusto se lo llama bucho,51 tal vez la forma que precede al nombre mucho y a su derivado muchocas a través de la nasalización de la bilabial [b]. enconaron (6) ʻinfectaronʼ(lat. Inquināre ʻmanchar, contaminarʼ). sevo (15) ʻseboʼ, grasa sólida y dura que se saca de los animales que derretida se usa en la fabricación de velas, jabones, etc. (esp. sebo; lat. sebum). sevo de puerco (15) ʻtocino de cerdoʼ. Jesp. hanzir y hazir. Ver sevo, tosinos de baca (Ena 2712.049r, lín. 22) y sebo de cavrón (Ena 3338.004v, lín. 9). anansarón (15) ʻansarón, ansarino, pollo del ánsarʼ (esp. ansarón), lat. anser domesticus. Con notación de la vocal esvarabática [a], pero sin la consiguiente 50 María Moliner, Diccionario de uso del español, H-Z, Gredos, Madrid 1984, p. 884, s.v. pulso. 51 Flora Vascular, s.v. Buxus semperviren, [en línea, 12.01.2013], http://www.floravascular. com/index.php?spp=Buxus%20sempervirens, y http://www.biodiversidadvirtual.org/ herbarium/Buxus-sempervirens-L-img137401.html. 175 Cuatro fragmentos de otros tantos cuadernos epéntesis de la nasal, se encuentra en otros textos judeoespañoles;52 en español, en la frase proverbial ʻpato, ganso y ansarón, que tres cosas suenan y una sonʼ.53 perevado (17) ʻprobado, comprobadoʼ. Jesp. prevado. Ver bādūq (Ena 2712.049v, lín. 8). verdito (18) ʻverdete, verdigrís, acetato de cobre que se emplea en la pinturaʼ (esp. verdete). Cuando está compuesto de carbonato básico de cobre, recibe el nombre de cardenillo. Ver verdete (Ena 3332.004v, lín. 2). ẽjaguará los dientes (19) ‘enjuagará los dientes’. (cast. med. enxuagar); jesp. enshaguar.54 La forma en sí es portuguesa o aragonesa.55 Ena 2815.008r 1. פארה בלאנדאר קואל שיקיר לייאגה אישיאיש קי Para blandar qual se quer llaga, y si es que .1 2. אדיאבריר שי אברי אי שינו שי אין שורוי טומה a de abrir, se abre. Y si no se ensorve, toma .2 3. הוג'אש די ויוליטאש אי הוג'אש די מאלואש אי hojas de violetas y hojas de malvas, y .3 4. קוג'אש ביין אי פואישטו אין שימה ______.cochas bien, y puesto ensima .4 5. פארה דיטיניר לאשאנגירי מארטיק דאהאבי Para detener la sanguere, marṭiq dahabi .5 6. לימאדו אין אזייטי טאיב אילאמאשארה דיאין לה limado en azeite ṭayyib y la masará de en la .6 7. לאמאניאנה אי לאטארדי אי שי קורטארה לא la mañana y la tadre, y se cortará la .7 שאנג]ירי[ .sanguere 8. פארה לאמוג'יר קינושיאינפיריניי טומי Para la mujer que no se enpereñe. Tome .8 נוג'י דילה noche de la 9. טיוילה אונה דיראמה די לימאדורה די ṭevilah una derama de limadura de .9 דיינ]טי די[ [dien[te de 10. אליפאנטי מאשאדו קון אשוקאר רוזאדו elefante masado con asúcar rozado y .10 איהי]ג'ו[ [he[cho 11. שופה אילו פונגה טודו טיינפו קיל]וייוא[ [sopa y lo ponga. Todo tiempo que l[o yeva .11 נושי no se 12. פיר]ינייא[ ______.pereña .12 52 Cf. Crews, “One Hundred Medical Recipes” (nota 18), p. 233, s.v. an[a]saron. 53 Cf. Agustín de Rojas Villadrando, El viaje entretenido (1603); Jacques Joset (ed.), Espasa- Calpe, Madrid 1977, p. 9, en CORDE [14.12.2012]. 54 Cf. Nehama, Dictionnaire (nota 18), p. 177, s.v. enšagwár. 55 La misma forma está ampliamente documentada en textos aragoneses y portugueses. Para los primeros, se puede consultar Labarta, Libro de dichos maravillosos (nota 6), p. 207. 176 Aldina Quintana 13. קוחלת פארה לא]נוי[ טומארה אונה באש]יא[ Qōḥelet para la [nuve],56 tomará una bas[í]a .13 דיאלאטון de alatón 14. א]ילה[ אינג'ירה דיוינו בילאנקו אילודיג'ארה y [la] inchirá de vino belanco y lo dejará .14 כד שעות ,šāʿōt 24 15. אי ]דיש[פואיש לא ואשיארה אין אטרה באש]י[א [y [des]pués la vasiará en otra bas[ía .15 דילאטון de latón 16. ]אי[ לודיג'ארה כד אוראש טאפאדו אידישפואיש y] lo dejará 24 oras tapado y después] .16 קוג'ירא אי]ל[ [cojerá e[l 17. מוהו איאירה הא]זיי[נדו אנשי מונג'אש ויזיש ,moho, y irá ha[zi]endo ansí munchas vezes .17 אי קוג'ירה y cojerá 18. איל מוהו אילוג'ו]גארה[ אל]שול[ איאלקולוהארה el moho y lo ju[ga]rá al [sol], y alcolohará .18 קוניל .con él Terminología de la jerga de la medicina popular y farmacopea sefardíes: marṭiq dahabi (5) ʻóxido de plomo (PbO)ʼ.57 ṭayyib (6) ʻbueno, a punto para comerʼ (ár. ṭayyib).58 azeite ṭayyib ʻaceite de buena calidadʼ. Ver tayyib. masará (6) ʻamasará, hará masaʼ. enpereñe (8) ʻempreñe, conciba, quede preñadaʼ. ṭevilah (9) ʻinmersión del cuerpo en agua con el fin de liberarse de impurezasʼ. .(טבילה .Especialmente prescrito a la mujer por la ley judía (heb kōḥelet (13) ʻpolvo que se colocaba sobre los párpados como remedio contra las ʻsombra de ojosʼ, derivado de כוחלת .cataratas u otra enfermedad de los ojosʼ (heb ʻazul, antimonioʼ, término empleado en hebreo para designar todos los כחל o כחול polvos finos de color similar que se empleaban tanto para sombrear los ojos como para curarlos). El color azul se solía obtener a partir de antimonita y galena. En el Antiguo Egipto, esta última se utilizaba molida como base del kohl, un compuesto en forma de polvos que desde antiguo se empleaba en el tratamiento de enfermedades oculares 56 En el manuscrito aljamiado, está escrito con un solo vav, por lo que se podría hacer también la lectura nue, es decir, jesp. nuve, con omisión de [v] provocada por el contacto con el árabe ([nwe] <[nuwwe] < [nuve] < [nuβe]). 57 Cf. Yael Buchman y Zohar Amar, Practical Medicine of Rabbi Hayyim Vital (1543-1620). Healer in the Land of Israel and Vicinity, Unit of the History of Medicine, Bar-Ilan University, .de acuerdo a la escritura de Hayim Vital ,מרת קדהבי .Ramat-Gan] 2006, p. 299, s.v] 58 Corriente, Diccionario de arabismos (nota 45), p. 443, s.v. tabair/la. 177 Cuatro fragmentos de otros tantos cuadernos así como en la cosmética y como maquillaje.59 La relación de kōḥelet con kohl (ár. kuḥl) es evidente, y con este significado aparecía ya en el Talmud Yerushalmi (Moʿed muestra la (קוחלת) Qatan 1, 7 y en Tosefta, Shabat 9,13). La grafía con qof en kōḥelet pronunciación sefardí de /k´/ enfática como /k/, por lo que debemos considerar que esta era una palabra integrada en judeoespañol. nuve (13) ʻcatarataʼ.60 ʻPanno, nube o mansillaʼ son tres enfermedades de los ojos que se mencionan en la Traducción del Libro de recetas de Gilberto.61 Hayim Vital habla de ʻnubes de los ojos de color blancoʼ62 [trad.]. Ver paño (Ena 3338.004r, lín. 1). basía (13) ʻbacinaʼ (cast. med. bacía), es decir, vasija para contener líquidos. Era la vasija que antiguamente usaban los barberos. alatón (13), variante antigua de latón (15). moho (16, 17), jesp. mofo. jugará al sol (18) ʻsecará al solʼ, variante del cast. med. esxugar. Jesp. enshug(u)ar. alcolohará [con kōḥelet] (18) ‘curará los ojos con alcohol’. Futuro de alcoholar con metátesis (cast. med. alcoholar, alcofolar). Crews afirma que significa “lavar los ojos con alcohol o con otro colirio, para limpiarlos o curarlos”63 [trad.]. Sin embargo, aquí se refiere a un tratamiento conkohl , es decir, con polvos.64 En la medicina medieval, se denominaba con el término alcohol (ár. hisp. kuḥúl, depluralizado del ár. cl. kuḥūl, pl. de kuḥl, nombre de la galena, el antimonio y sustancias susceptibles de uso y preparación similar)65 a cualquier polvo destinado al tratamiento de enfermedades de los ojos. Ver su relacion con kōḥelet. 59 Cf. Amir Ashur y Efraim Lev, “New Genizah Documents: Three Fragments on Practical Medicine in Medieval Egypt”, Ginzei Qedem. Genizah Research Annual 9 (2013), p. 19. 60 Crews, “One Hundred Medical Recipes” (nota 18), p. 147, s.v. nube. 61 Traducción del Libro de recetas de Gilberto (nota 4), fol. 11v, en CORDE [13.12.2012]. 62 Buchman y Amar, Practical Medicine (nota 57), p. 116. 63 Cf. Crews, “One Hundred Medical Recipes” (nota 18), p. 231, s.v. alkoḥolarse. 64 En Nebrija, Dictionarivm medicvm (nota 24), p. 33, s.v. alcohol, este es un “polvo muy sotil”. Una descripción de cómo se administra un qōḥelet se encuentra en la Traducción del Libro de recetas de Gilberto (nota 4), fol. 11r, en CORDE [13.12.2012] en una sección en la que también se describen diversos preparados empleados en el tratamiento de enfermedades de los ojos: “... & toma los dichos poluos & echalos dentro & mesclalos mucho con vna cuchar de madero nueva & guarda esto bien et usa por ello ponjendo en los ojos muy sotilmente con vna aguja de plata commo la muger quando se alcofola ...” 65 Corriente, Diccionario de arabismos (nota 45), pp. 140-141, s.v. alcohol. 178 Aldina Quintana Ena 2815.008v 1. פארה טינייר גוארדי עאשפ'ור אילימוניש .Para teñir, guarde ʿašfur y limones .1 כאיינ]טלדו[ [Cayen[taldo 2. טיריש דייאש אי דישפואש לוהירוירה איטיניירה _ _ .terés días, y después lo hervirá, y teñirá .2 3. פארה האזיר אאון אובירי או אאונה מוג'יר ,Para hazer aun omre66 o a una mujer .3 ק]י איש[ [q[ue es 4. עאקארה קינואינג'ינדירי טודה שו וידה ,ʿaqarah, que no engendere toda su vida .4 טומאר]ה לה[ [tomará [la 5. לאפאר דיל גאטו אילוקימארה אישילאדארה ]אה[ [la far del gato y lo quemará y se la dará [a .5 6. קומיר לאשיניזה דילאפאר איניטירי לא קומיד]א[ _ _[comer la seniza dela far entere la comid[a .6 7. פארה איל ארישטין דילאש קירייאטוראש אונטילי Para el arestín de las quiriaturas, úntele .7 8. ]ז[ראע די אומרי אינלאקאוישה דילא קירייא]טורה[ [zeraʿ de omre enla cavesa delaquiriat[ura .8 9. קאדה שימאנה אונה ויז אי נו טירנה ארישטין __ _ .cada semana una vez, y no terná arestín .9 10. ]פא[רה קואל קיר גיראנו אפילו פאנאריש או]נ[ [-Pa]ra qual quer gerano, afīlū panarís67, ú[n] .10 11. ]טי[לי קון זיראע די אומרי אישישיקארה __ __ .tele con zeraʿ de omre, yse secará .11 12. פארה איל פילו דילא טיטה דילא מוג'יר טא]ן[ [-Para el pelo de la teta de la mujer, ta[n .12 13. ביין אונטילי זיראע די אומרי אי שילי ק]ו[ [bién úntele zeraʿde omre, y se le c[o .13 ר]טארה לה[ [r[tará la 14. דולור א]י[ פארה לא טיניא קאדה דוש ד]יאש[ ש]י[ [dolor y para la tiña: cada dos d[ías] s[e .14 15. אראפארה אישי אונטארה אישאנארה ______.arrapará y se untará, y sanará .15 16. א]י[ פארה אונה קירייאטורה ק]רי[באטה אונטי]לי[ [Y para una quiriatura que [re]bata, únte[le .16 17. טודו טוקויארפו קון זיראע די אומרי .todo [s]u68 cuerpo con zeraʿde omre .17 בואינו ______.Bueno Terminología de la jerga de la medicina popular y farmacopea sefardíes: ʿašfur (1) ʻalazor, cártamoʼ (ár. hisp. alʿaṣfúr; ár. clás. ʿuṣfur), lat. carthamus tinctorius.69 Planta anual de la familia de las compuestas, de medio metro de altura, con ramas espesas, hojas lanceoladas y espinosas, flores de color azafrán que se usan para teñir. 66 En el texto está escrito obere. Lo corrijo por omre ʻhombreʼ como dice en las líns. 8, 11, 13 y 17. 67 “Contra panariz: conuiene saber quando se hazen en derredor de la llaga algunas pustulas \ o vexigas blancas: toma ensundia vieja sin sal: & vnos gusanos que se llaman cient pies: & picalos muy bien con la ensundia: & con aquel emplastro vntalas bien: & quitara el dolor & bsol; & curara las dichas vexigas & pustulas” en la traducción del siglo xv del Compendio de la humana salud de Johannes de Ketham. Madrid, BN I51. María Teresa Herrera y María Estela González de Fauve (nota 4), 29v, en CORDE [17.12.2012]. 68 Corrijo un lapsus calami: tu por su. 69 Corriente, Diccionario de arabismos (nota 45), p. 107, s.v. alaçor; Crews, “One Hundred Medical Recipes” (nota 18), p. 260, s.v. ʿuşfür. 179 Cuatro fragmentos de otros tantos cuadernos Ena 2815.008v Esta imagen se reproduce por cortesia de la Biblioteca del Jewish Theological Seminary of America, Nueva York 180 Aldina Quintana .jesp. maniera ;(עקרה .ʿaqarah (4) ʻestérilʼ (heb far (5, 6), probablemente ʻpelajeʼ (ár. cl. farru ʻpelaje, pielʼ). arestín (7, 9) ʻarestín, cardillo corredorʼ (esp.); lat. eryngium tenue; jesp. usagre ʻafección cutánea que se presenta ordinariamente en la cara y alrededor de las orejas durante la primera denticiónʼ. .(זרע .zeraʿ (8, 11, 13, 17) ʻesperma, semillaʼ (heb panarís (12) ʻfurúnculoʼ (cast. med. panariz). rebata (16) ʻarrebata, contrae fiebreʼ. quiriatura que rebata (16) ʻniño, criatura que tiene fiebreʼ. Ver rebata. bueno (13), ver Ena 3338.003r, lín. 10, tōv (Ena 2948.010v, lín. 20; Ena 3338.004, lín. 11) y Es bueno muncho (Ena 2948.010v, lín. 4). 3.3. Fragmentos del recetario 3 (fol. Ena 2948.010) De este cuaderno se conserva solo un folio de 108 x 154 mm de los que el texto ocupa una superficie de 89 x 123 mm, escrito a una columna de 17 líneas el recto y 14 el verso. Contiene la descripción de dos prácticas mágicas anotadas en hebreo en el recto, y cinco unidades médico-farmacológicas escritas en judeoespañol en el verso. En la segunda de las prácticas mágicas, el encantamiento (jesp. prekante) o fórmula usada en el hechizo, está en español70 y contiene elementos de la tradición cristiana: santita (lín. 5 del recto), así como ángel y su variante italiana ángelo (lín. 14). Lamentablemente el encantamiento está incompleto a causa de la mutilación del folio en su parte inferior izquierda. La caligrafía que muestra el texto de este documento es prácticamente igual a las de los documentos dos y cuatro. Pero ofrece una peculiaridad lingüística en la semen’ como [‘zerax] (líns. 7, 9, 11‘ זרעrepresentación ortográfica de la palabra hebrea del verso), pronunciación característica de los sefardíes de Salónica. 70 Sobre el encantamiento, véase Tamar Alexander y Eliezer Papo, “Te aprikanto i te diskanto: La medisina tradisional de las mujeres sefardís de Bosna”, Judenspanisch x (= Neue Romania 35) (2006), p. 25. 181 Cuatro fragmentos de otros tantos cuadernos Ena 2948.010r 10.� למיציאה�71 קח צלוחית ומלה אותה Para la topadura, toma una boteyica y yénala .10 מיים de agua 11. מן המעין קודם יציאת השמש de la fuente antes de la salida del sol .11 וכתרצ]ה[ y cuando quieras 12. לעשות הדבר קח ג' נרות מ]...... azer esto, toma tres velas .12 13. סביב לצלוחית ואחר כך אמ]...... [.alderedor de la boteyica y después[…. [trad .13 14. אנג'ילו סאנטו אנג'יל בילאנ]...... …….ángelo santo, ángel belan[co .14 15. סאנטיטה אי פור לא מ]...... …………………]santita y por la m .15 16. אמושראר אין קוויר]פו ...... ……………… amosrar en cuuer[po .16 17. רידומה בשם מש]...... …………………]redoma bosēm .17 ______ Terminología de la jerga de la medicina popular y farmacopea sefardíes: bosēm (17) ʻbálsamoʼ (heb.) Ena 2948.010v 1. פארה לאטוש קואישקוש די אלחארובאש Para la tos, cuexcos de alḥarrobas .1 2. רימוג'אדו האשטה קישידישהאגאן אי remojado hasta que se deshagan y .2 3. היג'ו ����ג'ארופי אישידישאיונארא קון hecho xarope y se desayunará con .3 4. אייו קאדה מאניאנה איש בואינו מונג'ו .eyo cada mañana. Es bueno muncho .4 ______5. פארה לא טיניא אראפארה לאקאוישא Para la tiña, arrapará la cavesa .5 6. קאדה דוש דייאש אילאאונטארה קון cada dos días y la untará con .6 7. זיראח די אומבירי אי שאנארה ���______.zeraḥ de ombere, y sanará .7 ______8. אי טאנביין פארה איל פילו די לא טיטה :Y tanbién para el pelo de la teta .8 9. אונטארה לאטיטא קון זיראח טוב .untará la teta con zeraḥ. Tōv .9 ______10. פארה קו[אל קיר קירייאטורה קינו Para qu]al quer quiriatura que no .10 11...... א[ונטארה קון זיראח שו u]ntará con zeraḥ su…………… .11 12. ………..] ]...... 12 ______13...... [ אונטארה און untará un [..…………………… .13 14...... [ה אין שימה _____ .á ensima [..…………………… .14 ______ 71 La meṣiʾah es el nombre hebreo de la topadura, una práctica mágica sefardí cuyo objetivo consistía en hallar a una persona o un objeto perdidos. 182 Aldina Quintana Terminología de la jerga de la medicina popular y farmacopea sefardíes: alḥarrobas [alxa’robas] (1) ʻalgarrobas, frutos del algarroboʼ (ár. hisp. alḥarrúba), lat. ceratonia siligua. cuexcos de alḥarrobas (1) ʻcuescos, semillas de las algarrobasʼ. Ver alḥarrobas. xarope (3) ʻjarope, jarabeʼ (cast. med. xarope; ár. hisp. šaráb); jesp. sharope. zeraḥ (7, 9, 11) ʻsemen, espermaʼ. Presenta la particularidad de reflejar la pronunciación sefardí, conocida en Salónica, con la pronunciación velar sorda del ayīn en posición final de palabra, es decir [‘zerax].72 Ver zeraʿ (2815.008v 8, 11, 13, 17). bueno (4): Es bueno muncho. Ver bueno (Ena 3338.003r, lín. 10; Ena 2815.008v, lín. 17) y tōv (Ena 2948.010v, lín. 20). tōv (9), ver bueno (Ena 3338.003r, lín. 10; Ena 2815.008v, lín. 17) y tōv (Ena 3338.004r, lín.10). 3.4. Fragmentos del recetario 4 (fols. Ena 3338.003-004) Estos son los dos únicos folios que se conservan de este cuaderno que, sin duda, era bastante más largo, puesto que ambos llevan anotado el número de folio en su parte superior izquierda, 42 y 41 respectivamente. De ello se deduce que el número de página en el catálogo del JTS es el inverso al orden real de los mismos. Sus medidas son 108 x 156 mm de los que el texto ocupa 101 x 139 mm, escrito a una columna de entre catorce y dieciocho renglones. Su estado de conservación es bueno. La escritura es muy similar a la de los documentos dos y tres,y contiene algunas correcciones intencionadas: Probablemente el propio copista tachó el final del primer remedio (líns. 5-6 de Ena 3338.004r). Con objetos diferentes a la pluma empleada en la escritura de los remedios se tacharon también las dos unidades contra la sarna (líns. 7-10 de Ena 3338.003r y 11-18 de ENA 3338.003v). En cambio, el propio copista completó, después de haber anotado toda la relación, una unidad indicada contra la tiña (lín. 3 de Ena 3338.004v) con las palabras engüente, arrapar, auntar, que hacen referencia al tipo de preparado y a su administración. A diferencia de los recetarios descritos arriba, éste pocas veces facilita informaciones relativas a la preparación y administración del medicamento, limitándose a enumerar los componentes de cada preparado que se recomienda para tratar la enfermedad previamente señalada, por lo que resulta bastante 72 Nehama, Dictionnaire (nota 18), p. 607, s.v. zéraj. 183 Cuatro fragmentos de otros tantos cuadernos deficitario desde el punto de vista del contenido. Por todo ello, se puede deducir que estos remedios no han sido copiados de otro recetario, sino anotados de una fuente oral. También las características lingüísticas son análogas a las de los recetarios dos y tres, como el empleo de h- en lugar de f- etimológica (hieles, hezes, hollín, háganle, hervido, hecho, hojas, hervirá), excepto en fiede (Ena 3338.003v, lín. 1), y h- antietimológica (henchir), pero proveniente de la forma del español medieval fenchir, así como el empleo de las faríngeas en palabras árabes (buṭariḥ) y, en especial, de la sonora con la función de consonante, enʿafion ʻopioʼ (tur. afyon; ár. ʿefiūn) – aunque probablemente sea una variante árabe – que acreditan que el documento procede de una comunidad en contacto con el árabe. La grafía šeres (heb. šēɾēṣ) en Ena 3338.004r (lín. 2) deja traslucir la pronunciación popular sefardí. Se emplean las formas sefardíes quen (esp. quien; jesp. ken) en Ena 3338.004v (lín. 13) y Ena 3338.003v (lín. 1), y quere (esp.quiere; jesp. kere) en Ena 3338.003v (lín. 3), formas que ya aparecen documentadas a finales del siglo XVI en judeoespañol.73 Como en el resto de los documentos, aflora la terminología árabe (ṭaḥina, lubana, mur buṭariḥ, afion), con algunas variantes del árabe hispano (aṣṣíbr, adefla y tal vez qarʾaay). Además de las unidades que contienen remedios destinados a curar diferentes enfermedades (pterigión, cataratas, tiña, granos, disentería y sarna), el documento incluye un diagnóstico a través de una práctica mágica (ENA 3338.003v, líns 1-10). Ena 3338.004r מא 41 1. פארה קיטאר איל פאניו גואיווש Para quitar el paño, güevos .1 2. קוג'וש אי אביירטוש אי קיטאר איל cochos y abiertos y quitar el .2 3. אמארייו אי מאג'אר איל בילאנקו amariyo y majar el belanco .3 4. דיל גואיוו קון קארדיניליו אי אסוקאר del güevo con cardenillo y asúcar .4 5. קאנדיל פ'ינו )אי דישפואיש דישהיג'ו אי candil fino (y después deshecho e .5 6. ניל וינו בילאנקו אישטילארלו:( פארה nel vino belanco, estilarlo.) Para .6 ______ 73 En el recetario editado por Crews, “One Hundred Medical Recipes” (nota 18), pp. 221 y 213 respectivamente. 184 Aldina Quintana 7. פורטישיר לאקאבישה דיקי שאלי דיל forteser la cabesa de que sale del .7 8. באניו פירלה איקוראל אי אסוקאר קא]נדיל[ [baño, perla y coral y asúcar ca[ndil .8 9. אי אסוקאר בילאנקו אי גיראנו אין גיראנה ,y asúcar belanco y guerano en guerana .9 10. טודו אישטו מולידו אי פולווריאדו טוב]:[ [.]todo esto molido y polvoreado. Tōv .10 11. פארה קומיר לאנווי גואיווש קוגוש אי Para comer la nuve, güevos cochos y .11 12. אבירטוש איהינג'ירלוש קון וינו בילאנק]ו[ [abertos74 y henchirlos con vino belanc[o .12 13. אי קארדיניליו איאסוקאר קאנדיל אי y cardenillo y asúcar candil y .13 14. דיש פואיש פואישטו אין אונה רידומה .después puesto en una redoma .14 15. אי אישטו איש פארה קומיר לאנובי: :Y esto es para comer la nube .15 Terminología de la jerga de la medicina popular y farmacopea sefardíes: paño (1) ʻpterigión, pañoʼ, o sea, una excrecencia membranosa que desde el ángulo interno del ojo se extiende a la córnea, interrumpiendo la vista. También Hayim Vital llama paño a esta enfermedad ocular, de la cual dice que ʻno es tan espesa como la nubeʼ [trad.], es decir, como la catarata.75 Ver nuve (Ena 2815.008r, lín. 13). cardenillo (4, 13) ʻespuela de caballero escarlataʼ, lat. Delphinium cardinale, planta anual muy usada en medicina. asúcar candil (4-5, 8, 9, 13) ʻazúcar candeʼ (port. ant.),76 lat. Saccarum officinarum. perla (8) ʻpolvo de perlaʼ. coral (8) ʻcoralʼ. Probablemente se refiere a lasalicornia europaea. guerano en guerana (9) ʻgeranio en granaʼ, es decir, geranio que su flor ha crecido tanto que solo sirve para semilla. comer la nuve (11, 15) ʻhacer desaparecer la catarata’. Ena 3338.004v 1. פארה לאטיניה דוש היליש די ואקא קון און Para la tiña, dos heles de vaca con un .1 2. פוקו די היזיש די שיריש אי וירדיטי אישירה אי poco de hezes de šeres y verdete y sera y .2 3. אורינה אי הוליין אינגואינטי אראפאר אאונטאר orina y hollín. Engüente, arrapar, auntar .3 ______4. פארה קוראר לאקאבישה טאחינה Para curar la cabesa, ṭaḥina .4 5. קולוראדה אזארקון אגאליאש אשיבר .colorada, azarcón, agallas, aṣṣíbr .5 ______6. פארה אמאדוראר גיראנוש שיבוליא Para amadurar gueranos, sebolla .6 7. אשאדה אי ליואדורה פארה קוראר asada y levadura. Para curar .7 74 Abierto. 75 Cf. Buchman y Amar, Practical Medicine (nota 57), p. 128. 76 Cf. Crews, “One Hundred Medical Recipes” (nota 6), p. 233, s.v. asuqar. 185 Cuatro fragmentos de otros tantos cuadernos 8. לוש גיראנוש דיש פואיש די אויירטוש יב" los gueranos después de aviertos, 12 .8 9. דיראמאש די שירה יב" די פיש יב'' די שיבו deramas de sera, 12 de pes, 12 de sebo .9 10. די קאורון ה' די לובאנה כה" די אזייטי די de cavrón, 5 de lubana, 25 de azeite de .10 11. אוליוה טודו דיריטידו איקולאדו אי און -oliva; todo derretido y colado, y un .11 12. טארלו .tarlo .12 ______13. פארה קין טייני קאמאראש די שאנגירי האגאנלי Para quen tiene cámaras de sanguere, háganle .13 אונ]ה[ [un[a 14. מיג'ה די עאפיון אילואי]ג[ו שיליקיטארה: .mecha de ʿafiony lue[g]o77 se le quitará .14 Terminología de la jerga de la medicina popular y farmacopea sefardíes: heles (1) ʻhieles, bilisʼ (esp. hiel; port. fel; lat. fel). Jesp. fiel. Ver safra. hieles de vaca (1) ʻhieles de vacaʼ. Ver heles. Hace referencia a un grupo de animales que, según la .(שרץ .šeres (2) ʻsierpeʼ (heb Biblia (Lev. 11:29), no son aptos para el consumo dietético: ʻy éste a vos el enconado en la sierpe la sierpen sovre la tierra: la comadreja y el ratón y el sapo a su maneraʼ.78 hezes de šeres (2) ʻheces, excrementos de sierpeʼ. Ver šeres. verdete (2) ʻverdete, verdigrís, acetato de cobre que se emplea en la pinturaʼ. Ver verdito (Ena 2713.017v, lín. 18). sera (2) ʻcera, parafinaʼ (cast. med.çera ). hollín (3) ʻhollín vegetalʼ. ṭaḥina colorada (4-5) ʻsemillas de sésamo molidas mezcladas con aceiteʼ (tur. tahin).79 Lat. sesamum indicum orientale. La ṭaḥina es uno de los componentes medicinales que también menciona Hayim Vital.80 77 luego ʻinmediatamente después, acto seguidoʼ (cast. med.). Variante jesp. lugo. 78 Biblia en ladino según el Sēfer ʾarbāʿā veʿeśrīm. Ḥamīšā Ḥumšē Tōrā, Georg Holzinger, Viena 1813. 79 Sam Maimon, “Ladino – English Dictionary”, Marc D. Angel (ed.), Studies in Sephardic Culture. The David N. Barocas Memorial Volume, Sepher-Hermon Press, New York 1980, p. 170, s.v. tahina; Albert Morris Passy, Sephardic folk dictionary: English to Ladino, Ladino to English. 2nd rev. ed., AMPCO, [Los Angeles] 1994, p. 223, s.v. tahina. También Eliezer Papo, Peleʾ Yoʿeṣ… trizladadu in ladinu por mano de su ijo Yehuda Eliezer Papo, vol. 2, Y. H. Schossberg, Viena 1872, p. 47. En Salónica parece haber tenido otro significado, puesto que Nehama,Dictionnaire (nota 18), p. 537, s.v. tajína, define latajina como “torta de sésamo, que sirve para alimentar el ganado”. 80 Buchman y Amar, Practical Medicine (nota 57), p. 94, nota 141 y p. 157, nota 53. 186 Aldina Quintana azarcón (5) ʻtetróxido de plomo, minio o plomo rojoʼ. (esp. azarcón; ár. hisp. azzarqún), lat. minium. agallas (5) ʻexcrecencia redonda que se forma en algunos árboles por la picadura de ciertos insectos e infecciones por microorganismosʼ (esp.). aṣṣíbr (5) ʻacíbar, áloeʼ (ár. hisp. aṣṣíbr), lat. aloeferox. pes (9) ʻcolofonia, pez, trementina que se saca de algunos árboles como los pinos y los abetosʼ.81 sebo de cavrón (9-10) ʻsebo de cabrónʼ. Ver tosinos de baca (Ena 2712.049r, lín. 22) y sevo de puerco (Ena 2713.017v, lín. 15). lubana (10) ʻincienso aromático, olíbanoʼ (ár. clás. lubān), lat. boswellia sacra. cámaras de sanguere (13) ʻdisenteríaʼ. Crews relaciona las cámaras de sangre con sangre en las heces.82 Juan de Pineda identifica esta enfermedad como la disentería: “...que pondera mucho Galeno tener los intestinos y ventrículo dos túnicas porque si por alguna enfermedad de humores corrosivos se causase disentería (que quiere decir cámaras de sangre con raeduras de las tripas) y la una peligrase, quedase la otra con que se salvase la salud y vida del animal”.83 La misma identificación la hace Nebrija.84 La pérdida de sangre a través del recto, igual que por la boca o tosiendo, se encuentran entre los síntomas de esta enfermedad. mecha (14) ʻporción de hilas atadas por el medio, que se emplean para la curación de enfermedades externas y operaciones quirúrgicasʼ.85 ʻafion (14) ʻopioʼ (tur. afyon; ár. ʻefiūn),extracto de papaver somniferrum.86 Jesp. afion. 81 Crews, “One Hundred Medical Recipes” (nota 18), p. 250, s.v. pes. 82 Íbid., p. 253. 83 Cf. Juan de Pineda, Diálogos familiares de la agricultura cristiana1589, Juan Meseguer Fernández (ed.), Atlas, Madrid 1963-1964, p. 229v, en CORDE [17.12.2012]. 84 Nebrija, Dictionarivm medicvm (nota 24), p. 57, s.v. desinteria. 85 Guido Mensching (ed.), La sinonima delos nonbres delas medeçinas griegos e latynos e arauigos, Arco/Libros, Madrid 1994, p. 267, s.v. mecha para llaga. 86 Crews, “One Hundred Medical Recipes” (nota 18), p. 237, s.v. ʿefiiūn. 187 Cuatro fragmentos de otros tantos cuadernos Ena 3338.003r מב 42 1. /ג'אקיקה\ /Jaqueca\ .1 2. פיפיניקוש אמארגוש מאג'ארלוש Pepinicos amargos. Majarlos .2 3. איאיש פירמירלוש איאקיל שומו y espermirlos y aquel sumo .3 4. הירוידו קון און פוקו דיאזייטי אי שיר]ה[ [h]ervido con un poco de azeite y ser[a] .4 5. איאון טארשי לאקאבישה אי לה פירינטי .y untarse la cabesa y la ferente .5 6. אישטו איש פארא אונו קיטיאיני ג'אקיקה .Esto es para uno que tiene jaqueca .6 ______7. פארה שארנא מטיר קאראאי ו' דיראמש ,Para sarna, meter qarʾaay 6 deramas .7 8. ד' דיראמאש די פאשא פיריטה היג'ו פיל -deramas de pasa preta hecho píl 4 .8 9. דוראש ה' פור לא מאניאנה אי ג' פור ]לא[ [doras, 5 por la mañana y 3 por [la .9 10. טארדי בואינו .tarde. Bueno .10 ______11. פארה לאש לומריזיש קואיג'קוש ד]י[ [Para las lomrizes, cuexcos d[e .11 12. שיטרה מולירלוש איביוירלוש קון א]ון[ [sitra. Molerlos y beverlos con u[n .12 13. פוקו די וינו .poco de vino .13 ______14. פארא קין טייני פוג'וש די קאמאראש ד]י[ [Para quen tiene pujos de cámaras d[e .14 15. שאנגירי טומין מור בוטאריח אי sanguere, tomen mur buṭariḥ y .15 16. האגא לי אונא מיג'א די אייו לואיגו hágale una mecha de eyo. Luego .16 17. שיליקיטארה .se le quitará .17 ______18. טו]...... [מיל אי לו]נט[ארה אי שירה אין גואינטי To[….]mel y lo [unt]ará y será enguente .18 קולור... …color Terminología de la jerga de la medicina popular y farmacopea sefardíes: k co qarʾaay (7), probablemente un ʻsal básicoʼ como carbonato de potasio ( 2 3), n co 87 carbonato de sodio ( a2 ) o cloruro de potasio (kc1). bueno (10). Ver bueno (Ena 2815.008v, lín. 13). sitra (12) ʻcidra, fruta del cidroʼ (lat. citra), lat. citrus medica. Fruta muy usada en medicina. Jesp. sidra. cuexcos de sitra (11-12) ʻcuescos, semillas de la cidraʼ. Ver sitra. pujos (14) ʻpujo, tenesmoʼ, gana frecuente de defecar o de orinar, con gran dificultad y acompañada de dolores. Jesp. empushos. cámaras de sanguere (14-15) ʻdisenteríaʼ. Ver Ena 3338.004v, lín. 13. .קיליי .Cf. Buchman y Amar, Practical Medicine (nota 57), p. 299, s.v 87 188 Aldina Quintana pujos de cámaras de sanguere (14-15), pujos de sangre en deposiciones sanguinolentas o de moco y sangre que se producen en enfermos de disentería. mur buṭariḥ (15) ‘resina de madera de mirra’ (ár. murbuṭarik̠ ), Lat. commiphora 88י.מור בוטאריך molmol. Hayim Vital escribe Ena 3338.003v 1. פארה קין שיפ'יידי די לאנדירי ביוא Para quen se fiede de landere,89 beva .1 2. לואיגו שואורינה קורטה איל שאמאה luego su orina. Corta el samah .2 3. מאיודי אי קיריויאיר שיביוי אושינו ,mayudi.90 Y quere veer si bive o si no .3 4. בושקינלי און גאיו פיריטו קינוטינגא búxquenle un gayo pereto que no tenga .4 5. פולומא בילאנקה אי אהברינלי איל puluma belanca y ahábrenle el .5 6. שישו אי שיטינלו אין ריבא די לא לאנדירי .seso91 y sẽtenlo enriba de la landere .6 7. שי מואירי איל גאיו דאיי אה כ"ד א -Si muere el gayo d’aí a 24 o .7 8. ראש בייו איל מאנשיבו אישינו פוא]י[ -[ras92 bi[v]e93 el mansebo y si no pu[e .8 9. די מוריר איל גאיו מואירי איל מאן -de morir el gayo, muere el man .9 10. ]ש[יבו .s]ebo] .10 11. אינגואינטי פארה לא שארנא טומארה Engüente para la sarna. Tomará .11 12. לאש הוג'אש דילא אדיפלא אילו הירוי/רא\ [las hojas de la adefla y lo hervi[rá .12 13. קונאגואה אהשטא קישיאפורי איטומארה אה -con agua hasta que se apure y tomará a .13 14. קיל אגואה איאג'ארא אוטרו טאנטו די quel agua y echará otro tanto de .14 15. אזייטי די אוליוא אילו הירוירה האשטא azeite de oliva y lo hervirá hasta .15 16. קיקידי אין שואזייטי אי איג'ארה און que quede en su azeite y echará un .16 17. פידאשו די שירא אי שיקואג'ארה און pedaso de sera y se cuajará un .17 18. אינגואינטי אישיאון טארה דינוג'י... …engüente y se untará de noche .18 Terminología de la jerga de la medicina popular y farmacopea sefardíes: adefla (12) ʻadelfa, laurelʼ (ár. hisp. addífla) Lat., Laurus nobilis. se apure, del verb. apurarse ʻagotarseʼ (esp.). 88 Cf. Buchman y Amar, Practical Medicine (nota 57), pp. 136, 137, 139, 215. 89 Landre como en Turquía; landra en Salónica (cf. Nehama, Dictionnaire (nota 18), p. 323, s.v. lándra) y en Jerusalén (Salomon Israel Cherezli, Nouveau Petit Dictionnaire Judéo- Se trata de la .(לאנדרה .Espagnol - Francais, A. M. Lunez, Jerusalem 1898, p. 125, s.v peste. 90 No identificado. 91 Quiere decir: golpéenle la cabeza (esp. seso; jesp. meoyo). Téngase en cuenta la metátesis en ahábrenle (jesp. aharbenle). 92 En el texto aljamiado falta el vav en la palabra oras. 93 Corrijo las letras intercambiadas en el manuscrito original. 189 Cuatro fragmentos de otros tantos cuadernos 4. Conclusiones He editado y descrito las características de los fragmentos de cuatro documentos que contienen unidades codicopaleográficas en literatura de listas, cuyo contenido es la medicina y la farmacología sefardíes. Excepto los fragmentos del primer recetario descrito que, incluso, podría haber sido anotado en España, los fragmentos de los otros tres recetarios poseen características comunes, como son el tipo de letra cursiva hebrea, carente de influjos orientales, y sus rasgos lingüísticos. Estos últimos indican que, sin duda, fueron copiados o anotados entre los siglos xvi y xvii en un área en la que los hablantes de judeoespañol estaban en contacto con la lengua árabe. Si la literatura de listas se caracteriza por la simplicidad de las estructuras lingüísticas, esta es una de las peculiaridades de la lengua de los recetarios descritos, en los que se lleva al máximo extremo, siendo escasos los predicados verbales que llegan a formar cláusulas completas. La descripción de la preparación y administración de los remedios no siempre se menciona. Todo ello pone de relieve la escasa elaboración del texto, dando lugar a una cohesión informativa bastante pobre. La representación fonológica de la terminología hebrea y las desviaciones ortográficas de la norma rabínica judeoespañola revelan, además, el bajo nivel de instrucción de los autores de estos documentos y, por ende, su limitado o nulo contacto con las tradiciones literarias cultas. Desde el punto de vista léxico, el uso de terminología médica y farmacológica incorporada de varias lenguas, en especial del hebreo y del árabe, son un reflejo de la simbiosis cultural que caracterizaba la vida de las comunidades sefardíes tanto antes como después de la expulsión. Por lo que a las propias recetas respecta, estas aportan fórmulas, hasta ahora no documentadas en el ámbito de la medicina popular sefardí, así como tres recetas en las que el aspecto mágico está presente. La mutilación de alguno de los folios, el desgaste del papel o la desaparición de la tinta en algunos lugares del texto, que impiden rescatar el texto completo de varios de los preparados y de las fórmulas mágicas mencionadas, no merman su valor. Por el contrario, es de esperar que la publicación de estos fragmentos atraiga la curiosidad de los investigadores con el fin de encontrar sus parejos en alguno de los muchos archivos de la Genizah. 190 Pilar Romeu Aproximación a la filmografía sobre los sefardíes: Apuntes para el estudio de un género en gestación Pilar Romeu La presente contribución en homenaje a la Profesora Tamar Alexander quiere llamar la atención sobre la eclosión in crescendo en los últimos años de numerosos materiales audiovisuales sobre los sefardíes y el mundo sefardí, y sus posibilidades de estudio sistemático.1 1. Marco de análisis y muestreo Me centraré exclusivamente en aquellos que se refieren a las sociedades sefardíes afincadas en los territorios del antiguo Imperio Otomano, por lo que no tendré en cuenta los numerosos materiales que existen sobre los sefardíes de Marruecos —y, en general, del Magreb—,2 así como de los que se denominan a sí mismos sefardíes pues sus ramas familiares provienen de la Península Ibérica desde 1492, pero no han conservado los rasgos identitarios propios de aquéllos.3 Los sefardíes del antiguo Imperio Otomano concentran unas características culturales específicas (lengua, cultura, usos religiosos...) que posibilitan el estudio pormenorizado de cada una de ellas y que no se encuentran en la misma medida o con idéntica especificidad en otras ramas étnicas del judaísmo. No he tenido tampoco en cuenta las historias relativas a 1 Charles Berlin, Jewish film and Jewish studies: Proceedings of a Conference held at Harvard University on November 13-14, 1989 on the role of Jewish film in teaching and research in Jewish Studies, Harvard University Library, Cambridge, Mass. 1991. 2 Como, por ejemplo: (Argelia) Five Brothers (Comme les cinq doigts de la main), dir. Alexandre Arcady (Francia 2010), 117 min; (Marruecos) Gorgeous! (Comme t’y es belle!), dir. Lisa Azuelos (Francia 2006), 84 min; Mashehu matoq (Something Sweet), dir. Dan Turgeman (Israel 2004), 97 min. 3 Como, por ejemplo: (Brasil) About Sugarcane and Homeco ming, dir. Shaul Kesslassi (Holanda 2008), 54 min. 191 Aproximación a la filmografía sobre los sefardíes los judíos en la Península Ibérica o las que abundan en la historia de los conversos,4 ni las narraciones más modernas que giran en torno a los acontecimientos en los Balcanes en las últimas décadas del siglo XX,5 a no ser que hayan sido tratadas desde una óptica sefardí, una de sus lenguas sea el judeoespañol o sean producidas por directores sefardíes, de legítima sensibilidad. Esta aproximación se basa en las anotaciones que de modo maquinal he ido tomando a lo largo de mis años dedicados a la lectura de memorias sefardíes y que me han ido saliendo al paso, a veces por pura casualidad —las memorias sefardíes constituyen un campo de estudio per se y a ellas he dedicado buena parte de mis trabajos en los últimos años,6 y también en aquellas de las que he tenido conocimiento por haber sido publicitadas en medio sefardíes (Ahi Rodes, Aki Yerushalayim, El Amaneser, eSefarad, Ladinokomunita, Los Muestros, etc.), por lo que no se trata de un estudio gestado recientemente, ni menos con ánimo de ser exhaustivo y concluyente, antes al contrario, se trata de un esbozo que es el resultado de un acopio informal de datos que puede resultar un punto complementario de partida para futuras investigaciones en este campo. Hay que tener en cuenta, además, que puedo haberme equivocado en la apreciación, pues muchos materiales no he podido visualizarlos completamente. 4 Como Expulsion and Memory: Descendants of the Hidden Jews, dir. Simcha Jacobovici & Roger Pyke (Canadá 1996), 60 min, que es una historia de los conversos y sus descendientes. 5 Como los registros sobre los sefardíes de Serbia en 192 Pilar Romeu 2. Producciones audiovisuales Mientras avanzaba en la lectura de memorias sefardíes me fui percatando de que también de las películas y materiales audiovisuales, que cubren una gran variedad de aspectos etnográficos de las comunidades sefardíes, y en la misma medida que de las memorias publicadas en forma de libro, pueden extraerse con métodos científicos numerosos datos acerca de la vida y la mentalidad de los sefardíes que deben aportar nuevas luces a lo que ha acontecido en los últimos decenios en las sociedades sefardíes orientales y erigirse en complemento de lo que se viene publicando en las memorias, como advertía ya Gerber (1995: 41).7 Nos hallamos ante un tipo de documentos cuya intención es explicar el mundo sefardí, o alguna de sus particularidades, al espectador; por ello, y en cierta medida, destaca el didacticismo en todos ellos. Si bien al principio iba anotando únicamente títulos de largometrajes —que tienen su contenido de acceso restringido en la red—, poco a poco fui percibiendo que había también mediometrajes y cortometrajes; de hecho, en las exhibiciones públicas repartidas por la geografía mundial iban incluyéndose cada vez más cortometrajes, y en la red, el cortometraje prevalece sobre el largometraje porque su tiempo de descarga es más breve y puede accederse a él libremente en el momento deseado, sin someterse a un tempo programado. En todos los formatos encontramos desde grabaciones en blanco y negro (Los judíos de patria española) y color (la mayoría de los restantes), habladas o mudas, y con o sin actuaciones musicales. Es habitual utilizar varias lenguas en un mismo formato, las más de las veces con subtítulos. Pero en los últimos años han ido generándose otras producciones audiovisuales igualmente atrayentes como documento. Los materiales audiovisuales, como su propio nombre indica, refieren conjuntamente a medios que implican el oído ola vista, o ambos a la vez, y se trata de métodos esencialmente didácticos que se valen de imágenes ópticas y/o grabaciones acústicas que el receptor debe procesar. Los medios audiovisuales e interactivos (diaporamas, diapositivas, transparencias, vídeos y los nuevos sistemas multimediales de la informática), que han conseguido un auge extraordinario en las últimas décadas, han sido contemplados como poderosos instrumentos generadores y transmisores de cultura, aunque en cierta medida también, 7 Jane S. Gerber, “Integrating the Sephardic Experience into the Teaching of Modern Jewish history”, Jane S. Gerber (ed.), Sephardic Studies in the University. EE.UU. 1995, pp. 29-42. 193 Aproximación a la filmografía sobre los sefardíes masificadores del pensamiento. Sin embargo, una educación conveniente parala recepción activa y crítica frente a los mensajes que transmiten puede convertirlos en un gran recurso pedagógico, también o incluso más en el caso de los sefardíes, cuya historia y cultura, pasada y reciente, va diluyéndose en la gran masa del mundo judío asquenazí mayoritario. En este sentido, habría que considerar los de uso escolar, como los de Andrée Aelion Brooks en Out of Spain. Educational program for schools, en el que se incluye un CD con el documental Ayer: Our Spanish Heritage, o los de aprendizaje o afianzamiento de la lengua, como la obra conjunta Migdal Byrushalayim (Una Torre en Yerushalayim). Poemas para niños, de Avner Perez y Multikolor. Poemas para Chikos i Grandes de Ada Gattegno-Saltiel (Israel) 3. Instituciones y recursos internáuticos Son muchísimas las instituciones a nivel mundial que promueven la visualización de materiales audiovisuales sefardíes con programas anuales; por ejemplo, la American Sephardi Federation 194 Pilar Romeu de estas instituciones admiten la denominación “sefardí” según los criterios israelíes, por lo que a veces resulta complejo a simple vista determinar el ajuste a nuestras normas. Otras instituciones, aunque no académicas, contienen abundante información al respecto, como The National Center for Jewish Film 195 Aproximación a la filmografía sobre los sefardíes 4. Listado de obras Los datos pueden en ocasiones no ser completos ya que, como advertí al principio, muchas de ellas no he podido visualizarlas. Espero que puedan completarse en un futuro con investigaciones apropiadas. Algunas entradas simplemente indican la fuente de donde se han tomado. Adio. Dir. Gregory Viens.8 EE.UU. 1998. 19 min. Inglés. En 1916, Rebecca tenía 4 años cuando fue al cine por primera vez en el barrio judío de Rodas. Cuando tenía 30, dejó la isla para siempre. Adio analiza la transmisión de conocimientos e identidad entre madre, hija y nieta décadas después en Los Ángeles. Adio Kerida. Dir. Ruth Behar. EE.UU. 2002. 90 min. Español, subtítulos en inglés. Tráiler en Ani ohev otax Rosa (I Love You Rosa). Dir. Moshe Mizrahi. Israel 1972. 100 min. Hebreo, subtítulos en inglés. Jerusalén a finales del siglo XIX. Rosa se ha quedado viuda a los 21 años. Según la tradición judía, debe esperar a que el hermano de su difunto esposo (ahora con 12 años) sea adulto y ejercite el derecho de casarse con ella o, en su lugar, le conceda la libertad. Historia del romance entre Nissim y Rosa. Ani yerushalmi (I am a Jerusalemite).9 Dir. Yehoram Gaon. Israel 1971. 90 min. Hebreo. Yehoram Gaon nos introduce en su infancia en Jerusalén. 8 Viens es nieto de Rebecca Amato Levy, autora de I remember Rhodes… / Mi akodro de Rhodes…Sepher-Hermon Press for Sephardic House at Congregation Shearith Israel, Nueva York 1987. Ha dirigido también Island of Roses: The Jews of Rhodes in Los Angeles (v.). 9 Sobre este autor ver también From Toledo to Jerusalem y Kol Yerushalayim (Voice of Jerusalem). 196 Pilar Romeu Auschwitz: The Final Witnesses. Dir. Sheldon Lazarus. Inglaterra 2000. 53 min. Inglés. Documental sobre el trabajo de los Sonderkommandos, integrados por los judíos prisioneros de los campos encargados de la incineración de los cuerpos de los gasificados. Morris, su hermano menor, Shlomo, y su primo Dario fueron deportados de Salónica en 1944 junto con sus familiares. Todos perecieron menos ellos, que regresan 50 años después a la escena de su tormento. De un total de 1.200 Sonderkommandos, menos de un 10% sobrevivió a la guerra, pues los nazis exterminaban sistemáticamente a los testigos de la muerte de millones de judíos. Ellos fueron, realmente, los últimos testigos. Ayer: Our Spanish Heritage. Dir. Theodore (Meir) Bikel. 2000. 12 min. Inglés. Incluido en CD en Out of Spain. Educational Program for Schools de Andrée Aelion Brooks Bacalat hanes (Miracle Lady). Dirs. Michal Abulafia & Moran Somer. Israel 2009. 10 min 4 s. Hebreo, subtítulos en inglés. Fortuna y Marcela–Merkada son dos ancianas que pasan su vida esperando. Dantelaci (The Lace Peddler). Dir. Eytan Ipeker. Turquía 2005. 15 min. Turco, judeoespañol, griego, subtítulos en inglés. Un vendedor ambulante judío trata de adaptarse al cambiante Estambul de los años 1950. Doña Gracia Nasi. EUAContact NJ. EE.UU. 4 min 11 s. Portugués, inglés, subtítulos en portugués. Entrevistas a Andrée Aelion Brooks10 y otros. Doña Gracia Nasi Mendes. Sephardic History Center. USA. 6 min 30 s. 10 Por su libro The Woman Who Defied Kings. The Life and Times of Dona Gracia Nasi, Paragon House Publishers, EE.UU. 2003. 197 Aproximación a la filmografía sobre los sefardíes El príncipe de Argel. Dir. Abraham Hayón. España 2004. 17 min. Judeoespañol. Una versión sobre la Cenicienta, sobre la fe ciega en el amor y la bondad. El último sefardí.11 Dir. Miguel Ángel Nieto. España 2003. 90 min. Intérprete principal: Eliezer Papo. Español, judeoespañol. Emotivos testimonios entrelazados elaborado a partir de más de 60 entrevistas realizadas a sefardíes en Estambul, Jerusalén, Sarajevo, Salónica, Curaçao, Madrid, Toledo y Barcelona. Every Time We Say Goodbye. Dir. Moshe Mizrahi. EE.UU. 1986. 95 min. Intérpretes: Tom Hanks y Cristina Marsillach. Inglés, judeoespañol, subtítulos en español. Un piloto de aviación de la Royal Air Force se enamora en Jerusalén de una chica sefardí de buena familia. Father Language (Lingua Franca).12 Dir. Rami Kimchi. Israel 2006. 49 min. Hebreo, judeoespañol, subtítulos en inglés. La historia del Seminario Rabínico (1926-1939) de la isla de Rodas a través de los ojos del padre de Rami Kimhi, que estudió en él. Canciones en judeoespañol de Yasmin Levy. ¡Fiestaremos! Judy Frankel and the Sephardic Music Tradition. Dir. Kathleen Regan. EE.UU. 2008. 30 min. Inglés, canciones en judeoespañol. Los esfuerzos de Judy Frankel para conservar las ricas tradiciones musicales de las comunidades sefardíes. Florentin sheli (Mi Florentín).13 Dir. Isaac (Isic) Levy. Israel 2010. 10 min. Judeoespañol. 11 También en libro: El último sefardí: Legado oral de los judíos expulsados de España (Calamar Ediciones, Madrid 2003. 12 Forma parte de una trilogía junto con Travels with my brother (Israel, 1997) y Cinema Egypt (Israel, 2002). 13 Desconozco si el corto tiene alguna relación con el libro de Peninah Melech Florentin, Florentin sheli, Gvanim,Israel 2008. 198 Pilar Romeu From Toledo to Jerusalem.14 Dir. Shmuel Imberman. 1989. 60 min. Judeoespañol, subtítulos en inglés. Glimpses of Sephardic Life (Ojadas a la vida sefaradí). Dir. Shelomo Alfassa. EE.UU. 2005. 40 min. Inglés, canciones en judeoespañol, subtítulos en inglés. Daisy Alalouf Newell, cuyos padres nacieron en Salónica, habla sobre sus experiencias vitales en torno a la familia en la que creció. Vive en Palm Beach Country, donde es muy activa en las instituciones sefardíes. Hadarom: Alis lo gara kan af pacam (The South: Alice Never Lived Here). Dir. Sinyora Bar-David. Israel 1998. 82 min. Hebreo, judeoespañol, búlgaro, subtítulos en inglés. Bar David regresa a su infancia retratando tres generaciones de mujeres sefardíes. Comienza con la abuela Ida, de 89 años, llegada a Israel desde Bulgaria escapando del nazismo. Honoring Rita Arditti. Dir. Federico Muchnik. EE.UU. 2010. 11 min 29 s. Inglés, judeoespañol. In the Beginning Was a School... Dir. Josy Eisenberg. Francia 2010. 90 min. Francés, subtítulos en inglés. 150 años de historia de la Alianza Israelita Universal, fundada en París en 1860. Island of Roses: The Jews of Rhodes in Los Angeles. Dir. Gregory Viens.15 EE.UU. 1995. 55 min. Inglés, italiano, francés y judeoespañol, subtítulos en inglés. 14 Véanse sobre Gaon también Ani Yerushalmi (I am a Jerusalemite) y Kol Yerushalayim (Voice of Jerusalem). 15 También dirigió Adio (nota 7). 199 Aproximación a la filmografía sobre los sefardíes Documento sobre la historia de los rodeslíes desde 1492 hasta la Segunda Guerra Mundial. Entrevistas con algunos de los últimos supervivientes de la isla, que narran los usos y costumbres (comidas, ceremonias…), y las impresiones de las segunda y tercera generaciones en Los Ángeles. Island of Roses: Tragedy in Paradise (L’Isola Delle Rose: La tragedia di un paradiso). Dir. Rebecca Samonà. Italia 2007. 57 min. Italiano, francés, judeoespañol. Encinta de su segundo hijo, la directora viaja con su madre a Rodas, donde su familia había vivido durante generaciones hasta la Segunda Guerra Mundial, cuando los nazis les deportaron en masa a Auschwitz. Su madre y otras mujeres narran cómo era la Isla de las Rosas cuando ellas eran jóvenes. It was nothing… It was everything: Reflections on the Rescue of Jewish Fugitives in Greece during the Holocaust. Dir. Sy Rotter, Irene Papas. EE.UU., se han hecho tres ediciones entre 1997 y 1999. 28 min. Inglés. Documental con entrevistas a ciudadanos griegos que arriesgaron sus vidas durante la Segunda Guerra Mundial para salvar a sus compatriotas judíos. Jewish Life in Istanbul - 1984 to 89. Dir. Laurence Salzmann.16 2011. 20 min. Inglés. Joe Elias (eSefarad, 30 de agosto de 2011). La Kula. Ulus Private Jewish High School Students: Suzi Asa, Sami Morhayim, Leri Levi, Ediz Bihar, Sara Cemel, Sarita Hasan, Müge Cemel, Alara Deşilton y Yasmin Franko. Turquía 2009-2010. Documental sobre la vida judía en Galata. Testimonios de Coya Delevi, Mete Göktuğ, Bahar Korçan, Cemal Arslan, Ekrem Gündoğdu, Gabi Behiri, Emin Yılmaz. La película comienza con Coya Delevi hablando de su infancia en Galata, en los años 1930, y sigue hasta la actualidad. 16 Ver también Turkey’s Sephardim: 500 Years. 200 Pilar Romeu La Rafle.17 Dir. Rose Bosch. Francia 2010. 115 min. Francés. El 16 y 17 de julio de 1942 la policía francesa detuvo a 13.185 judíos en el área de París. Por falta de espacio en los campos de concentración desde los que eran enviados a las cámaras de gas de Alemania y Polonia, 8.000 fueron hacinados en condiciones infrahumanas en el Velódromo de Invierno. Pasaron 53 años antes de que el Estado francés reconociera, en 1995, su culpa en los crímenes perpetrados durante la ocupación. Entre ellos hubo sefardíes. La vida de Moshe Surnami (Ahí Rhodes 4 (2006), p. 7-8). Ladino: 500 Years Young. Dir. Rina Papish. Israel 2006. 52 min. Hebreo, inglés y judeoespañol, subtítulos en inglés y español. Fragmentos en L’histoire ne meurt jamais. Dir. François-Robert Zacot. Francia 2007. 83 min. Francés. Indaga sobre la vida cotidiana de las comunidades sefardíes de Estambul, Salónica, París, etc. que han transmitido su cultura de generación en generación durante cinco siglos. Testimonios de la vida cotidiana, ritos, actividades culturales… Los judíos de patria española. Dir. Ernesto Giménez Caballero. España 1929. 13 min. Español. Primeros planos de los rabinos de los Balcanes de la época y raras secuencias de las escuelas judías, barrios residenciales, sinagogas y cementerios, así como ejemplos de las costumbres religiosas. 17 Sobre el mismo tema existen, por lo menos, dos películas anteriores: Les Guichets du Louvre (Black Thursday), dir. Michel Mitrani (Francia 1974), 92 min; y Mr. Klein, dir. Joseph Losey (Francia 1976), 12 min, con Alain Delon, Jeanne Moreau, Francine Bergé y Juliet Berto, un extracto de la cual puede verse en 201 Aproximación a la filmografía sobre los sefardíes May Your Memory Be Love. The Story of Ovadia Baruch.18 Israel 2008. 47 min. Hebreo, subtítulos en inglés. Extracto en Novia que te vea. Dir. Guita Schyfter. México 1993. 114 min. Español, judeoespañol. Sobre la novela homónima de Rosa Nisán (Editorial Planeta Mexicana, México 1992). La historia de dos jóvenes que luchan por encontrar una identidad que concilie sus orígenes judíos con su nacionalidad mexicana. NYU Ladino Documentary. Vidas Largas para el Ladino. Dirs. Elan Golod, Adam Bonsib y Daniel Kavanagh. EE.UU., 2007. 5 min 50 s. Inglés. Out of Spain 1492. Jerusalem which was in Spain. A Journey Through Spain with the Fifth President of Israel Yitzchak Navon. Dir. Yigal Lossin. Israel 1992. 8 episodios, 8 horas de duración. Inglés. Historia judía de España. Episodio 1: Los judíos de España en la Edad Media. Episodio 2: La Edad de Oro. Episodio 3: El balance del terror. Ascenso y caída de los judíos en la España cristiana. Episodio 4: Los marranos y la Inquisición. Terror, denuncias, autos de fe. Episodio 5: 1492. Navon sigue tras los pasos de Don Avraham Seneor y la de los marranos hacia América. Episodio 6: Los criptojudíos de Portugal (Parte 1). Episodio 7: Los criptojudíos de Portugal (Parte 2). Episodio 8: El eterno judío de Mallorca. Estudio de los chuetas, los marranos de Mallorca que no son criptojudíos. 18 Existe también un libro sobre Aliza y Ovadia de Yigal Shachar: Oh madre, sipur ahava bĕAuschwitz (Oh, Madre. A Love Story in Auschwitz, Aliza and Ovadya Baruch from Saloniki Keter, Jerusalén 2000. 202 Pilar Romeu Kol Yerushalayim (Voice of Jerusalem).19 Dir. Ofer Naim. Israel 2009. 63 min. 36 años después de I am a Jerusalemite, Yehoram Gaon, quintaesencia del hierosolimitano, va en busca de la Jerusalén que dejó atrás. Rhodes Forever. Dir. Diane Perelsztejn. Bélgica 1995. 60 min. Español, francés, italiano y griego, subtítulos en inglés. Retrato contemporáneo de los judíos de Rodas a través de sus descendientes, que supieron trasplantar su identidad sefardí allende mares, especialmente en el corazón de África, en el Congo belga, y más tarde en Bélgica. Salonica. Dir. Paolo Poloni. Suiza 2008. 87 min. Judeoespañol, griego, hebreo e inglés. Narra el pasado judío de Salónica a través de entrevistas personales. Salonica, City of Silence. Dir. Maurice Amaraggi. Bélgica 2006. 52 min. Francés, griego, español, subtítulos en inglés. Un viaje personal sobre la moderna ciudad de Salónica. Entrevistas a los supervivientes de la catástrofe de 1943. Una mirada triste hacia el rico pasado judío de la ciudad. Salvador: The Ship of Shattered Hopes. Dir. Nissim Mossek. Israel 2006, 70 min. Búlgaro, ingles, hebreo, subtítulos en inglés. Extracto en Sefarad – Caminos y Vida. León Reencuentro. Dir. Jack Matitiahu. Israel 2006. 90 min. Español, judeoespañol. Primero de una serie de documentales sobre las juderías españolas. El segundo es Toledo – El secreto oculto. 19 Véanse sobre Gaon también Ani yerushalmi (I am a Jerusalemite) y From Toledo to Jerusalem. 203 Aproximación a la filmografía sobre los sefardíes Sefarad – Caminos y Vida. Toledo – El secreto oculto. Dir. Jack Matitiahu. Israel 2008. 90 min. Español, judeoespañol. Segundo de una serie de documentales sobre las juderías españolas. El primero es Sefarad – Caminos y Vida. León Reencuentro. Sled kraja na sveta (Después del fin del mundo). Dir. Ivan Nitchev. Bulgaria 1998. 112 min. Búlgaro, subtítulos en español. Basada en la novela de Ángel Wagenstein, Daletch ot Toledo (Sofía: Kolibri 2002), traducida al español: Lejos de Toledo, Libros del Asteroide, Barcelona 2010. Un científico afincado en Israel regresa a su ciudad natal, Plovdiv, donde se reencuentra con su primer amor, una chica armenia, Araxi Vartanian, y donde resucita el pequeño mundo de su infancia en un medio sefardí. Sterne. Dir. Konrad Wolf. República Democrática Alemana – Bulgaria 1959. 92 min. Búlgaro, alemán, griego y judeoespañol. Guionista: Ángel Wagenstein. Un oficial nazi se enamora de una joven judía griega mientras traslada prisioneros en Bulgaria hacia un campo de concentración. The Enchanting Travels of Benjamin of Tudela. Beth Hatefutsoth. EE.UU. 1992. 9 min. Inglés. Vídeo para niños en el que se narra el viaje de Benjamín de Tudela (1130-1173) desde Tudela (España) a Jerusalén, pasando por infinidad de ciudades en el camino, según describe en su famoso libro The Itinerary of Benjamin of Tudela: Travels in the Middle Ages. Trad. M. N. Adler. Introd. M. A. Signer, M. N. Adler & A. Asher, Joseph Simon / Pangloss Press, EE.UU. 1993). The Heritage: An Eternity of Love. Dr. Amnon Rubinstein. Israel 1993. 85 min. Hebreo, subtítulos en inglés. Dos historias de amor en dos periodos diferentes. La primera tiene lugar en Toledo en los tiempos de la Inquisición. La hermosa hija de Abarbanel se enamora de un soldado cristiano, cuya identidad es misteriosa. La segunda se produce en 1990 entre un israelí, también de nombre Abarbanel, y una mujer a la que conoce en un viaje a Toledo. Los actores son los mismos en ambas historias. The House on Chelouche Street. Dir. Moshe Mizrahi. Israel 1973. 110 min. Hebreo, árabe egipcio y judeoespañol, con subtítulos en inglés. 204 Pilar Romeu Descripción de la vida de los sefardíes afincados en Egipto que emigraron a Palestina en 1947 en vísperas de la creación del Estado de Israel. Clara, su madre Mazal, sus cuatro hijos y sus tíos Rafael y Sultana, y su integración en la nueva estructura vital, con la escalada de violencia contra los británicos y la de los árabes contra los judíos como telón de fondo. The Jewish Communities of Fez & Salonica. Beth Hatefutsoth. 1995. 29 min. (aprox. 15 min. cada parte). La historia de las comunidades de esas ciudades. La de Fez va desde el s. VIII hasta el establecimiento del Estado de Israel, detallando la vida comunal y familiar en la Mellah (el gueto judío). La segunda pone de relieve la vida familiar y comunitaria en Salónica. The Key From Spain: The Songs and Stories of Flory Jagoda. Dir. Ankica Petrovic y Mischa Livingstone. EE.UU. 2000. 40 min. Inglés, judeoespañol, con subtítulos en inglés. Flory Jagoda (nacida Kabilio) en Sarajevo (Bosnia), narra su vida cantando viejas melodías, recordando a su familia, que abandonó la ciudad cuando los nazis la ocuparon en 1941. The Shaltiels: A Family Saga.20 Dir. Ilan Ziv. Israel 1999. 95 min. Inglés, hebreo, judeoespañol, español, holandés, alemán, subtítulos en inglés. Ron Shealtiel es un niño superviviente del Holocausto en Holanda. Después de la muerte de su madre encuentra una caja con fotografías que le abre las puertas a casi 900 años de historia de la familia. Trees Cry For Rain: A Sephardic Journey (Árboles lloran por lluvia: Un viaje sefardí). Dir. Bonni Burt. EE.UU. 1989. 32 min. Inglés y judeoespañol, subtítulos en inglés y español. 20 Desconozco si tiene alguna relación con el libro de Moshe A. Shaltiel-Gracian, Shaltiel: One Family’s Journey Through History, Academy Chicago Publishers, Chicago 2005. 205 Aproximación a la filmografía sobre los sefardíes Turkey’s Sephardim: 500 Years. Dir. Laurence Salzmann.21 EE.UU. 1990. 65 min. Inglés, Español, judeoespañol. Laurence Salzmann, acompañado de su esposa Ayşe, viajan por Turquía para descubrir su pasado judío. Un Judéo-espagnol à Auschwitz. Dir. Arancha Gorostola. España 2006. 52 min. Haïm Vidal Sephiha, miembro de una familia sefardí de Estambul que emigró a Bruselas, fue arrestado en 1943 y enviado al campo de Malines. Fue deportado a Auschwitz en septiembre de 1943. Una Istorya Turka-Djudia-Muzulmana (A Turkish-Jewish-Muslim tale). Güler Orgun. Centropa 2009. 18 min 49 s. Judeoespañol, subtítulos en inglés. Yolande: An Unsung Heroine. Dir. Dan Wolman. Israel 2010. 62 min. Inglés y hebreo, subtítulos en inglés. Yolande Gabai (de Botton) es llamada la Mata Hari israelí. Nacida en el seno de una familia alejandrina, su madre era sefardí de Turquía. Fue una de las más prominentes espías israelíes en Egipto en 1948, trabajando supuestamente como reportera del Palestine Post. 6. Posibles líneas de investigación De lo visto hasta ahora se infiere que las líneas de investigación que podrían derivarse de las películas y materiales audiovisuales son similares a las que nos enfrentamos cuando tratamos de los libros de memorias: historia, identidad, cambio de mentalidades, usos y costumbres, folclore...22 La primera división sustancial podría escindirlas entre las relativas al Holocausto (Auschwitz: The Final Witnesses, Island of Roses: Tragedy in Paradise, It was 21 Ver también Jewish Life in Istanbul - 1984 to 89. 22 Véase en este sentido Romeu (nota 2). 206 Pilar Romeu nothing… It was everything, May Your Memory Be Love, Sterne, Un Judéo-espagnol à Auschwitz…) y las que no se refieren a él como tema exclusivo. El tema del Holocausto tiene unas características específicas y bien delimitadas, y deberían tratarse en paralelo a las del mundo judío en general, si bien siempre presentarán algunas características específicas de la propia cultura como, por ejemplo, en lo relativo a la lengua, aunque el judeoespañol fuera una lengua minoritaria en los campos de exterminio.23 Entre las que no se refieren al Holocausto como tema principal, y al igual que sucede en los libros de memorias, la búsqueda o a la afirmación de la identidad se erigen en motores esenciales. En esas pesquisas, algunas, con proyección histórica, hunden sus raíces en la expulsión de 1492 (Ayer: Our Spanish Heritage, Sefarad – Caminos de vida), o en personajes que sufrieron sus consecuencias (Doña Gracia Nasi Mendes), o bien en lugares significativos para cada historia en cuestión (Sefarad – Caminos y Vida. León Reencuentro); pero la mayoría trata de recuperarla utilizando historias personales (Novia que te vea, Una Istorya Turka-Djudia-Muzulmana) y comunitarias (The Jewish Communities of Fez & Salonica) que les ubican en una secuencia histórica y, de modo significativo y nostálgico, como testigos del declive de un mundo que suelen reconocer obsoleto y caduco y, por demás, irrepetible. Con todo, las hay referentes a sujetos dispares, como las instituciones clásicas, que influyeron grandemente en el mundo sefardí (Father Language, In the Beginning was a School), e incluso en barrios originalmente sefardíes (Mi Florentín). En la personales afloran múltiples aspectos: la búsqueda de la identidad en las raíces peninsulares (The Shaltiel’s. A Family Saga), la imperiosa necesidad de sumergirse en la vida en las comunidades orientales (Island of Roses: The Jews of Rhodes in Los Angeles, L´histoire ne meurt jamais), las peripecias de la emigración y el cambio de mentalidades que se produjo en el asentamiento en otros países (Adio, Hadarom: Alis lo gara kan af pacam- The South: Alice Never Lived Here), etc. Entre las comunitarias, las hay que tratan la crisis de identidad entre los judíos que vivían en el Norte de África entre los años 1940 y 1950 (The House on Chelouche Street), otras tratan de recuperar el pasado colectivo a través de imágenes (Turkey’s Sephardim: 500 Years). Sin embargo, y como ya advirtió Gerber (1995: 41), el estudio exclusivo de aspectos etnográficos puede hacer caer en la tentación de considerar elmundo sefardí como una reliquia obsoleta, como un exotismo más de una cultura en declive, 23 Shmuel Refael, Un grito en el silencio. La poesía sobre el Holocausto en lengua sefardí: Estudio y Antología, Tirocinio, Barcelona 2008, pp. 21-24. 207 Aproximación a la filmografía sobre los sefardíes o un fenómeno puramente folclórico. Las manipulaciones de que puede ser objeto escapan a todo pronóstico. Nos hallamos ante un mundo de medios audiovisuales continuamente cambiantes y espectadores caprichosos cada vez más insaciables en sus requerimientos y en su sed de abarcar el máximo contenido en el mínimo de tiempo, por lo que toda precaución será poca frente a un tema que no por ser más hermoso y atrayente sea menos difícil de falsear o desfigurar en los medios.24 El Dyo ke no de, por lo ke se areyeva! 24 El listado de obras se cerró en marzo de 2013, por lo que no se incluyen las posteriores. 208 Ora (Rodrigue) Schwarzwald Personal Names, Toponymes, and Gentile Nouns in Ladino and Spanish Translations of the Bible Ora (Rodrigue) Shwarzwald Bar-Ilan University Introduction Biblical personal names have been investigated from various semantic and interpretive approaches, many times involving Midrashic exegesis.1 The linguistic study of biblical personal names has not reached a comprehensive appropriate description except for some sporadic comments.2 Most grammar books and lexicons ignore these names. Medieval biblical lexicography disregarded them,3 and modern lexicons vary: 1 See, for instance, David Mendel Harduf, Biblical Proper Names [in Hebrew], Izreel, Tel Aviv 1964; Moshe Garsiel, Biblical Names: A Literary Study of Midrashic Derivations and Puns, Bar-Ilan Press, Ramat Gan 1991. 2 See for instance, biblical commentators like Rashi, Ibn Ezra, RaDaQ and others. Ibn Ezra (when referring to Gershom and to Bela) and RaMBaN (Nahmanides; when referring to Makhpela) even claim that there is no grammar to proper names. The field of proper names is neglected in general linguistics as well. See Leonhard Lipka, “Word-formation and (proper) names: a neglected field”, in Dieter Kastovsky, Christiane Dalton-Puffer and Nikolaus Ritt (eds.), Words: Structure, Meaning, Function (Trends in Linguistics 130), Mouton de Gruyter, Berlin 2000, pp. 187-203. Anderson’s book deals mainly with syntactic aspects of the use of names; see John M. Anderson, The Grammar of Names, Oxford University Press, Oxford 2007. 3 See for instance, Menahem Ben-Saruq, Maḥberet Menaḥem [Menachem’s treatise], Chevrat Me’orere Yeshenim, Edinburgh 1854; Dunash Ben-Labrat, Sefer Teshuvot Dunash Ben Labrat [Dunash Ben Labrat responses book], Chevrat Me’orere Yeshenim, Edinburgh 1854(?); David Qimḥi, Sefer ha-shorashim [The Book of Roots], G. Bethge, Berlin 1847; Yona Ibn Janaḥ, Sefer ha-shorashim [The Book of Roots], translated by Yehuda ben Tibon, Itskovsky, Berlin 1896. 209 Personal Names, Toponyms, and Gentilic Nouns Kaddari discounts them while KBL includes them like any other nouns.4 Biblical concordances do list them, Mandelkern lists them in a special section, and Even- Shoshan lists them alphabetically.5 Modern lexicography does not include personal names unless the name carries a special meaning, e.g., Teraḥ “euphemism for an old man or for someone behaving like one”.6 RaDaQ (R. David Qimḥi) includes personal names in his grammar book among regular nouns and classifies some of them as nouns derived from verbs i7 Gesenius treats personal names as regular nouns,8 but.(ראובן, שמעון, זבולון ,.e.g) he focuses especially on gentilic nouns.9 He also discusses some personal names as retaining old grammatical cases.10 Joüon and Muraoka claim that many personal i11 but they also treat,(בליעל, גבריאל ,.names are formed as compound nouns (e.g personal names as regular nouns. They also discuss separately gentilic nouns with the -i suffix.12 Goshen Gottstein is the only one who discusses personal names and toponyms in his morphological analysis of biblical words. He includes personal names and toponyms among the continuous morphemes which are morphemes not derived by root and pattern combination. Most of them are not joinable, e.g., Moše, Levi, but some of them are because they accept derivational morphemes like the gentilic -i ending (the nisba), or the directional -a ending, e.g., haReʾuveni ( 4 See Ludwig Koehler and Walter Baumgartner, Hebräisches und aramäsches Lexikon zum alten Testament, Brill, Leiden-New York 1967-1990; Menahem Zevi Kaddari, A Dictionary of Biblical Hebrew [in Hebrew], Bar-Ilan University Press, Ramat Gan 2006. 5 See Solomon Mandelkern, Concordantiae hebraicae atque chaldaicae, Schocken, Jerusalem and Tel Aviv 1922; Abraham Even-Shoshan, A New Concordance of the Bible [in Hebrew], Kiryat Sefer, Jerusalem 1977. 6 See for instance Abraham Even-Shoshan, Even-Shoshan’s Dictionary [in Hebrew], Am Oved, Kineret Zmora Bitan, Dvir and Yediot Aḥaronot, Tel Aviv 2003, p. 2039. 7 See David Qimḥi, Sefer Mikhlol [Ensemble Book] (H. Petsoll, based on Fiorda 1793), Jerusalem 1966, p. 104b. 8 See Wilhelm Gesenius, Hebrew Grammar, ed. by Emil Kautzsch, trans. by Arthur Ernst Cowley. Clarendon Press, Oxford 1910, §85s-t. 9 See Gesenius, Hebrew Grammar, §86h (Note 8). 10 See Gesenius, Hebrew Grammar, §90 (Note 8). 11 See Paul Joüon and Takamitsu Muraoka, A Grammar of Biblical Hebrew, Editrice Pontificio Instituto Biblico, Roma 2006. 12 See Joüon and Muraoka, Grammar, §137c, §139d (Note 11). 210 Ora (Rodrigue) Schwarzwald ( 13 See Moshe Goshen-Gottstein, “Semitic Morphological Structures: The Basic Morphological Structure of Biblical Hebrew”, in Haïm B. Rosén (ed.), Studies in Egyptology and Linguistics in Honour of H.J. Polotsky, Israel Exploration Society, Jerusalem 1964, pp. 104-116. 14 See Michal Ephratt, “Is there a Grammar to Names of Settlements?” [in Hebrew], Lĕšonénu 48-49 (1985-1986), pp. 5-30, 137-150. 15 I mention here a few articles published in Demsky’s most recent anthology series of 2011: Aaron Demsky (ed.), These Are the Names: Studies in Jewish Onomastics, vol. 5, Bar-Ilan University Press, Ramat Gan 2011. Yael Avrahami, “Name Giving to the Newborn in the Hebrew Bible”, in Demsky (ed.), pp. 15-53; Joel S. Burnett, “Divine Absence Personal Names in the Hebrew Bible”, in Demsky (ed.), pp. 71-93; Aaron Demsky, “‘Ghost-names’ in the Bible”, in Demsky (ed), pp. 119-129; Yaacov Kaduri (James Kugel), “On Biblical Names and Later Etymologies”, in Demsky (ed.), pp. 143-155; Hananel Mack, “Mehetabel, the Daughter of Matred, the Daughter of Me’zahab—Three Biblical Names in Light of the Classical Commentaries” [in Hebrew], in Demsky (ed.), pp. cxiii-cxxxi. 16 For instance, Ezra Zion Melamed, “The Onomasticon of Ausevius” [in Hebrew], Tarbitẓ 3 (1932), pp. 314-327, 393-409; 4 (1933), pp. 78-96, 249-284; G. Lisowsky, Die Transkription der hebräischen Eigennamen des Pentateuch in der Septuaginta, Dissertation, Universitaet Basel 1940; Joseph Horowitz, Jewish Proper Names and Derivatives in the Koran, Georg Olms, Hildesheim 1964; Yosef Tobi, “Translation of Personal Names in Medieval Judeo- Arabic Bible Translations” [in Hebrew], in Aaron Demsky (ed.), These Are the Names: Studies in Jewish Onomastics, vol 3, Bar-Ilan University Press, Ramat Gan 2002, pp. 77- 211 Personal Names, Toponyms, and Gentilic Nouns The Corpus The medieval biblical Spanish translations examined in this study are Escorial E3, E4, E5/E7, and E19, and the Alba Bible. All these versions and others appear today online at http://corpus.byu.edu/bibliamedival/ and they include access to photocopies of the originals. Some of the versions were previously published in print copies.17 Not all the names were exemplified from E19 because some of the chapters were missing from it. The Ladino Bibles are the Pentateuch from Constantinople 1547,18 and the entire Bible from Constantinople and Thessaloniki from 1540 to 157219 (from here on C), and the Ferrara Bible from 1553 (F).20 The medieval and Ferrara Bibles are all written in Latin letters, whereas C is written in Hebrew square vocalized letters. 84; Yosef Tobi, “Translation of Proper Names in Medieval Judeo-Arabic Translations of the Bible”, Bulletin of the Israeli Academic Center in Cairo 21 (1997), pp. 18-22; Tamar Zewi, “Proper Names in the Samaritan Version of RaSaG’s Translation to the Pentateuch” [in Hebrew], paper read at the Fourth International Congress of the Jewish Traditions Research Center on Original and Translated texts in Jewish Languages, Jerusalem, June 21-24, 2010 (to appear in Journal of Semitic Studies). 17 See Oliver H. Hauptmann (ed.), Escorial Bible I.j.4, Hispanic Seminary of Medieval Studies (HSMS), Philadelphia 1953; Oliver H. Hauptmann and Mark G. Littlefield (eds.), Escorial Bible I.j.4, HSMS, Madison 1987; Mark G. Littlefield (ed.), Escorial Bible I.ii.19, HSMS, Madison 1992; Mark G. Littlefield (ed.), Escorial Bible I.I.7, HSMS, Madison 1996; Moshe Lazar (ed.), Biblia Ladinada: Escorial I.j.3, HSMS, Madison 1995; Antonio Paz y Meliá (ed.), La Biblia de la Casa de Alba, Madrid 1920-1922. 18 See Moshe Lazar (ed.), Ladino Pentateuch: Constantinople 1547, Labyrinthos, Culver City 1988. The version is online at the National Library in Jerusalem. 19 See Moshe Lazar, (ed.), The Ladino Scriptures: Constantinople – Salonica [1540-1572], I-II, Labyrinthos, Lancaster, CA. 2000. 20 See Moshe Lazar (ed.), The Ladino Bible of Ferrara [1553], Labyrinthos, Culver City 1992. And see also Iacob M. Hassán and Ángel Berenguer Amador (eds.), Introducción a la Biblia de Ferrara, Comisión Nacional Quinto Centenario, Madrid 1994. The transcription in the Ferrara Bible uses the following conventions consistently: Ḥet is represented by h and rarely by ch. Ayin and He are also represented by h; they are absent infrequently. Shin, Sin, Tsadi, and Samekh are represented by s, but Samekh is copied sometimes by c before the vowels i and e, and Tsadi rarely by z. Lene Bet is copied by b or v, and Vav by u or v. Ṭet and Tav are represented by t and Lene Tav sometimes by th. Kaf and Qof are copied by k, c (in front of a, o, u or a consonant) and sometimes qu, and Lene Kaf mostly by ch or h. Common to the writings of that time, there is no distinction between i-j-y and u-v. These representations are also typical of the medieval Bibles. 212 Ora (Rodrigue) Schwarzwald Because of the Latin script, one might assume that the personal names in the Ferrara Bible will be similar to the same names in the medieval Bibles, but this happens rarely, only in cases in which the medieval Bibles transcribe the Hebrew names. As we will see, most of the names are not transcribed in the medieval Bibles. Two hundred and seventy-two examples were drawn in this study, most of them from the Pentateuch, especially from Genesis, but there are a few examples from other parts of the Bible (272 tokens belonging to 174 types21). The list of verses from which the examples were taken appears in the Appendix. The number of types and tokens will be presented separately in each section, first personal names, followed by toponyms, and finally gentilic nouns. A discussion will conclude the article. Findings (1) Personal names: People’s names are copied in their Hebrew pronunciation quite systematically in C and F, for instance: Moseh ,מֹׁשֶה :משה Parho ,פַעֹה :פרעה Ribkah ,רִבְקָה :רבקה Terah ,תֶח :תרח Yehudi ,יְהּוי :יהודי Of 125 tokens of personal names, which represent 95 types, there is a difference between C and F only in six names (5% tokens, 6% types). In all 125 tokens, C copies faithfully the biblical Hebrew name in the translations, whereas F demonstrates some is transcribed once as Hed and another חֵת :change in the pronunciation in six names is copied as י דלָעֹמֶר time as Heth, apparently as some representation of Lene Tav.22 Cedorlahomer, not with an initial k or qu, but rather with an initial c. Since this spelling occurs five times,23 it cannot be viewed as a typographical error, but rather represents 21 Tokens are the instances of a unit; type is the unit itself, a name in our case, e.g., the type .has 11 tokens in the Bible: nine in Genesis, one in Joshua, and one in Chronicles תרח 22 See David M Bunis, “The Whole Hebrew Reading Tradition of Ottoman Judezmo Speakers: The Medieval Iberian Roots”, Hispania Judaica Bulletin 9 (2013), pp. 15-67. 23 It occurs in Genesis 14:1, 4, 5, 9, 17. 213 Personal Names, Toponyms, and Gentilic Nouns [sedorla’omer] or [tsedorla’omer] (closely resembling E5/E7, see below). The names are transcribed Caslohim and Patrosim with the vowel o instead ּפַטסִים and כַסְלֻחִים is copied as Loth, although th is typical in his transcription for the לוט of u. The name is transcribed Salah like the ׁשֶלַח representation of Lene Tav, not Ṭet. Finally, the name pausal form that occurs in the same verse (Gen. 10:24). Unlike C and F, in the medieval translations there are no similar translations in 86 of the 125 tokens (69% of the tokens24). Here are a few examples: abi malech; abimelec; abemeleque :אבימלך abran; abrahan; abram :אברם aznad; aznat; asnath :אסנת arapagsad; arpasat; arpad; arphachsad :ארכפשד fijo de simj; fijo de symi; njeto de senhi; fiio de simey :בן שמעי agar; hagar :הגר aran; aram; haran :הרן hed; quiuet; ed; etheu :חֵת yahudi; yehudi; yehuedi, yendi; iudi25 :יהודי cador laomer; çardolaomer; chodorloomer :כדרלעמר canaam; canaham; canaan :כנען chesluym; enjluym; cazloym :כסלֻחים ;(mjzraym, los egipçianos (E3); egipto (E4×2); mjcrayn, mjzrraym (E5/E7 :מצרים mesrayim, mesraym (Alba) muysen; moysen :משה mathusalam; matusalen; matuselah :מתושלח faraon; faron :פרעה rebeca; rrabeca :רבקה rahma; nagma, ragama; rregina; regma :רַעֲמָה tare; thare; tareh :ּתֶח 24 The types were not calculated in this case because in many instances the same personal name is translated in different ways, sometimes when occurring twice within the same verse. Jer 36:21) in E5/E7 is translated once yehuedi and once yendi. The) . יהודי The name 25 yendi form appears also in Jer. 36:23 which means that it is not a typographical error always as yahudi, E4 copies the Hebrew יהודי u-n misreading?). E3 copies the name) pronunciation yehudi, and Alba shortens the name to iudi. 214 Ora (Rodrigue) Schwarzwald is of special interest. As a personal name it is copied in C and F מצרים The name (Misraim). Some of the medieval Bibles copy this name as mjzrraym and mjcrayn in E5/E7. E3 has mjzraym in Gen. 10:13, but in Gen. 10:6 it is los egipçianos. Alba uses a close transcription of the name mesrayim and mesraym, but E4 translates it twice as a place name, egipto. I will further relate to this name later in the following sections. The medieval translations show different linguistic traditions from the biblical names. Although some of the transcribed names are faithful to the Hebrew Bible there is no consistency ,(יהודי and ,אברם, הגר, הרן e.g., some of the translations of) among the versions in retaining the Hebrew tradition. Some of the names have already Thare, but not in — תרח ,Noe — נֹחַ ,.appeared in the Latin translation of the Bible, e.g which is Moses in Latin. A comparison of the similar names in ,משה the translation of the various translations shows that only 32 names (27%) have partial similarity to the Ladino translations C and F. Some of the names in translation retained the traditional pronunciation of the Hebrew names, though not consistently. אסנת, הגר, חוה, רבקה ,מרים, שרה :It should be noted that women’s names are scarce ;a total of 8, 6% types or tokens). This result confirms another finding) שרי i2), and×) only 7% of the biblical personal names are names of women.26 אַ,אּׁשּום :Three names from Gen. 25:3 were not included in the 125 names above וְיָקְׁשָן יָלַד אֶת ׁשְבָא וְאֶת ּדְדן ּובְני דְדן הָיּואַּׁשּום :The verse states .לְטּוׁשִים and לְאֻּמִים and Jokshan was the father of Sheba and Dedan; the descendants“ ּולְטּוׁשִים ּולְאֻּמִים of Dedan were Ashurim/Ashurites, Letushim/Letushites and Leumin/Leummites”. Because of the -im (plural ending), it is unclear whether these are people’s names or gentilic nouns. The old biblical translators to Aramaic and the biblical interpreters wavered about the correct nomenclature.27 According to these translations, they are personal names because they are copied in the translations: 26 See Ora (Rodrigue) Schwarzwald, “First Names in Sephardi Communities” in Aaron Demsky (ed.), Pleasant Are Their Names: Jewish Names in the Sephardi Diaspora, University Press of Maryland, Bethesda 2010, p. 197n30. 27 The Aramaic translators interpreted these names as nouns indicating features or attributes. Rashi interprets the first two as names of the rulers of nations, in opposition to Onkelos’ interpretation, and claims that the third refers to scattered tent owners. Ibn Ezra claims that they are personal names and opposes the view that they are gentilic nouns. RaDaQ also treats them as personal names and raises the question why they have the ‑im ending. .the ending ‑ayim is also a plural marker מצרים RaDaQ adds that in the name 215 Personal Names, Toponyms, and Gentilic Nouns אשורים, לאומים, לְטּוׁשִים :C F: Assurim, Leumim, Letusim E3: asurym, leumjm, lemryn(!) E4: asurin, leuim(!), letusin E5/E7: asurim, leumjn, letusin Alba: asurim, laumjm, latusym Only E5/E7 copies the names in their Hebrew pronunciation, but replaces the final m by n. Alba transcribes the schwa as a, but the name resembles the Hebrew tradition. (2) Toponyms: Of 66 tokens of toponyms in this study, 46 are types. C and F generally copy these names in their Hebrew pronunciation, e.g., Guihon ;גיחון :גיחון Chalne ;כלנה :)ו(כַלְנה Hen Mispat ;עין משפט :עין משפט Heden ;עדן :עדן Hamora ;עמורה :עֲמֹה Rechobot ;רחובות :רְחֹבֹת Nevertheless, there is a greater variety in toponym translations in C and F than in personal names. F differs from C in sixteen tokens (24%) that belong to eight types :These are the names .מצרים nine of which are the name ,(17%) (אור while F keeps ,כשדים r V de Caldeos (C keeps;ואליי די כשדים :אּור כַׂשְים Abundance of Mamre); Enzinas de Mamre (oaks) ליינוראש די ממרא :אֹלני מַמְא of Mamre) (Assur (Gen. 2:14, 25:18; Num. 24:24 ;אשור ;(Assyria (Gen. 10:11 ;אשור :אשור Ethiopia ;כוש :כוש (Egypto (×9 ;מצרים :מצרים Gazza ;עזה: עזה Hasderot Carnaim ;עשתרות קרנים :עַׁשְּתְרֹת קַניִם Euphrates ;פרת :פרת is spelled Hadma in אדמה :F is also inconsistent in the orthography of some names is spelled Guerar in Gen. 20:2, but Gerar in ּגְר ;Gen. 10:19, but Adma in Gen. 14:2 is Chenaan in Gen. 11:31, but Kenahan in Gen. 47:15. These names כנען ;Gen. 10:19 are not many, yet they use the same pronunciation tradition. 216 Ora (Rodrigue) Schwarzwald The resemblance among the medieval translations is even smaller. Forty-six of the 66 toponyms are not translated in the same manner (70%), although sometimes they are similar to each other (overlooking spelling differences). Here again, there is no point in examining tokens, because the same toponym may vary in different verses of the same translation. Here are a few examples: (adma (E3×2, E4, Alba×2); adama (E4); adina (E5/E7×2 :אַמָה (vrcasdin (E3); hur de los caldeos (E4, E5/E7), ur caldeorum (Alba :אור כשדים enzinas de manbre (E3); enzinar de manbre (E5/E7 ,E4); valles de :אֹלני מַמְא manbre (Alba) erog; yereth; yeoreg; erech :אְֶך ,asur (E3×4, E4×3, E5/E7×2, E19×2, Alba×1); asyria (E4), assyrios, siria :אַּׁשּור assur (Alba)28 (de los negros (E3); de judia (E4); de Ethiopia (Alba :י)ארץ( כּוׁש Gen. 43:32): los egipçianos (E3, E5/E7, Alba); los egepçianos (E4); los) מִצְרָֽיִם egibtanos (E19); (In eight other verses): egibto (×5), egipto, los egibtanos (E19); egipto (all the others) (parayso (E3), deleyte (E4), vergel (Alba :עֵן (parad (E3); eufrates (E4, Alba :פרת (Rahobod (E3); reobot (E4); rreouod (E5/E7); rrooboth (Alba :רְחֹבֹת Two phenomena are evident in these translations: (a) Even when the medieval translations resemble the Hebrew biblical names, these names are pronounced differently from the same names in the Ladino translations (compare, for instance, the -b) many of the toponyms are identified with well) ;(רחובות and ,אדמה, פרת names known place names known to the Spaniards either from the Latin translations or from ,Aethiopiae — כוש ,.other sources, or from interpretations given to these names, e.g .Chanaan, etc — כנען ,Ur Chaldeorum — אור כשדים appeared as a personal name. In the medieval Bibles מצרים As noted above, the name there were variations in the translations, either as a personal name, or as a toponym. As a personal name, some of the medieval versions showed some similarities to the Hebrew name, but as a toponym they opted for the name Egipto, as found in F as as :כוש well, though some of them related to it as a gentilic name. Likewise the name a personal name, it has been copied in the medieval Bibles — cus in all the Escorial 28 In some cases, some of the toponyms are not translated. 217 Personal Names, Toponyms, and Gentilic Nouns is interpreted: los negros כוש ,Bibles (and in F), chus in Alba. However, as a toponym (the blacks), judia (Judea) or Ethiopia (like F). Whereas interpretive cases are rare in C and F, they are abundant in the medieval translations. Only 13 toponyms show resemblance between C and F on the one hand, and the medieval translations on the other. This amount is lower than the one found among personal names. (3) Gentilic nouns: Gentilic nouns are derived from personal names, toponyms, or other social attributes, such as religion, and they function as adjectives or nouns.29 Most of the gentilic nouns in this study were derived from toponyms or from personal names by -i suffixation: Sometimes there is no .מצרים from מצרי and כנען from כנעני, עבר is derived from עברי such ending but the nouns are nevertheless gentilic, as discussed below. Seventy-six tokens of gentilic nouns represent 30 types, most of them from the ,in Esther 2:5, 3:4 יהודי ,in Esther 2:5 ימיני :Pentateuch, and a few from other books is also a personal name as referenced above, it is worth comparing יהודי Zech. 8:23. As it to its translation as a gentilic noun. C differs from F in 39 tokens (51%) which are 10 types (33%). This percentage is higher than the ones found in place and personal names, but it is still low, because most of the words (two-thirds of the types) are translated in the same manner. Inconsistencies are revealed in the translations of the same names in different verses. The data are classified into three categories: (a) similarities between C and F; (b) variations in different verses; (c) total difference between C and F. a. Similarities between Constantinople and Ferrara: los Emim ;:לוש אמים :האימִים (el Arami (×2 ;איל ארמי :הארמי l Guirgasi30- ;איל גרגשי :הגרגשי (Judio (×3 ;ג'ודייו :יהודי de Binyamin ;די בנימִן :ימיני תחתי-תחת ,ששי-שש ,רגלי- ,.In fact more adjectives can be derived from other names, e.g 29 .See Joüon and Muraoka, Grammar (Note 11), p. 242 .רגל 30 The dash before l indicates that the Spanish definite article was attached to other morphemes, such as al ‘to the; ACC.’, del ‘of the’. 218 Ora (Rodrigue) Schwarzwald Refaim ;רְפָאִים :רפאים l Keni- ;איל קיני :הַּקֵיני l Kenizi- ;איל קניזי :הַּקְנּזִי el Hamaleki ;איל עמלקי :הָעֲמָלֵקִי b. Variations between C and F in different verses: (i5); -l Hemori, el Emori (×2), el Emoreo (×2×) איל אמורי~איל אמֹרי :האמורי (i3); -l Heui, el Hiueo (×2×) איל חוי :החוי i4); -l Hiti, el Hiteo (×2), el Heti×) איל חתי :החתי (i4); el Yebusi (×2), el Yebuseo (×2×) איל יבוסי :היבוסי (i6); el Chenaani (×4), el Kenahaneo (×2×) איל כנעני :הכנעני i3); el Perezeo (×2), -I Perezi×) איל פריזי :הפזי c. Consistent difference between C and F: (la Ethiopissa; Ethiopissa (Num. 12:1 ;נֶיגה ,לה כושית :)ה(כֻׁשִית el Ysraelita, (la) Ysraelita ;(לה( ג'ודיאה ,ג'ודיו :ישראלי, ישראלית, הישראלית (Lev. 24:10) לוש ,לה ג'ודיאה ,(5×) ג'ודייו ,איל ג'ודיאו ,איל ג'ודייו :העברי, העבריה, העברים, עברי (ix2); el Hebreo (×2), la Hebrea, Hebreo (×5), los Hebreos (×2) ג'ודיוש In the first group, most of the gentilic nouns are copied in their Hebrew pronunciation, In the second group, C tends to copy the Hebrew names .יהודי except for the noun which F either copies or changes into their Spanish equivalent ending in -eo. כושית, Regarding .עברי and יכושית ,ישראלי)ת(י,Three nouns are distinct in C and F נֶיגרה once, but in its second occurrence he interprets it as כושית C uses the word ‘black’, whereas F uses the gentilic noun Ethiopissa in both cases (The verse says And“ וַּתְּבֵר מִיָםוְאַהֲרֹן ּבְמֹׁשֶה עַל־אֹדֹות הָאִּׁשָה הַכֻׁשִית אֲׁשֶר לָקָח כ ִי־אִּׁשָה כֻׁשִית לָקָח Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Cushite woman whom he C ,עברי and ישראלי had married; for he had married a Cushite woman”). Regarding whereas F adjusts the names to the ,ג'ודייו – consistently interprets them as Jewish .Hebreo – עברי Ysraelita and – ישראלי Spanish equivalent of The variations are much greater among medieval translations. In fact, only four tokens (5%) of gentilic nouns show resemblance among the translations. Three of as judio (like C and F), and one token is the יהודי the tokens are the translation of el ebreo only in Gen. 14:13, but not in any other place. All – העברי translation of 219 Personal Names, Toponyms, and Gentilic Nouns other tokens are diverse. The examples below show the same gentilic nouns presented above in the Ladino translations, with three additional examples.31 (los emjn; los gayanes; los emonjm; los emim (Alba resembles C and F :הָֽאימִים [el aramj; de aram; el aramj; el aramj; el aramj [de mesopotania :הארמי gujrjasi; guirgaseos; el gergasi; -l gargasy :הגרגשי (Judio (×3) (all versions :יהודי de biñamjn; benjaminista; benjamjnj; de benjamin :ימיני los gigantes; los gigantes; los rrefaym; los raphaim :רפאים ,emori, -l emory (×4), el emory;// los emorreos (×2), amorreos, emoreos :האמורי los emoreos (×2), el emoreo;// -l emori, el emori (×3), el emorreo, los emorreos;// el hemory;// los emoreos, -l emorri (×2), el emory, el emori (×2) ,l hiuj (×3);// los yne, yneos, los vneos;// el euj (×2), el ebi;// el yuj;// el hiuj- :החוי el hjuj (×3) el hity (×4);// yteos, los yteos (×2), el yteo;// el ety (×2), -l eti, el yteo;// el :החתי hity (×2);// hiti, el hity, los oteos, el hiteño ,l yebuçi yaybuçi, el abuçi (×2);// los gebuçeos (×3), gebuzeos;// -l eboçi- ,:היבוסי el eboçi (×3);// el ebuçi (×2);// los jebuseos, -l gebusi, el yebuçi, el jebuci de ysrrael, ysrraelj, la yzraela;// de ysrrael, ysrraelita, la :י)ה(ישראלית, ישראלי ysrraelita;// ysrraelid (×2), la ysrraelid;// de ysrrael, judia (×2);// de Israel (×2), aquella judia cuxia;// etiopensa;// cusid (×2);// estrañja;// cusyth [ethiopiana], cusyth :(הַ(כֻׁשִית l cananj (×2), de canaan (×2), el cananj (×2);// los cananeos (×4), de los- :הכנעני cananeos;// -l canaanj (×2), de canaam (×2), canaan, el cananj;// el cananeo (×2);// los cananeos (×2), del chanaani (×2), el cananeo (×2) el parezi (×3);// perizeos (×2), los perizeos;// el perezi (×2), ‑l seresi;// el :הפזי faryseo (×2);// el parisj (×2), los phariseos ,el ebreo (×2), la ebrea, los ebreos (×2), hebreo :העברי, העבריה, העברים, עברי judio, ebreo (×3);// el ebreo (×2), la ebrea, los ebreos (×2), ebreo (×5);// judio, el ebreo, judia, los ebreos (×2), ebreo (×5);// el judio, la judia, los judios (×2), judio (×5);// judio (×6), el ebreo, judia, los judios (×2), los ebreos l qujnj; quineos; -l qujnj; los çineçeos- :הַּקֵיני 31 The data is presented in the following order: E3, E4, E5/E7, E19 (if there are examples), and Alba. The examples from each version are separated by a semi-colon followed by two slashes. To avoid complications the exact citations of verses are not listed. 220 Ora (Rodrigue) Schwarzwald l qujnjzi; los quizeos; -l qujnjzi; los canjzeos- :הַּקְנּזִי amaleque; los enblaycos; el amalequjm; los amalechitas :הָעֲמָלֵקִי In addition to the many variants within the medieval Bibles, there is diversity within the same translation in different places. This diversity is atypical in the Ladino translations.32 In many cases, the translation uses the plural form instead of the singular האימים ,.etc.). Sometimes the final m is replaced by n (e.g ,האמורי, החוי, החתי ,.e.g) at the end of אשורים, לטושים, לאומים among the toponyms or אור כשדים here, and section (1)). Many gentilic nouns end in Spanish -eo to indicate the person, both in F החוי, החתי, היבוסי, הכנעני and in the medieval translations (e.g., see the translations of But the most striking phenomenon is the remoteness of the medieval .(העברי, הפריזי translations from the biblical Hebrew nouns. This phenomenon is in contrast to F. In F, we find the use of the Spanish formation with the -eo suffix; however, the basic gentilic noun remains close to the Hebrew word (cf. for instance the translations of .(גרגשי, חוי, יבוסי, רפאים, קניזי clearly distinguish עברי and ישראלי As shown above, the translation of the words Jewish’, while F translates the Spanish equivalent‘ ג'ודייו C from F: C translates it Ysraelita and Hebreo, respectively. In the medieval Bibles, the two traditions—ebreo (mostly without h) and judio—exist side by side in all the translations, except E4 shows many variations. The (ישראלי)ת(י that opts for ebreo, but the translation of is also varied both in the Ladino (as shown above) and the כושית translation of medieval Spanish translations, and it is partly based on Midrashic exegesis. Most of the medieval translations do not repeat the word in the translation. E19 explains /as estrañja ‘strange’, E3 copies it as cuxia (pronounced [kušia]), Alba and E5 כושית E7 adopt the Hebrew word with some variation, although in its first occurrence Alba interprets it in parentheses as Ethiopian [ethiopiana] (which slightly resembles E4’s etiopensa, and Ferrara’s Ethiopissa). and ,המצרי, המצרית, למצרים, מצרי represented as מצרי )×The translation of 33,)12 :deserves special discussion. Here is its distribution מציִם, אלוש ,(4×) מִצְיִם ,לה אג'יבסייאנה ,(3×) (איל( אַג'יבסייאנו ,איל מצרי ,מצרי :C לוש די מצרים ,מצריים F: -l Egypciano, la Egypçiana, Egyptianos (×2), a los egypçianos, Egypto (×3), Egypciano (×3) .is exceptional in C הכושית The example of 32 33 In some versions there is no representation for all of the word’s occurrences. 221 Personal Names, Toponyms, and Gentilic Nouns E3: el egipçiano (×2), la egipçiana, alos egipçianos, egipçiano (×2), los egibçianos, los egipçianos (×4), egibçiano E4: el egipçiano, -l egepçiano, el egepçiana(!), alos egepçianos, egepçiano (×2), egipto (×2), los egepçianos (×2), egipçiano E5/E7: el egipçiano (×2), la egipçiana, alos egipçianos, egipçiano (×2), los egipçianos (×2), egipto, los de egipto, egibçiano E19: el egibtano (×2), a los egibtanos, egibtano (×3), los egibtanos (×2), los egebçianos Alba: -l egipçiano, el egipçiano, la egipçiana, para los egipçianos, egipçiano (×3), los egipçianos (×5) eight times; four other times the Spanish equivalents מצרי C uses the Hebrew base as a personal name ,מציִם ,are used.34 As indicated above אג'יבסייאנה or אַג'יבסייאנו in C. F uses the Spanish equivalents מצרים and as a toponym has always been copied as consistently, as is done in the toponyms (contrary to the representation of personal names). All the medieval translations use the Spanish name inconsistently. Next to egipçiano one finds mostly egibtano in E19. The use of b instead of p occurs rarely in the other versions as well, cf. egipçiano—egibçianos. Moreover, there is also variation in the vowel, egepçiano in E4, and egebçianos in E19. ,among them מציִם As noted in the Hebrew list of occurrences, I included the name ,Syntactic agreement is the reason for this choice .מִצְי and not only variations of .sometimes refers to the people, and not to the name of the country מציִם because Here are the instances: He wept loudly; the“ וַּיִּתֵן אֶת־קֹֹלו ּבִבְכִי וַּיִׁשְמְעּו מִצְיִם וַּיִׁשְמַעּבֵית ּפַעה :Gen. 45:2 Egyptians heard it and Pharaoh’s household heard about it”. וַּיִּתֹם הַכֶסֶף מֵאֶץ מִצְיִם ּומֵאֶץ כְנעַן וַּיָבֹאּו כָל מִצְיִם אֶל יֹוסֵף לֵאמֹר הָבָה :Gen. 47:15 When the money from the lands of Egypt“ ּלָנּולֶחֶם וְלָּמָהנָמּות נֶגְּדֶָך כִי אָפֵס כָסֶף and Canaan was used up, all the Egyptians came to Joseph and said, ‘Give us food! Why should we die before your very eyes because our money has run out?’” וַּיִקֶן יֹוסֵף אֶת כָל אַמַת מִצְיִם לְפַעֹה כִי מָכְרּו מציִם אִיׁש ׂשָהּו כ ִי :Gen. 47:20 34 The spelling with bet instead of pe in such circumstances is quite common in that era. See Ora (Rodrigue) Schwarzwald, “Orthography and Pronunciation in Two Ladino Prayer Books for Women” (in Hebrew), Massorot 15 (2010), pp. 198-199. 222 Ora (Rodrigue) Schwarzwald So Joseph bought all the land of Egypt for“ חָזק עֲלֵהֶם הָעָב וַּתְהִי הָאָץ לְפַעֹה Pharaoh. Each of the Egyptians sold his field, for the famine was severe. So the land became Pharaoh’s”. וַּיִמְלְאּו לֹו אַּבָעִים יֹום ִכי ֵןכ יִמְלְאּו יְמֵי הַחֲנטִים וַּיִבְּכּו אֹתֹו מִצְיִם ׁשִבְעִים :Gen. 50:3 They took forty days, for that is the full time needed for embalming. The“ יֹום Egyptians mourned for him seventy days”. וַּיֹאמֶר מֹׁשֶה אֶל הָעָם אַל ּתִיאּו הִתְיַּצְבּו ּואּו אֶת יְׁשּועַתה' אֲׁשֶר יַעֲׂשֶה לָכֶם :Ex. 14:13 Moses said to“ הַּיֹום ִיכ אֲׁשֶר רְאִיתֶם אֶת מִצְיִם הַּיֹום ֹלא תֹסִיפּו לִאֹתָם עֹוד עַד עֹולָם the people, ‘Do not fear! Stand firm and see the salvation of the Lord that he will provide for you today; for the Egyptians that you see today you will never, ever see again’”. In four of the 76 gentilic nouns there is similarity between the Ladino and the medieval in the two ,יהודי Alba excluded),35 and) עברי translations: in the translation of E4) הָאַוָי shown above, and in the translation of המצרית and המצרי occurrences of excluded),36 which transliterate the name. As in the case of personal names, feminine gentilic nouns are rare: 6 tokens (8%) Discussion The data presented above prove that there is a hierarchy in the Ladino translations of the names examined in this study. Personal names are the ones copied in the translation in the highest rate followed by toponyms. Gentilic nouns are at the lowest end of the scale where there are some variations among the translations. Medieval translations show more variations in all the types of names. Personal names are very arbitrary. Toponyms are related to certain locations which are identified and interpreted in some ways in Spanish, therefore the variation increases in them. Gentilic nouns are morphologically different from personal names and toponyms. The Hebrew derivation with the suffix -i enables the equivalent formations in Spanish with the -eo suffix in Ladino, hence many of the gentilic nouns in Num. 24:24 is interpreted as a gentilic noun. In his translation only Alba עֵבֶר The word 35 uses a gentilic noun: los ebreos, contrary to all the others that copy it: ever, eber, euer in .in C and Heber in F עבר ,medieval translations 36 E4 translates it as arbadeos. 223 Personal Names, Toponyms, and Gentilic Nouns were derived in this way, and the basic name remained untouched as the translations prove. The variations are greater where there is no basic name from כנעני or מצרי of .(*אמור or *פרז there is no) פריזי or אמורי which the gentilic noun can be derived, as in and ישראלי, עברי Ferrara and Constantinople are distinct in the translations of is interpreted in C in its second occurrence in the verse as כושית The term .כושית h37 although in its first occurrence the Hebrew name is used in the,(ניגרה) ’black‘ translation. F uses the interpretation of Ethiopian like two of the medieval translations, although the others copy an approximate version of the Hebrew name or interpret ג'ודייו~ג'ודיאו are consistently interpreted in C as עברי and ישראלי .’as ‘strange כושית as Hebreo from עברי as Ysraelita from Israel and ישראלי Jewish’, while F adopts‘ Heber. As mentioned above, the medieval translations also show variation in these as ‘Jewish’ was apparently common among עברי and ישראלי nouns. The perception of the Jews, but not among the Christians and the ex-Conversos to which F belongs, as a gentilic noun, there יהודי hence the difference among them. In the translation of is no difference between the translations, and they all render this term as ‘Jewish’. Ferrara and Constantinople have similar translations in 208 examples of the 272 tokens examined in this study (76%; 150 of 174 types – 86%), which is quite a high percentage. In contrast, the medieval translations show a clear resemblance among each other in 42 cases (15% of the 272 tokens), and a partial resemblance in 21 other cases (8%). This total of 23% similarities is very low. Ferrara shows more resemblance to the medieval Spanish Bible than Constantinople. A comparison of F to E3, E4 and Alba, shows the following resemblance (of the 272 tokens sampled in this study): F = E3: 106 tokens (38%) F = E4: 84 tokens (31%) F = Alba: 73 tokens (27%) F clearly differs from E3, with more than 60% of the tokens. Namely, the difference is greater than the resemblance, and this difference increases in the other translations.38 The comparison has not been made to C because the data showed more remoteness than both because of the orthography and because of the other differences presented 37 Based on some traditional interpretations, e.g., RaDaQ. 38 E5/E7 was not included in the statistics, but it would have shown results similar to E4; E19 has not been calculated because many verses were lacking in the comparison. 224 Ora (Rodrigue) Schwarzwald above. These findings lead us to the following question: Is it possible that the pre- exilic medieval Spanish Bibles were the source for the post-exilic Ladino translations? The study of the romanized Bibles and their affinity to the Ladino Bibles has been investigated by several researchers.39 The assumption was that these medieval translations from Escorial and Alba laid the foundation for the Ladino translations published in the sixteenth century. The arguments raised were as follows: (a) these Bibles were translated by Jews or with the help of Jews; (b) the translation was based on the Hebrew Bible rather than the Vulgate or other Christian versions; (c) the order of the books and the division of the Parashot follow the Hebrew Bible; (d) many instances show that the translations are based on Aramaic and Jewish interpretations found in the Bible. There were also arguments that although Christians initiated these Bible translations, Jews also might have used them.40 39 See, for example, Lorenzo Amigo, El Pentateuco de Constantinopla y la Biblia Medieval Romaneceada Judeo-española, Universidad Pontificia, Salamanca 1983; Andrés Enrique- Arias, “Texto subyacente hebreo e influencia latinizante en la traducción de la Biblia de Alba de Moisés Arragel”, in Victoria Alsina, J. Brumme, C. Garriga & C. Sinner (eds.), Traducción y estandarización. La incidencia de la traducción en la historia de los lenguajes especializados, Iberoamericana Vervuert, Madrid/Frankfurt 2004, pp. 99-112; idem, “Apuntes para una caracterización de la morfosintaxis de los textos bíblicos medievales en castellano”, in Johannes Kabatek (ed.), Sintaxis histórica del español y cambio lingüístico: Nuevas perspectivas desde las tradiciones discursivas, Iberoamericana Vervuert, Frankfurt/ Madrid 2008, pp. 109-125; Francisco Javier del Barco, “La Biblia de Alba y la Biblia de Ferrara en su contexto lingüístico: la traducción de las formas verbales”, en José Jesús de Bustos Tovar & José Luis Girón (eds.), Actas del VI Congreso Internacional de Historia de la Lengua Española, vol. 1, Alconchel Arco Libros, Madrid 2006, pp. 459-468; Hassán y Berenguer, Biblia de Ferrara (Note 20); Margherita Morreale, “La Biblia de Ferrara y el .pp ,(1962) 5 ,(אוצר יהודי ספרד) Pentateuco de Constantinopla”, Tesoro de los judíos sefardíes 85-91; idem, “Las antiguas Biblias hebreas españolas en el pasaje del Cántico de Moisés”, Sefarad 23 (1963), pp. 3-21. An extensive list of references can be found in http://www. bibliamedieval.es/bibliografia.html (accessed 29.4.2011). 40 See Moshe Lazar, “Targume hamiqra beladino [Bible Translations in Ladino from after the Expulsion]”, Sefunot 8 (1964), pp. 337-375, especially p. 355; Moshe Lazar (ed.), Biblia Ladinada: Escorial I.j.3, The Hispanic Seminary of Medieval Studies, Madison 1995, p. xiii; José Llamas, “La antigua Biblia castellana de los judíos españoles”, Sefarad 4 (1944), pp. 219-244. Littlefield claimed the E19 was intended for Jewish readership, whereas E4 and E7 for Christians, and Alba and E3 were designated for both Jewish and Christian readers. See Littlefield, Escorial Iii19 (Note 17), pp. viii-xiii. 225 Personal Names, Toponyms, and Gentilic Nouns Contrary to this assumption, a claim is made that the Jewish Bible translations are based on an oral tradition that started in the Middle Ages,41 and they were only produced in writing after the expulsion from Spain, in the two major Iberian Diasporas of the Jews: the expelled Jews in the Ottoman Empire, and the ex-Converso communities in Italy and Holland. In spite of the geographical distance and the different orthography, the two Ladino translations closely resemble each other in their translation methods, and they are extremely different from the translation methods used in medieval Spain. The use of personal names also distinguishes the Ladino translations from the medieval Spanish ones. The resemblance between C and F is much higher than between the medieval Spanish ones, as shown above. This resemblance cannot be accidental, and certainly cannot be attributed to any of the medieval translations. Therefore, the claim that the Ladino Bibles are based on the medieval Spanish translations cannot be supported.42 The resemblance of C and F is justifiable only by assuming a long-lasting tradition of oral transmission of the Bible; this resemblance lasted until the onset of print production in the sixteenth century and afterwards. If the Ladino translations were based on the medieval written tradition extant among Christians, we would have found much more variety in the translation of the words, in personal names, toponyms, and gentilic nouns, because when copying such a long text, the translator would be influenced by the texts in front of him, and he would be unable to change them in a 41 See Eliezer Gutwirth, “Religión, historia y las biblias romanceadas”, Revista Catalana de Teologia 13 (1988), pp. 115-134; David M. Bunis, “Tres formas de ladinar la biblia en Italia en los siglos XVI-XVII”, in Hassán and Berenguer (eds.). Introduccion a la Biblia de Ferrara (note 20), pp. 315-345; David M. Bunis, “Translating from the Head and from the Heart: The Essentially Oral Nature of the Ladino Bible-Translation Tradition”, in Winfried Busse and Marie-Christine Varol-Bornes (eds.), Hommage á Haïm Vidal Sephiha. Peter Lang, Berne 1996, pp. 337-357; Aldina Quintana, “From the master’s voice to the disciple’s script: Genizah fragments of a Bible glossary in Ladino”, Hispania Judaica Bulletin 6 (2008), pp. 187-235. 42 See Ora (Rodrigue) Schwarzwald, “On the Jewish Nature of Medieval Spanish Biblical Translations: Linguistic Differences between Medieval and Post-Exilic Spanish Translations of the Bible”. Sefarad 70 (2010), pp, 117-140; Ora (Rodrigue) Schwarzwald, “The Relationship between Ladino Liturgical Texts and Spanish Bibles”, in Jonathan Decter and Arturo Prats (eds.), Hebrew Literature, the Bible and the Andalusi Tradition in the Fifteenth Century, Brill, Leiden and Boston 2012, pp. 223-243. Support for this view can also be found in Lorenzo Amigo Espada, “Una aproximación al Pentateuco de Constantinopla (1547)”, Estudios Bíblicos 43 (1990), pp. 81‑111. 226 Ora (Rodrigue) Schwarzwald consistent fashion. The fact that most proper names, toponyms and gentilic nouns retained their Hebrew pronunciation and that they show more consistency than in the translations made before the expulsion, proves that it was a reliable oral tradition. The translator of Ferrara was an ex-Converso. His translations demonstrate that although he used the Latin alphabet, only sparingly did he follow the Christian usage. Finally, the copying of the Hebrew names in the translation is one of the clearest signs of the Jewish nature of the text. In Midrash Tehilim43 the text states: י"אמר ר' אלעזר הקפר בזכות ארבעה דברים ]נגאלו ישראל ממצרים[, שלא שינו את שמם, ולא שינו את לשונם, ולא גילו את מסתורין שלהם, ולא היו פרוצים בעריות. החשוב מכולם לא שינו את שמם, )לראובן( ]אלה[ משפחות הראובני )במדבר כו ז(, )לשמעון( ]אלה[ משפחות השמעוני )שם שם /במדבר כ"ו/ יד(, כי נחתין ראובן ושמעון, וכי סלקין ראובן ושמעון".ן R. Elazar Ha-Qapar says: For four reasons [Israel were redeemed from Egypt]: they did not change their names, they did not change their language, they did not reveal their secrets, and they did not engage in sexually immoral behavior. And the most important [reason] is that they did not change their names, (from Reuben) [one finds these are] the Reubeni families, (from Šimcon) [one finds these are] the Šimconi families, because they went [into Egypt] as Reuben and Šimcon and got out as Reuben and Šimcon. Although there is a change in language in the translations, the principle of retaining the Hebrew name was kept intact for personal names, toponyms, and gentilic nouns, Even when there is morphological adjustment to Spanish, the original Hebrew name is preserved as the stem, and that’s what makes the texts Jewish, unlike the medieval Spanish translations. 43 Midrash Tehilim, Buber’s edition, chapter 114, The Responsa Project 18+, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat Gan (2010). 227 Personal Names, Toponyms, and Gentilic Nouns Appendix: The verses from which the names were taken Gen. 2:10, 13-14; 4:2, 12, 18; 9:18; 5:4, 9, 16, 21; 10:2, 4, 6-7, 9-19, 24; 11:31; 13:10; 14:2, 5-7, 13; 15:19-21; 20:1-2; 215:3, 9-10, 18, 20, 26; 39:2, 14; 10:1, 15; 41:12, 34, 45; 43:32; 45:2; 47:15, 20; 21:2 Ex. 2:11, 12; 3:8, 17; 14:13; 21:2 Lev. 24:10 Num. 12:1; 24:24 Deut. 15:12 Jer. 36:21, 23 Zech. 8:23 Esther 2:5; 3:4 228 Michel Studemind-Halévy Obsessed with the Theater: The Translator and Amateur Author Rafael Farin* Michael Studemund-Halévy The Institute for the History of the Jews in Germany, Hamburg In the Ottoman Empire, Judezmo newspapers in the 1860s were already dominated by novels and novellas, many of them creative adaptations of foreign material, particularly French and Hebrew sources. As Olga Borovaya has shown, this new genre of secular fiction involved the adaptation of an original work from another language, entailing the translation of instructive texts without even mentioning the possibility of producing original works. In all these literary contexts, language played a key role in determining how Jews negotiated their identities in fiction. All these so-called Judezmo translations or adaptations of various kinds, including those that claim to be original works, borrowed lexical elements from the foreign- language texts and thus depended on them to varying degrees. These texts are described by Olga Borovaya as “rewriting” literature and their authors as “rewriters”.1 A thorough study of the source language-texts and their translated, adapted, or rewritten versions would help to show how translators or “rewriters” overcome the linguistic problems and the social-cultural difficulties in practice. Unfortunately, no systematic research has yet been carried out.2 * Research for this study was made possible with generous support from the Fritz Thyssen Stiftung. 1 Olga Borovaya, Modern Ladino Culture: Press, Belles Lettres, and Theater in the Late Ottoman Empire, Indiana University, Bloomington 2012, p. 140; idem, Olga V. Borovaya, “The Serialized Novel as Rewriting: The Case of the Ladino Belles Lettres”, Jewish Social Studies 10 (2003), pp. 30-68. 2 For example, see Michael Studemund-Halévy and Gaëlle Collin (eds.), La Boz de Bulgaria. Bukyeto de tekstos en lingua sefardi. Livro de Lektura para 229 Obsessed with Theater Judezmo Theater Judezmo theater did not emerge until the second half of the nineteenth century as a so- called “adopted genre”, first as an expression of holiday celebrations, such as Passover, Hanukkah, and Purim, and later as a medium of instruction that was performed in schools or for literary or charitable associations. Three languages were employed by most of the Jews in Europe—Hebrew, Yiddish and Judezmo—in addition to the language of the host country. The basic largely negative attitude toward theater diminished when Jewish life was affected by the Jewish Enlightenment movement and the movement for Jewish emancipation. Even if Judezmo theater always sought to provide entertainment, it was meant to be a venue of moral education and enlightenment, a school open to everybody.3 The idea of creating a Judezmo theater was appealing to the Westernizer because it seemed to be a good means of teaching morality and religion. These plays and sketches often appeared in periodicals, sometimes in serialized form, and quite of a few of them were not even meant for staging. Judezmo theater emerged as plays on Jewish life, written in Judezmo by named authors or created by a member of the local Sephardic community, and staged by a group of actors of the Sephardic community for a Sephardic audience, very often for religious purposes, charitable propaganda, and fundraising. Sephardic dramatists were rabbis, local literati, intellectuals, or publicists involved in Sephardic journalism as publishers, editors, translators, or contributors to one or several newspapers. When Sephardic literati were putting together a repertoire for the new theater, they did not have any domestic texts to utilize. They had to import French theater for material to borrow, such as works by Racine, Molière, Delphine de Girardin, Scribe, Eugène Labiche, Octave Mirbeau, Henry Bataille, or Georges Courteline. Other literati created original plays, turning to biblical stories and episodes of Jewish history (stories about Queen Esther or Joseph and his brothers), and later, to the local estudiantes, vol. 1: Teatro, Tirocinio, Barcelona 2014. See also Dov Cohen, ,unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, Bar-Ilan University ,"ארון הספרים בלאדינו: מחקר ומיפוי" Ramat Gan 2011; Gaëlle Collin and Michael Studemund-Halévy, Entre dos Mundos, Tirocinio, Barcelona 2007. 3 Olga Borovaya, “New forms of Ladino cultural production in the late Ottoman period: Sephardi theater as a tool of indoctrination”, European Journal of Jewish Studies 2, no. 1 (2008), pp. 65-87 [here: p. 67]. 230 Michel Studemind-Halévy situation. Zionist authors favored dramatic and violent episodes where Jewish heroes and heroines demonstrated their patriotism and dedication to Judaism by saving the land and the people of Israel, for example, the stories about Jephthah, Debora, David and Goliath, Queen Esther, the Binding of Isaac, Bar Kochba, and so on. In the early twentieth century, the repertoire of Judezmo theater included more plays on Jewish life (“return to the ghetto”), especially in Eastern and Central Europe and Palestine, mainly translated from Hebrew, Yiddish, German, Dutch, and Russian—most of the latter via Hebrew. These texts showed traditional Jewish life between nostalgia and modernization, allowing Jews to reconnect with the past. The preferred Jewish authors were, along with Sholem Aleichem, the Yiddish writers Shalom Asch (1880-1957) and An-ski (1863-1920), the author of the Dibbuk, translated into many languages, including Judezmo.4 The languages of the theater performances were predominantly Hebrew, Judezmo, and French. In Bulgaria, one key center for the Jewish theater was the city of Shumen, whose most outstanding representative was the amateur stage director Rafael Farin. Sephardic Theater in Shumen The northeastern Bulgarian industrial and university town Shumen, earlier called Shumla, and from 1950 to 1965 renamed Kolarovgrad in socialist Bulgaria, lies on the eastern slopes of the Shumen Plateau, some 60 miles from the port city of Varna. The town, bordering the southern Dobrudzha region, had a large Turkish population; in 1869 there were also approximately 400 Jews living there. In 1905 about 200 Jewish families resided in Shumen, and in 1912 the Jewish population numbered 1,200, declining to 842 in 1926. A clear majority of them, more than 80% according to the latest census we have, spoke Judezmo as their mother tongue.5 4 The classic interpretation of the story of the Dibbuk, which inspired various artistic and musical treatments, is a play by Shalom An-Ski (alias Zainwil Salomon Rappoport). Der Dibbuk was translated, adapted, and published by Jacques Cappon (Entre 2 mundos or HaDybuk. Legenda dramatica en 4 actos, Sofia ca. 1930); see Collin and Studemund-Halévy, Entre Dos Mundos (Note 2), p. 29, no. 47; see also Elena Romero, “Nueva bibliografía de ediciones de obras de teatro sefardíes”, Sefarad 66, no. 1 (2006), pp. 183-218 [here: p. 207, no. 88]. 5 Binyamin Arditti, Jews of Bulgaria – The Shumla Community (Hebrew), Va’adah Tsiburit, Tel Aviv 1968; Aksel Erbahar, “Shumla (Shumen)”, in Norman A. Stillman 231 Obsessed with Theater Probably unknown to most, the municipal library of Shumen possesses a small number of Hebrew and Sephardic books, mostly grammar books, including some unique or highly rare items, such as a book published in Judezmo and in Rashi characters in 5684/1924: Traduksyon livro [!] de las poezias ebraikas de Rosh haShana i Kipur traido ala estanpa por Ya’akov Rafael Maestro shohet i hazan sheni de la komunidad israelit-sefaradit de Shumla en Bulgarya.6 This book, printed by the well-known “Estamparia Targovski”, is—at least according to the Bibliography of the Hebrew Book7 and to Dov Cohen—the only known volume in Rashi script published in Shumen. In addition, the municipal library has books in Hebrew that were used especially in the Jewish schools. Almost all the Jewish inhabitants of the city at the end of the nineteenth century were proficient in Judezmo, Turkish, and Bulgarian, and in addition a number had a good knowledge of French. In Shumen, a bitter battle over languages was also waged in the early 1870s. According to an article published in 1870 in the Viennese periodical El Koreo de Vyena, the traditionalists were vehemently opposed to the battle cry of the Alliance Israélite Universelle “Ondi ay frances, non ay fes” (“where French is learned, no fez is worn”), and when the school was dedicated, they demonstratively donned their fez headcover and spoke in Judezmo.8 This enthusiasm for the theater, which was progressively integrated into everyday Jewish life, also spread to the provincial town of Shumen, where the beginning of Bulgarian theater is usually identified with two performances in 1856 in a coffee house. Plays were also performed at the Bet Sefer, the elementary school of the Alliance Israélite Universelle,9 founded in 1870, where Rabbi Baruch Mitrani, a Hebrew reformer and noted precursor of Zionism, was active for a short time as a (ed.), Encyclopedia of Jews in the Islamic World, Brill, Leiden-Boston 2010, vol. 4, p. 367. 6 Collin and Studemund-Halévy, Entre Dos Mundos (Note 2), p. 130, no. 129. 7 See www.hebrewbook.org 8 In the El Koreo de Vyena, in its January, February, March, and April issues, 1871, a lengthy polemic ensued between Abraham Rosanes of Ruse and Matitayahu of Shumen on the issue of change in education, El Koreo de Vyena, June 28 (Sivan 5630); see also Vicki Tamir, Bulgaria and Her Jews, Yeshiva University Press, New York 1979, p. 136. 9 Today this beautiful school building has been converted into a home for the aged; see Tamir, Bulgaria and Her Jews (Note 8), p. 108. 232 Michel Studemind-Halévy Hebrew teacher10 as was the teacher Eliezer Behor Ya’akov (died 1933 in Sofia). Probably before 1915, Ya’akov staged the play Ya’akov i sus ijos (Jacob and His Children)11 together with his students at the school. He also translated the play Musiu Güillom (Mister William) from French to Judezmo.12 According to Binyamin Arditti, a Revisionist Zionist,13 the Jews in Shumen were “obsessed with the theater” in the true sense of the word.14 Almost all associations and societies, with the exception of charitable organizations, felt obliged to include theatrical presentations, with or without music, in their events. Aside fromsome early mention of theatrical performances, the veritable heyday and flowering of the Jewish theater in Shumen was in the 1920s, and is closely associated in particular with the name of Rafael Farin. This period of flowering, however, was to last but a decade.15 Regarding Shumen, we have more or less certain knowledge of the following theater performances: 1. Before 1915, Ya’akov i sus ijos (Jacob and His Children), directed by Eliezer Behor Ya’akov. 2. In 1919, an amateur group enthusiastic about the theater performed Shalom Asch’s (1880-1957)16 stage play Im hagal (Mitn Strum, 1904), translated into Bulgarian by Lazar Daniel.17 10 Michael Studemund-Halévy, “Ivri, daber ivrit! Baruch Mitrani, un maskil turko- sefardí en Viena”, in idem et al. (eds.), Sefarad an der Donau. Lengua y literatura sefardiés en tierras de los Habsburgo, Tirocinio, Barcelona 2013, pp. 175-202. 11 Arditti, Jews of Bulgaria (Note 5), p. 106. 12 Arditti, Jews of Bulgaria (Note 5), p. 106; Elena Romero, La creación literaria en lengua sefardí, MAPFRE, Madrid 1992, p. 277. 13 Binyamin Arditti (1897-1982), born in Vienna, was an Israeli politician who served as a member of the Knesset for Ḥerut and Gaḥal between 1955 and 1965. He also published several books: The Role of King Boris in the Expulsion of Bulgarian Jewry (1952), Bulgarian Jews under the Nazis (1962), Bulgarian Jewry – the Shumla Community (1968), and Famous Bulgarian Jews (1971). 14 Arditti, Jews of Bulgaria (Note 5), pp. 105-107. 15 See Elena Romero, El teatro de los sefardíes orientales, 3 vols, CSIC, Madrid 1979, vol. 2, p. 758, no. 360-361. 16 Shalom Asch, a celebrated writer in his own lifetime, wrote initially in Hebrew, but I. L. Peretz convinced him to switch to Yiddish. His works were never translated into Judezmo. 17 Arditti, Jews of Bulgaria (Note 5), p. 106-107; Romero, Teatro de los sefardíes orientales (Note 15), vol. 2, p. 758, no. 360-361. 233 Obsessed with Theater 3. In 1919, Yehuda Makabi was performed in Bulgarian by the theater troupe “Mikra”, founded 1918.18 4. In 1920, there was a performance of La ija kazamentera, by the Hebrew poet Abraham Razin (Abraham Rosen/Rosenzweig, 1889-1974), and performed by the theater troupe “Mikra”.19 5. In 1925, Don Yosef de Castilla was staged in Judezmo by the “Sosyedad Makabi”.20 6. In 1926 in Shumen, Dreyfus, by Jak Loria (1860-1948), was performed in Judezmo.21 7. In 1926, Dreyfus, by Aharon Menahem, was staged and directed by Rafael Farin.22 8. In 1926, Don Isak Abravanel, by Aharon Menahem, was staged and likewise directed by Rafael Farin.23 18 Arditti, Jews of Bulgaria (Note 5), p. 106; Romero, Teatro de los sefardíes orientales (Note 15), vol. 2, pp. 757-758, no. 359. The Bulgarian National Archive in Sofia (Ladino Collection) possesses a copy of the theatrical play “Yehuda Makabi, trezladada del bulgar por Abraham Menahem” in Solitreo Sephardic script. 19 Abraham Razin was an author of serialized novels; see also Arditti, Jews of Bulgaria (Note 5), p. 106; Romero, Teatro de los sefardíes orientales (Note 15), vol. 1, 299, no. 304; vol. 2, p. 761, no. 376. 20 Arditti, Jews of Bulgaria (Note 5), p. 107; Romero, Teatro de los sefardíes orientales (Note 15), vol. 1, p. 248, no. 202; vol. 2, p. 776, no. 442. 21 Dreyfus. Drama en sinko aktos i un apoteoz, Sofia 1902-1903; reprinted in Studemund-Halévy and Collin, La Boz de Bulgaria (Note 2), pp. 38-89; Romero, Teatro de los sefardíes orientales (Note 15), p. 86, no. 137; p. 88, no. 144; 94, no. 160; Elena Romero, Repertorio de noticias sobre el mundo teatral de los sefardíes orientales, CSIC, Madrid 1983; Nitsa Dori, The Dreyfus Affair and Its Registration in Ladino Literature (Hebrew), Bar-Ilan University 2000; see also Yosef Avraam Papo, “Dreyfus” (MS), Archivo Histórico (Sofia). See also Nitsa Dori, The Dreyfus Affair and Its Registration in Ladino Literature (Hebrew), Bar-Ilan University 2000. 22 Arditti, Jews of Bulgaria (Note 5), p. 106; Romero, Teatro de los sefardíes orientales (Note 15), vol. 1, p. 251, no. 213; vol. 2, p. 776, no. 443; Romero, Repertorio de noticias (Note 21), pp. 50-51, no. 65; Romero, “Nueva bibliografía de ediciones” (Note 4), p. 193. 23 La Verdad (Ruse), c. 1900. Along with Aharon Menahem, Behor Azaria (1874-1911), Jak Loria, and Sento Semo, who also wrote stage plays about the philospher of religion and minister to the Catholic kings, Isaac Abravanel; see also Arditti, Jews of Bulgaria (Note 5), p. 106; Romero, Teatro de los sefardíes orientales, vol. 2, p. 777, no. 444; Romero, Repertorio de noticias (Note 21), pp. 50-51, no. 65; Romero, “Nueva bibliografía de ediciones” (Note 4), pp. 183-218 [here: p. 191, no. 24]; Bibliography of the Hebrew Book (www.hebrew-bibliography.com). 234 Michel Studemind-Halévy 9. In 1926, there was a performance of El Avaro by Molière in Bulgarian.24 10. In 1926, La suegra la kaza arevuelta, probably based on Anton Todorov Strashimirov’s (1872-1937) well-known satiric comedy Svekurva (Mother-in- Law) 25 and now considered one of the best comedies of morals in Bulgarian, was staged in Judezmo and directed by Rafael Farin.26 11. In 1926, Sholem Aleichem’s play Desparsidos i Dispersados was put on in Judezmo and directed by Rafael Farin.27 12. In 1927, Messhasheah hana’alayim,28 a stage play and musical translated from French to Bulgarian by Isaac Hayim Shelomoh Eshkenazi (Ashkenazi) was performed.29 24 Avare de Moliere, pp.1-15 (Archivo Histórico, Sofia);Arditti, Jews of Bulgaria (Note 5), p. 106; Romero, Teatro de los sefardíes orientales (Note 15), vol. 1, pp. 165-175, no. 27; vol. 2, p. 777, no. 445. See also El hazino imajinado. Komedia en tres aktos de Molyer, trezladado de el fransez por Sh. Ataf, Sofia 1903. 25 Anton Todorov Strashimirov (1872-1937), founder of the dramatic literature in Bulgaria, published his first poems in the journal Iskra (The Spark) in Shumen; the start of his active creativity was linked with the theater in Shumen and Varna. He published in Bulgarian the novel The Salonica Terrorists (see Jacques Eskenazi and Alfred Krispin, Jews in the Bulgarian Hinterland: an annotated bibliography, Sofia 2002, no. 1520) and the preface to the poems of Youliy Rosenthall, Sofia 1904 (Eskenasi and Krispin, Jews in the Bulgarian Hinterland, no. 1893). He published his satiric comedy Svekurva in 1906. Violeta Menahem Levi-Samardzhieva remembered a presentation in Dupnitse, 1921, apud Kristina Tosheva, “El teatro y los judios en Bulgaria: Con esbozo historico”, Annual / Godishnik 26 (1991), pp. 244-257 [here: p. 250]; see also M. A. Nikolov, Anton Strashimirov, Sofia 1965. 26 Arditti, Jews of Bulgaria (Note 5), p. 106-107; Romero, Teatro de los sefardíes orientales, vol. 1, p. 427, no. 631; vol. 2, p. 777, no. 446. 27 Desparcidos i dispersados. Espektakulo en tres aktos, El Djudyo (Varna), 15, (1925)-16 (1926); reprinted in Studemund-Halévy and Collin, La Boz de Bulgaria (Note 2), pp. 147-183; Romero, “Nueva bibliografía de ediciones” (Note 4), pp. 183-218 [here: p. 204, no. 73. However, Farin translated the play from German, as is clearly evident from a comparison of the Yiddish with the German version and from the manuscript version. 28 Arditti, Jews of Bulgaria (Note 5), p. 107; Romero, Teatro de los sefardíes orientales (Note 15), vol. 1, p. 341, no. 360; vol. 2, p. 778, no. 449. 29 Romero, Teatro de los sefardíes orientales (Note 15), vol. 2, p. 778, no. 449; Arditti, Jews of Bulgaria (Note 5), p. 107. There is very little information on the use of music in Sephardic theater, and even less is known about the staging of Sephardic plays. 235 Obsessed with Theater 13. In 1927, Mojeret hagafrurim (Seller of Matchboxes), a stage play and musical operetta translated from French to Bulgarian by Isaac Hayim Shelomoh Eshkenazi (Ashkenazi) was put on.30 14. In 1929, there was another performance of Don Izhak Abravanel.31 This naturally incomplete list is based principally on the studies by Binyamin Arditti, Elena Romero, and Kristina Tosheva. If we supplement this list of the Sephardic theater from Bulgaria by the Judezmo books published in Bulgaria, and if we then complete this tableau by our still insufficient knowledge of Sephardic literature from Vienna, Bosnia, Herzegovina, and Serbia, we can readily see that the number of translations from Yiddish and German into Judezmo is far greater than what numerous researchers have previously assumed and that many translations were via detour, so to speak, of a German version then translated into Judezmo. Brothers in Spirit: Sholem Aleichem and Rafael Farin As a passionate lover of the theater, according to the memoirs of his friend Binyamin (Buko) Arditti, the pharmacist, journalist and translator Rafael Farin, who was born in Shumen in 1889 and died in 1951 in Lod, was greatly enamored of the writings of Sholem Aleichem, still popular today in Bulgaria, because like Sholem Aleichem, “Rafael loved life and surrendered himself to it”.32 Farin shared this love with the Sephardic public, which between 1919 and 1931 repeatedly asked for stage plays and dramatic sketches by Sholem Aleichem. At least four of his works were translated into Judezmo during those years, simultaneously with the translation of a far larger number of Sholem Aleichem’s works into Bulgarian.33 Based on the unfortunately inaccurate data given by Binyamin Arditti, Rafael Farin presumably translated three books by Sholem Aleichem into Bulgarian between 1918 30 Arditti, Jews of Bulgaria (Note 5), p. 107; Romero, Teatro de los sefardíes orientales (Note 15), vol. 1, p. 347, no. 371; vol. 2, p. 778, no. 450. 31 Arditti, Jews of Bulgaria (Note 5), p. 107; Romero, Teatro de los sefardíes orientales (Note 15), vol. 2, p. 785, no. 484; Romero, “Nueva bibliografía de ediciones (Note 4), p. 191, no. 24. 32 Arditti, Jews of Bulgaria (Note 5), pp. 106-107. 33 Rosa Brantz, “Sholom Aleichem in Bulgaria”, Godishnik/Annual 22 (1987), 223-236. 236 Michel Studemind-Halévy and 1928.34 In 1925-26, the journal HaShofar published a Bulgarian translation of Menaḥem Mendel without, however, mentioning the name of the translator.35 Rafael Farin is also believed, at least in the view of the Bulgarian local historian Niko Mayerov from Shumen, to have translated a further classic text by Sholem Aleichem, Tevje the Milkman,36 but likewise we have not been able to locate a copy of this translation.37 In addition, he is supposed to have translated sections of Don Quichote into Judezmo.38 In his short bibliography on the Judezmo theater, Abraham Yaari mentions three works by Sholem Aleichem:39 (1) Desparcidos i Dispersados. Spektakulo en tres aktos, trezladado del alman por R. Farin. (2) Mazal bueno. Para mazal bueno. Komedia en 1 akto. Trezladado del ebreo por Abraham Matarasso. (3) Para mazal bueno (Komedia en un akto) i syertas notas sovre Sholem Alehem rekojidas por [Izhak David Florentin], Saloniko 1931. Rosa Sánchez lists three or four works by Sholem Aleichem, including Desparcidos y dispersados; El médico/A Doktor; Mazal Tov/Enhorabuena/Para mazal bueno.40 34 Arditti, Jews of Bulgaria (Note 5), p. 105. 35 HaShofar 17 (1925), no. 11, pp. 5-8 (14.12.1925); no. 12, (1925), pp. 4-9 (25.12.1925); no. 14 (1926), pp, 4-12 (15.1.1926); no. 16 (1926), pp. 5-8 (29.1.1926), no. 18 (1926), pp. 4-9 (12.2.1926). 36 Niko Mayerov, Evreijskata mahala v moite spomeni, [s.n.], Shumen 2011, p. 28. 37 According to the handwritten catalogue deposited in Yad Vashem of the collection of books of Binjamin Arditti, there is only one book by Rafael Farin in his library, namely Menahem Mendel; see Gaëlle Collin and Michael Studemund-Halévy, “Le fonds judéo-espsagnol bulgare de la Bibliothèque de Yad Vashem (Jerusalem): le fonds Binjamin Arditti”, Miscelánea de estudios árabes y hebraicos/Sección de Hebreo 56 (2007), pp. 163-179. 38 Mayerov, Evreijskata (Note 36), p. 28. Nissim Farhi, a pharmacist living in Shumen, still recalls Farin and his passion for the theater very well, as well as his translations for the theater, including also parts of Don Quichote, as he told me in a conversation in Shumen in 2011. 39 Abraham Yaari, “On the History of Israeli Drama: Dramas in Ladino” (Hebrew), Bamah 3, no. 21-23 (1934), pp. 11-14. 40 Rosa Sánchez, “Para mazal bueno: la comedia Mazal tob de Shólem Aléjem en judeoepañol”, ARBA 16 (2005), pp. 125-132; idem, “Dos versions judeoespañoles 237 Obsessed with Theater Finally, the magnificentBibliography of the Hebrew Book lists four of his works in Judezmo translation: 1. Para Mazal Bueno/Mazal Tov, in: El Makabeo (Salonica, 1919), trezladado del ebreo por Abraham Matarasso. 2. Mi kapo de anyo: Broshura muy divertyente, kontenyendo la [...] pyesa [...] El Mediko, del grande eskribano [...] Sholem Alehem, konsejos a las mujeres, maksimas i proverbyos, Saloniko, c. 1920, in: El Djudyo (1920). 3. Desparcidos i Dispersados, Spektakolo en tres aktos, trezladado del alman por R. Farin, in: El Djudyo (1925-1926). 4. Para mazal bueno i syertas notas sovre Sholem Alechem. Rekojidas por I[zhak] F[lorentin], Saloniki (1931). Rafael Farin, who in Shumen not only directed Jewish stage plays for a Jewish theater-going public and also adapted numerous plays for the stage, shared his lifelong enthusiasm for Sholem Aleichem with translators and authors such as the journalists Abraham Matarasso and Isaak David Florentin, who translated plays by Sholem Aleichem into Judezmo. It is thus not surprising that the first book publication of Farin we know of, which appeared in Shumen in 1925, was the first book in the series (probably founded by him) entitled “Jewish Humorous Library”, namely the epistolary novel Menahem Mendel by his favorite writer Sholem Aleichem.41 It was published by the Jewish youth organization Mikra Makabi and printed by the well-known printer Spas Popov.42 According to the title page, this is a translation from German, a language that Rafael Farin, linguistically gifted, knew well, since he had learned German while studying for two years at the Leipzig College of Management (Handelshochschule). Later he also taught German at the commercial school in Shumen. de la comedia Mazal Tob de Shólem Aléijem”, M.A. thesis”, M.A. thesis, University of Basle 2005; idem, “Difusión y recepción de obras teatrales de Shólem Aléjem en ámbitos sefardíes”, Theatralia 7 (2006), pp. 175-185. 41 Menahem Mendel, translated from the German Language, R. Farin, Mikra – Makabi, Shumen 1925. 42 Brantz, “Sholom Aleichem” (Note 33), p. 228. On the bibliography of the works of Sholem Aleichem in Bulgarian, see Hristo Yordanov, “Shalom Aleichem’s Books Translated and Distributed in Bulgaria”, Godishnik/Annual 22 (1987), pp. 236-238 [here: p. 235]. 238 Michel Studemind-Halévy Farin’s second book in Bulgarian is likewise a translation of the collection of novellas by Sholem Aleichem published in Berlin in 1925, entitled Di Ershte Yidishe Republik, which Farin brought out in Shumen in 1927 in Bulgarian as Parvata Evreiska Republika/Spored Istinskoto odisanie/na edin Otcheviden/Prevel: R. Farin/Knigata i skladiran i prevodatcha be Shumen 1927 (The First Jewish Republic. An Authentic Description of a Witness).43 Along with these two works in Bulgarian, Farin may well have translated a third by Sholem Aleichem, which appeared in the periodical HaShofar without mention of the translator’s name.44 The first two translations can be found today in the Shumen municipal library. In 1924, Farin translated one of the most popular Yiddish plays by Sholem Aleichem, Tsezeyt un tseshpreyt (Scattered Far and Wide), which appeared in Varna 1925/26 in the periodical El Djudyo entitled, Desparsidos i Dispersados, spektakulo en tres actos, trezladado del alman.45 This “Dramatic Play in Three Acts” deals with a family that is falling apart, in which all of the dramatis personae espouse and represent an idea according to which they organize their life: the daughter Hanna represents a life of study and education; the son Haim is a Zionist, another son is a Social Democrat. The mother Malke is pious but too weak to stand her ground against her children, and to some extent does not take what they say seriously (Se yo lo que los crios van dahtaniando?).46 Central here is the married couple Schalant, who see themselves, forced by the catastrophes that occur (their eldest daughter Flora elopes, their son is arrested, their daughter Hana’s engagement is dissolved), to finally come to terms and deal with their children. When at the end of the play the husband asks his wife about their children, she answers 43 Brantz, “Sholom Aleichem” (Note 33), p. 228. 44 HaShofar 17 (1925), 11, pp. 5-8 (14.12.1925); 12 (1925), pp. 4-9 (25.12.1925); 14 (1926), pp. 4-12 (15.1.1926); 16 (1926), pp. 5-8 (29.1.1926); 18 (1926) pp. 4-9 (12.2.1926). 45 Written in 1903, it describes the conflict of generations and was performed many times on stage with great success El Djudyo, 15, 1925, [1], 16.10, 38, pp. 3-4; [2] 39, 23.10, pp. 3-4; [3] 40, 30.11, pp. 3-4; [4] 6.11, 41, pp. 3-4; [5] 13.11, 42, pp. 3-4; [6] 20.11, 43, pp. 3-4; [7] 27.11, 44, pp. 3-4; [8] 4.12, 45, pp. 3-4; [9] 11.12, 46, pp. 3-4; [10] 47, 18.12, pp. 3-4; [11] 25.12, 48, pp. 3-4; 16, 1926, [12], 1.1,1, pp. 3-4; [13] 2, 8, reprinted in Studemund-Halévy and Collin, La Boz de Bulgaria (Note 2); see Romero, Teatro de los sefardíes orientales (Note 15), p. 227. 46 Studemund-Halévy and Collin, La Boz de Bulgaria (Note 2), p. 151, 239 Obsessed with Theater him: “scattered and dispersed over all the seven seas” (desparcidos y dispersados por todas las ciete partes del mundo).47 An analysis both of the manuscript and the printed version shows that Rafael Farin stuck very close to the German translation of the Yiddish original and that he had a masterful touch in rendering Sholem Aleichem’s linguistic virtuosity in Judezmo translation. The only theatrical play we know of authored by Farin is the comedy El Amor victorioso, of which there is only a typed manuscript version extant.48 This witty play is animated by the spirit of Sholem Aleichem, and in its language it resembles that of the characters in Farin’s translated work Desparisidos i Disperados. The play is full of Turkish expressions, which is not surprising: despite the language reforms, there are thousands of Turkish and Balkan Turkish words in Bulgarian, and more than half of the inhabitants of Shumen were ethnic Turks; Farin himself had a good knowledge of Turkish. Along with Turkish and Hebrew words, there are a number of Gallicisms and Italian words, as well as lexemes from Bulgarian and German. We do not know as yet whether this captivating comedy, playful with metalinguistic registers, which is set in a “contemporary small provincial town” (se passa en noestros dias en una sivdad de provincia),49 was written by Rafael Farin himself or is one of his many unpublished translations. But since Farin, as a rule, notes if a work is translated, and in this case has not included such a note, we assume that he is the author of this play. As a poet, translator, or journalist, Rafael Farin used the nom de plume “Nirlafar” or ”Niraf Leafar” (anagrams of the author’s name), and as journalist the pseudonym “Alkolombrie Meshofistra” and “Nirlafar”, under which he published witty satirical pismos (letters) in the leading Bulgarian Zionist weekly Razvet (Sofia) and in the Judezmo-Bulgarian weekly haShofar (Plovdiv).50 Despite considerable effort, I have 47 Studemund-Halévy and Collin, La Boz de Bulgaria (Note 2), p. 183. This is similar to the Yiddish expression on which the title of the play is based, “Tsezeyt un tseshpreyt oyf ale shive yamim”; see Benjamin Harshav, The Meaning of Yiddish, University of California Press, Berkeley, CA 1990, p. 37. 48 Studemund-Halévy and Collin, La Boz de Bulgaria (Note 2), pp. 117-146. 49 Studemund-Halévy and Collin, La Boz de Bulgaria (Note 2), p. 157. 50 On Jewish journalism in Bulgaria, see Gad Nassi (ed.), Jewish Journalism and Printing Houses in the Ottoman Empire and Modern Turkey, Isis Press, Istanbul 2001; Salvator Israel, “Evreiski periodichen pechat na ladino i ivrit v Balgarija”, Annual/ Godishnik 1 (1967), pp. 139-167. 240 Michel Studemind-Halévy to date been able to find only two solitary example of these letters. But he was not only a gifted writer, but also a fervent supporter of Revisionist Zionism and an admirer of the Revisionist Zionist leader, author, and orator Vladimir Jabotinsky (1880-1940). It is not surprising that Farin ran as a candidate in Shumen for the Revisionist Zionists (without success). The work of Sholem Aleichem in Judezmo Sholem Aleichem (alias of Shalom Yaakov Rabinovich), who was born in 1850 in Pereyaslav (a village 95 km south of Kiev in Ukraine), and died in 1916 in New York, is considered alongside Mendele Moicher Sforim and Yizchak Leib Peretz (also known as Yitskhok Leybush Peretz) one of the most important classic author of Yiddish literature. Translated into many languages, he enjoyed great popularity especially with German, American,51 and Bulgarian readers.52 Among them, Rafael Farin was one of his most keen and enthusiastic readers, who not only translated Sholem Aleichem’s works into Bulgarian and Judezmo, but also wrote as an author “in the spirit of Sholem Aleichem”.53 For Farin, the polyglot and linguistically witty amateur writer from Shumen, Aleichem’s subtle and complex mix of languages from earthy Yiddish, combined with German, Hebrew, and Slavic elements, represented a huge linguistic challenge. After all, in the grotesque picture gallery of Jewish characters he created, each one of the dramatis personae is assigned the role of a bearer of a social-political idea and a distinctive and unmistakable language, giving rise to the most ludicrous kinds of 51 Louis Friedhandler, Index to the Yiddish Work of Sholem Aleichem and Their English Translations, New York 1907. 52 The first translations of Sholem Aleichem in Bulgarian appeared at the beginning of the twentieth century, when in 1910 the newspaper Vesti published a few stories translated from German into Bulgarian. According to Hristo Yordanov, more than 17 of his stories and books were published between 1918 and 1985 in Bulgaria. See Yordanov, “Shalom Aleichem’s Books” (Note 42), pp. 236-238. 53 It should be noted that the first Bulgarian translations of Sholem Aleichem were from German, not from Yiddish or Russian, see Brantz, “Sholom Aleichem” (Note 33), p. 225. 241 Obsessed with Theater confusions. Provincial bon vivants and loudmouthed parvenus alternate with religious Jews and worldly Zionists, small-town belles in their frippery, and ironically resigned married women, traditionalists and modernists. In addition, there appear jealous old fools and dubious merchants, cheeky domestics, sleazy marriage brokers of both sexes, fathers and mothers crazy to get their daughters engaged, and daughters fanatic to be wed. The translator Rafael Farin characterizes and caricatures his dramatis personae with a special linguistic wit, giving each one of them a distinctive linguistic repertoire. Farin succeeds in weaving together different registers that he correlates with different social characteristics and linguistic surfaces, including social factors such as age, gender, occupation, origin, and the like. This creates a sort of theatrical heteroglossia in which multiple languages, dialects, or registers are used for the traditional motives of verisimilitude or humor.54 Farin was successful in this not only due to his exceptional command of Judezmo but also by his skillful employment of non-Spanish (often rare) words from Hebrew, Turkish, Romanian,55 German, French, and Italian. Rafael Farin also introduces several proverbs (riflanes) in these comedies, which can all be found in the Bulgarian proverb collections known to us: coando vas mesclando las colis con las letchougas el consejo di la moujer es poco i el que no lo toma es loco el loco gasta el savio se lo come el que ijas tiené con perros cosfoegra ijo mio si tomas haver assouvi escalon, si tomas moujer abacha escalon la manzana mo caye lejos del arbol segun el padre ansi y los crios vestido à la trenta i ouna alfoneti Rafael Farin invested and lost much money in his passion for the theater, and he managed to finance this as a druggist by the sale of salves, albeit meagerly, paying the 54 See also Beatrice Schmid et al., Zwischen Tradition und Moderne: Eine corpusgestützte Untersuchung zur Sprache der südosteuropäischen Sepharden (1880-1930), 242 Michel Studemind-Halévy printers with its proceeds.56 His family supported him, at least morally, and in any case was proud of him. In her memoirs (in Bulgarian), his sister Karolina wrote: My brother Buko (Rafael) was very well-read and gifted musically. He was also very smart. My father often asked him for advice, and he wrote some satires that we preserved in the family. He played the guitar and mandolin. We often sat on the stairs, he played and we sang. He had a beautiful voice, loved to tell jokes (MS).57 If that is all that is extant of his work, the question arises as to what happened with his posthumous papers, especially the manuscripts that his sister Karolina mentions in her memoirs. At the moment, we can only answer this question with some hesitation. But in our search for Judezmo books, periodicals, and manuscripts in Bulgaria, during numerous trips to the country, we have located more than two dozen manuscripts of stage plays, all unknown, most in Solitreo script, and a small number in Rashi and Latin script. A publication of these texts would substantially expand our knowledge of Judezmo literature, not just in Bulgaria. 56 Arditti, Jews of Bulgaria (Note 5), pp. 105-107. 57 Karolina Farhi, “Memoirs”, MS. 243