Jews of Spain: A History of the Sephardic ExperienceThe history of the Jews of Spain is a remarkable story that begins in the remote past and continues today. For more than a thousand years, Sepharad (the Hebrew word for Spain) was home to a large Jewish community noted for its richness and virtuosity. Summarily expelled in 1492 and forced into exile, their tragedy of expulsion marked the end of one critical phase of their history and the beginning of another. Indeed, in defiance of all logic and expectation, the expulsion of the Jews from Spain became an occasion for renewed creativity. Nor have five hundred years of wandering extinguished the identity of the Sephardic Jews, or diminished the proud memory of the dazzling civilization, which they created on Spanish soil. This book is intended to serve as an introduction and scholarly guide to that history. |
Contents
From the Muslim Conquest to the Caliphate of Córdoba | 27 |
Jews and the New Realities of Christian Spain | 91 |
The Decline and Destruction of Spanish Jewry | 115 |
The Sephardic Diaspora in Muslim Lands | 145 |
Ottoman Decline and the Ascendance of the West | 213 |
Sephardic Jews in the PostWar Era | 253 |
The Edict of Expulsion | 285 |
Immigration Tables | 291 |
A Note on Further Reading | 309 |
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Abrabanel Abraham Alfonso Alliance Amsterdam ancient Andalusian anti-Jewish anti-Semitic Arab Ashkenazic Ashkenazim Baghdad became began Castile century Church colonial congregation continued conversos converts Córdoba court courtiers crypto-Judaism cultural Damascus decree diplomatic East Egypt emigration Europe European exile expulsion faith Ferdinand France French Geniza Golden Age Granada Greek Halevi Hasdai Hebrew Holy Iberia immigration included Inquisition intellectual Isaac Islamic Israel Istanbul Italy Jerusalem Jewish Jewish community Jewish history Jewish population Jewry Jews of Spain Judaism king kingdom Ladino language leaders living Maimonides marranos medieval Mediterranean Menasseh ben Israel merchants messianic modern Morocco Moses Muslim lands Nahmanides North Africa Ottoman Empire Palestine persecution Philadelphia philosophical poem poet poetry political Portugal Portuguese rabbi reformers refugees religion religious role royal Salonika scholars Sephardic community Sephardic diaspora Sephardic Jews Sephardim Seville slaves social Spanish synagogues Talmud tion Toledo traditional Turkey Turkish Visigothic York Zionist