The Board of Governors of JewishGen announced that Sarina Roffé has been elected to the board.
A family historian and journalist, Sarina is a member of Brooklyn's Syrian Jewish community and an active member of the Jewish Genealogical Society, Inc. (JGSNY).
She has published widely on themes connected with Sephardic and Mizrahi Jewish genealogy and is a recognized authority on the history and culture of Aleppan Jewry.
She is executive director of New York's non-profit Shehebar Sephardic Center, which fundraises for its rabbinical training program in Israel, and support for schools and outreach centers in more than 60 cities worldwide.
According to Rand Fishbein, PhD, a board member: "We will be looking to her for fresh ideas on how to expand our programming and online resources in Sephardic genealogy. Her knowledge and experience are sure to prove invaluable as we look to expand our outreach activities.”
Tracing the Tribe congratulates Sarina on this election!
Showing posts with label Sephardic. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sephardic. Show all posts
31 March 2011
22 March 2011
UK: 'Jews of Morocco' conference, June 20-22
The British Institute for Jewish Studies is planning a summer conference on the Jews of Morocco.
The conference will take place June 20-22, at University College London, Gower Street WC1.
The conference will take place June 20-22, at University College London, Gower Street WC1.
Jews have lived in Morocco for nearly two thousand years, in desert and mountain regions, in the imperial cities of central Morocco and in towns along the Atlantic and Mediterranean coasts, with Berber and with Arab neighbours. This conference is a rare opportunity to find out more about the rich and varied culture of Moroccan Jews and their history.The program has not yet been announced, but the list of speakers includes:
Joseph CHETRIT (University of Haifa),For more information, email the Institute of Jewish Studies at UCL or check out the IJS website.
Emily GOTTREICH (UC Berkeley)
Paul FENTON (Sorbonne)
Henry GREEN (University of Miami)
Oren KOSANSKY (Lewis and Clarke College, Portland, Oregon)
Michael LASKIER (Bar-Ilan University)
Jessica MARGLIN (Princeton University)
Hilary POMEROY (University College London)
Moises ORFALI (Bar-Ilan University)
Vanessa PALOMA (Casablanca)
Norman STILLMAN (University of Oklahoma)
Susana WEICH-SHAHAK (Hebrew University of Jerusalem)
21 March 2011
Call for Papers: Society for Crypto-Judaic Studies' 21st conference
The Society for Crypto-Judaic Studies has announced the call for papers for its 21st annual conference, set for August 7-9, in San Diego, California.
The Society for Crypto-Judaic Studies (SCJS) fosters the research of the historical and contemporary development of crypto-Jews of Iberian origin. Additionally, it provides a venue for the descendants of crypto-Jews, scholars, and other interested parties to network and discuss pertinent issues.
The society was founded 1991 by Rabbi Joshua Stampfer of Portland, Oregon; Dr. Stanley Hordes of New Mexico; and playright Rena Down of New York.
Here is the announcement from the society:
Tracing the Tribe is pleased that this year's conference does not conflict with the IAJGS International Conference on Jewish Genealogy, August 14-19, in Washington, DC. Thus, we can attend this conference before going on to the East Coast.
The Society for Crypto-Judaic Studies (SCJS) fosters the research of the historical and contemporary development of crypto-Jews of Iberian origin. Additionally, it provides a venue for the descendants of crypto-Jews, scholars, and other interested parties to network and discuss pertinent issues.
The society was founded 1991 by Rabbi Joshua Stampfer of Portland, Oregon; Dr. Stanley Hordes of New Mexico; and playright Rena Down of New York.
Here is the announcement from the society:
Tracing the Tribe is pleased that this year's conference does not conflict with the IAJGS International Conference on Jewish Genealogy, August 14-19, in Washington, DC. Thus, we can attend this conference before going on to the East Coast.
We invite papers on crypto-Judaism from any discipline (e.g.,anthropology, history, sociology, philosophy, literature, music, etc.) and from any geographic location or time period. We also welcome papers on all aspects of the Sephardic experience and that of other communitiesexhibiting crypto-Jewish phenomena.
Papers breaking new ground in research on the California-Mexico borderlands are particularly welcome.
Interested scholars and professionals, including advanced graduate students, are invited to submit proposals for papers, presentations or workshops.
Proposals are also welcome from individuals with personal stories or other research relating to crypto-Judaism.
Proposals may be for individual papers/presentations or for complete sessions on specific topics. Please indicate if presentation represents completed research or work in progress.
Proposals must include a 200-word abstract and a brief bio. The deadline is May 1.
Please send proposals or inquiries to Seth Ward in the Religious Studies department at the University of Wyoming,
For more information, see the SCJS website.
17 March 2011
Food: Hamantaschen and more!
It's almost Purim! And it can't be Purim without hamantaschen!
Click on these for some yummy treats:
Cheating Hamantashen
Apple Pie Hamantashen
Cranberry White Chocolate Hamantashen
Gluten Free Hamantashen
Lemon Hamantashen
Date-Walnut Hamantashen
Chef Laura Hamantashen (almond and rosewater filling)
Cinnamon Dulce De Leche
Cinnamon Apple Hamantashen
Pumpkin Whole Wheat Hamantashen
Almost Like a Bakery Hamantashen with Poppyseed Filling
What's better for Purim than a Persian menu?
ChefLauraskosher.com offers a Persian menu on her blog, incuding meatballs a chicken herb stew, rice and a rosewater rice pudding.
However, while it sounds and looks delicious, it is not entirely authentic as Persians do not eat saffron rice with any khoresht (a stew), but only chelo (steamed white basmati rice with a crunchy crust). Saffron is not incorporated into the entire dish, but a small amount of the white rice is mixed with a few drops of prepared saffron liquid and then that small amount of golden rice is sprinkled over the top of the rice platter to decorate it. A form of saffron rice is used with havij polo (rice mixed with carrots and kidney beans).
Also, her rice cooking method is not authentic and does not result in separate, fluffy grains as it should.
The Persian method is to parboil the washed and soaked rice for 7-8 minutes and drain it. Place oil and turmeric in the bottom of a heavy dutch oven, pat down a layer of the rice and add the rest spatula by spatula, mounding it up. Poke a few holes in it. Cook on medium high for 10-12 minutes, lower the heat. Make sure to use a double layer of white paper towel under the tight-fitting lid to absorb the condensation and avoid soggy rice. Cook another 20-30 minutes on medium, then raise a corner (keep it slightly open) of the pot to let out the steam, and lower heat to very low. Keep it on the burner for up to 20 minutes.
This method will result in fluffy grains and and a fabulous golden crispy-crunchy layer that Persian diners fight over. Yum! My trick is to use a circle of parchment paper on the bottom of the pot, add the oil and turmeric on the paper and then add the rice. The crisp tahdik (literally, "bottom of the pot") will lift right out of the pot!
My favorite brand is Lal Qilla aged malai basmati rice, best purchased in a Persian or Indian store, where you know there is a lot of turnover. There are other good brands as well. Long-grain is used for Persian rice eaten with a meal, but short-grain (sometimes called rice for ash - a thick soup-stew) is used for desserts, like the rosewater rice pudding in the menu above.
In some Persian families, the Purim menu uses fish or vegetables (sometimes stuffed, representing Esther's hidden secret), representing the menu that she ate in the palace as she tried to keep to the Jewish dietary restrictions.
However, it doesn't matter really - it is all delicious!
JoyOfKosher.com offers a roundup of interesting fillings for these little triangle pastries.
Cheating Hamantashen
Apple Pie Hamantashen
Cranberry White Chocolate Hamantashen
Gluten Free Hamantashen
Lemon Hamantashen
Date-Walnut Hamantashen
Chef Laura Hamantashen (almond and rosewater filling)
Cinnamon Dulce De Leche
Cinnamon Apple Hamantashen
Pumpkin Whole Wheat Hamantashen
Almost Like a Bakery Hamantashen with Poppyseed Filling
What's better for Purim than a Persian menu?
ChefLauraskosher.com offers a Persian menu on her blog, incuding meatballs a chicken herb stew, rice and a rosewater rice pudding.
However, while it sounds and looks delicious, it is not entirely authentic as Persians do not eat saffron rice with any khoresht (a stew), but only chelo (steamed white basmati rice with a crunchy crust). Saffron is not incorporated into the entire dish, but a small amount of the white rice is mixed with a few drops of prepared saffron liquid and then that small amount of golden rice is sprinkled over the top of the rice platter to decorate it. A form of saffron rice is used with havij polo (rice mixed with carrots and kidney beans).
Also, her rice cooking method is not authentic and does not result in separate, fluffy grains as it should.
The Persian method is to parboil the washed and soaked rice for 7-8 minutes and drain it. Place oil and turmeric in the bottom of a heavy dutch oven, pat down a layer of the rice and add the rest spatula by spatula, mounding it up. Poke a few holes in it. Cook on medium high for 10-12 minutes, lower the heat. Make sure to use a double layer of white paper towel under the tight-fitting lid to absorb the condensation and avoid soggy rice. Cook another 20-30 minutes on medium, then raise a corner (keep it slightly open) of the pot to let out the steam, and lower heat to very low. Keep it on the burner for up to 20 minutes.
This method will result in fluffy grains and and a fabulous golden crispy-crunchy layer that Persian diners fight over. Yum! My trick is to use a circle of parchment paper on the bottom of the pot, add the oil and turmeric on the paper and then add the rice. The crisp tahdik (literally, "bottom of the pot") will lift right out of the pot!
My favorite brand is Lal Qilla aged malai basmati rice, best purchased in a Persian or Indian store, where you know there is a lot of turnover. There are other good brands as well. Long-grain is used for Persian rice eaten with a meal, but short-grain (sometimes called rice for ash - a thick soup-stew) is used for desserts, like the rosewater rice pudding in the menu above.
In some Persian families, the Purim menu uses fish or vegetables (sometimes stuffed, representing Esther's hidden secret), representing the menu that she ate in the palace as she tried to keep to the Jewish dietary restrictions.
However, it doesn't matter really - it is all delicious!
15 March 2011
New York: 'Jews of the Balkans," preserving memories, March 31
The Central Europe Center for Research and Documentation - known as Centropa - is headed by Edward Serotta in Vienna, Austria. Serotta informed Tracing the Tribe about recent events.
Serotta will speak on the Jews of the Balkans talk at the Center for Jewish History on March 31 in New York City, presented by the American Sephardi Federation and YIVO Institute for Jewish Research. The title is "Images of a Lost World: Pictures and stories of Balkan Sephardic life from the Centropa.org interviews."
An exhibit in the Constantiner Gallery opens at 6.30pm, while Serotta will speak at 7.15pm on using new technologies to preserve Jewish memory.
Born in Savannah, Georgia in 1949, he has lived in Berlin, Budapest and Austria since 1988. He has authored books and documentaries.
He presented a similar talk in Los Angeles. Read the LA Times article here.
A recent Philadelphia seminar for some 30 educators, organized by Centropa, was covered by the Philadelphia Jewish Exponent.
For more information on Centropa, click here.
Serotta will speak on the Jews of the Balkans talk at the Center for Jewish History on March 31 in New York City, presented by the American Sephardi Federation and YIVO Institute for Jewish Research. The title is "Images of a Lost World: Pictures and stories of Balkan Sephardic life from the Centropa.org interviews."
An exhibit in the Constantiner Gallery opens at 6.30pm, while Serotta will speak at 7.15pm on using new technologies to preserve Jewish memory.
Seventy years ago this spring, Nazi Germany invaded Yugoslavia and Greece, then set about destroying the Jewish communities that had been in this region since the expulsion from Spain in 1492 (in some cases, even longer).Following the opening of the exhibit, Serotta will present a talk on how his institute has preserved Sephardic Balkan Jewish memory.
Between 2001 and 2008, Centropa interviewed 200 elderly Sephardic Jews in Bulgaria, Bosnia, Serbia, Macedonia, Turkey and Greece. Rather than use video in its interviews, Centropa digitized 4,000 family photographs. Rather than concentrating on how Jews were murdered during the Shoah,
Centropa’s interviews are much more about how Jews lived--before, during and after the Shoah. This exhibition is comprised of pictures and stories from these interviews. All texts in this exhibition are in both English and Spanish.
Born in Savannah, Georgia in 1949, he has lived in Berlin, Budapest and Austria since 1988. He has authored books and documentaries.
He presented a similar talk in Los Angeles. Read the LA Times article here.
A recent Philadelphia seminar for some 30 educators, organized by Centropa, was covered by the Philadelphia Jewish Exponent.
For more information on Centropa, click here.
09 March 2011
Books: AJL announces 2011 reference, bibliography awards
The Research Libraries, Archives, and Special Collections Division of the Association of Jewish Libraries (AJL) has announced the 2011 winners of its Judaica Reference and Bibliography Awards.
The awards will be presented at the AJL’s 46th Annual Convention banquet, on Tuesday, June 21, 2011 at the Marriott Montréal Château Champlain (Montréal, Québec).
Tracing the Tribe is also delighted to have been chosen to speak on Sephardic research at the conference. I’m looking forward to seeing our Montreal cousins and gen friends during my visit.
Reference
-- The winner is The Encyclopedia of Jews in the Islamic World (Brill). Edited by Dr. Norman Stillman of the University of Oklahoma, the five-volume work is the first English-language reference that deals with a part of Jewish history that is obscure and inaccessible for many readers. It opens a new window into this world and will inevitably generate more research and interest in the field. An online version is currently available as well. For more information, click here.
-- The Eerdman's Dictionary of Early Judaism, edited by John J. Collins and Daniel C. Harlow, received an honorable mention. It is an essential reference in a field of study that has rapidly expanded in recent decades. For more information, click here.
Bibliography
-- The winner is The Bibliography of Jews in the Islamic World (Brill). Edited by María Angeles Gallego, Heather Bleaney and Pablo García Suárez, it is an important contribution to the study of Jews in the Islamic World due to its thematic and geographical scopes, especially considering the difficulties in covering such a diverse field and multitude of languages. For more information, click here.
Dr. Greta Silver (New York City) and Eric Chaim Kline (Los Angeles) sponsor the annual awards.
For more information on the awards, including past winners, click here.
The awards committee includes Michlean Amir (United States Holocaust Memorial Museum), Yoram Bitton (Columbia University), Rachel Leket-Mor (Arizona State University), Daniel Rettberg (Hebrew Union College, Cincinnati), Pinchas Roth (Hebrew University), Rachel Simon (Princeton University), and Daniel Scheide, chair (Florida Atlantic University).
The AJL promotes Jewish literacy through enhancement of libraries and library resources and through leadership for the profession and practitioners of Judaica librarianship, while fostering access to information, learning, teaching and research relating to Jews, Judaism, the Jewish experience and Israel.
For more information on the conference, visit the AJL site.
The awards will be presented at the AJL’s 46th Annual Convention banquet, on Tuesday, June 21, 2011 at the Marriott Montréal Château Champlain (Montréal, Québec).
Tracing the Tribe is also delighted to have been chosen to speak on Sephardic research at the conference. I’m looking forward to seeing our Montreal cousins and gen friends during my visit.
Reference
-- The winner is The Encyclopedia of Jews in the Islamic World (Brill). Edited by Dr. Norman Stillman of the University of Oklahoma, the five-volume work is the first English-language reference that deals with a part of Jewish history that is obscure and inaccessible for many readers. It opens a new window into this world and will inevitably generate more research and interest in the field. An online version is currently available as well. For more information, click here.
-- The Eerdman's Dictionary of Early Judaism, edited by John J. Collins and Daniel C. Harlow, received an honorable mention. It is an essential reference in a field of study that has rapidly expanded in recent decades. For more information, click here.
Bibliography
-- The winner is The Bibliography of Jews in the Islamic World (Brill). Edited by María Angeles Gallego, Heather Bleaney and Pablo García Suárez, it is an important contribution to the study of Jews in the Islamic World due to its thematic and geographical scopes, especially considering the difficulties in covering such a diverse field and multitude of languages. For more information, click here.
Dr. Greta Silver (New York City) and Eric Chaim Kline (Los Angeles) sponsor the annual awards.
For more information on the awards, including past winners, click here.
The awards committee includes Michlean Amir (United States Holocaust Memorial Museum), Yoram Bitton (Columbia University), Rachel Leket-Mor (Arizona State University), Daniel Rettberg (Hebrew Union College, Cincinnati), Pinchas Roth (Hebrew University), Rachel Simon (Princeton University), and Daniel Scheide, chair (Florida Atlantic University).
The AJL promotes Jewish literacy through enhancement of libraries and library resources and through leadership for the profession and practitioners of Judaica librarianship, while fostering access to information, learning, teaching and research relating to Jews, Judaism, the Jewish experience and Israel.
For more information on the conference, visit the AJL site.
27 February 2011
New York: 15th NY Sephardic Jewish Film Festival, March 10-16
The event is presented by the American Sephardi Federation (ASF) in association with Yeshiva University Museum (YUM).
The 2011 program includes critically acclaimed, award-winning, classic features and documentaries prsenting diverse global perspectives.
The annual event (since 1990) draws personalities, scholars, diplomats and filmmakers.
This year's themes include a special focus on the Jews of Morocco, as part of ASF's year-long series, '2,000 Years of Jewish Life in Morocco: An Epic Journey."
The Pomegranate Lifetime Achievement Award will be given to Sephardi actor/filmmaker Ronit Elkabetz at the Opening Night Gala. She has received three Ophir Awards, the 2010 France Culture Award at the Cannes Film Festival and the Israeli Film Academy's Lifetime Achievement Award.
It is the only annual festival of this kind, and attracts more than 30,000 attendees.
The ASF is committed to exhibiting a selection of thought-provoking, international quality feature films and documentaries that examine the past and explore contemporary Sephardic issues and identity.See the full program list and ticket information here.
"Through cinematic exploration, our aim is to further elevate the understanding of the very rich history and culture of Sephardic Jewry," says ASF President, David E.R. Dangoor.
03 February 2011
New York: Moroccan henne ceremony, February 6
Looking for an ethnic alternative to Super Bowl Sunday?
The American Sephardi Foundation will present a re-enactment of the traditional Moroccan pre-wedding ceremony called berberisca or henne, on Sunday, February 6.
The American Sephardi Foundation will present a re-enactment of the traditional Moroccan pre-wedding ceremony called berberisca or henne, on Sunday, February 6.
The program begins at 4pm at the Center for Jewish History, in New York.
It is part of a year-long series - "2,000 Years of Jewish Life in Morocco: An Epic Journey" - presented under the patronage of His Majesty Mohammed VI, King of Morocco, and made possible through the generous support of the Edmond J. Safra Philanthropic Foundation.
It is part of a year-long series - "2,000 Years of Jewish Life in Morocco: An Epic Journey" - presented under the patronage of His Majesty Mohammed VI, King of Morocco, and made possible through the generous support of the Edmond J. Safra Philanthropic Foundation.
Tickets: $18 General Admission/$12 ASF members. Advance registration requested.Tableau Vivant: The Berberisca Ceremony (A Living Picture)
Among the traditional ceremonies of the Moroccan Jews, the richest, most original and picturesque is the "Noche de Berberisca" or "Noche de Paños" (according to the Northern Moroccan Jews, who used to live in the former Spanish zone of Morocco), or the "Henne" or "Soiree du Henne," as it is called in the Southern Moroccan communities. The ceremony takes place during the week that precedes the wedding, in an atmosphere full of joy and emotion. It is enhanced with Sephardic songs, or Judeo-Arabic music, fashion, delicious dishes and pastries made with almonds and honey. The evening reaches its climax when the bride makes her entrance magnificently made up and dressed in the Berberisca "Traje de Paños", or "Vestido de Berberisca" (Spanish), or "Keswa Elkibra" (Great Dress or Grand Dress in Arabic). Moroccan Tea and pastries will be served.
10 January 2011
Geneabloggers: 27 new blogs discovered!
Among the newest 27 genealogy blogs just discovered by Thomas MacEntee of Geneabloggers.com, Tracing the Tribe readers will be interested to find a Sephardic one.
To read more about each of the new blogs in this post, click here. The new crop includes blogs devoted to Jewish, Portuguese, Sephardic, individual family history, professional genealogists, Massachusetts, New England, West Virginia, crafts, Maine, technology, Indiana, Midwest US, Irish, Canada, southeastern Massachusetts cemeteries, Mississippi, Civil War, Acadian, French Canadian,
Of course, here's my favorite of this bunch:
Maduro Family Branches
Individual family history, Jewish genealogy, Portuguese genealogy
Click on Thomas' post above to read more about each of the rest. Visit the blogs and welcome them.
A Couple of Whiles
Individual family history
4 Hall Cousins
Individual family history, Massachusetts genealogy, New England genealogy
African-American Genealogy – West Virginia
African-American genealogy, West Virginia genealogy
Ann’s Scraps of Time
Craft blogs, Individual family history
Demarais Fish on Genealogy
Individual family history
Downeast Ancestors
Individual family history, Maine genealogy, New England genealogy
Easter Family Genealogy Blog
Individual family history, UK genealogy
Family History Across the Seas
Australian genealogy, Individual family history
Family Tree Rings: An Ancestral Birthday Blog
Individual family history
GenealogyNext
Technology blog
Gol Gol Girl
Individual family history
Hunting Ancestors
Australian genealogy, Individual family history
Indiana Dillmans
Indiana genealogy, Individual family history, Midwest genealogy
Irish Genealogy News
Irish genealogy
Individual family history
Professional genealogist
Letters from Home
Individual family history
No More Wriggling Out of Writing Woman ...
Individual family history, UK genealogy
Norma Jean’s Genealogy
Canadian genealogy, Individual family history (BENOY)
The Genealogy Dude
Professional genealogist
The Old Colony Graveyard Rabbit
Cemetery blog, Massachusetts genealogy, New England genealogy
African-American genealogy, Mississippi genealogy
The USCT Chronicle
African-American genealogy
Tomorrow’s Memories
Individual family history
Whispers Through the Willows
Acadian genealogy, Canadian genealogy, Cemetery blogs, French-Canadian genealogy, Individual family history, Massachusetts genealogy, New England genealogy; New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Massachusetts cemeteries.
Yankee Cousin’s Adventures in Ancestry
Individual family history
If any of these blogs coincide with your own research interests, do visit them.
Thanks, Thomas, for another great list!
To read more about each of the new blogs in this post, click here. The new crop includes blogs devoted to Jewish, Portuguese, Sephardic, individual family history, professional genealogists, Massachusetts, New England, West Virginia, crafts, Maine, technology, Indiana, Midwest US, Irish, Canada, southeastern Massachusetts cemeteries, Mississippi, Civil War, Acadian, French Canadian,
Of course, here's my favorite of this bunch:
Maduro Family Branches
Individual family history, Jewish genealogy, Portuguese genealogy
Welcome to my blog about branches on the Maduro family tree. This blog is about the Maduro family and associated families. Some of these include Brandon, Cardoze, de Castro, Delvalle, Fidanque, Halman, de Leon, de Lima, Lindo, Piza, Robles, Sasso, de Sola, and Toledano.
Over the years I’ve collected genealogical information about the Levy Maduro family of Amsterdam, their Portuguese ancestors, and their Maduro descendants around the world. In this blog I’ll describe the Maduro connection to some of those other families.
Click on Thomas' post above to read more about each of the rest. Visit the blogs and welcome them.
A Couple of Whiles
Individual family history
4 Hall Cousins
Individual family history, Massachusetts genealogy, New England genealogy
African-American Genealogy – West Virginia
African-American genealogy, West Virginia genealogy
Ann’s Scraps of Time
Craft blogs, Individual family history
Demarais Fish on Genealogy
Individual family history
Downeast Ancestors
Individual family history, Maine genealogy, New England genealogy
Easter Family Genealogy Blog
Individual family history, UK genealogy
Family History Across the Seas
Australian genealogy, Individual family history
Family Tree Rings: An Ancestral Birthday Blog
Individual family history
GenealogyNext
Technology blog
Gol Gol Girl
Individual family history
Hunting Ancestors
Australian genealogy, Individual family history
Indiana Dillmans
Indiana genealogy, Individual family history, Midwest genealogy
Irish Genealogy News
Irish genealogy
Accompanying blog to the Irish Genealogy Toolkit - a free online guide to Irish family history research, including news about latest record releases, occasional features and interviews with genealogy specialists, along with tips and hints.Kathryn’s Quest
Individual family history
My interest in family history has spanned almost 30 years and I thought I would share some tips through this medium to my friends of how to enjoy the thrill of the chase of those elusive ancestors. Starting week one of 2011, I will share ideas and tips of how to start your family history and to record it. This knowledge is all self-taught by experiencing the journey myself. ...Leaves of Heritage
Professional genealogist
Letters from Home
Individual family history
No More Wriggling Out of Writing Woman ...
Individual family history, UK genealogy
Norma Jean’s Genealogy
Canadian genealogy, Individual family history (BENOY)
The Genealogy Dude
Professional genealogist
The Old Colony Graveyard Rabbit
Cemetery blog, Massachusetts genealogy, New England genealogy
A blog devoted mainly to the cemeteries of Southeastern Massachusetts with occasional forays elsewhere in New England. A member of the Association of Graveyard Rabbits.The Sand Creek Sentinel Oktibbeha County Genealogy
African-American genealogy, Mississippi genealogy
The USCT Chronicle
African-American genealogy
Tomorrow’s Memories
Individual family history
Whispers Through the Willows
Acadian genealogy, Canadian genealogy, Cemetery blogs, French-Canadian genealogy, Individual family history, Massachusetts genealogy, New England genealogy; New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Massachusetts cemeteries.
Yankee Cousin’s Adventures in Ancestry
Individual family history
If any of these blogs coincide with your own research interests, do visit them.
Thanks, Thomas, for another great list!
Telling African American Civil War Stories, of Soldiers, Civilians, Contrabands, First Days of Freedom, and the Events that led to Freedom.
The Four Hall Cousins blog has been created to present the history of Edward Hall of Rehoboth, Bristol County, Massachusetts, formerly of Henbury, Gloucestershire, England, who arrived in Plymouth about 1636/37. ... We hope that this blog will provide additional information to those researching these families, as well as allied families and other branches and stimulate productive discussions; we hope also that it will attract new cousins who will help add to our information base.
29 November 2010
New York: Sephardic Cooking Classes, January 2011
Love Sephardic food?
Here's your chance to learn about your heritage or just something delicious about another heritage.
Janet Amateau (of Barcelona, Spain) will hold New York Metro cooking lessons for the first time since 2006.
Here's the schedule:
Thursday, January 13, morning
Riverside (Greenwich), Connecticut
A savory meal will be prepared
Wednesday, January 19, morning
Great Neck (L.I.), New York
Either a second savory meal or traditional desserts and sweets will be prepared
Both locations are near train stations.
The emphasis on both dates is on Ottoman-Sephardic tradition, but Amateau will also include elements of traditional Jewish foods still found in Spain.
The format is part demonstration, part hands-on, and they are appropriate for all skill levels. Each runs about three hours, including time to share a meal.
Space is limited, and quick reservations are suggested.
For January 19, please indicate if you would prefer savory or sweets.
For more information and pricing, contact Janet Amateau.
For more information on her background, see her SephardicCooking.com website and her blog, SephardicFood.com.
Here's your chance to learn about your heritage or just something delicious about another heritage.
Janet Amateau (of Barcelona, Spain) will hold New York Metro cooking lessons for the first time since 2006.
Here's the schedule:
Thursday, January 13, morning
Riverside (Greenwich), Connecticut
A savory meal will be prepared
Wednesday, January 19, morning
Great Neck (L.I.), New York
Either a second savory meal or traditional desserts and sweets will be prepared
Both locations are near train stations.
The emphasis on both dates is on Ottoman-Sephardic tradition, but Amateau will also include elements of traditional Jewish foods still found in Spain.
The format is part demonstration, part hands-on, and they are appropriate for all skill levels. Each runs about three hours, including time to share a meal.
Space is limited, and quick reservations are suggested.
For January 19, please indicate if you would prefer savory or sweets.
For more information and pricing, contact Janet Amateau.
For more information on her background, see her SephardicCooking.com website and her blog, SephardicFood.com.
06 October 2010
Food: 2,000 years of Jewish cooking in France
Head's-up on a new cookbook by famed author Joan Nathan covering 2,000 years of Jewish cooking in France.
"Quiches, Kugels, and Couscous: My Search for Jewish Cooking in France" ($40, Knopf) should be out in November 2010.
According to Publishers Weekly:
This well-researched, fascinating cookbook encapsulates 2,000 years of Jewish history in France. Nathan, the James Beard Award–winning doyenne of Jewish cooking (Jewish Cooking in America), applies her culinary detective skills to sniffing out the Jewish influence on French cuisine, and vice versa.There are more reviews at Nathan's site, such as this one.
Her rich subject matter yields both vast diversity and unexpected commonalities. Friday night Sabbath dinners alone can range from the Alsatian pot-au-feu to Moroccan adafina (meat stew with chickpeas and rice). The Germanic Alsatian specialties like potato kugel will be familiar to many Jewish Americans, while the North African dishes like brik with tuna and cilantro and m'soki (a Passover spring vegetable ragout originating in Tunisia) reflect Sephardic customs.
Nathan also explores cross-cultural concoctions such as Provençal brassados (a precursor to the bagel), brandade potato latkes, and a Bordeaux haroset by way of Portugal, all of which embody both the complicated migratory paths and acculturation of the Jewish people.
This being France, though, there are lovely renditions of native dishes, too--chestnut cream gâteau, braised endive, cassoulet. Nathan's multilayered, narrative approach makes this treasury of tempting flavors an entertaining and compelling read.
Sounds like an excellent read, regadless of where your family hails from, so look for it at your favorite bookstore. It's on my wish list.
25 September 2010
New York: Gastro-genealogy, eating Jewish
Hey, if we can have "geneabloggers," we can have "gastrogenealogy," right?Love Sephardic food from Italy, Spain, Portugal, North Africa, South America and other parts, but don't want to cook it at home?
According to the New York Times, chef Nikki Cascone's new restaurant, Octavia's Porch, will offer Jewish dishes from those places and more. Named for the Via del Portico d’Ottavia, in Rome’s Jewish ghetto, he opening is planned for November at 40 Avenue B (Fourth Street).
Info in other articles and blogs indicate the theme is "global Jewish cuisine." See the Village Voice blog - Fork in the Road - for an interview with Cascone on September 16. Here's a bit of it:
What's the status of your new restaurant?
The restaurant's name is Octavia's Porch. It's named after the Roman Jewish ghetto. There's a pizza there called Porta Octavia. We really wanted a story behind our name and that was one of the first places I realized that there were Jews all over the world -- even places like Italy -- doing unbelievable food that had an influence on the cuisine in the countries they resided in. I didn't know that before then and felt pretty naive being that I had a Jewish mom and an Italian dad.
Are you working on menu items yet?
We started recipe testing this week and tasting. There's Eastern European influences, Egyptian, Ukrainian, Hungarian ... you name it. It is global Jewish cuisine. I wanted to emphasize that Jewish food is more than just deli, which really was invented here in New York City. I'm trying to do classic dishes with a modern "Nikki" twist and expose people to less traditional dishes that they may not have seen from some other parts of the world. You eat it and think, "Oh, that's Jewish?" Things like eggplant caponata that the Arabics and Jews introduced to Italians, then Italians got all the credit for it. Jewish really was the first fusion cuisine.
Will the food be kosher?
The restaurant is Jewish by culture and not by religion. So, although we're not going to be kosher, we are not going to serve shellfish and pork.The second part of the interview is here; learn what the chef ate at her post-Yom Kippur break-fast.
22 September 2010
SAGE: Academic journals free access through Oct. 15
Non-academics are often frustrated at not being able to access online the rich resources of many academic journals.Here's a limited opportunity for Tracing the Tribe readers who do not have convenient access in person or online to a public or academic library subscribing to journals of interest.
SAGE Journals Online is offering free access through October 15.
I searched for "Jewish family history" and received a list of 10,068 hits, and then for "Sephardic" with 254 results.
For my Sephardic search, the publications included:
Journal of Black Studies, Transcultural Psychiatry, International Political Science Review, Journal of European Studies, Race & Class, Currents in Biblical Research, Journal of Language and Social Psychology, Traumatology, Critical Sociology, Journal of Sociology, International Journal of Comparative Sociology, Ethnography, Journal of Child Neurology, Journal of the American Psychoanalytic Association, Political Research Quarterly, Philosophy & Social Criticism, International Communication Gazette, Medieval History Journal, Journal of Family History, and many more.Topics included:
Sephardim speaking Spanish, lots of politics in Israel and elsewhere, Sephardic topics in ethnic psychiatry, Sephardic genetic conditions, prejudice, migration, book reviews, Sephardim in Australia, Ethiopian Jews, Sephardim in Anglo-Jewry and the law, Jewish magic tradition, Holocaust as trauma, American Sephardim, Sephardic personalities, 16th-century Ottoman Empire "New Christians" converting back to Judaism, Sephardim in Russia, Kabbalistic language, Spanish Inquisition, and many others.Journals available are from 1999 through current issues, and full-text PDFs are available.
The Sephardic search produced two fascinating articles.
Alisa Meyuhas Ginio (Tel Aviv University) authored an interesting 23-page article in the Medieval History Journal (2009 12:383): "Returning to Judaism: The Reconversion of 'New Christians' to Their Ancestral Jewish Faith in the Ottoman Empire during the Sixteenth Century."
Here's the abstract. I could not copy-and-paste from the PDF, but could from the online article at the Medieval History Journal site. Even after downloading the article to my computer, I could not copy-and-paste. The article referenced quite a few fascinating cases involving marriages, conversions and other events in Salonica and other cities. The bibliography and responsa references could be very useful to a genealogist looking for information on a specific family.
The last century of Jewish life in the Iberian Peninsula (1391–1492) was marked by continuous persecutions leading to the conversion of a large number of Jews to Christianity. Known as ‘New Christians’, they escaped from the Iberian Peninsula to the Ottoman Empire, where—under Muslim dominion—they could return to their ancestral creed, reconverting to Judaism. This article examines the three waves of migration that took place during the last decade of the fifteenth century and during the sixteenth century. The legal status of the newcomers with regard to the Jewish religion was to be settled by rabbinical decisions. Contemporary Jewish rabbanim were aware of the conflicting factors that had motivated migration from Portugal and their attitudes towards the newcomers reflected suspicions about the latter’s ability to integrate within the existing Jewish congregations.The other article was by Professor of Economics David E. Hojman of the University of Liverpool Management School: "Who is Afraid of the Spanish Inquisition? Endogamy and Culture Development Among Chiloe Encomenderos and Catholic Namesakes of Persecution Victims," in the Journal of Family History (July 2007; vol. 32, 3: pp. 215-233.)
Here's the abstract:
Almost two centuries after the final demise of the Spanish Inquisition, its effects may still be present. Fear of the Inquisition may have affected endogamy patterns and other cultural attitudes of Catholic families in Chiloe Island in Southern Chile. More generally, the same fear may have eventually influenced the development of Chilean national culture. The article looks at several groups of people with Spanish surnames, from different historical periods. In particular, it explores colonial family trees, partly formed by Chiloe encomenderos and Catholic namesakes of Inquisition victims. Incidences of possibly Jewish Spanish surnames, and the different “crimes” investigated by the Inquisition tribunal in Lima, are examined. A new, short list of those most exposed to harassment and intimidation by the Inquisition in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries is put together. In its light, the article discusses the evolution of family trees, generation after generation.This article compares a Jewish surname list by Pere Bonnin (Sangre Judia) with other lists such as that of a Lisbon 1639 auto-da-fe, and notes which names are common on Chiloe Island. Hojman's analysis is fascinating and offers clues to why or why not those surnames are on which list or in the population.
However ... don't go looking for the actual surnames - he uses none of them "to protect the privacy of the families." While a legitimate reason in this culture, it is still a source of terrible frustration to any researcher of Sephardic families.
Tracing the Tribe hopes that this small sample of a limited keyword search proves how useful the SAGE free access may be to researchers across the board, and not only to those of Jewish genealogy.
Sign up today and see what you can find.
19 September 2010
Cuba: Castro and the Jews
NPR has a transcript of a September 14 program lending some insight on Fidel Castro's views of Jewish history.Numerous scholars have written about Castro's likely Jewish heritage. The name is a documented Sephardic surname. His remarks, according to this transcript, are interesting.
In August, the former Cuban leader invited Atlantic correspondent Jeffrey Goldberg to Havana to discuss an article he wrote. Goldberg invited Julia Sweig, Council on Foreign Relations senior fellow, to join him. She shares details on the talk with Castro on the NPR program.
In one section she mentions that Castro's talk with Iranian president Ahmed Ahmadinejad.
Ms. SWEIG: ...was Fidel's insistence that Ahmadinejad respect Jewish history, respect the Holocaust, respect the state of Israel, and that that clarity with which Fidel communicated that to Goldberg for Ahmadinejad and Iran to hear was really quite important given the stakes and given the concern in the Middle East. And given, I would say, the standing that Fidel Castro has in the non-aligned movement and for, potentially - I hope at least - those listening in Iran.Read the entire transcript at the link above.
CONAN: And it was interesting that he was pointing out to the Iranian president that, yes, Muslims have had it hard being disrespected by the West, but Jews have had it harder.
Ms. SWEIG: Yes, it was very interesting. I mean, you know, he was - there was no pause when Fidel was expressing his view of Jewish history and also his interest in the Inquisition which, of course, Bibi Netanyahu's father is a great scholar of, as Jeff Goldberg's article explains, it was very clear that there was great sort of sympatico for Jewish history, for the state of Israel from Fidel. And he made a point of talking about, as Jeff writes, the kind of environment and the Catholic education he received of anti-Semitism in Cuba when he was a small boy. And he expressed a kind of outrage at the ignorance that that reflected of his own society.
04 September 2010
Rosh Hashanah: Good eating
JTA's Rosh Hashana section has three interesting food-related stories.
One is by Linda Morel and how food traditions indicates ancestry. Tracing the Tribe noted it previously here.
Edmun J. Rodman - who attended the Los Angeles 2010 IAJGS conference and wrote a story about his experience - suggests celebrating with other than apples and honey, such as a chocolate egg cream - only with Fox's U-Bet syrup, of course.
In addition to taiglach, he recommends a new twist:
Linda Morel has a story on cholent (Ashkenazi) or hamin (Sephardic) as the ultimate comfort food prior to the Yom Kippur fast, and provides several recipes.
Tracing the Tribe disagrees with her, but to each his - or her - own. I've never eaten a cholent or a hamin that I would consider comfort food. It is generally in the "discomfort food" category.
A nice Persian Rosh Hashanah dinner - numbers of dishes go up according to the number of people to be fed and color-coordination is imperative as all the senses must be satisfied - includes chicken soup with gondi (abgusht-e-gondi), plain steamed rice (chelo), at least two stews (khoresht, with chicken or meat) to ladle over the rice, one or two different rices mixed with herbs or nuts or vegetables (polo), a baked salmon sometimes stuffed, as well as all kinds of stuffed vegetables (dolmeh), various salads, and a good-sized dessert table of fruit, Persian baklava and other yummies. Of course, honey cake is a must for us.
A polo I like to make is a sweet with candied tangerine peel, shredded carrots, pistachios, with chicken baked in saffron. In fact, I save tangerine peels all year, clean all the white pith off them and finely slice them into narrow threads and dry them. When it comes time to make polo-shirin (sweet rice), I boil the threads in a sugar syrup and drain them thoroughly to mix with the rice. The sugar syrup becomes tangarine-scented in the process and is then good for using on baklava or Greek semolina cake, where a cold sweet syrup is poured over the hot pastry to be absorbed.
An all-beige table is a no-no. There should be red (tomato), green (herbs), white (rice), pink-orange (salmon), yellow (chicken soup). The more the merrier.
This year, we are invited out for Thursday and Friday dinners, so we'll keep our own Rosh Hashanah dinner very simple: abgusht-e-gondi or matzo balls (I prefer them), chelo and a khoresht, with my favorite honey cake.
We'll write about Yom Kippur - before and after the fast - next week.
One is by Linda Morel and how food traditions indicates ancestry. Tracing the Tribe noted it previously here.
Edmun J. Rodman - who attended the Los Angeles 2010 IAJGS conference and wrote a story about his experience - suggests celebrating with other than apples and honey, such as a chocolate egg cream - only with Fox's U-Bet syrup, of course.
In addition to taiglach, he recommends a new twist:
What about substituting another form of cooked dough, one with which many Jews are even more familiar: crispy chow mein noodles? We already eat them at Christmas; apparently even Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan. So why not on a Jewish holiday?He also suggests various forms of pomegranates, seeds and juice.
For dipping, use the bright red sweet and sour sauce, of course. Let the dipping remind you to dip into your wallet; Rosh Hashanah is an auspicious time to make someone else’s new year sweet as well.
Linda Morel has a story on cholent (Ashkenazi) or hamin (Sephardic) as the ultimate comfort food prior to the Yom Kippur fast, and provides several recipes.
Tracing the Tribe disagrees with her, but to each his - or her - own. I've never eaten a cholent or a hamin that I would consider comfort food. It is generally in the "discomfort food" category.
A nice Persian Rosh Hashanah dinner - numbers of dishes go up according to the number of people to be fed and color-coordination is imperative as all the senses must be satisfied - includes chicken soup with gondi (abgusht-e-gondi), plain steamed rice (chelo), at least two stews (khoresht, with chicken or meat) to ladle over the rice, one or two different rices mixed with herbs or nuts or vegetables (polo), a baked salmon sometimes stuffed, as well as all kinds of stuffed vegetables (dolmeh), various salads, and a good-sized dessert table of fruit, Persian baklava and other yummies. Of course, honey cake is a must for us.
A polo I like to make is a sweet with candied tangerine peel, shredded carrots, pistachios, with chicken baked in saffron. In fact, I save tangerine peels all year, clean all the white pith off them and finely slice them into narrow threads and dry them. When it comes time to make polo-shirin (sweet rice), I boil the threads in a sugar syrup and drain them thoroughly to mix with the rice. The sugar syrup becomes tangarine-scented in the process and is then good for using on baklava or Greek semolina cake, where a cold sweet syrup is poured over the hot pastry to be absorbed.
An all-beige table is a no-no. There should be red (tomato), green (herbs), white (rice), pink-orange (salmon), yellow (chicken soup). The more the merrier.
This year, we are invited out for Thursday and Friday dinners, so we'll keep our own Rosh Hashanah dinner very simple: abgusht-e-gondi or matzo balls (I prefer them), chelo and a khoresht, with my favorite honey cake.
We'll write about Yom Kippur - before and after the fast - next week.
25 August 2010
Food: Have teiglach, will travel
Another aspect of family history is to learn about our ancestors' food traditions.
As our families moved from country to country, they brought along their favorite recipes along with their possessions. Sometimes the recipes needed adaptation as the original ingredients could not be found, thus creating a new tradition. The story of Jewish food is the story of Jewish history.
This JTA story, "Exploring Jewish ancestry through food" by Linda Morel, demonstrates one woman's experiences.
Said Wasserman, she wanted to create a link to our ancestry through food as it is the most direct connection to memory in our brain.Tina Wasserman, a cooking teacher and the food columnist for Reform Judaism magazine, didn’t literally transport clumps of the sticky pastries whose dough is wrapped around nuts and simmered in honey syrup. But among her most cherished possessions, she packed her recipe for the traditional Rosh Hashanah sweet hailing from Lithuania.
“No one had seen it down here,” said Wasserman, the author of "Entree to Judaism: A Culinary Exploration of the Jewish Diaspora (URJ Press, 2010), until she served the dessert to her new friends.
She then introduced the recipe in cooking classes. Before long, teiglach became part of the Jewish culinary scene in Dallas.
For her book, she began collecting recipes based on the question of what makes a specific food Jewish from a historical viewpoint. The laws of Kashrut and Shabbat and holiday observances impacted the foods we have eaten throughout history.
Caponata, an Italian appetizer of eggplants, tomatoes and peppers, is a 500-year-old Shabbt dish from Spain. Following the 1492 Expulsion, thousands of Jews left Spain for Sicily. One year later, they were expelled and 40,000 of them fled to mainland Italy across the Straits of Messina and brought the recipe with them.
Each recipe in the book includes its origins, when and why it was eaten and brought it to a new life in a diffeernt part of the world.
Says Wasserman, some Ashkenazim eat kreplach at Rosh Hashanah, because during the Middle Ages, Central and Eastern European Jews sealed their wishes in little dough pouches and wore them as amulets. So as not to waste the food, they put it into soup. She maintains that most of our food customs date from the Middle Ages.
The article includes much more, and a pointer to Wasserman's website, Cooking and More, which creates a community around food.
The article includes recipes for Dulce de Manzana (Apple Preserves), Syrian Eggplant with Pomegranate Molasses, Ethiopian-style Lubiya (Sephardic Black-Eyed Peas), and Sweet Potato-Pumpkin Caszuela.
Read the complete article, see photos of two of the dishes, and check out Wasserman's website.
20 August 2010
Israel: Birthright brings 18 from Suriname
The smallest country in South America just sent 18 Jewish young people to participate in the Birthright Israel program.
The participants come from Parimaribo, Suriname.
The Kulanu press release indicated that they hoped it will help the young Jews of Suriname, isolated for generations, to strengthen their Jewish roots and ensure Jewish continuity in their country. The trip, envisioned for many years and finally a reality, is expected to have a profound impact on the lives of the young people and on their community.
For more than 40 years, they had no permanent rabbi or Jewish educator until California Rabi Haim Beliak spent three months there last winter.
During their visit to Israel, the young people will visit the newly restored Zedek v’Shalom Synagogue, originally located in Suriname, which has been rebuilt in the Israel Museum. The synagogue served the Portuguese Sephardic community in Parimeribo until 1999. Today the Jewish community worships together at the Neve Shalom Synagogue.
The Birthright Israel trip for these young people is being supported through various organizations: Kulanu, Good People Fund, World Union for Progressive Judaism and the Union for Reform Judaism in North America.
In 2008, a Kulanu volunteer spent six weeks in the community, initiating a Hebrew teaching program for children ages 6-12. Since then, Kulanu board member (and Suriname coordinator) Jacob Steinberg has raised funds for diverse projects. These include fencing the historic cemetery, renovating the 150-year old mikvah, renovating the old rabbi’s house, developing a Suriname Jewish community website, and buying mezuzot for homes and community buildings.
In 2010, Kulanu helped pay for matzot and kosher wine sent from New York for the community’s Passover seder.
For more information, see Kulanu's Suriname Page and the Suriname Jewish Community website.
The participants come from Parimaribo, Suriname.
The Kulanu press release indicated that they hoped it will help the young Jews of Suriname, isolated for generations, to strengthen their Jewish roots and ensure Jewish continuity in their country. The trip, envisioned for many years and finally a reality, is expected to have a profound impact on the lives of the young people and on their community.
Most of the young people are descendants of Jews who traveled to the jungles of Suriname some 380 years ago from Spain and Portugal to escape the Spanish Inquisition. Others are descended from Jewish immigrants from Holland, Germany and Poland who arrived later and joined the community. Family names, such asDespite a jungle climate, economic and political upheaval over the centuries, the community has survived. It is the oldest continuing Jewish community - with some 150 people today, who speak Dutch - in the Western Hemisphere. Suriname's Jews worship at the Neve Shalom Synagogue in Parimaribo, the capital.
Abarbanel, Beuno de Mesquita, Robles de Medina, De Costa, Duym and Fernandes, echo the history of Iberian ancestors and their proud struggle and determination to survive and flourish in a far away land.
For more than 40 years, they had no permanent rabbi or Jewish educator until California Rabi Haim Beliak spent three months there last winter.
During their visit to Israel, the young people will visit the newly restored Zedek v’Shalom Synagogue, originally located in Suriname, which has been rebuilt in the Israel Museum. The synagogue served the Portuguese Sephardic community in Parimeribo until 1999. Today the Jewish community worships together at the Neve Shalom Synagogue.
The Birthright Israel trip for these young people is being supported through various organizations: Kulanu, Good People Fund, World Union for Progressive Judaism and the Union for Reform Judaism in North America.
In 2008, a Kulanu volunteer spent six weeks in the community, initiating a Hebrew teaching program for children ages 6-12. Since then, Kulanu board member (and Suriname coordinator) Jacob Steinberg has raised funds for diverse projects. These include fencing the historic cemetery, renovating the 150-year old mikvah, renovating the old rabbi’s house, developing a Suriname Jewish community website, and buying mezuzot for homes and community buildings.
In 2010, Kulanu helped pay for matzot and kosher wine sent from New York for the community’s Passover seder.
For more information, see Kulanu's Suriname Page and the Suriname Jewish Community website.
15 July 2010
Jerusalem: 8th Sephardic Bnai Anousim conference, August 2011
Tracing the Tribe flies to El Paso on Friday to participate and speak at the 7th Sephardic Bnai Anousim Conference, from July 16-19.
I've been trying to participate for a few years, and finally the dates worked out. New Mexico glass artist Sonya Loya, who is very involved with the event, never gave up, stayed in contact, and I'm very happy to be participating this year. I will post about the event.
The 8th conference - in 2011 - will be held in Jerusalem around Tisha b'Av, which is August 8-9.
For more on this year's and next year's conference, read a Ruidoso (New Mexico) News story about Sonya Loya, who has become a leader in the movement.
Like many descendants of conversos, she was raised Roman Catholic but felt something missing. And like others, attended a messianic event where she learned of her possible Jewish heritage. But when she learned of the Sephardic Jewish movement, she began her return to Judaism.
Since 2003, she has been helping others on the same journey
In her quest for knowledge she discovered that her connection to glass artistry may have a long connection to her Judaism. Until 1492, the Iberian glassmaking industry was mostly Jewish, and members of Sephardic glassmaking families escaped the Inquisition as they traveled through Amsterdam to the Caribbean. Among them were the ROBLES (her maternal great-grandmother's family) and SALAS families. In the article by Samuel Kurinsky, these families were linked to the industry in Italy, Spain, France and Holland.
This year's conference, as have the past events, is being held at Rabbi Leon's congregation. Leon presented a resolution passed unanimously by more than 2,000 rabbis at the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism's Rabbinical Assembly conference in December 2009. The resolution calls for member congregations to welcome bnai anousim to Judaism and also called for memorializing the victims of the Inquisition as part of Tisha b'Av observances.
In 2011, the conference in Jerusalem will bring descendants of Crypto-Jews to Israel to learn about their history.
For more information or to register for this year's conference, contact Loya.
I've been trying to participate for a few years, and finally the dates worked out. New Mexico glass artist Sonya Loya, who is very involved with the event, never gave up, stayed in contact, and I'm very happy to be participating this year. I will post about the event.
The 8th conference - in 2011 - will be held in Jerusalem around Tisha b'Av, which is August 8-9.
For more on this year's and next year's conference, read a Ruidoso (New Mexico) News story about Sonya Loya, who has become a leader in the movement.
When she walked into the B'Chol Lashon International Think Tank 2010 meeting in San Francisco last month, Sonya Loya's first thought was, "What am I doing here."She works with with Rabbi Stephen A. Leon of Congregation Bnai Zion (El Paso) and with Rabbi Juan Mejia - a recent Jewish Theological Seminary rabbinical graduate with a converso background - who is the anousim director for B'chol Lashon.
Invited to participate in the four-day session, she found herself sitting and mingling with professors with multiple doctorates, with researchers, sociologists and leaders of various impressive centers of study, with rabbis and educators.
"Everyone had Ph.D.s, plural, and they were from around the world, the Lemba tribe, the Abudaya, the Ethiopians, people from Brazil, Israel, Mexico and Washington D.C," she said. "What is a hillbilly from the mountains of New Mexico and a glass artist doing here?
"But Rabbi Denis Yabarri said they had been watching me closely for some years. After our shabbat midrash study, Rabbi Irwin Kula told me, 'You have fearless grace and that's what the Jewish people and the rest of the world needs.'"
Still, every time someone introduces her as a leader of a Crypto-Jewish community, it jars her. She doesn't consider herself a leader, only someone who is on a journey to rediscover herself and her Jewish faith and is willing to help others along the same path.
Like many descendants of conversos, she was raised Roman Catholic but felt something missing. And like others, attended a messianic event where she learned of her possible Jewish heritage. But when she learned of the Sephardic Jewish movement, she began her return to Judaism.
Since 2003, she has been helping others on the same journey
"Crypto Jews number in the millions," she said. "I am contacted everyday by people asking for help. I received a few this morning. I'm fortunate to be able to help others learn about their heritage while leaning about my own. My art ties into the search. After I read 'Glassmakers, The Odyssey of the Jews,' I knew glass connected me to my ancestry."She also helps to facilitate education in Jewish communities and to help those seeking to learn more about possible Jewish heritage.
In her quest for knowledge she discovered that her connection to glass artistry may have a long connection to her Judaism. Until 1492, the Iberian glassmaking industry was mostly Jewish, and members of Sephardic glassmaking families escaped the Inquisition as they traveled through Amsterdam to the Caribbean. Among them were the ROBLES (her maternal great-grandmother's family) and SALAS families. In the article by Samuel Kurinsky, these families were linked to the industry in Italy, Spain, France and Holland.
This year's conference, as have the past events, is being held at Rabbi Leon's congregation. Leon presented a resolution passed unanimously by more than 2,000 rabbis at the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism's Rabbinical Assembly conference in December 2009. The resolution calls for member congregations to welcome bnai anousim to Judaism and also called for memorializing the victims of the Inquisition as part of Tisha b'Av observances.
In 2011, the conference in Jerusalem will bring descendants of Crypto-Jews to Israel to learn about their history.
For more information or to register for this year's conference, contact Loya.
28 June 2010
Sephardi/Caucus discussion list to end in August - Addendum
A good source of Sephardi and Mizrahi information will end in August.
The Sephardi/Mizrahi Caucus Discussion List, compiled by Aviva Ben-Ur, is winding down and all Sephardi researchers will feel the loss.
Ben-Ur included this announcement in the list edition received today.
As just one example, today's edition (Part I) included:
-- The new edition of Iberia Judaica (#2, 2010)
-- The Catalogue of the Cairo Geniza Fragments at Westminster College Library, Cambridge.
-- The book about Samuel Yecutieli's maternal family, Los hijos judios de Istambul.
-- A book review on Ladino Rabbinic Literature and Ottoman Sephardic Culture (Matthias B. Lehmann).
-- A review of a Yale University symposium: "Jews of the Magreb" (April 2010).
-- A review of a conference: "Between Contact and Contrast: Jews and Christians in the Sasanian Empire" (March 2010).
-- Call for applications for Amado Foundation Trave Grants for the AJS.
-- Call for applications: Honoring Cape Verde's Jewish History Project.
-- An online survey regarding Jewish (especially Sephardic) History and Culture.
[Addendum] Part II included:
-- Call for Papers: African Judaism, University of London, October 30-31.
-- Lecture May 3: Gloria Mound, A Certain Identity - Crypto Jews Around The World."
-- Lecture May 6: Nadia Malinovich, "French Nationalism and Jewish Identity in the Early Twentieth Century."
-- ASF Heritage Tour, July 4-13: The Jews of Spain.
-- New Publication: "Encyclopedia of Jews in the Islamic World."
-- New Publication: "Crown of Aleppo: The Mystery of the Oldest Hebrew Bible Codex."
-- New Publication: "Studies on Judeo-Spanish and Sephardic Culture: Cognitive Scientific Essays."
-- New Publication: "An Ambassador and A Mensch: The story of a Turkish Diplomat in Vichy France."
-- New Film: Rafting To Bombay.
-- Book Catalogue, Wyman Books: Modern Sephardic, Chinese, Indian, Mizrachi & Mediterranean Jewish History.
-- Call for Papers: Jewish Cemeteries and World Cultural Heritage: An Exploratory Workshop, May 31-June 1.
The list was most valuable to Sephardic researchers in many areas, and it will be sorely missed.
Access the archives link above to see what has happened or will happen in the near future in the Sephardic world.
The Sephardi/Mizrahi Caucus Discussion List, compiled by Aviva Ben-Ur, is winding down and all Sephardi researchers will feel the loss.
Ben-Ur included this announcement in the list edition received today.
Dear readers of the Sephardi/Mizrahi Caucus Discussion List:Tracing the Tribe has always looked forward to the list, which has provided information on conferences, publications and other relevant details.
After twelve years of editing and moderating this listserve, I am writing to announce that the final issue of the Sephardi/Mizrahi Caucus Discussion List will appear this coming August 2010. I would like to thank all the subscribers to this listserve (at this writing, a total of 347 in the U.S. and abroad) and the innumerable additional readers, all of whom have contributed in some way over the years.
Sephardi/Mizrahi Studies has become a fully developed subfield in its own right. It has also, in most ways, successfully integrated into the broader field of Jewish Studies and other areas of academic inquiry. The goals stated at the Association for Jewish Studies conference, at the first ever Sephardi/Mizrah Studies Caucus back in 1997, have thus been fulfilled.
The website for this listserve (http://www.umass.edu/sephardimizrahi/) will
continue as a historical record of this subfield's development. The meeting of the Caucus at the annual AJS conference will also continue for as long as scholars see fit.
My very best wishes to all!
Aviva Ben-Ur
As just one example, today's edition (Part I) included:
-- The new edition of Iberia Judaica (#2, 2010)
-- The Catalogue of the Cairo Geniza Fragments at Westminster College Library, Cambridge.
-- The book about Samuel Yecutieli's maternal family, Los hijos judios de Istambul.
-- A book review on Ladino Rabbinic Literature and Ottoman Sephardic Culture (Matthias B. Lehmann).
-- A review of a Yale University symposium: "Jews of the Magreb" (April 2010).
-- A review of a conference: "Between Contact and Contrast: Jews and Christians in the Sasanian Empire" (March 2010).
-- Call for applications for Amado Foundation Trave Grants for the AJS.
-- Call for applications: Honoring Cape Verde's Jewish History Project.
-- An online survey regarding Jewish (especially Sephardic) History and Culture.
[Addendum] Part II included:
-- Call for Papers: African Judaism, University of London, October 30-31.
-- Lecture May 3: Gloria Mound, A Certain Identity - Crypto Jews Around The World."
-- Lecture May 6: Nadia Malinovich, "French Nationalism and Jewish Identity in the Early Twentieth Century."
-- ASF Heritage Tour, July 4-13: The Jews of Spain.
-- New Publication: "Encyclopedia of Jews in the Islamic World."
-- New Publication: "Crown of Aleppo: The Mystery of the Oldest Hebrew Bible Codex."
-- New Publication: "Studies on Judeo-Spanish and Sephardic Culture: Cognitive Scientific Essays."
-- New Publication: "An Ambassador and A Mensch: The story of a Turkish Diplomat in Vichy France."
-- New Film: Rafting To Bombay.
-- Book Catalogue, Wyman Books: Modern Sephardic, Chinese, Indian, Mizrachi & Mediterranean Jewish History.
-- Call for Papers: Jewish Cemeteries and World Cultural Heritage: An Exploratory Workshop, May 31-June 1.
The list was most valuable to Sephardic researchers in many areas, and it will be sorely missed.
Access the archives link above to see what has happened or will happen in the near future in the Sephardic world.
29 May 2010
A busy schedule: Flying to the US
Tracing the Tribe wishes readers a happy holiday weekend with friends and family. Travel safely.
I'm off to Los Angeles in the early hours of Tuesday June 1, arrive the same day after a long flight, and jump right into a busy schedule. I'm looking forward to meeting Tracing the Tribe readers at every stop. Please make sure to come by and say hello.
I'm off to Los Angeles in the early hours of Tuesday June 1, arrive the same day after a long flight, and jump right into a busy schedule. I'm looking forward to meeting Tracing the Tribe readers at every stop. Please make sure to come by and say hello.
- After a few days with good friend and fellow Mogilev researcher Hilary Henkin, I will be speaking on Sephardic research at the JGS of Conejo Valley (and Ventura County) at 1.30pm, Sunday June 6, at Adat Elohim in Thousand Oaks.
- From June 11-13, I will be at the Southern California Genealogical Society's 41st Jamboree at the Burbank Marriott - always an amazing event - where I'll be on the advanced bloggers' panel and also speak on our IberianAshkenaz DNA Project from the administrators' viewpoint. I'm looking forward to seeing many of my Geneablogger colleagues, Tracing the Tribe readers and will be blogging away all weekend. I'll also be helping out at the MyHeritage booth, as I also write the MyHeritage Genealogy Blog.
- On June 13, as Jamboree ends, I go north to Los Altos to visit good friends Rosanne and Dan Leeson and hope to also see friends in San Jose and Monterrey.
- July 4th weekend is at the Association of Jewish Libraries' conference, July 4-7, at the Fairmont Olympic Hotel., Seattle There are several family history sessions this year: history of names (Jewish European names, 18th-19th Centuries), researching Sephardi Jews (including Yeshiva University's Sephardic collections, and using social media in relation to Sephardic studies), Jewish archives, Jewish social history, social media, Seattle's Sephardic history, Jewish business in the Far West, Yiddish culture, in addition to many others on archives, libraries and more.
- To Los Angeles on July 8 to get ready for JGSLA 2010's big international Jewish genealogy conference from July 11-16. I'll be presenting on the wonderful world of genealogy blogging, our IberianAshkenaz DNA Project and how to create your own DNA project, on Sephardic research, speaking with Thomas MacEntee and Lisa Louise Cooke at a social media expert's breakfast, and much more. I'll be blogging from there all week attempting to attend as many as possible of the 150+ speakers presenting 300+ programs.
- On July 16, just as JGSLA2010 ends, I'm off to El Paso, Texas for the 7th Bnai Anousim Sephardic Conference, July 16-19, at Congregation Bnai Zion, where I will be speaking on Genealogy 101 and Sephardic research.
- Then to Houston to enjoy a few days with FamilyTreeDNA.com's Bennett Greenspan and his family.
- New York City is next to see family and friends for a few weeks.
Sounds like a lot of work with all those conferences, but how can we possibly call genealogy-related activities "work"? We love it!
Vacations are great, breaks are necessary but, after this one, I'm sure I'll need another "real" vacation!
While I'm trying to schedule in as many Tracing the Tribe blog posts to automatically publish, there may be some slow days due to travel arrangements or other activities.
It's the summer and everyone needs to kick back a little.
I'm already working on a travel schedule for October. I'm hoping to again attend the Mont Juic Institute's October 18-20 conference (in Barcelona and Valencia) on Catalan-speaking Jews, and the FamilyTreeDNA administrator's conference October 30-31. An East Coast speaking tour may also be in the works.
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