Spain’s large Sephardic (Jewish) population emigrated or converted to Catholicism under threat during the Inquisition. In a 21st century turnaround, Spain appeals to tourists with new Jewish museums and has proposed citizenship for returning Sephardim.
2. The Sephardim
Sepharad is a Hebrew word for Spain.
Sephardim are Jews from the Iberian
peninsula (Spain and Portugal).
The term Sephardic Jew is now used
more broadly.
3. Roman Hispania
Historians say Jews arrived with the
Roman Legions, first as merchants, later
after the destruction of the Second
Temple in 70 C.E.
Legends say Jews arrived after the
destruction of the Temple in 6th century
B.C.E., or with Phoenecian merchants in
the 10th century B.C.E.
5. TheVisigoths
In 405 C.E., the Christian, Germanic
Visigoths invaded from their western
homeland, ending the tolerant
atmosphere of the Roman Empire. Jews
were persecuted.
Later, Catholicism became the state
religion.
7. The Moors
In 711 C.E.,Tariq ibn Ziyad (el Moro),
landed at Gibraltar (Jebel alTariq or “Tariq’s
Mountain”).
The Moroccan Berbers conquered most
of Iberia; and Al Andalus (Moorish Spain)
came into being.
The Jews perceived the Moors as a
liberating force from the oppressive
Visigoths and aided the invasion.
9. Life Under the Moors
Anyone who wished to leave could do so
while those who stayed could retain
property, practice their religion freely and
be governed by their own rules and laws.
Jews flocked from Christian and other
Muslim worlds.
In the 12th century C.E., Sephardim
outnumbered all other European Jews,
and were perhaps 90% of the world’s
Jewry.
10. “The Golden Age”
Most, but not all, Moorish rulers maintained
a tolerant, multicultural atmosphere.
Jews, Moors, and Christians
lived and worked together.
Mathematics, science, the
arts, and philosophy
flourished.
Cordoba had a million
volumes when the largest
library in Europe had a dozen
manucripts.
Moses Maimonides was from Coroba.
Havdalah Ritual
14th Century Spain
22. The Mezquita
(Mosque) of Cordoba
Started in 784 , this massive mosque was
completed over 200 years, employing
thousands of artisans and laborers.
The columned halls, originally open to the
courtyard, echoed its shady orange and
palm trees, irrigated by surface channels.
The columns were made from remnants
of Roman temples. Other materials were
ivory, jasper, porphyry, gold, silver, copper,
brass, and mosaics.
26. The Reconquista
In 1236, King Ferdinand III of Castile
conquered Cordoba and converted its
center into a Catholic church. Later kings
continued to add Christian features.
Spanish Muslims have lobbied the Church
to allow them to pray in the complex, but
authorities have opposed the move.These
battles reflect the contested view of what
constitutes Spanish history and identity.
27.
28. The Decline of the Golden Age
The decline of the Golden Age began with
the penetration of North African
fundamentalist sects in the 11th century.
As conditions became more oppressive,
some Jews migrated to the Christian
north and prospered there in the late 11th
and early 12th centuries, holding property,
fields, and vineyards.
29. The Reconquista and the Jews
As the Spanish reconquered Spain, they
were initially tolerant of Muslims and
Jews.
But the Papal authorities looked with
great displeasure at the easy
fraternization and actively discouraged it.
30. The Fourteenth Century
The fourteenth century brought drought,
crop failures, and the Black Plague which
killed almost half of Spain and a third of
Europe.
Jews were accused of poisoning wells and
were blamed for the plague.
Thousands were massacred by religious
fanatics, as in France and elsewhere in
Europe.
31. Al Andalus Defeated
In 1492, Queen Isabella of Castile married
King Ferdinand of Aragon, uniting their
kingdoms.
They then defeated
Granada, ending
Al Andalus and
completing the
Reconquista.
34. Expulsion and Inquisition
The monarchs issued the Edict of Expulsion (The
Alhambra Decree) on March 31, 1492.
Up to 400,000 Jews left. Most went tor Portugal.
But in 1497, the same fate befell the Jews there.
From 50,000 to more than 300,000 converted.
Those who resisted were executed.
The Inquisition followed in both states, ferretting
out Conversos, converted Jews with suspect
loyalties.
Conversos (crypto-Jews or anusim) emigrated from
Iberia from 1492 to the end of the 18th century.
35.
36. Jews in Spain Today
There are around 20,000 Jews in Spain,
according to Rabbi Rifat Sonsino.
A synagogue census shows four Chabad
(Hasidic), three Masorti (Conservative),
three Reform, and six Sephardi.
Most use a high degree of security, as is
typical in Europe.
37. Spain to Offer Citizenship to
Sephardim
In April, 2014, the Spanish government approved
granting dual citizenship to descendants of
Sephardic Jews expelled more than 500 years
ago.
“This law is a real historic
reparation of, I dare say, the
biggest mistake in Spanish
history,” said Alberto
Ruiz-Gallardón, the justice
minister.
38. Sephardim Respond
Thousands of Sephardim have inquired.
Interest is strong in Israel as well as
Venezuela andTurkey where Jews have
faced hostility
and may want
the passport
as a safeguard.
Passport holders gain access to the E.U.
39. Spain’s Motivation Questioned
Is the citizenship offer a “wink” to appease
Israel?The Spain-Israel relationship has long
been strained.
Opinion polls show that large numbers of
Spaniards do not like Jews.
"The Sephardic Diaspora can be viewed as a
large pool with the potential to benefit the
economies of Spain and Portugal, provided
that pool can be drawn to visit, settle and
invest," said Michael Freund, the chairman of
Shavei Israel.
