Sephardim Bring Tapestry Of Culture, Art, Heritage

Continued from Page L-1
gather only as much as they could
carry and flee for their lives.And so,
the Jews left centuries of history
and tradition to make lives in
strange new worlds. Many found
themselves in the countries of
northern Africa — Morocco, Algeria,
Libya, Tunisia and Egypt. The
Turkish government welcomed
thousands of Jews. Others made
new homes in France, Italy,
Bulgaria, Albania and Yugoslavia.

Cantor Richard Allen

chazzan of Temple Beth El in
Rochester, New York. A prolific
author, Cantor Rosenbaum has
written numerous oratorios and
celebratory pieces commissioned by
major synagogues and federations.

The concert is sponsored by the
Detroit Jewish Committee for
Sephard '92, and was made
possible by grants from the United
Jewish Charities, Comerica Bank
and the Jonathan Miller Memorial
Concert Fund.

America (Brazil). The job of the
Inquisition was to make certain that
everyone thought the same thoughts
and held the same religious beliefs.
This introduced an element of
intolerance into Latin American life
that is still alive today. It has made
life in Latin America insecure not
only for Jews, but for anyone who
dissents from officially approved
ideas.
Other results flowed from 1492
that could not have been foreseen
by those alive that year. An
unprecedented exchange of

Many of the foods, languages,
customs and rituals of those
countries were very different from
those of eastern Europe, where
most of today's Jews trace their
histories. So, as the formerly
Spanish Jews started to get
accustomed to their new homes,
they began to adopt the languages,
foods and customs of these lands,
all the while retaining their original
language, Ladino, also known as
Judeo-Spanish.
As years became decades, and
decades became centuries, many
Sephardim began to make their way
to North America and the United
States. In Detroit, there are 83
Sephardic families, all of whom
trace their roots to Spain and the

countries that took them in after the
expulsion. Their ancestors brought
with them a rich tapestry of culture,
art and religious ritual ... and
names like Viviano, Mattatia,
Perahia .
*Behar: from Spanish town
named Bejar — means "from on
high." Alemon: from the French,
means Germany. Saltiel: from Greek
and biblical Hebrew — was the
name of a biblical General.

Saraquse: from Spanish town
Saragossa. Mustakis: Greek. Louza:
from Spanish, means "light."
Chicorel: means "thanks to God."
Takouni: Italian.

Lissa Hurwitz is communications
director of the Jewish Community
Council. Renee Wohl of the Agency
For Jewish Education Resource
Center provided assistance with the
story.

4 s14 4Milliet
.IM.YA.110416MIZAUMsalatNiliblir-

1492:
WATERSHED
IN
WORLD HISTORY

4

•

500

moginsurnliffittgwatirigilknna

SATURDAY, MARCH 28, 1992

8:00 pm Rackham Auditorium, UM, Ann Arbor
The Year 1492: Spanish Music in the Age of Columbus
Waverly Consort

For ticket information, call the University Musical Society
(313) 764-2538
The concert will be preceded by two public lectures:

It seems more
appropriate to study and
learn from it, rather than
simply to condemn or
praise the actions of one
Genoese sailor.

opportunity for European
immigrants, Jews included.
In light of these complex
events, how should we observe the
Columbus Quincentenary? It seems
more appropriate to study and learn
from it, rather than simply to
condemn or praise the actions of
one Genoese sailor. The Columbus
Quincentenary offers us the
opportunity to re-examine our past
in the light of new scholarship and
from the emotional distance of 500
years.
The University of Michigan's
Frankel Center for Judaic Studies is
marking the Quincentenary with a
year-long series of conferences,
concerts, and exhibitions that began
in October, 1991 and will continue
through December, 1992, on the
theme "Jews and the Encounter
with the New World, 1492/1992."

animals, plants, and diseases took
place, forever altering the ecological
balance of the globe. The human
genetic pool changed, as
populations that had been separate
from one another mixed for the first
time. And North America was
ultimately conquered and settled
under British auspices, becoming
over the course of time a land of
slavery for Africans, but a land of

Judith Laikin Elkin directs the
project 'Jews and the Encounter
with the New World, 1492/1992," an
official project of the Christopher
Columbus Quincentenary Jubilee
Commission. She is the author of
numerous books and articles on
Latin American Jewry, including
`Jews of the Latin American
Republics" and "The Jewish
Presence in Latin America."

6:30 pm Rackham Amphitheatre
A Musical Voyage to the World of Columbus
David Crawford, UM
Phillips Lecture: Sepharad — Who?
Judith Laikin Elkin, UM

SUNDAY, MARCH 29, 1992

1:00-5:00 pm Rackham Amphitheatre,
UM, Ann Arbor
Towards 1492: Spain in the Fifteenth Century
Teofilo Ruiz, Brooklyn College
Jews and Conversos on the Eve of the Expulsion
Stephen Haliczer, Northern Illinois University
Discussant: Todd M. Endelman, UM
Audience Participation
7:30 pm Rackham Amphitheatre,
UM, Ann Arbor
Why Europeans Were Seeking the Ten Lost Tribes
Richard H. Popkin, UCLA
Discussant: Thomas R. Trautmann, UM
Audience Participation

This conference is part of the project

Jews and the Encounter with the New World 1492/1992

Sponsored by the Frankel Center for Judaic Studies,
the Institute for the Humanities,
and the Office of the Vice President for Research and Development
at the University of Michigan and the
National Endowment for the Humanities.
With the exception of the Waverly Consort performance,
all programs are free and open to the public.

For further information call Judith Elkin, Project Director

(313) 763.5857

THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS

L-3