The History of the Jews of the Iberian Peninsula During the Roman, Visigoth, and Islamic Eras

This video discusses Jewish life in the Peninsula during the Roman era, the Visigothic era, the Islamic era, and the … More

Alfonso X of Castile and the Siete Partidas

Las Siete Partidas, a law code written in Castilian and compiled around 1265, under the direction of King Alfonso X, … More

Song From a Withered Limb: Las Posadas and the Converso Crisis of the 16th Century

The following article was originally presented at the national conference of the Society for Crypto Jewish Studies in Dallas, Texas … More

Spanish Village Named “Kill the Jews” Changes Its Name

For regular readers of this blog, you are well aware of the long history of Jews living in the Iberian … More

A Key Social Difference between Sephardim and Ashkenazim

One of the clearest differences in how Christian and Muslim society impacted Jewish communities is in the area of marriage … More

13th Century Portrait of a Spanish Jew

The Jewish Journal reported that archaeologists in Spain have identified a drawing of a Jewish man on a pottery fragment from … More

Vicente Ferrer and the Post 1391 Era

The Dominican friar Vicente Ferrer had participated in the onslaught of the Jewish communities in 1391 by eagerly accepting Jews at … More

Expulsion and Conversion: Patterns Before 1492

The forced conversions perpetrated against the Jews of the Iberian Peninsula did not occur in a vacuum. The theological foundations in medieval Christianity had been laid centuries before.

Sephardic Passover Song: Mah Nishtana

The following version of the famous Passover song, Mah Nishtana was sung by Rabbi Abraham Lopes Cardoso. This version is … More

Shabbat Shalom- Spanish Moroccan Tradition

The following short song is a version of Shabbat Shalom sung in Spanish-Moroccan tradition. In the aftermath of the riots … More