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Jews of Spain: A History of the Sephardic Experience » (1st Edition)

Book cover image of Jews of Spain: A History of the Sephardic Experience by Jane S. Gerber

Authors: Jane S. Gerber
ISBN-13: 9780029115749, ISBN-10: 0029115744
Format: Paperback
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Adult Publishing Group
Date Published: January 1994
Edition: 1st Edition

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Author Biography: Jane S. Gerber

Book Synopsis

The 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.

Table of Contents

Preface
Introduction: An Enigma of 1492
1Volatile Origins: The Early History of Jewish Life in Spain1
2The Birth of Sepharad: From the Muslim Conquest to the Caliphate of Cordoba27
3The Golden Era: The Emergence of Sephardic Civilization59
4The Reconquista: Jews and the New Realities of Christian Spain91
5Path to Expulsion: The Decline and Destruction of Spanish Jewry115
6Return to the Islamic World: The Sephardic Diaspora in Muslim Lands145
7The Westward Journey: Europe and the New World177
8Encounter with Modernity: Ottoman Decline and the Ascendance of the West213
9Revival and Return: Sephardic Jews in the Post-War Era253
Appendix 1: The Edict of Expulsion285
Appendix 2: Immigration Tables291
Appendix 3: Maps293
Notes299
A Note on Further Reading309
Index319

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