“Do You Have Jewish Roots?” now available in Italian
Shavei Israel’s popular Do You Have Jewish Roots book is now available in Italian. Already published in Spanish and Portuguese, the 109-page book is the first-ever practical guide to discovering one’s Jewish heritage.
The new Italian version comes as interest into the history of Italy’s Bnei Anousim is at a high point.
Last week, the Archbishop of Palermo, Italy, Carrado Lorefice, transferred to the Jewish community a facility owned by the church and monastery of St. Nicolo Tolentino, which was built atop the ruins of the Great Synagogue of Palermo. The date for the handover matched the deadline for the expulsion of Jews in Italy in 1493.
The expulsion of the Jews more than 500 years ago essentially ended the Jewish presence in Sicily, which, at its height, saw more than 37,000 Jews living in 52 communities. It is estimated that more than half of Sicily’s Jews were forced to convert and remained on the island, later suffering during the Inquisition.
The nine chapters of Do You Have Jewish Roots? – which can be downloaded for free from Shavei Israel as an eBook – cover all the major questions someone at the beginning of their Jewish discovery might have.
There are discussions on how to conduct a genealogical search (including how to access records from the Inquisition when and if appropriate), which surnames are most commonly Jewish in different parts of the world, plus information on “hidden” Jewish customs (such as candle lighting, mourning traditions, baking challah), organized by geography and history. Inspirational personal stories are sprinkled throughout the text.
The new version of Do You Have Jewish Roots? was adapted for the Italian public and includes Italian Bnei Anousim family names as well as the story of the San Nicandro Jewish community in the “spiritual roots” chapter.
Italian Jewry has its roots in history from the time of the Maccabees, with an unbroken links for over two thousand years. In southern Italy and Sicily, Jews were present even before the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 C.E., living in unparalleled serenity and prosperity.
For almost eight centuries Jews lived in Sicily until the infamous edict of expulsion by King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Castile also struck the Sicilian communities. Many Sicilian Jews chose exile: those who remained chose the path of “criptogiudaismo”, keeping their Jewishness secret. The terrible prisons of the Steri Palace in Palermo, which served as the headquarters of the Inquisition from 1601-1782, and a holding cell for Jews awaiting their fate in the terrible auto-da-fe – execution by burning – are a universal symbol of this tragedy.
Two years in the making, Do You Have Jewish Roots? was written by Shavei Israel Chairman Michael Freund and Shavei’s educational director Rabbi Eliyahu Birnbaum.
The book has been a sensation since it was first published in Spanish in 2015. So many people clicked to download their free copy in the first 48 hours that the special website we set up had crashed. We expected a few hundred people to visit the site; the total number of requests topped 5,000 during that time period. And the requests continue to stream in.
“It was incredible!” said Tzivia Kusminsky, who heads up Shavei Israel’s Bnei Anousim department. “I knew that there were a lot of people searching the Internet for information about their Jewish roots, but I never thought it was so many.”
Even more surprising: half the initial downloads were from people in Brazil, even though the book was only in Spanish at the time. A Portuguese translation followed.
(Don’t worry: the download site has long since been fixed, so you’ll have no problems visiting and getting your copy now.)
Now, with the Italian version, all the three main Bnei Anousim communities are covered. Interest for Do You Have Jewish Roots? in Italian version has been strong, as well: in the first week, 1,200 copies have been downloaded.
If you know someone who is interested in exploring their Jewish roots and speaks Italian, or if you think you might have Italian Jewish roots yourself, please visit this link