A new association has been founded to promote and develop Jewish heritage in southern Italy’s Calabria region, the toe of the Italian boot, where Jews flourished in ancient times and in the middle ages but were ordered expelled in the first part of the 16th century.
The “Charta delle Judeche della Provincia di Reggio Calabria” (Charta of the Jewish Quarters of the Province of Reggio Calabria) was officially established at a conference last week. Sponsors and organizers include Reggio Calabria province; the already functioning Charta of the Jewish Quarters of Sicily association; the Catania, Sicily-based International Institute of Jewish Culture; and Shavei Israel, an Israel-based organization that seeks to bring back so-called “lost” or “hidden” Jews into the Jewish fold.
According to a news release, some 27 townships (comuni) in Reggio Calabria province and their mayors have signed on to the initiative, aimed at tracing Jewish history and heritage in Calabria and promoting Jewish tourism.
One-time Jewish quarters — Judeche (or Giudecche) — still exist in the historic centers of dozens of towns; many still called “Judeche” or exhibiting Hebrew inscriptions. Only in recent years, however, have Jews, some of them descended from families that had been forced to convert to Christianity, begun to claim a Jewish identity and forming religious groups and congregations.
The project entails cooperation among local authorities, universities in Sicily and Calabria and universities in Israel. Among the goals are the development of archaeological sites, the creation of Jewish tourist itineraries, and the establishment of kosher tourism infrastructure.
For further information contact:
attilio.funaro@iiculturaebraica.org
segreteria@iiculturaebraica.org
info@iiculturaebraica.org
baruch.triolo@iiculturaebraica.org
www.iiculturaebraica.org
www.carthadellejudeche.artevista.org
4 comments on “New Jewish Heritage Association in Calabria”
Rav shalom.
Dear Sirs,
I am former scholar of hebrew and hebrew literature. I am calabrian and interested in this issue. I would like to contact someone of the New Jewish Heritage Association in Calabria in order to join the Association and contibute to it.
Could you help me?
Todah Rabah
Tiziana Carlino
I have added some contact emails to the post.
all the best
Ruth
thank you, ruth. I see it now. all the best. todah
Hello, my name is Sindy Gioppo. I am trying to find my Jewish roots. I know there is a place called Gioppo in Calabria. If you could help me I would thank you.