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Abulafia (surname)
Abulafia or Abolafia ( ', ' or '; or ') is a Sephardi Jewish surname whose etymological origin is in the Arabic language. The family name, like many other Hispanic-origin Sephardic Jewish surnames, originated in Spain (Hebrew ''Sefarad'') among Spanish Jews (Sephardim), during the time when it was ruled as Al-Andalus by Arabic-speaking Moors. The romanized version of the surname is most commonly ''Abolafia''. Other variations also exist, mostly in English transliterations, including ''Aboulafia, Abolafia, Abouelafia, Aboulafiya, Abulafiya, Aboulafiyya'' and ''Abolafia''. It is one of only a few dozen surnames of Sephardic origin documented among Russian Jews. Etymology Etymologically, the surname is composed of the Arabic words: * '' Abu'' or ''Abou'' ( '), literally "father" but also carrying the meaning "owner", * ''al'' or ''el'' (), or simply ''l'' if the preceding word ends with a vowel, to which it attaches itself, is the definite article equivalent to "the", and * ''Afiyy ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sephardi
Sephardic Jews, also known as Sephardi Jews or Sephardim, and rarely as Iberian Peninsular Jews, are a Jewish diaspora population associated with the historic Jewish communities of the Iberian Peninsula (Spain and Portugal) and their descendants. The term "Sephardic" comes from ''Sepharad'', the Hebrew word for Iberia. These communities flourished for centuries in Iberia until they were expelled in the late 15th century. Over time, "Sephardic" has also come to refer more broadly to Jews, particularly in the Middle East and North Africa, who adopted Sephardic religious customs and legal traditions, often due to the influence of exiles. In some cases, Ashkenazi Jews who settled in Sephardic communities and adopted their liturgy are also included under this term. Today, Sephardic Jews form a major component of world Jewry, with the largest population living in Israel. The earliest documented Jewish presence in the Iberian Peninsula dates to the Roman period, beginning in the first ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Andalusian Arabic
Andalusi Arabic or Andalusian Arabic () was a variety or varieties of Arabic spoken mainly from the 8th to the 15th century in Al-Andalus, the regions of the Iberian Peninsula under the Muslim rule. Arabic spread gradually over the centuries of Muslim rule in Iberia, primarily through conversion to Islam, although it was also learned and spoken by Christians and Jews. Arabic became the language of administration and was the primary language of literature produced in al-Andalus; the Andalusi vernacular was distinct among medieval Arabic vernaculars in that it was used in poetry, in '' zajal'' and the '' kharjas'' of '' muwaššaḥāt''. Arabic in al-Andalus existed largely in a situation of bilingualism with Andalusi Romance (known popularly as ''Mozarabic'') until the 13th century. Arabic in Iberia was also characterized by diglossia: in addition to standard written Arabic, spoken varieties could be subdivided into an urban, educated idiolect and a register of the less-p ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Converso
A ''converso'' (; ; feminine form ''conversa''), "convert" (), was a Jew who converted to Catholicism in Spain or Portugal, particularly during the 14th and 15th centuries, or one of their descendants. To safeguard the Old Christian population and make sure that the ''converso'' " New Christians" were true to their new faith, the Holy Office of the Inquisition was established in Spain in 1478. The Catholic Monarchs of Spain Ferdinand and Isabella expelled the remaining openly practising Jews by the Alhambra Decree of 1492, following the Christian ''Reconquista'' (reconquest) of Spain. However, a significant proportion of these remaining practising Jews chose to join the already large ''converso'' community rather than face exile. ''Conversos'' who did not fully or genuinely embrace Catholicism, but continued to practise Judaism in secrecy, were referred to as ''judaizantes'' " Judaizers" and pejoratively as '' marranos''. New Christian converts of Muslim origin were ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alhambra Decree
The Alhambra Decree (also known as the Edict of Expulsion; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Decreto de la Alhambra'', ''Edicto de Granada'') was an edict issued on 31 March 1492 by the joint Catholic Monarchs of Spain, Isabella I of Castile and Ferdinand II of Aragon, ordering the Expulsion of Jews from Spain, expulsion of practising Jews from the Crowns of Crown of Castile, Castile and Crown of Aragon, Aragon and its territories and possessions by 31 July of that year. Its primary purpose was to eliminate the influence of practising Jews on Spain's large formerly-Jewish ''converso'' New Christian population, to ensure the latter and their descendants did not revert to Judaism. Over half of Spain's Jews had converted as a result of the Massacre of 1391, religious persecution and pogroms which occurred in 1391. Due to continuing attacks, around 50,000 more had converted by 1415. A further number of those remaining chose to convert to avoid expulsion. As a result of the Alhambra Decree a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Reconquista
The ''Reconquista'' (Spanish language, Spanish and Portuguese language, Portuguese for ) or the fall of al-Andalus was a series of military and cultural campaigns that European Christian Reconquista#Northern Christian realms, kingdoms waged against the al-Andalus, Muslim kingdoms following the Muslim conquest of the Iberian Peninsula by the Umayyad Caliphate, culminating in the reign of the Catholic Monarchs of Spain. The beginning of the ''Reconquista'' is traditionally dated to the Battle of Covadonga ( or 722), in which an Kingdom of Asturias, Asturian army achieved the first Christian victory over the forces of the Umayyad Caliphate since the beginning of the military invasion. The ''Reconquista'' ended in 1492 with the Granada War#Last stand at Granada, fall of the Nasrid kingdom of Granada to the Catholic Monarchs of Spain, Catholic Monarchs. In the late 10th century, the Umayyad vizier Almanzor waged a series of military campaigns for 30 years in order to subjugate ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Catholic Monarchs
The Catholic Monarchs were Isabella I of Castile, Queen Isabella I of Crown of Castile, Castile () and Ferdinand II of Aragon, King Ferdinand II of Crown of Aragón, Aragon (), whose marriage and joint rule marked the ''de facto'' unification of Spain. They were both from the House of Trastámara and were second cousins, being both descended from John I of Castile; to remove the obstacle that this consanguinity would otherwise have posed to their marriage under canon law, they were given a Dispensation (Catholic canon law), papal dispensation by Sixtus IV. They married on October 19, 1469, in the city of Valladolid; Isabella was 18 years old and Ferdinand a year younger. Most scholars generally accept that the unification of Spain can essentially be traced back to the marriage of Ferdinand and Isabella. Their reign was called by W.H. Prescott "the most glorious epoch in the annals of Spain". Spain was formed as a dynastic union of two crowns rather than a unitary state, as Castil ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Toledo, Spain
Toledo ( ; ) is a city and Municipalities of Spain, municipality of Spain, the capital of the province of Toledo and the ''de jure'' seat of the government and parliament of the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Castilla–La Mancha. Toledo is primarily located on the right (north) bank of the Tagus in central Iberian Peninsula, Iberia, nestled in a bend of the river. Built on a previous Carpetanian settlement, Toledo developed into an important Roman city of Hispania, later becoming the capital (''civitas regia'') of the Visigothic Kingdom and seat of a Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Toledo, powerful archdiocese. Often unsubmissive to Emirate of Córdoba, Umayyad central rule during the Islamic period, Toledo (طليطلة) nonetheless acquired a status as a major cultural centre (promoting productive cultural exchanges between the Ummah and the Latin Christendom), which still retained after the Fitna of al-Andalus, collapse of the caliphate and the crea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Synagogue Of El Tránsito
The Synagogue of El Tránsito (), also known as the Synagogue of Samuel ha-Levi or Halevi, is a former Judaism, Jewish congregation and synagogue, located at on Calle Samuel Levi, in the Historic City of Toledo, historic old city of Toledo, Spain, Toledo, in the province of Castilla-La Mancha, Spain. Designed by master mason Don Meir (Mayr) Abdeil, it was built in 1357 in the Mudéjar art, Mudéjar or Moorish architecture, Moorish style as an annex of the palace of Samuel HaLevi, treasurer to King Peter of Castile. The synagogue is located in the former Jewish quarter of Toledo, Jewish quarter of the city between the Monastery of San Juan de los Reyes and the Synagogue of Santa María la Blanca. It is one of three preserved synagogues constructed by Jews under the rule of the Christian Crown of Castile, Kingdom of Castile. The building was converted to a Roman Catholicism, Catholic Church (building), church after the Expulsion of Jews from Spain, Expulsion of the Jews from Spain ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Samuel Ha-Levi
Samuel ben Meir Ha-Levi Abulafia (Úbeda, approx. 1320 – 1360 in Seville), was the treasurer of king Pedro I "the Cruel" of Castile and founder of the Synagogue of El Transito in Toledo, Spain. Biography He was a member of the powerful Abulafia family, which had provided leadership to the Jewish community of Toledo and Castile more generally since around 1200. His parents died of plague shortly after arriving in Toledo. First he worked as administrator to the Portuguese knight Juan Alfonso de Alburquerque and became recognized enough to achieve employment at the court of Pedro I of Castile, first as ''camarero mayor'' (chamberlain) and later as ''almojarife'' (treasurer) and as ''oídor'' (judge). His employment ended when the enemies of Pedro I led by Henry of Trastámara organized a pogrom against the Toledan Jewry, which enabled them to assume possession of the royal treasures. The king marched to Toro to demand the return of his belongings, and Samuel Ha-Levi accompa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Todros Ben Judah Halevi Abulafia
Todros ben Judah Halevi Abulafia (1247 – after 1300) was a Jewish poet who wrote primarily in Hebrew. He also wrote poems in Arabic. Abulafia collected his poems in diwan, which he called ''Gan HaMeshalim veHaHidot'' (''The Garden of Parables and Riddles''). The collection of poems was written mostly in Hebrew and included poems by other authors as well. Also included were 35 poems that represented a poetic debate between Todros Abulafia and the poet Phinehas Halevi. Angel Sáenz-Badillos, Professor in the Hebrew Department of Complutense University of Madrid, Spain, believes that Abulafia was "probably the best and most prolific author of Christian Spain during the reigns of Alfonso the Learned and his son Sancho IV of Castile." Life A distant relative of Meir Abulafia, Todros Abulafia was born in 1247 in Toledo. He mastered Arabic, and was well educated in both Arabic and Christian poetry and literature. Early in his career Abulafia became a courtier in the court of Alfons ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Meir Abulafia
:''Meir Abulafia is commonly known as "the Ramah" (Hebrew: רמ"ה). He should not be confused with Moses Isserles, known as "the Rema" or "the Rama" (Hebrew: רמ"א).'' Meir ben Todros HaLevi Abulafia ( ; c. 1170 – 1244), also known as the Ramah () (an acronym of his Hebrew name), was a major Sephardic Talmudist and Halachic authority in medieval Spain. Biography He was the scion of a wealthy and scholarly family, the son of Todros ben Judah, to whom the physician Judah ben Isaac dedicated his poem, ''The Conflict of Wisdom and Wealth,'' published in 1214. In his 30s, he was already one of the three appointed rabbis on the Toledo Beth Din (one of the other two was Joseph ibn Migash's son, Meir). As the Spanish kings gave the Jews more self-rule, Rabbi Abulafia played a substantial role in establishing ritual regulations for Spanish Jewry. He was also the head of an important yeshiva in Toledo. He was so highly esteemed in Toledo that on his father's death in 1225 the latt ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Abraham Abulafia
Abraham ben Samuel Abulafia () was the founder of the school of "Prophetic Kabbalah". He was born in Zaragoza, Spain, in 1240, and is assumed to have died sometime after 1291 following a stay on the small and windswept island of Comino (the smallest of the three inhabited islands that make up the Maltese archipelago). Biography Early life and travels Very early in life he was taken by his parents to Tudela, Navarre, where his aged father, Samuel Abulafia, instructed him in the Hebrew Bible and Talmud. In 1258, when Abulafia was eighteen years old, his father died, and Abulafia began a life of ceaseless wandering shortly thereafter. His first journey, in 1260, was to the Land of Israel, where he intended to begin a search for the legendary Sambation and the Ten Lost Tribes. He got no further than 'Akko, however, because of the desolation and lawlessness in the Holy Land stemming from the chaos following the recent Crusade. The battle that year between the Mongol Empire and Mam ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
