Jerusalem of the West

Jerusalem of the West

Jerusalem of the West was a term sometimes used to describe a place where Jews had settled in Europe or Northern Africa.

Applications

"Is Amsterdam, then. A Jewish town?"

"Nay; buttis the Jerusalem of the West."

Dreamers of the Ghetto, Israel Zangwill, 1898. [1]

In Europe, Amsterdam was commonly associated with the term and was called Jeruzalem van het Westen in Dutch.[2] Jews settled there in the 17th-century[3] and in 1672, there were and estimated 7,500 Jews living in the city.[4] Holland had a reputation of hospitality and tolerance which was rare in Europe at the time. It was "the first city in Europe where Jews were free from persecution and where they enjoyed religious liberty, ample economic opportunities and social equality."[5] The epithet signalled that the Jews felt comfortable in the city.[6]

In Northern Africa, Tlemcen in Algeria was called "Jerusalem of the West". In the 15th-century, the town was considered a major Jewish spiritual centre.[7] André Chouraqui believed that there was a genuine geographical correspondence between the town and Jerusalem. He wrote: "We were living our dream in the midst of the beautiful countryside of the Maghreb. Tlemcen...resembles the city of David in altitude, climate, fauna and flora, to such an extent that we called in the Jerusalem of the Maghreb."[8]

Other towns given the appellation include: Toledo,[9] Vilna[10] and Antwerp.[11] Many others towns in northern Africa were also called symbolically after Jerusalem: Ghardaia, Mzab (Second Jerusalem), Djerba, Tunisia (Ante-chamber of Jerusalem, Jerusalem of Africa), Ifrane, Morocco (Little Jerusalem).[12]

See also

  • Nowa Jerozolima, a small village established in 1774 for Jewish settlers in Mazovia, Poland.
  • Mokum, Yiddish word meaning "safe haven", given to a number of towns in Holland and Germany.

References

  1. ^ Dreamers of the Ghetto, Israel Zangwill, 1898. pg. 82.
  2. ^ Ridley Haim Herschell. The Voice of Israel, 1845. pg. 27.
  3. ^ Antonie Wessels. Muslims in the West: can they be integrated, Peeters Publishers, 2006. pg. 9. ISBN: 9042916842.
  4. ^ D. van Galen Last, Rolf Wolfswinkel. Anne Frank and after, Amsterdam University Press, 1996. pg. 17. ISBN: 9053561773.
  5. ^ Beth Hatefutsoth: the first years, Beth Hatefutsoth, the Nahum Goldmann Museum of the Jewish Diaspora, 1983. pg. 53.
  6. ^ D. van Galen Last, Rolf Wolfswinkel. Anne Frank and after, Amsterdam University Press, 1996. pg. 12. ISBN: 9053561773.
  7. ^ John Hunwick. Jews of a Saharan oasis: elimination of the Tamantit community, Markus Wiener Publishers, 2006. Back Cover. ISBN: 1558763465.
  8. ^ Susan Slyomovics. The walled Arab city in literature, architecture history: the living Medina in the Maghrib "Geographies of Jewish Tlemcen." Routledge, 2001. pg. 81. ISBN: 071465177X.
  9. ^ Homero Aridjis, Ilan Stavans. 1492: The Life and Times of Juan Cabezon of Castile, UNM Press, 2003. pg. 1. ISBN: 0826330967.
  10. ^ Notable American women: a biographical dictionary completing the twentieth century, Harvard University Press, 2004. pg. 154. ISBN: 067401488X.
  11. ^ Jonathan Irvine Israel, R. Salverda. Dutch Jewry: its history and secular culture (1500-2000), BRILL 2002. pg. 291. ISBN: 9004124365.
  12. ^ Marie-Noëlle Bourguet, Lucette Valensi, Nathan Wachtel. Between memory and history, Volume 2, Taylor & Francis, 1990. pg. 81. ISBN: 3718650673.

Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужна курсовая?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem by Jordan — The West Bank and East Jerusalem were occupied by Jordan (formerly Transjordan) for a period of nearly two decades (1948 ndash;1967) starting from the 1948 Arab Israeli War. In 1950, with British approval, and despite Arab League opposition,… …   Wikipedia

  • Political status of the West Bank and Gaza Strip — The Israeli Government approved barrier route as of July 2006 The political status of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip is one of the most violently disputed issues in the Arab Israeli conflict. Various conferences and negotiations have been… …   Wikipedia

  • Episcopal Church in Jerusalem and the Middle East — legend|Lime|Diocese of IranThe Episcopal Church in Jerusalem and the Middle East is a province of the Anglican Communion stretching from Iran in the east to Algeria in the west, and Cyprus in the north to Somalia in the south. It is the largest… …   Wikipedia

  • Geography of the West Bank — Geography of the Best WankLocation:Middle East, west of JordanGeographic coordinates: coord|32|00|N|35|15|E|type:countryMap references:Middle EastArea: total: 5,860 km² land: 5,640 km² water: 220 km² note: includes West Bank, Latrun Salient, and… …   Wikipedia

  • Biodiversity in Israel, the West Bank, and the Gaza Strip — is about the fauna and flora in the geographical region of Israel the West Bank and Gaza Strip. This geographical area extends from the Jordan River and Wadi Araba in the east, to the Mediterranean Sea and the Sinai desert in the west, to Lebanon …   Wikipedia

  • Interim Agreement on the West Bank and the Gaza Strip — Part of a series on the Israeli–Palestinian conflict and Arab–Israeli conflict Israeli–Palestinian peace process …   Wikipedia

  • List of cities in the West Bank and Gaza Strip — List of cities (and towns) in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. The permanent political status of the two areas are pending further negotiations. West Bank Note: Ariel, Betar Illit, Ma ale Adummim, and Modi in Illit are Israeli settlements (see… …   Wikipedia

  • Church in the Province of the West Indies — Anglicanism portal Church in the Province of the West Indies Primate John Walder Dunlop Holder Territory …   Wikipedia

  • Israeli Supreme Court Opinions on the West Bank Barrier — On two occasions the Israeli government has been instructed by the Supreme Court of Israel to alter the route of the barrier to ensure that negative impacts on Palestinians would be minimized and proportional [http://elyon1.court.gov.il/files… …   Wikipedia

  • Jerusalem in Judaism — Jerusalem History …   Wikipedia

  • Jerusalem Day — This article is about the Israeli national holiday. For the annual demonstration of pro Palestinian sentiment, see Quds Day. Jerusalem Day Jerusalem Day 2007, Jaffa Road Official name Hebrew …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
https://en-academic.com/dic.nsf/enwiki/11674845 Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”