Jews and Jewish Identities in Latin America ─ Historical, Cultural, and Literary Perspectives

This collection of articles constitutes a major contribution to the growing field of Latin American Jewish studies, offering different perspectives on the rich and complex phenomena in the social, political, and cultural development of Jewish communities in the area.The essays span across a wide range of subjects, from comparisons between Jewish communities from different countries and with different levels of assimilation, the effects of globalization and transnationalism on the field, the interactions between Jews and non-Jews in the area, all the way to literary criticism.Based on an international conference organized by the University of Sao Paulo, the Dahan Center of Bar Ilan University, and the Academic College in Ashkelon, this volume offers a new approach to Latin American Jewish studies: it contributes to demystifying stereotypes and raising awareness of the importance of Latin America in a global context, and it highlights the relevance of the different Jewish communities across the globe in their special relationship to the state of Israel.

Margalit Bejarano is a researcher at the Harman Institute of Contemporary Jewry and Emeritus Lecturer in the Department of Romance and Latin American Studies, Hebrew University. She has published extensively on Cuban Jewry, Sephardim in Latin America, Cuban and Latino Jews in Miami, and oral history.Yaron Harel is full professor at the Department of Jewish History at Bar-Ilan University. He is the vice-chairman of the Israeli Historical Society, and incumbent of the Yekutiel and Hannah Klein Chair in the History of the Modern Rabbinate in Europe, Bar-Ilan University. His research deals with political, social, and cultural history of the Jews in the Middle East in modern times. He is the author of twelve books and several articles. Marta Francisca Topel is an anthropologist, researcher, and lecturer in the Program of Jewish and Arabic Studies at the University of Sao Paulo. She has written extensively about Jewish Orthodoxy both in Israel and in the Diaspora. She has also published several articles about Israeli society. Margalit Yosifon is a senior lecturer and a researcher in the Department of Education at Ashkelon Academic College. She has published extensively on sociology of education, teaching methods, and diversity and evaluation in education.