Places and Life of the Jewish Diaspora in Southern Italy
IN MEMORY OF CESARE COLAFEMMINA
PLACES AND LIFE OF JEWISH DIASPORA IN SOUTHERN ITALY:
CESARE COLAFEMMINA’S PIONEERING RESEARCH Mauro Perani (University of Bologna, Italian Association for Jewish Studies).
JEWS AS INTELLECTUAL MEDIATORS IN 15TH CENTURY SOUTHERN ITALY Fabrizio Lelli (University of Salento, University of Pennsylvania)
Dedicated to Prof. Cesare Colafemmina’s lifetime work, this program explores the richness of Apulian and Southern Italian Jewish history, current research and communal experience. Home to vital Jewish communities since ancient Roman times, between the 8th and the 13th century Southern Italy became a preeminent center of Jewish learning attracting rabbinical scholars from Spain, Provence and other Mediterranean countries. Although formal Jewish life came to an end in the 16th century, Judaism has remained part of the cultural fabric of the region. Most notable is the conversion back to Judaism in the1930′s of the population of San Nicandro Garganico and the recent re-establishment of a synagogue in Trani. During World War II and its aftermath, the Allies established several Displaced Persons Camps which became temporary homes to Jewish refugees from Northern Europe, as well as clandestine operation centers for the Aliah Beth Cesare Colafemmina (1933-2012) was a professor of Hebrew Epigraphy and Antiquities at the University of Bari, and of Hebrew Literature at the University of Calabria. His entire lifetime as a scholar was devoted to researching the presence of Jews in Southern Italy, from Late Antiquity to the Middle Ages. Fabrizio Lelli teaches Hebrew Language and Literature at the University of Salento and is presently a fellow at the Herbert D. Katz Center for Advanced Judaic Studies in Philadelphia. Mauro Perani is professor of Hebrew at the University of Bologna, Italy. He is credited as having discovered the oldest known complete Torah scroll, dating from 1155-1225, kept at the University of Bologna.