(By Our Montevideo Correspondent, Israeli)
The presence of a small community of Sephardic Jews here in Montevideo illustrates again the proverbial dispersion of Israel. Here are a group of Jews who left their homes in far away lands of Asia, Africa and Europe and came to this country to settle and become part of it. They originate from Spain, Syria, Palestine, Egypt, Greece, Morocco, Tunis, Italy, Kurdistan and Crimea.
It is easy to discover the Sephardic Jews for they do not assimilate as easily as the Ashkenazim with their environment, in language, their outward appearance and their customs. One can tell their presence in the so-called “Turkish” and the “Small Quarter” of the city where they have their cafes, restaurants and schools, bearing signs with distinctly Jewish inscriptions. The Sephardim cannot be accused, as the Ashkenazim sometimes are, of trying to hide their Jewish origin. On their schools one can see signs reading “Pansion Israelita,” and they display their original Jewish names over their stores and shops. Thus, the names Isaac, Samson, Peretz, Mizrachi, etc., are frequently encountered along the streets where the Sephardim live.
Ninety-five per cent of the Sephardic Jews are merchants who sell chiefly dry goods. Some are engaged in the export and import business, dealing in coffee, etc.
It is a deplorable fact, however, that the cultural level among them is very low, the majority of them not even being able to read the prayers in Hebrew. If one of them reads the Hebrew prayers fluently he is regarded as an accomplished person and called a “chacham.” As for religious observance, the community is divided into groups, those who pray on the Sabbath only and those who pray every day in the week; the latter group consisting, of course, of the older element who have preserved their pious spirit from their old homes.
The Sephardim increase rather rapidly and new immigrants are coming in considerable numbers, so that in time their community will grow to large proportions. They still maintain the custom of very early marriages. In a number of cases young brides were imported from their native homes.
But the growth of the community physically is not accompanied by a similar cultural development. The young generation is utterly ignorant of things Jewish as well as of general education, and there are no leaders to direct and inspire the Sephardim.
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
