Rosh Hashanah

 

May the year ahead, be one of peace and joy for Jewish families everywhere.

Yom HaAtzmaut (Independence Day) in Israel Happy Birthday Israel

HAPPY 69TH BIRTHDAY ISRAEL

David Ben-Gurion, who was the first prime minister of Israel, publicly read the Declaration of Independence of Israel on May 14, 1948. According to the Jewish calendar, this was the fifth day of Iyar, the eighth month of the civil year, in the year 5708. The anniversary of this date on the Jewish calendar is known as Yom Ha'atzmaut and usually falls in April or May of the Gregorian Calendar.

International Holocaust Remembrance Day

Jewish Quarter, Amsterdam

Tomorrow, January 27, 2017, has been recognized as International Holocaust Remembrance Day. The day was designated in 2005 by the United Nations General Assembly, in hopes that all member nations would honor the memory of the over 6,000,000 European Jews murdered by the Nazis. The 27th day of January, was chosen as it was the date in 1945 when the Soviet troops liberated Auschwitz- Birkenau, the largest of the Nazi death camps.
We all have different reactions and emotions when we discuss and remember those who were killed. For some, the thoughts of a loved one, perhaps a brother or sister, or parents who never returned home, fill their hearts and minds. Many remember their older neighbors and friends, taken from homes without warning. Yet others, who may not have been as closely affected pause to remember those who they never met, yet don't want to ever forget.
 In my own situation, I was just 11 years old when I first learned that I had Jewish ancestry.

Morris David Rosenbaum

It was the discovery of my Great Great Grandfather, Morris David Rosenbaum, a Polish Jew, which started my own personal journey to find my Jewish heritage. In the last 40 or so years, I have experienced the excitement of the search, and the joy of new discoveries. Over the years, I have been very blessed, I have found the names of family members who passed long before my birth. With the help of people all over the world, I have met living relatives, and have shared with them the memories of our family. I have stood on the land where my ancestors lived and I have placed stones upon their headstones. The writings they left behind, have at times helped guide my own life and they have touched my heart.
Morris David Rosenbaum came to the United States very early, in the  1850's. After being a successful merchant in San Francisco, he finally made his way to Salt Lake City. With that early arrival, I  felt relief in knowing that he and his children were save from the death camps. However, early on in my journey I started to find the records of his  6 sisters and their families, who never left Fordon, Poland and whose own children and grandchildren were murdered. It was very emotional for me and after sometime I took a pause from those families because I didn't know how to move forward.

Hall of Names

This all changed in the summer of 2015, when I visited Israel for the first time. One afternoon I was able to visit Yad Vashem, The World Holocaust Remembrance Center. From the moment I entered the grounds, I was overcome with feelings I didn't expect to have, feelings of emptiness for the members of the family I either had not documented completely or hadn't yet discovered. At the conclusion of my visit, I was able to visit The Hall of Names, an area where the records of those who were murdered, are collected and preserved. While standing there and looking up at the photos, I soon found myself thinking of each and every member of my family who I knew had died. I also at that moment rededicated myself to find the names and records of the other family members to make sure they were never forgotten.

Berlin Marriage of Phillip Meyer and Mabel Wittowski 7 Dec 1899

Upon returning home I returned again to the records of my family, making sure I had not missed anyone. I wasn't sure I would find anyone, but I was going to try. Up until this point every record I had involved my Polish families and I kept telling myself that Salt Lake City was a long way from Europe and that somehow helped families deal with the pain. I soon made a discovery that made me realize that it was impossible not to be personally touched by the Holocaust no matter where you lived. The Rosenbaum sisters all married and a few had husbands who were part of the extended Auerbach family, another Fordon family.
Members of the Auerbach family had also settled in Salt Lake City in  the 1800's and had become very successful merchants. One, Rosa, had married Gustave Meyer and had raised 7 children in Utah. Many never left and are buried in the B'nai Israel Cemetery, in Salt Lake City. One son however, Phillip, who was a very successful architect, left Salt Lake and moved back to Berlin, where he married an Australian girl and made it their home. The search for their records forever changed me. I knew they had been murdered about 15 Oct 1943 in the Theresienstadt Camp, but the finding of the marriage record from 1899 truly showed me that everyone was affected by the Holocaust.
On the marriage record, part of which is shown above, there are a few different pieces of information  that are very noticeable. First, the marriage takes place on 7 Dec 1899 in Berlin, yet on 12 Jun 1939, the Nazi's stamped the document with their emblems, the Iron Eagle and Swastika. Second, this document which had been tarnished in 1939, included the information on the parents of the bride and groom. It was there, just a few inches from a Nazi symbol that the mother of the groom was listed as Rosa, maiden name Auerbach, of Salt Lake City. To me the Holocaust had come home. Every feeling imaginable hit me at once. I was sick, mad and determined to make sure that all family members would be found, I was not going to let these murderers get away with it. I was going to make sure that my family was never forgotten.
I have continued my search for family members who perished and have found a few. I truly feel we need to do everything possible to keep their memories alive. At my desk in the Family History Library, I have always kept a quote that reminded me what was truly important, and now it is even more so. The quote by Arthur Kurweil says;

"When the Nazis rounded us up, they took away our names and gave us numbers. We genealogists are involved in taking away the numbers and giving back the names."

I would hope, that we all can rededicate ourselves to remembering those who lost their lives, and help the stories be told. I am very thankful to all of you who have helped me and continue to do so, for without each other we have nothing.

LET THEM NEVER BE FORGOTTEN

The Jews of Azerbaijan

The Jewish history of Azerbaijan is one that is old and very interesting. Located on the Caspian Sea, the country is surrounded by Armenia, Georgia, Iran and Russia.  The first Jews came to the area over 1500 years ago when the Mountain Jews arrived.
The Mountain Jews, who are also known as the Persian Jews first arrived sometime before the 5th century. The Mountain Jews have a history well over 2000 years old.
According to their own tradition, the Mountain Jews believe they are descended from the Lost Tribes who left what is now Israel after the destruction of the First Temple. After leaving Israel they made their way through Syria and Babylon before arriving in Persia. Finally their ancestors came to live in southern Azerbaijan, which is now the northern part of Iran. 

While living in southern Azerbaijan the Jews adopted Tat, which was the language of the native Muslim people. They adopted the language but remained Jewish. Their language over time has evolved into a very distinct dialect, Juhuri, which incorporates many parts of the ancient Hebrew language.
The first Ashkenazic Jews started arriving in Azerbaijan in the 1800's. It was at this time that the Czar of Russia first sent Ashkenazic Jews into the area. Another wave of Ashkenazim came during World War II in an attempt to escape the Nazis.
Today, most of the more than 15,000 Jews of Azerbaijan live in cities such as Baku, which is home to the majority of the community, and Quba and Grozny.
The overall population of the Jewish community has shrunk from where it was as recently as the 1990's. At that time there were more than 75,000 Jews. The decline in population can probably be blamed on economic conditions, and not anti-semitism which has for the most part not been a problem to the Jews. Yes, while the Soviet Union was in control they did seize many buildings and property, however the leaders today have returned many of those buildings, including the synagogues back to the people.
The fact that many of the Jews have no immigrated to Russia, Israel and the United States is because they are seeking employment or because the young people are looking for a place to get a better education.

IAJGS 2015

Now only 2 months away, hope to see you there.

The Jews of Algeria

Even though the Jewish history of Algeria dates all the way to the first century of the Common Era, it wasn't until the 14th century that Jews really started arriving in the country. Those 14th century Jews were Sephardic Jews fleeing Spain and the persecutions there. About 100 years later those fleeing the Spanish Inquisition also fled to Algeria.
Many of these Jews who fled the Inquisition, made their way to the port towns of North Africa. There were large Jewish communities in places such as Algiers, Bejaia, Mostaganem and Oran. Later they also settled more inland, in places such like Costantine. During the 1500's and 1600's the Jews from the city of Livorno in Italy started arriving in Algeria.

These Jews, who were traders and businessmen did very well trading between the business centers of Europe and their new home in the Ottoman Empire. It was in the middle of the 19th century when life began to change for the Jews of Algeria.
In the 1830 there were about 15,000 Jews in Algeria, most still in the coastal areas. More than a third of those lived in Algiers, which was about 1/5 of the population of the city. This was the time of the French Conquest. At first the government allowed the Jews and Muslims to keep their own laws and courts.
In 1841, this began to change and the Rabbinical courts were placed French jurisdiction as were the Algerian courts. In 1845, the French further reorganized and appointed French Askenazic Jews to serve as the Chief Rabbis in each area, ruling over the Sephardic Jews. They were to be loyal to France.
This began to change the relationship between the Jews and the government of Algeria.
Just prior to World War II, the Jewish population of Algeria was about 125,000. This had grown to just under 150,000 by the early 1950's. Algeria gained its independence in 1962, and almost immediately the government started harassing the Jewish community. It sanctioned them and denied them some of the rights they had which had helped them economically. Because of these actions over 90% of the Jewish population immigrated to France. In 1994, a terrorist group announced its plans to eliminate the entirety of the Jewish population. This led to the majority of the remaining Jews to flee to Israel and the closing of their synagogue in Algeria.
With most of the population fleeing to France and Israel, there is not a great amount of records of the Algerian Jews coming to the United States. There are a few however, such as this record which shows Jacob Benarroch, who states that he is a Hebrew, born in Algiers, Algeria, who arrived in New York on board the ship Pannonia on 16 Apr 1913.

There are also not a great deal of Algeria specific genealogical records of the Algerian Jews. However, there is a great website for finding the Jews in the Civil registration records of Algeria. The website Genbriand Chronotheque Genealogique has the Civil Records for Metropolitan France, Overseas Territories and Old French Colonies. This includes Algeria.

The sit is easy to use. The site allows you to research the civil registers from 1830-1912, using the form included.

I performed a very simple search for all records for the surname Cohen. There were almost 5,800 entries returned. The image below shows the first of 290 pages of results. Once the entry is identified, if you click on the icon just to the right of the entry number, who can view the original record.

The image associated with the first entry is located below. This should be a great help for all researchers with French or Algerian ancestry.

The House of Battat of Baghdad, Iraq

To study the House of Battat, is to study the history of Babylonian Jews. They both share a long, rich history. In his work titled "A Genealogy of the House of Battat (FHL Film #1031332 item 1), Ezra M. Battat, documents this incredible family. The Battat family first took a surname in 1750 when Reuben Ezekial Battat and his sons began to use the name. As Mr Battat writes "Among the possessions of Reuben Battat was a farm in whose midst was a pond in which he raised ducks and geese- "bat" in Arabic"
Even though the members of the family are based in Iraq, they are spread over many countries including Israel, Turkey, Lebanon, Burma and the United States. Amongst the notables members of the family are:

• Reuben Ezekiel Battat (1750-1855). Born and died in Baghdad, he was a prosperous landowner and merchant. His son;
• Abdallah Reuben Ezekiel Battat (1770-1820). Born in Baghdad, he was hanged by the Ottomans in about 1820. A banker, he was hanged for "economic sabotage against the Sultan". His grandson;
• Mozes Ezra Reuben Bassat (1840-1919). Born in Baghdad and died in Basra. He was an importer of pearls, amber and corals. He was head of the Great Synagogue of Baghdad which he helped build.

This book is a great source for anyone wanting to know more about their own family from this time. The history of this family is truly inspirational. The records of this family have been added to The Knowles Collection- Jews of Africa and the Orient database.