Selective Inclusion: Integration and Isolation of Jews in Medieval Italy (original) (raw)
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Jews as citizens in late medieval and Renaissance Italy: The Case of Isacco da Pisa
Jewish History 25, no. 3/4 (2011): 269–318., 2011
Our essay begins with an acknowledgment of the seminal contributions of Vittore Colorni and Ariel Toaff but then criticizes their narrow focus on demonstrating that the citizenship status of Jewish inhabitants in central and northern Italy, apart from holding public office and admission to the liberal professions, was basically on par with that of nonJewish citizens. We argue, instead, that not all Jews became citizens of the localities in which they resided; and, moreover, that Jewish inhabitants (habitatores) enjoyed a robust bundle of rights, privileges, and protections under the ius commune, local statutes, and Capitoli, whether or not they acquired citizenship. Even when Jews like members of the da Pisa family acquired local citizenship, they continued to be identified as habitatores. As a matter of law, the status of cives and that of long-term noncitizen habitatores were treated as virtually identical. Citizenship, assuredly a valuable status, was nevertheless only one of the potential sources of the legal rights and obligations of Jews in late medieval and Renaissance Italy. By reconsidering the civic status of Jews within an expansive jurisprudential framework and drawing on untapped sources, our paper provides fresh perspectives that shifts the debate into more productive terrain. With Osvaldo Cavallar. “Jews as Citizens in Late Medieval and Renaissance Italy: The Case of Isacco da Pisa.” Jewish History 25, no. 3/4 (2011): 269–318.
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This paper explores the intricate relationship between the Jewish community of Venice and the broader socio-political and religious transformations that took place during the 16th century, particularly in the context of the Protestant Reformation. It examines how the Reformation, while primarily a Christian movement, had significant and lasting impacts on the Jews of Venice, influencing their economic roles, intellectual contributions, and social standing within the city. The formation of the Venetian Ghetto in 1516 and its subsequent influence on Jewish life is analyzed alongside the broader dynamics of religious tolerance, cultural exchange, and economic resilience that characterized Venice during this period. By employing a multidisciplinary approach, this study delves into the unique position of Venice as a crossroads of religious ideas and its pragmatic approach to religious tolerance, which allowed the Jewish community to thrive despite the physical and social constraints imposed by the Ghetto. The paper also highlights the pivotal role of Jewish printers and scholars in preserving and disseminating Hebrew texts, contributing to a cultural renaissance that paralleled the intellectual fervor of the Reformation. Through this exploration, the paper sheds light on the resilience and adaptability of the Venetian Jewish community, offering a nuanced perspective on their contributions to the economic and intellectual life of early modern Europe.
in: Yosef Kaplan (ed.), Religious Changes and Cultural Transformations in the Early Modern Western Sephardic Communities, Brill: Boston and Leiden, 2019
Based on the analysis of a case study from Ancona, this article proposes to reread the beginning of the ghettoization in the Papal States (1555) within both the Western Sephardic Diasporas and the so-long Italian Wars (1494-1555). The breaking of an engagement that was celebrated in Ancona in the winter of 1555 (and therefore in the months which preceded the birth of the ghettos and the opening of proceedings against Marranos), and the lengthy legal controversy that followed it, which was argued in front of a regular Christian magistracy between 1555 and 1563, offers ideas for an effort to answer important questions.
The Cambridge History of Judaism, vol. 7: The Early Modern World, 2017
Chapter 32 of The Cambridge History of Judaism, vol. 7: The Early Modern World, 1500-1815 (Cambridge University Press, 2017), ed. by Jonathan Karp and Adam Sutcliffe.