Les Juifs d'Izmir—Romaniotes

Before the massive influx of Sephardim expelled from Spain and Portugal at the end of the fifteenth century, Smyrna (Izmir) had an ancient Romaniote Jewish presence, of Greek-Byzantine rite and Greek speech, heir to the Jewish communities of the Byzantine world. The arrival of the Sephardim, more numerous and bearers of a rich liturgical and cultural tradition of their own, profoundly transformed the Jewish community of the city. Over time, the Romaniotes were largely assimilated or supplanted by the Sephardic component, which became dominant and stamped the Judaism of Izmir with its Judeo-Spanish character. The local Romaniote tradition thus disappeared almost entirely.

Sources & resources

• Encyclopaedia Judaica — 2e éd., Keter/Macmillan
• Jewish Virtual Library ↗