RR4 Reading 1

After the Inquisition in Portugal and Spain, a center of Jewish life was established in the Ottoman Empire.
The hospitality of the Ottomans for the Sephardi Jews was praised, fostering a myth that Sultan Bayezid II invited them to settle.
There is no documented evidence supporting this myth, but the Ottoman state functioned as a refuge for Sephardism and Jews from various regions.
Prior to the Spanish expulsion in 1492, the Ottoman Empire had welcomed Jewish immigrants, such as Rabbi Isaac Zarfati, who noted the harsh realities for Jews in Germany and advocated for the Jewish life in Turkey:
- “I proclaim to you that Turkey is a land wherein nothing is lacking, and where, if you will, all shall yet be well with you.”
- Cited the biblical ideal of peaceful living: “Here every man may dwell at peace under his own vine and fig tree.”

The decline of Spanish Jewry paralleled the rise of the Ottoman Empire, a prominent Islamic state during the early modern age.
The Ottoman Empire's origins trace back to around 1300, continually expanding by conquering various principalities and ultimately capturing Constantinople in 1453.
At its zenith, the Ottoman Empire encompassed vast regions, stretching from Algeria to Iraq, and from Hungary to Yemen.
The Ottoman Empire continued to exist until after World War I, although it started to lose territories in Europe by the late 17th to early 18th century.

Many Sephardic Jews arrived in major cities such as Istanbul, Salonika, and Edirne following their expulsion.
By the mid-16th century, around 20,000 Jews resided in Salonika, springing to 30,000–50% of the total population later on.
Ottoman Jewish communities thrived in urban environments characterized by diversity and religious pluralism.

The Ottomans followed lenient Islamic practices concerning their Jewish populations, treating them as dhimmis (protected non-Muslims).
Jews faced few restrictions; their communities managed daily life, economic activities, and religious practices with minimal state interference.
Rabbi Samuel de Medina’s responsum illustrates the socio-economic conditions of the Jews:
- He addressed competition among Jewish merchants in Janina and ruled against prohibiting their trade:
- “…we [Ottoman] Jews live under one sovereign who imposes no restrictions on travel or commercial activities.”
This reflects the self-assuredness of the Sephardi rabbinate shortly after their expulsion.

Jews in the Ottoman Empire maintained their economic prominence, especially in trade and crafts, where they formed mixed guilds with Christians and Muslims.
The textile industry flourished due to the infusion of new techniques from Spanish Jews, although competition from English textiles led to a slow decline.
Jewish networks expanded between the Islamic and Christian worlds, establishing an impressive trading diaspora across the Mediterranean and Atlantic.

An illustrative figure in this diaspora was Doña Gracia Mendes, born to a converso family in 1510 in Portugal.
Following the Inquisition, she moved from Antwerp to Venice, then to Ferrara, and finally to Istanbul, raising significant concerns over her vast estate.
Gracia Mendes leveraged her wealth to influence trade dynamics, attempting to organize boycotts against the papal city of Ancona.

The Sephardi Jews in the Ottoman Empire maintained their cultural heritage by speaking Ladino, a language that became common among Jewish populations.
Despite assimilation in some regions, notable cultural exchanges occurred, blending Ottoman influences with traditional Hispano-Jewish traditions in music and customs.
The preservation of Ladino showcases the unique Hispano-Jewish culture established in the multi-ethnic territories of the Ottoman Empire.
Noteworthy is that while Ladino thrived as the language of popular culture, rabbinic literature primarily remained in Hebrew until the 18th century, when Ladino literature emerged more robustly.