The Role of Sephardic Women in Life Cycle and Festival Events^*
Annette B. Fromm^**

Three special duties governed the traditional lives of Jewish women according to Halakhah. They serve as the framework for this discussion of women’s traditions in the Sephardic world. First is the separation of dough in preparation of the Sabbath loaves, hallah, an action which signifies the home; next, the ritual bath, the mikvah, which represents the life cycle; and finally, the kindling of the Sabbath candles, the weekly enactment symbolizing the annual cycle of festivals.

There are, however, four general considerations with which any survey of Sephardic Jewry must begin. First is to geographically identify the Sephardic world. In this article, the content is limited to the Ottoman Empire and the Balkans, where Sephardic traditional life flourished since the establishment of exile communities in the late fifteenth century. Many Spanish and Portuguese Jews and conversos who fled persecutions in their homes on the Iberian Peninsula found refuge in the eastern Mediterranean. Their culture is based upon a rich and proud Judeo-Spanish heritage which they carried with them from their homelands and perpetuated afar.

Secondly, the traditional culture of the Ottoman Sephardim has often been influenced and impacted by their non-Jewish neighbors. Because they did not live in social and cultural isolation either in Spain or in the Eastern Mediterranean, the Ottoman Balkan Sephardim assimilated external traditions into their own. Language, food, and dress are among the superficial cultural components which reflect the influences of Muslim, Greek Orthodox, and Slavic cultures.

The third notion which runs through any consideration of Jewish traditional culture is that while many practices of the Sephardic Jews are based upon the basic framework upholding Jewish law, halakha, many others are based on custom, or minhag. Therefore, many customs are unique to the Ottoman Sephardic world as a whole, as well as to particular communities in the region.

Finally, the following is a discussion of women’s traditions. In Jewish life, the role of women traditionally was exclusively relegated to that of wife and mother. A number of rights or privileges which stemmed from Jewish law and custom colored their expressive culture. The home was the realm of the woman. There, she led the family. The formal rituals associated with life cycle customs were often directed by the men, while women inserted their influence in certain practices and celebrations. The festival cycle operated on two parallel levels, the synagogue and the home. Again, the latter was the domain of the woman and in the home traditional culture associated with holiday observations was usually shaped by the woman of the house.

 

Separation of dough, the home

The role of the Sephardic woman in the home often intersected with her role in both life cycle events and holiday or festival celebrations. Curiously, this is the one area for which the least amount of documentary material exists. Generally speaking, the female characteristics which are considered pillars of righteousness in Judaism – charity and hospitality, humility, and faith – have been strongly upheld by Sephardic women. Other feminine traits which are more universal are cleanliness, honesty, motherly love, discretion, thrift, and cleverness in various forms are also important markers of womanly practices and attainment in the Ottoman Sephardic world. Charity was expressed in the support of a variety of hevrot, societies that assisted special causes in the community. One of the most significant was the Hakhnasat Kallah, the society that provided dowries for brides and care for orphans. Married women also played a significant role in the Hevra Kadisha, the honorary burial society which functioned in every community. At Purim, women often collected money for the hevrot such as the Matan Baseter as well as for the Zionist organizations including the Keren Keyemet, Keren Hayesod.

Every young woman was expected to acquire habits of good housekeeping and hospitality before she became a bride, otherwise she may not find a suitable husband or she might end up with a poor one. Every little girl learned to maintain a clean household as she hung the bed linens outside to air every day or assisted in the weekly cleaning for the Sabbath. The proper way to serve guests, especially those who were entertained in the formal saloni (living room) with the best serving ware rather than in the homey kitchen, was also instilled in every young girl through observation and helping from a young age. Even the briefest visit required the offering of some form of refreshment: a cup of thick Turkish or Greek coffee, with a spoonful of sweet dulce or glyko (Greek, sweet) accompanied by a glass of cold water. The role of every young engaged woman who was put through her paces during a ritual proffering of refreshments to the visiting future family will be discussed below.

Until the late nineteenth century and the establishment of the Alliance Israelite Universelle schools, the French philanthropic and educational organization, most Sephardic girls acquired their education alongside their mothers. It was felt that daughters should learn at home as much about their Jewish heritage as they needed to know in order to keep a Jewish home and raise a Jewish family. They were taught about the significance of the holidays, traditions followed with their observance, traditional foods, and other practices and beliefs.

The Ritual bath, life cycle

Naciemiento, casamiento y mortaja, del cielo baja

Birth, wedding, and shrouds come down from heaven

Jewish weddings Sephardic Songs and Traditions

The wedding, according to Rafael Patai is the “greatest and most joyous ceremony known to folk societies …” (Patai 1960, 26). It is actually made up of innumerable customs, not simply a single ceremony. In fact, the wedding became a “prolonged period in the life of two young people and the two families concerned” (ibid.). In the Sephardic world, marriages were traditionally arranged exclusively through the process of matchmaking. Girls were frequently promised at the young age of nine or ten and usually married somewhere between the ages of twelve and sixteen. It was not an uncommon occurrence for the girls to be betrothed to and marry an uncle or a first cousin¹.

Three distinct and interrelated rituals comprised the marriage which brought together two families. Preparations often began many months in advance of the actual ceremony. First, the negotiation between the parents of the two young people took place. It was frequently conducted in public. At this occasion, the times of the engagement and the wedding ceremony were agreed upon. The parents also agreed upon the gifts which would be exchanged by the two young people or families. The prospective bride traditionally had no role in these early arrangements. The formal betrothal or engagement, or desposorio, was the second of three rituals. It was often celebrated on the same day as the wedding, sometimes after a period of intervening time. The evening following the engagement was marked with a joyful exchange of gifts. The young man and his family came to the home of the young woman with a tray of jewelry, perfume, and sugared almonds. At this time, the man gave his fiancée something of value, often a ring. It was considered a token of betrothal. With the acceptance of the gift, the woman was considered the man’s wife, even though no marriage ceremony had been enacted and they did not yet live together.

The occasion of the engagement presented the opportunity when the bride-to-be first exhibited her much sought after housewifely skills, as mentioned above. The ritual of serving of dulce or glyko (Greek), sweets made of preserved fruits such as orange peel, rose petals, quinces with almonds, and so forth, demonstrated the young woman’s ability to serve with humility and graceful skills. A hand-worked silver tray was set with a crystal bowl of the syrup-like sweet preserve along with a display of ornate silver spoons, glasses of water, and hand embroidered napkins. Each guest was modestly served in turn. The father of the bridegroom was usually waited upon first as a sign of respect. Each would take a spoonful of dulce and after eating it deposit their spoon in a glass of water. Through this small ritual, the young woman was judged on the presentation of her tray of sweets, la tavla de dulces, and her skill in serving. According to Nehama (1978, 395-6), the Jewish women of Salonika had the best reputation and were the most respected of all Sephardic women in the Eastern Mediterranean because of their housewifely skills. Men from Constantinople came to Salonika seeking wives and their significant dowries.

Pressman quotes Esther Juhasz who wrote that, “The set of silver utensils for serving sweets was one of the most important items brought by the Jewish bride of Izmir in her dowry,” Juhasz continues that this practice served two purposes: “to express the joy connected with the arrival of a guest” and “to placate evil spirits … probably based on the belief that spirits and demons can be tempted or diverted from their evil intentions if they are served something sweet” (Pressman, 2017). She also quotes Stella Cohen, the author of Stella’s Sephardic Table: Jewish Family Recipes from the Mediterranean Island of Rhodes, who wrote, “My grandmother from the Belgian Congo … as well as my mother, Marie Hanan, would greet guests for tea or serve dulses after a meal with Turkish coffee. They were always presented in a tavla de dulses, with a kucharera. It was also customary to serve sharope as well for a banyo de novia [bridal shower] or weddings …” (ibid.).

The preparation of the bride’s trousseau, ashugar, and dowry was a lengthy and complex process. Of course, girls and their mothers started well in advance of the matchmaking process by embroidering bed linens, towels, and undergarments in anticipation of this significant life event. Without the finery and her dowry, a Sephardic bride had a difficult time finding a suitable mate of the same or higher social level. As it was said:

“Lo que no se hace a la boda, no se hace en ninguna hora.”
She who did not have it at the wedding, will not have it any other time”
(Nehama 1978, 396).

Immediately before the wedding ceremony, the “wool washing” took place; this activity was a special event. Raw wool gathered from shepherds from the neighboring countryside was meticulously washed and dried for the mattresses and pillows which were an important part of the dowry. Women friends and family members of the bride and groom were invited to participate in the festivities of the day. The work was joyfully carried out to the sound of local music and followed by a meal and sweets shared by all. Lavaba la blanca ninya [The fair young maiden was washing]² was traditionally sung when the wool for the wedding dress was being washed. It tells the story of a soldier who returns from an extended period at war who sees his wife washing clothes.

The ketubah, or the formulaic wedding contract written in Aramaic, listed the money, material goods including the trousseau and household goods, and property, in other words, the entire dowry, which the wife conveyed to the marriage. This exchange varied based on the socio-economic standing and ability of the bride’s family. Another item enumerated in the ketubah specified the bride’s purity, that she was a virgin. In addition, the ketubah was a unique document that ensured the wife’s well-being in the event of a divorce. In such a case that a husband sought a get, document of divorce, the dowry would be returned to the bride.

The week of the wedding was busy, filled with many related activities. From community to community in the Ottoman Balkans, variations of the theme existed. In Rhodes, the wedding frequently took place on a Friday. Thus, on Thursday, the day before the ceremony, the bridegroom-to-be sent his fiancée a plate of henna surrounded by lit candles. She distributed the henna to women in her family and her girlfriends. Whether the henna was used to color their hair or to decorate their hands, as in the Muslim tradition, is not spelled out in the literature. Also in Rhodes, the trousseau was transported to the couple’s new home after the wedding, not beforehand.

In Salonika, the wedding traditionally took place on a Tuesday. The Saturday prior to the ceremony was known as the night of the almosama.³ The bride who was dressed in her finest sat motionless in the midst of singing, dancing, and merry-making. She was bedecked with gifts of gold jewelry. This was a tradition also practiced by Muslims in the Ottoman Empire during their week-long wedding festivities.

Sunday of the week prior to the wedding in Salonika was the day of the preciado d’el ashugar, the appraisal and the transportation of the trousseau and dowry from the home of the bride to her bridegroom’s house with the ever-present musical accompaniment. Higher officials in the Jewish community evaluated all of the items in the dowry as they were proudly displayed in the saloni or best room of the bride’s patriarchal room. The appraisal was included in the text of the ketubah. When the trousseau was transported to the groom’s home, he threw rice, sweets, and coins at the bride, to bring sweetness, prosperity, and children to their new life together. Poco le das, la mi consuegra (You’re giving too little, my in-law) was the song of the groom’s mother upon seeing the dowry which the young woman was bringing with her.⁴

With a returning procession, the bridegroom sent his intended a special gift, the bogcha, literally a cloth. This was a bundle comprised of the bathing utensils for the ritual bath along with assorted sweets. All of these goodies which she needed for her visit to the mikvah were placed on a tray or in a basket and wrapped in a silk cloth. On Monday, before the wedding, the bride-to-be was escorted to the hamam, or mikvah, surrounded by song and dance. Another party was held there, hosted by the mother-of-the-groom; gifts of toiletries were given to the bride-to-be.

Traditionally, well-known Judeo-Spanish romanças, or ballads,⁵ often rich with sexual symbolism were sung at the time. The visit to the mikvah was also marked by the eating of sweets and the telling of off-color jokes. Some ballads associated with weddings include La vuelta del marido (The husband's return) and Arbolera, arbolera (Tree, tree)⁶ and Morenica.⁷

On the day of the marriage ceremony in Salonika, a procession took the bride from her father’s home to that of the bridegroom. Here, as at the time of the transfer of the trousseau, the groom threw rice, sweets, and coins at the bride. The huppah, often made of a parochet⁸, under which the ceremony was performed, was set up in the house following the synagogue ceremony.

On Wednesday morning following the wedding night, the noche del enciero, the new bride donned the kofya,⁹ the distinctive, traditional headdress worn by married women in Salonika. It was a small brocade cap with matching brocade border that fit at the hairline. At the top, a scarlet silk cloth sewn with seed pearls was attached. This head covering possibly came originally from sixteenth century Persia though it had been distinctly identified with Spanish origins. With this small gesture, the young Sephardic woman crossed a new threshold in her life. The custom of the married woman modestly covering her hair began changing in the late nineteenth, early twentieth century as the Sephardic Ottomans began modernizing.

For seven days following the wedding, the couple did not leave the house. This was a week with few obligations. Each day the couple was entertained by family members and friends. Toward the end of the week, the bride began to ritually display her housewifely skills and commenced her role in this new stage of life. Each act included some activity she would continue the rest of her life. On Wednesday, as she cleaned rice for the first time family members threw old coins into the rice to bring good fortune and male children. For another time, gold lires for good luck were part of the overall wedding rituals. On Thursday evening, the new wife started preparing her first batch of hallah to be baked the following day. On Friday, the groom went to the market and bought a large, live fish for the Shabbat meal. The bride was directed to jump over the pot holding the fish three times. This ritual, meant to invoke fertility, was linked with one of the mitzvot associated with the Jewish wedding, that the newlywed couple “be blessed by many children as the fish of the sea” (Patai 1960, 28).

Once married, the Sephardic woman was expected to become pregnant. If she did not do so quickly, the family took recourse to magical remedies. Various types of traditional remedies which the married woman was expected to eat were relied upon to bring success. The indulco, a mixture of different elements including mumia, dried flesh, was one of the most popular charms given to women including for barrenness. It involved a complicated procedure including the segregation of the woman and the repeated application of the charm which was eaten and scattered on the floor around the bed. The rabbis, however, wholeheartedly disapproved of these customs although they continued to flourish and the instructions were passed from one woman to another.

Other less invasive cures for barrenness were more acceptable to the religious leadership. In one instance, three jars were hung between two heavily laden fruit trees. One jar was filled with sugar water, another with rose water, and the third with water from a nearly well that had been blessed by the local rabbi. The following morning, the lady in need of a cure would drink from the three jars, and the local curer would intone some words which would take off the state or malady of infertility. This ritual, however, could only be effective if performed on the15th of Shevat, in other words, Tu B’Shevat, known at the new year of the trees, a time when plants were encouraged to grow. In Izmir, Turkey, women said a blessing on grape vines based on a text in the Psalms (128:3): “Your wife should be as fruitful as the vine” (Around the World).

The belief in the evil eye was common in many communities worldwide, Jewish and other. It was often thought to be associated with people who were particularly vulnerable such as pregnant women and newly born babies. Behind this tradition was the concept that one person would wish to harm another and could do so by speaking against or acting against the other in some way. The tradition of using amulets to counteract the evil eye and to guard against illness, bring luck, heal wounds and even conjure the evil eye was a frequent custom in the Sephardic world. Amulets, kameoth or alephs, took many different forms (Nehama 1976, 364).

In some communities, an amulet in the form of a hand, or mano or yad (Hebrew), was placed in the newborn baby’s crib to protect the child. The use of the mano comes from the Biblical story which tells of how Rebecca went out for the first time after giving birth and Eliezer of Damascus gave her a hand to ward off the evil spirits. In Komotini in northeastern Greece, specific sweets were prepared in anticipation for the birth of a child. Some of these sweets also served as amulets to ward off the evil eye. Marzipan, a sweet made of almond paste, was made in the shape of a hand and covered with gold leaf. A sprig of sweet smelling plant known to be effective against the evil eye was placed at the center of the charm.¹⁰

Other amulets were made to protect the mother. A woman who had recently given birth in Izmir wore a crimson silk headscarf decorated with gold thread and seed pearls as an amulet against the efforts of Lilith. She would wear this yemeni for forty days after the birth, the set period of time when she was not allowed to leave the house. The woman who has just given birth was known as a parida in Judeo-Spanish. After the birth of the child, special prayers were offered at the synagogue to help the parida with a complete recovery.

One of the most well-known oral traditions in Sephardic communities is proverbs, or refranes. Many proverbs collected in the Ottoman Balkans preserve sentiments felt about children, especially girls, in what was a distinctly patriarchal society. For example:

“Una fija, una gravina; dos, con savor, tres, mal es; cuatro, crevato; cinco, suspiro; sex, sex fihas para la madre y mala vida per el padre;”

“One daughter, a carnation; two, a delight; three, it is bad; four, frightening; five, a sigh; six, six daughters for the mother and a rotten life for the father.”

“Quien nino cria, oro fila; quien nina cria, lana fila; a la fin del ano o puliada o podrida;”

“Whoever raises a son spins gold; whoever raises a daughter spins wool; at the end of the year it will be moth-eaten,” speaks to the value of a son over a daughter.

“La fija en la faxa, la axugar en la caxa;”

“The daughter still in diapers, the trousseau in the trunk,” addresses how early the family needs to prepare the girl’s trousseau.

The ritual of circumcision, brit millah, is generally comprised primarily of male-oriented and male-controlled actions; the men govern and enact much of the traditional ritual. But Sephardic women play a central role in this life cycle event. Women in Salonika stayed at the side of the mother on the night before the circumcision entertaining her with song and dance. In Rhodes, the godmother carried the infant to the synagogue on a cushion accompanied by friends and family, singing and dancing. She also returned the child to the home. The embroidered pillowcases on which the infant was held at the brit millah were often part of the mother’s trousseau.

At the brit millah, fragrant colognes, such as rose water, and koufetes, favors of lace-wrapped candy-coated almonds, were distributed to the guests. The custom of giving fragrances is attributed to Genesis 2:7, “And G-d breathed into his nostrils the breath of life: and man became a living soul.” As the child was given his name it was believed that he was also given his soul. “We thank G-d for the sense of smell, which reminds us of the original infusion of the soul of man…” (Dobrinsky 1986, 22). The sandak was selected in a prescribed manner. The parents of the father served for the first child; the mother’s parents served for the second child.

Shortly after the birth of a daughter, when the mother felt up to having company, the parents hosted a banquet for family and guests at which the child was named. The rabbi held the baby girl and made the blessings then named her. In medieval Spain, both Christians and Jews believed that fairies (las fadas) from the underworld who were not invited to the party would harm the baby. During the gathering, the baby was traditionally passed to all guests to fool the fairies. Sephardic Jews brought this practice for welcoming girls which became known as “las fadas” from Spain to the Balkans.

Several traditions associated with the final step on the ladder of life, death, rested in the hands of the Sephardic woman. Traditionally, elderly women prepared their mortaja, or shroud, in advance for the eventuality of their death. Parties accompanied every stage through life and even this somber activity was the occasion of a party. Women joined together to accomplish this gloomy task, in anticipation of the end of life. When the chore was completed, they threw koufetes onto the completed shrouds. In an interview, the noted singer Flory Jagoda recalled the making of the mortaja.

It was also a party (to celebrate the making of the shroud), a happy party with lots of singing, dancing, food and the men would lay on the floor. … the wife would sew the shroud and the husband would try it on. … It is very interesting and full of jokes: “Oh! It is too tight! Open it up a little bit! Don’t get fat!” Everything was for jokes, but the reality was that you would die one day.”

The kindling of the Sabbath, holiday celebrations

The Sabbath is the weekly celebration during which the wife shone, as does the Shabbat Kallah, the Sabbath bride. Her first responsibilities associated with the weekly commemoration started toward the end of the first week of married life as already described above. After the rituals are enacted and life settled into routines, shopping and cooking for the Sabbath were done on Thursday and Friday morning. Customarily, the men did the shopping in the local open-air markets. The women concentrated on cleaning the house, cooking, and baking the special foods for their Sabbath meals. Affluent families in Rhodes and other Eastern Mediterranean Jewish communities usually had a wood burning oven in a detached kitchen behind their home. As a form of tsedakah, or charitable giving, these women baked for their poorer neighbors.

In many homes a lampara, a light made of wicks floating in oil, was kindled for the Sabbath in place of wax candles. In some communities, seven wicks were kindled to honor the seven days of the week. Some families lit only three. Children were blessed after the Kiddush and they, in turn, kissed the hands of their grandparents and parents.

On Friday night, fish dishes were usually served as the main course. They symbolized the forward movement of the fish, which indicated prosperity. The Saturday morning breakfast, or desayuno, included cheese or vegetable borekas, boyos, bolemas, types of savory pastry turnovers, served with hard-cooked eggs, olives, cheeses, melons, grapes, and other fruits. As in other Jewish communities worldwide, Ottoman Sephardic women prepared special dishes for the Sabbath which could be kept warm all day.

The role of the women in the calendar cycle of holiday celebrations was primarily evidenced in preparations in the home and of the meals for the holiday and informally instructing the children in the home. Not all holidays are discussed below, only a select few where the women had particularly significant responsibilities.

Rosh Hashanah. The Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah, and the series of holidays immediately following it were an especially significant time of the year. It was a time replete with symbolic meanings on many levels. One of the obligations of the wife and mother was to prepare foods which held distinct meanings for the awe-inspiring season. For example, at the Rosh Hashanah meal in many Ottoman Sephardic homes, the head of a fish or a sheep was served first to the head of the household, and then to everyone else in turn. By eating this food at this particular time, each person could be like the head (rosh, Hebrew) and be in the lead in all aspects of life in the New Year. A seasonal ingredient in a number of foods, including the hallah, was pumpkin, calabasa. The thick covering of the pumpkin which represented G-d, who protects and strengthens, accounted for its inclusion in the bread and other menu items. The round shape of the vegetable symbolized the wishes for a well-rounded and full year. The New Year season ended with the celebration of Sukkoth and the building of the Sukkah. Women participated by helping prepare decorations for the temporary structure usually built alongside their home. Among the specialties were biscochos, or cookies, baked in the forms of rings or magen davids for that purpose.

Hanukah. Hanukah was a festival celebrated with eight days of feasting and fun primarily for the children. Again, the women’s responsibilities were predominantly centered on preparing appropriate foods for the season. Fried foods prepared during the holiday which recalled the miracle of the oil central to the Hanukah story were universally recognized staples in all Jewish communities. Bimuelos, the fried delight made in many Sephardic kitchens, were almost identical to buñelos made by Spanish-speaking non-Jews. On the final day of the week-long celebration, Turkish Jews gathered for a potluck dinner or picnic called a merenda to which relatives and close friends were invited; each contributed a part of the meal. The ideal wife was also an organizer par excellence. It was said that Hanukah, as celebrated by the Sephardic Jews was:

“El buen dia de la tripa;”

“A good day for the stomach!”

Sephardic women and their resources were called upon during the winter season for the Sabbath which fell during Hanukah. Falling on Rosh Hodesh Tevet this day was known as the “Shabbat of clothing the poor;” clothes were brought to the synagogue for the needy. The women of the community took responsibility to organize and distribute the contributions in a way that both donors and recipients remained totally anonymous.

Purim. Springtime celebrations of Purim took place formally in the context of the synagogue and informally on the streets of the Jewish neighborhoods. Two connotations were applied to the Sabbath which fell before Purim. It was called Shabbat de Foulares, from the Portuguese for gift or present. In Judeo-Spanish, a foulare was a sweet bread shaped like a human foot with a hard-boiled egg baked in the top of it. For their Easter celebrations in the same season, Greek Orthodox neighbors baked a braided bread into which hard-boiled eggs that had been dyed red were baked. The Sephardic version symbolized the hanging of Haman. In addition, this special Sabbath was also called the Shabbat HaKallot, the Sabbath of the Brides. It was traditional for marriages to be arranged on this Sabbath prior to Purim. Brides were customarily sent the tray of sweets and also received a tray of new clothes in the first year of marriage on the Sabbath of the Brides. The day before Purim is the Fast of Esther, and women especially observed the fast.

Other Purim traditions related to raising money for poor community members. In Izmir, a family member, usually a wife or grandmother, seated themselves at the doorway of their house with a small bowl. When holiday visitors entered, they would leave a monetary contribution to be distributed to the poor. In other communities, Sephardic children went house-to-house in the Jewish neighborhoods performing a play they wrote based on the story of Esther and collected money for the poor. The act of tsedakah practiced at this time was often reinforced by their mothers during lessons at home. This performance suggests another case of cross-cultural sharing. Greek Orthodox children also went door-to-door singing kalenda (Greek), playful songs, to kick off the Lenten season prior to Easter.

Passover. Passover was another family-centered festival of remembrance and commemoration. In the short period of time between Purim and Passover, housewives meticulously cleaned their homes. In the early decades of the twentieth century, teachers at the Alliance Israelite Universelle schools in the region recorded their observations of the back-breaking work of Ottoman Sephardic women in preparation for this holiday. Furniture was moved out of the houses obstructing narrow, cobblestone streets. Cauldrons filled with water were set on wood-burning fires in the middle of the roads and the houses were thoroughly cleaned by the women, from the depths of the cellars to the cobwebs in the attics. Curtains were washed and ironed. In the tradition of the best housewives of the Eastern Mediterranean, interior walls and outside sidewalks were whitewashed.

On the evening of the day before the start of Passover, every wife prepared a plate with ten pieces of bread and a knife and the remains of the hadassim (myrtle) and avarot (willow) from Sukkoth. Her husband was responsible for searching for and disposing of the hametz (leavened bread). He used the avarot to sweep the hametz. The wife took the hadassim to the bakery where the matzoth were baked to be burned as part of the fuel. The Gypsies who were called upon on wintery Saturdays in Salonika to light the heating fires in cold homes were often asked to take the hametz away. It was said of them:

“Dali pan cadina, dali pan mandona”
“Give bread to a Muslim (foreign woman), give bread as commanded.”

 

Conclusion

Sephardic women in the Ottoman Balkans carried with them a significant responsibility. Along with maintaining and nurturing the customs passed down by their mothers, Sephardic women transmitted their knowledge and strong sense of identity to their children. Imagine the world of Ottoman Sephardic women. Whether they made their homes in the great metropolises of Constantinople or Salonika or in regional centers like Rhodes or Izmir or in still smaller provincial communities, the life of the Jewish woman was circumscribed by the unique traditions of their religion combined with customs of the area. They often led a retiring life behind walls and barred windows in houses with courtyards that had to be scrubbed daily. Because of the amount of housework they had, Ottoman Sephardic women usually stayed in their homes, coming out to shop or to meet friends to gossip over a cup of sweet, thick coffee. The favorite meeting place in Rhodes was the fountain in the central square of the Jewish quarter where they gathered water along with the latest news.

The traditional Sephardic woman who was raised by a traditional Sephardic mother saw her life in a prescribed role. She knew that her parents, and later her husband, would provide appropriately for her future. Part of her education included the preparations of the dowry in keeping with her family’s economic situation. She might be sent out of the house to get instruction to use the newly introduced sewing machine. She would join with her mother, her sisters, her grandmothers, and aunts in daily and holiday preparations, learning a traditional repertoire of responsibilities that would be hers as an adult. She also learned some of the rudimentary prayers that she, in turn, would teach her children. This life of work was one in which the Ottoman Sephardic woman had a distinct role and specific responsibilities.

When we consider the Sephardic woman and her roles, we see that decisions were made by the men. Case in point is the marriage. Significant arrangements, such as the engagement, the appraisal of the dowry, and the transmitting of the ketubah remained in the hands of the male members of the family and community. Other activities, however, such as the many steps involved in preparing the dowry and preparing for the visit to the mikvah within the home and caring for the children were in the hands of women.

Women were confined to their homes because of social and cultural mores, with limited outside contact. Their lives were prescribed, from providing the informal education of children and doing charitable work within the community, to daily, weekly, and annual preparations which transmitted a special culture rich in traditions.

Through these examples of the traditional culture perpetuated by women, I have shown that the Ottoman Sephardic woman, like so many other Jewish women, was the keeper of traditions. She meticulously observed the three precepts of feminine piety – the home, the mikvah, and the lighting of Sabbath candles. Furthermore, such customs and traditions help to illuminate the history of the community.

References

Ben–Ami, Issachar, “Beliefs and Customs” in The Jews of the Middle East and North Africa in Modern Times, Reeva Spector Simon, ‎Michael Menachem Laskier, ‎Sara Reguer. New York: Columbia University Press, 2002:180-204.

Ben-Naeh, Yaron, The Ottoman-Jewish Family: General Characteristics. Open Journal of Social Sciences Vol 5 (2017) 25-45.

Dobrinsky, Herbert C., “The Life Cycle as Experienced in the Sephardic Traditions,” in Exploring Sephardic Customs and Traditions, Marc D. Angel, editor. N.J.: Ktav Publishing House, 2000:54-70.

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* This paper was originally delivered as part of the Symposium on the Sephardic Woman, Florida International University, Miami, FL February 2, 2003.

** Annette Fromm, is an anthropologist and lecturer in Sephardic studies.

 

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