Columbia University
The Italian Academy for Advanced Studies in America

Spring 2010 Symposium:
The Jewish Ghetto of Rome

In connection with Holocaust Remembrance Day

Tuesday, February 16, 2010
5:30-7:30 pm


Speakers: Prof. Kenneth Stow
(University of Haifa, Israel)
“Doing as the Romans Do” . . . But Also Staying Jewish:
The Challenge of Life in the Roman Ghetto, 1555-1870

Dr. Irina Oryshkevich
(Columbia University)
Accommodating the Jews in the “New Jerusalem”
Free and open to the public
Seating is limited and reservations are required: RSVP

In 1555, the Jews of Rome --residents since ancient times-- were forced to live in the "Ghetto," a neighborhood on the bank of the Tiber River. This restriction was part of an attempt to strip the Jews of their culture and hasten their conversion to Christianity, but it had an opposite effect, leading to the development of a vibrant subculture. On the evening of February 16, Professor Stow will speak on the elements of that culture and how it was challenged within the context of a state where religion and politics strove to be one and neither brooked opposition well. Dr. Oryshkevich will offer observations about the urban fabric of Rome.

As seating is limited, we request that you reserve a seat by contacting the Italian Academy at RSVP.
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Europe and the United Nations commemorate the victims of the Shoah each winter on the date when Auschwitz was liberated in 1945. The Italian Academy marks Holocaust Remembrance Day with academic events exploring issues of discrimination and crimes against humanity.
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About the Speakers:

Kenneth Stow is Professor of Jewish History Emeritus at University of Haifa and has been named visiting professor at Yale University, Smith College, Hebrew University in Jerusalem, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, University of Toronto, and at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, among others. He is the author of many books and articles, and nearly 25 years ago, he founded --and still edits-- the international journal Jewish History.

Irina Oryshkevich is an art historian studying Rome from late antiquity to the early modern period; she has been a fellow at the Italian Academy and at the Society of Fellows at Columbia University and a recipient of a grant from the American Association of University Women.

The Italian Academy is located at 1161 Amsterdam Avenue between 116th and 118th Streets.
For further information, please contact Allison Jeffrey (aj211@columbia.edu).