Sephardic Corner History Series

Yosef ben Halevy was born in Huelva, a province of Andalucia, although the exact date of his birth is not known. He was versed in Hebrew, Aramaic, Latin, Mozarabic and Arab, as well as the Castellano (Spanish), Portuguese, and French of the 15th century. Because of his erudition in languages he was the Governor of Murcia’s official translator. However, when his presence was required by Cristopher Columbus, the governor agreed to let him...Read more...

Isaac Abravanel was born in Lisbon, Portugal in 1437. His ancestors came from a renowned Jewish Spanish family from Seville, forced to emigrate to Portugal after the pogroms of 1391. His grandfather, Samuel Abravanel, had been treasurer to the Castilian kings Henry II and John I.

Isaac Abravanel was a prolific Jewish Scholar and rabbi. One of his major works, his commentary on the Prophets, compares the monarchies described in the...Read more...

Samuel ha-Levi, the protagonist of this story, is believed to have been born in Toledo around 1320
to the family ha Leví Abulafía.

In 1351 Samuel ha Levi Abulafia began to serve in the court of King Peter (“the cruel” for some historians and “the just” for others!), where he eventually exercised a tremendous influence. During this time he reorganized the King’s finances, given that the tax collectors had kept a good...Read more...

For previous articles printed in the Atlanta Jewish times, click here.