TO ALL-

My wife is a native Spanish speaker and I can't fall asleep, so I thought I'd pose this question now. Where in Israel can one find concentrations of Spanish speaking Jews--Argentinians, Mexicans, etc.? Just curious. Thanks.

I don't know, but there were loads of them in Ulpan Etzion when I was there.

I think the place you're looking for is called Miami.

Eli

I don't know if there's a specific neighbourhood where Spanish-speakers are concentrated. I have a friend from Venezuela who lives in Ramat Eshkol, there's a Spanish speaking family on my block here in Shaarei Chessed/Rechavia. But I don't really know.

I think there are a bunch in Ra'anana.

Muchas gracias, Senora

Maybe in Tsafed? Long years ago much kabbalists from Spain took up residence in this place.

Beer Sheva has an insane amount of Ashkenazi argentines that are of russian origin and just blend in with the russians,Also a few Spanish Morrocans there as well

There's quite a few Latin American olim living in Kiryat Bialik (close to Haifa). Also they're bound to get together somewhere in Tel Aviv when there's a big soccer match like Boca vs. River.

Isn't there a Portuguese shul in Rechavia somewhere?? Maybe near the Gra?

1) Theres only 1 "Portuguese" shul in all of eretz yisrael its not even a shul really,more of a minyan that meets in the Istanbuli shul in Yerushalayim old city, they follow the london version of the "portuguese" rite

2) Portuguse isn't spanish anymore than dutch is yiddish,portuguese may look like spanish written but sounds strange to spanish speakers, it sounds slavic listen http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OBoIXRhDDAc

3) even if Portuguesewas Spanish, no "Portuguese jews"(ie western sephardim not modern jews in portugal) speak portuguese, they speak dutch(in holland) or english(in London,USA,Caribbean) almost exclusively, "Portuguese Jews" Is a misnomer really,it just refers to origin, like "Ashkenazi" how many non-Yekke Ashkenazim speak "Ashkenazit" (Ie Germanit,the language of Ashkenaz) very few most Speak Yiddish,Russian,English,Polish even Spanish.

the vast majority of Spanish speaking Jews in Eretz Israel and abroad are of Ashkenazi origin and blend with other Ashkenazi Jews, Just as you guys might be shocked that some of the Tawils,Antebis,and Dweks among you are Mexican or Panamanian, it doesnt come up. they blend with the general Syrian population.

Thank you for enlightening me. Though the friend in Rechavia who is Dutch was the one who pointed out the shul to me.. Interesting that the Spanish-Portuguese shul in Manhattan (beautiful by the way) is just that: Spanish and Portuguese. I wonder why..?

what do you mean? the congregants are mostly ashkenazim,a few Mizrachim and they have a greek rabbi(Rabbi Angel,a great man and a scholar of ladino) and a Ashkenazi Hazzan (Ira rhode,great man who took time to learn the spanish portuguese dutch rite), there a few decendants of the "grandees" the jews from holand who came to precolonial new amsterdam via brazil but they arent "pure" or anything, still its gotta be freaky being more "American" (ie descending from Colonial times) than most American Anglo Goyim!

the whole spanish portuguese nusach tho has no mesorah,even acourding to them they just made everything up from scratch in holland, because they descended from Conversos (Jews that where forced to convert to Xianity but kept judaism but not outwardly) the origional Spanish Nusach of rambams time was that of North Morroco, so to the few niguinim that dutch jews kept are identical to those of morroco

i dont like the dutch nusach to much, its very churchy

I meant specifically in name. 'Spanish and Portuguese'. You said they don't even speak the same language..I was wondering why the shul still had that name (I know they came from Brazil [after the Dutch were defeated]).

why wouldnt they? most of the "portuguese" jews where Spanish, but holland was in war with spain all the time so being spanish wasnt cool,so they called themselves portuguese, the jews of portugal where spanish anyway,when they where expelled from spain they went to portugal chilled for awhile untill they got expelled again and went to holland, thats why their old portuguese texts have so many mistakes a spanish speaker would make.

Got it.