127,000 applications made for Spanish nationality
Tidal wave of requests was triggered in 2015 after Spain passed a naturalisation law to atone for the 15th century expulsion
An incredible 127,000 applications for Spanish nationality have been lodged from Jews and their descendants around the world, after a deadline expired.
The tidal wave of requests was triggered in 2015 after Spain passed a naturalisation law to atone for the 15th century expulsion or forced conversion of Sephardi Jews by Spain’s Catholic monarchs, victorious after defeating the Muslim Moors.
Until then, there were thriving Jewish communities in places such as Toledo, a major cultural centre in the Middle Ages, and in the Moorish kingdom of Al-Andalus. Jewish merchants helped the country establish trade routes and Jewish scholars made a significant impact, so the religion was tolerated in the devoutly Catholic country.
However, the Catholic conquest of Granada in 1492 led to the expulsion order, forcing thousands of Sephardi Jews abroad, subsequently settling in places such as North Africa, the Balkans, Turkey and Latin America.
Since 2015 applicants, many of whom currently live in Central and South America, have had to prove a family connection to medieval Spain and get their Sephardi origins certified by a solicitor in Spain. Portugal recently initiated a similar scheme.
Before 2015, Sephardi Jews needed to show two years’ residence in Spain before requesting Spanish nationality, or get a special government dispensation, and often had to give up their existing nationality to become Spanish.
“The majority [of applicants] who want to benefit from a Spanish passport are young people, between 25 and 35 years old, almost all professionals,” said Colombian genealogist Rocío Sánchez, speaking to AFP.
Applicant Ángel Calderón, an Argentinian Sephardi Jew living in the Colombian capital of Bogotá, praised the Spanish king for reaching out to the descendants of Jews forced to leave more than half a millennium ago.
“The fact King Felipe of Spain tells us face to face how much they wronged us, and that we are welcome home – this is something that heals, or seeks to repair the harm caused by a historical injustice,” he said.
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
