What is Ladino?
Ladino is a language that evolved by Sephardic Jews who were expelled from Spain by King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella in 1492. These Jews took their language and traditions with them into Europe, the Mediterranean and eventually the New World. My maternal family side were expelled from Spain and settled in Macedonia and Greece (grandmother’s side) and the Nuevo Leon, Mexico (grandfather’s side). Ladino is an integral part of my Jewish DNA and many of my family traditions are sung in Ladino.
Ladino is a UNESCO endangered language. The last generation of native Ladino speakers were born in the 1940s. Once they pass, Ladino will die if it is not passed on to the next generation.
[Photo: My maternal great-grandmother, Hannah Carmi whose family was from Macedonia. She spoke five languages, including Ladino.]
Ladino Awareness: Sharing it with Peers
In the Spring of 2022, my brother and I created an exhibition at our high school to bring awareness about (1) What Ladino is (2) How it evolved (3) Why it is in endangered (4) How it was written in Solitreo cursive script.
We added a sign up sheet to see who would be interested in learning more about the language and its history and many students signed up!
Most of my friends knew what Yiddish was, but many of them knew nothing about Ladino or had never heard of the language. Part of the exhibition included a section on ‘Yiddish vs. Ladino’ and described the similarities and disparities between the two languages.
Bivas.org and The Ladino High School Club of America
Our original goal was just to build a local club at our high school, but it eventually turned into a national club with six chapters! After working to build the club locally, we were contacted by Ethan Marcus at the Sephardic Brotherhood of America – one of the oldest Sephardic organizations in the United States which supports Sephardic and Ladino programs nationally. With the support and the funding of the Brotherhood, we have been able to run numerous shabbatons, programs and Ladino clubs all over the country. The club has received a lot of press this past year with features in Tablet Magazine, Hadassah magazine and it was featured on the front of the Sephardic Brotherhood quarterly. More information about the club and its activities can be found at the website Bivas.org.
Creating the Ladino High School of America has taught me about community, family and the importance of shared experiences. It has also reinforced for myself, and many of my peers, important Jewish values and traditions.
- Tablet Magazine: Ramping Up Sephardic Education
- Hadassah Magazine: Ladino is on the Brink of Extinction
What’s Next? The future of Sephardic-Ladino Jewry
Our club is almost two years old. Last year we had an online Ladino course for teens taught by Aaron Shapiro as well as boreka bakes, movie nights, Fruiticas events (Tu Be’shvat seder) and other programming. Bivas has two yearly shabbatons where teens are taught Ladino songs, holiday traditions, Sephardic based Torah teachings as well as Sephardic baking.
Click here to view our 12-page Year In Review
My brother is currently the president of the club and when he graduates the torch will pass to another student to lead the next generation of teens. We are also hoping also to create a post high school program in the coming years.
