The first of a series of six lectures entitled The Sephardi Studies Series "Sephardi: The Evolution of An Identity" premiered Sept. 24. The lectures, according to Prof. Jonathon Decter (NEJS), were geared toward not only faculty and students but also to people of Sephardic descent who live in Boston. The first lecture, given by Decter, dealt with Sephardic Jews in the middle Ages. Decter said one a main goal of his lecture was the clarification of the term "Sephardic."

"It is hard to find a definition for Sephardic Jews," Decter said. "The actual word, Sephardic, was originally used to refer to Jews from the Iberian Peninsula, but now the term 'Sephardi' is sometimes used to include Jews from the Middle East, more generally whether or not they are of Spanish descent; rather than trying to give the term 'Sephardi' a single definition, the lectures are designed to show how Sephardi identity evolved over time, how Jews who call themselves 'Sephardi' perceive themselves."

The lecture dealt mostly with "Sephardic art in North Africa, especially Morocco," Decter said. It focused on the "interplay of contemporary Jewish and non-Jewish art."

The second lecturer was Dr. Vivian Mann. Mann, who worked as a research fellow at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, received her Ph.D. in medieval Art from the Institute of Fine Arts at New York University. She currently holds the Morris and Eva Feld Chair in Judaica at the Jewish Museum in New York City.

In her introduction, Mann said that she would discuss how "Sephardic Jews clung to their customs well after their expulsion from Spain," in 1492. The continuity of Sephardic culture outside of Spain is evident in the rituals as well as the ceremonies of Jews who trace their lineage to Spain, she said.

"Practices that were originally Sephardic can be witnessed in the rituals" of Jews throughout the world whose families were once from Spain, Mann added.

Throughout the lecture, Mann pointed to many items that were used in Jewish ritual in the Ottoman Empire and Italy and the characteristics they possessed that were distinguishably Spanish.

An instance of the pervasiveness of Sephardic ritual throughout the Ottoman Empire and Italy was captured in the depictions of Jewish marriage contracts.

"The Catuva (Jewish marriage certificate) is a live document. Therefore, it was very decorated to prevent any tampering or changes being made to the text," Mann said.

Ornamentation on Jewish marriage documents is a trait that is unique to Sephardic culture. "There were no decorated catuvot in Venice before the coming of Sephardic Jews," Mann said.

Decter said he hoped that "the lectures provided those who are interested in learning about Sephardic Jews a rare opportunity to hear from some outstanding scholars in this exciting field."

The lectures were also meant to illuminate the genuine meaning of the word Sephardic and eliminate some misconceptions about the culture.

"Many people understand 'Sephardi Jew' simply as the flip-side 'Ashkenazi,' as a convenient way to designate Jews who are not from Europe," Dector said. "Such a definition fails to recognize the many shades of nuance within the non-Ashkenazi world. Jews of Sephardic descent have not only lived in Arabic speaking countries but have been dispersed throughout the world in such places as the Netherlands and the Americas, for example."

Michael Hellmann 06' who attended the lecture said that he enjoyed it and gained a lot of new information.

"I learned a lot about Sephardic culture and ritual in general that I didn't know before," said Hellmann. "It's wonderful that there are so many opportunities like this here at Brandeis to learn about Jewish culture.