Jewish Heritage of Malta
The Jewish Heritage of Malta: An evening exploring a beautiful island’s connection to Jewish history and culture
Proudly presented by The American Sephardi Federation and New York Jewish Travel Guide.
Evidence of Jewish history dates back to Roman times (4-5 Century) as seen at the St. Paul’s Catacomb site at Rabat, Malta, where several Jewish catacombs (pictured above) can be found alongside Christian burials.
The contemporary Maltese Jewish community is composed of immigrants from Gibraltar, England, North Africa, Portugal, and Turkey, arriving over the course of French and British rule starting in 1798. During the early 20th century, the islands Jews did not have a rabbi of their own and rabbis would often be flown in from Sicily to perform ceremonies. During World War II, Malta was the only European country not requiring visas for Jews fleeing German rule. Numerous Maltese Jews, moreover, fought Germany in the British Army during the war. Today, a small but active community of under 200 Jews live on Malta with their own synagogue and rabbis.
Featuring guest speaker Dr. John Baldacchino (Director, University of Wisconsin-Madison Arts Institute), the program will present multimedia presentations showing Jewish heritage sites in Malta in the past and present.
Jewish Heritage of Malta — An evening exploring a beautiful island’s connection to Jewish history and culture
October 23th at 6:00 pm.
Leo & Julia Forchheimer Auditorium and Paul S. & Sylvia Steinberg Great Hall
Center for Jewish History
15 w 16th St
New York NY 10011
Presented in Partnership with:
The Malta Tourism Authority
Exclusively Malta Luxury Travel, Ltd.
Corinthia Palace Hotel & Spa