More than a language, a travel agency: Ideology and performance in the Israeli Judeo -Spanish revitalization movement

Abstract

The language of Sephardic Jews for centuries, Judeo-Spanish is no longer transmitted to younger generations. After decades of discouraging the use of languages other than Hebrew, the Israeli government has changed its stance toward minority Jewish languages and now actively encourages their maintenance. Recent Judeo-Spanish revitalization efforts in Israel center around language classes, musical performance and storytelling events. This dissertation explores language ideologies among speakers of Judeo-Spanish by focusing on activities in which the language and performance of its verbal art play a central role and, in turn, by situating these ideologies against the backdrop of Israeli nationalism and the revitalization of Hebrew. Whereas many Sephardic Jews, as children, associated Judeo-Spanish with shame, through participating in these activities, their feelings have shifted to nostalgia and pride. Rather than merely viewing these activities as a way of bringing them back to the past, participants are now looking for ways to make room for Judeo-Spanish in the present and the future.