Curaçao

Item

Country: IL
Name of institution (English): The Central Archives for the History of the Jewish People
Name of institution (official language of the state): הארכיון המרכזי לתולדות העם היהודי (The Central Archives for the History of the Jewish People)
Language of name of institution: heb
Contact information: postal address: Edmond J. Safra Campus, Givat Ram, Jerusalem 91010
Contact information: phone number: 00972 2-6586249
Contact information: web address: http://cahjp.nli.org.il/
Contact information: email: cahjp@nli.org.il
Reference number: CW
Type of reference number: Call number
Title (official language of the state): Curaçao
Language of title: eng
Creator / accumulator: The Central Archives for the History of the Jewish People
Date(s): 18th century/20th century
Language(s): dut; eng; spa
Extent: 126 storage units
Type of material: Photographic Images; Textual Material
Scope and content: This collection comprises materials from the Jewish community of Curaçao. Most documentation dates from the 20th century, but the section dedicated to Historical Documents includes photocopies of, for instance, commercial documents, contracts, orders, and invoices dating from the 18th century. Aside from these papers, the collection contains materials relating to the Ashkenazi Jewish Community Shaarei Tsedek and the Portuguese Jewish Community Mikveh Israel-Emanuel, including photographs of the synagogue and numbers of the monthly magazine for Jewish families in Curaçao, among other materials. Also included in the collection are 20th-century documents relating to the Moria School, the Jewish organisation B'nai B'rith, and the women's committee of Oeuvre de Secours aux Enfants in Curaçao.
Archival history: The CAHJP holds papers of numerous international, national and local organizations and over 300 private collections from the 16th to the 20th centuries from all over the world. It contains about 6,000 linear metres of documents, records and files (60,000,000 pages of documentation); 1,600 archives of communities, organizations and individuals; 18,000,000 frames of microfilmed documents; 2000 lists and inventories of documents and files concerning Jews, held in other archives; 15,000 photographs of Jewish personalities and sites; 8,000 printed statutes, reports, leaflets, posters and handbills; 1,200,000 newspaper clippings on various subjects; 15,000 books and publications on Jewish history.; (source: EHRI)
Administrative / Biographical history: The Central Archives for the History of the Jewish People (CAHJP) were established in 1939. They hold the archives of hundreds of Jewish communities, as well as of local, national and international Jewish organizations and the private collections of many outstanding Jewish personalities. The Archives now hold the most extensive collection of documents, pinkassim (registers) and other records of Jewish history from the Middle Ages to the present day. The Board of Directors is composed of representatives of the Government of Israel, The Historical Society of Israel, The Jewish Agency for Israel, The Israeli Academy of Sciences and Humanities, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Tel-Aviv University and Bar-Ilan University. On January 30 2013. The Central Archives for the History of the Jewish People and the National Library of Israel (NLI) signed an agreement to implement a merger between the Archives and the Library. By joining the Library the Archives will be able to avail themselves of the Library’s resources and facilities to gain access to more and more repositories of Jewish archival material and to make the contents of their vast holdings more available to a wider public.; (source: EHRI)
Access points: locations: Curaçao
Access points: corporate bodies: Congregation Mikvé Israel-Emanuel (Curaçao)
Access points: subject terms: Sephardim in the Caribbean; Aid and relief; Education; Financial matters; Jewish daily life and religious practices; Legal matters; Synagogues; Teaching; Trade and commerce; 18th century; 19th century
Access points: document types: Jewish community records; Drafts and copies of documents
System of arrangement: The collection is divided into four sections: 1) Communities; 2) Education / Moria School; 3) Historical Documents; and 4) Organizations. The latter is further divided into the sub-sections Various Organizations and The Women's Committee of OSE (Oeuvre de Secours aux Enfants) in Curaçao. The section Communities is divided into the sub-sections United Netherlands Portuguese Congregation Mikve Israel - Emanuel, Curaçaose Aschkenazisch Israelitische Gemeente "Shaarei Tsedek" & Club Union, and Nederl. Portugeesch Israëlietische Gemeente "Mikwé Israël" te Willemstad.
Access, restrictions: The collection can be accessed in a reading room and in rooms with microfilm readers.
Links to finding aids: Curaçao
Author of the description: Joana Rodrigues, 2023