Italy
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)
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
Contact information: email
cahjp@nli.org.il
Reference number
IT
Type of reference number
Call number
Title (official language of the state)
Italy
Language of title
ita
Creator / accumulator
The Central Archives for the History of the Jewish People
Date note
13th century/20th century
Language(s)
heb
ita
Extent
ca. 6000 files.
Type of material
Textual Material
Scope and content
This collection comprises original material, microfilms, photocopies, lists and records concerning the history of Jews and Jewish communities in the Italian Peninsula from the 13th to the 20th centuries. Ancona, Ferrara, Florence, Fiume (Rijeka), Gorizia, Mantua, Milan, Modena, Padua, Parma, Roma, San Nicandro, Siena, Trieste, Venice are some of the Italian cities and regions represented in this collection.
In the archives of Northern and Central Italy special attention was given to vast series of local governments and public notaries in the late medieval period, concerning the activities of Jewish bankers who formed the nuclei of the Jewish settlements. Inventories, records and microfilms of archival material from numerous state archives, libraries, notarial archives, ecclesiastic archives, such as the state archives in Florence, Gorizia, Modena, Perugia, Pisa, Siena, Trieste, Udine and Verona; Biblioteca Ariostea (Ferrara) and Biblioteca Marciana (Venice).
The collection also includes microfilmed copies of selected files in Jewish community archives, such as Ancona, Ferrara, Florence, Livorno, Mantua, Modena, Padua, Pisa, Roma and Siena; documents (original or microfilmed) of Italian Jewish organizations, such as the Unione delle Comunità Israelitiche Italiane, the Alliance Israélite Universelle of Northern Italy and the Comitato Italiano di Assistenza agli Emigranti Ebrei; the archives of Irgun Olei Italia in Israel; and private and family papers of Italian Jews, mainly relating to the 19th and 20th centuries.
In the archives of Northern and Central Italy special attention was given to vast series of local governments and public notaries in the late medieval period, concerning the activities of Jewish bankers who formed the nuclei of the Jewish settlements. Inventories, records and microfilms of archival material from numerous state archives, libraries, notarial archives, ecclesiastic archives, such as the state archives in Florence, Gorizia, Modena, Perugia, Pisa, Siena, Trieste, Udine and Verona; Biblioteca Ariostea (Ferrara) and Biblioteca Marciana (Venice).
The collection also includes microfilmed copies of selected files in Jewish community archives, such as Ancona, Ferrara, Florence, Livorno, Mantua, Modena, Padua, Pisa, Roma and Siena; documents (original or microfilmed) of Italian Jewish organizations, such as the Unione delle Comunità Israelitiche Italiane, the Alliance Israélite Universelle of Northern Italy and the Comitato Italiano di Assistenza agli Emigranti Ebrei; the archives of Irgun Olei Italia in Israel; and private and family papers of Italian Jews, mainly relating to the 19th and 20th centuries.
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.
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.
Access points: locations
Access points: subject terms
Access points: document types
System of arrangement
This collection is divided into two subcollections: 1) Italy - Organizations; and 2) Italy - Communities. Each subcollection is divided according to organizations and cities/regions.
Access, restrictions
The collection can be accessed in the reading room and in rooms with microfilm readers.
Links to finding aids
Author of the description
Carla Vieira, 2023
Linked resources
Filter by property
| Title | Alternate label | Class |
|---|---|---|
| הארכיון המרכזי לתולדות העם היהודי (The Central Archives for the History of the Jewish People) | Collections (official language of the state) |