Roma (Rome)

The Jewish community of Roma is one of the oldest in Europe and one of the oldest continuous Jewish settlement in the world. Jews were in Roma  in the second century B.C.E. and their number increased in the following centuries because of immigration and because of transportations of  prisoners of war and  slaves during the Roman-Jewish wars in Judea and in Palestine (from 63 B.C.E.  to 135 A.C.). In 70 A.C. Titus destroyed the Temple of Jerusalem. He brought many Jews to Rome as slaves, as well as the Menorah stolen from the Temple. The Jews living in Rome paid a ransom to liberate their brothers.

During those times there were tens of synagogues in town.
Jewish scholars came from Israel to Rome around the year 100 and since then Hebrew studies continued, also during the Darkest Ages
In 212 the emperor Caracalla granted the Jews the privilege of becoming Roman citizens
The condition of the Jews in Roma deteriorated with the diffusion of  Christianity, during Middle Ages and first Renaissance the condition of the Jews of Roma changed following the politics of the Pope.
After the fourth Lateran Council (1215) copies of the Talmud were burned and Jews were forced to wear a  distinctive badge (a red tabard fo the males and a red petticoat for the women).
In 1555 Pope Paul IV decreed that all Jews must be segregated into their own quarters (ghetto),  and that they were allowed to leave the Ghetto only during the daytime.
Jews were banned from most  occupations, and the only two professions permitted were money lending and selling used clothing. .
In the Ghetto there were five Synagogues: Scola Catalana, Scola Castigliana, Scola Siciliana, Scola Tempio and Scola Nova for about 5,000 Jews. 
With the unification of Italy (1870) the Jews obtained the full citizenship
During racial persecutions (1943-44) more then two thousands Jews of Roma perished the extermination camps.

Number of the Jews of Rome:

Record Repositories:

- Jewish Community
Address: Roma - Lungotevere Cenci - cap. 00186 tel. 06684006

-  Central State Archive of Roma
Address: Archivio Centrale dello Stato
Piazzale degli archivi, 40 - 00144 - Roma, tel. 06545481, 065926204, 065413620

- Roma  State  Archive
Address: Palazzo della Sapienza - Corso del Rinascimento, 40 - 00186 Roma 
Tel: 06/6819081 
Fax:06/68190871 

- Roma  Town Archive
Address: Archivio Storico Capitolino, Piazza della Chiesa Nuova, 18 - 00186 Roma 
Tel.: 06 - 67108100 
Fax: 06 - 68806639 

Resources of the 18th and the 19th  century:
List of records that can be found for the Jews of Rome:

Bibliography:

- Annie Sacerdoti, Guida al'Italia Ebraica, Marietti, Genova: 1986, English transl.  by Richard F. De Lossa, Guide to Jewish Italy, Israelowitz Publishing, Brooklyn NY: 1989.
- Sam Wagenaar, Il Ghetto sul Tevere, Mondadori, Milano 1972.
- Harry, J. Leon, The Jews of ancient Rome, The Jewish Publication Society of America, Philadelphia 1960.
- Umberto Fortis, Jews and synagogues: Venice, Florence, Rome, Leghorn; a practical guide, Edizioni Storti, Venezia 1973.
- Abraham Berliner, Storia degli Ebrei di Roma, Rusconi 1992 (orig. ed. Geschiche der Juden in Rom,  J. Kaufmann, Frankfurt a. M. 1893 )
- Attilio Milano, Il Ghetto di Roma, Carocci, Roma 1988.
- Cecil Roth, The History of the Jews of  Italy, The Jewish Publication Society of America, Philadelphia 1946.

Surnames of the Jews of Roma :
Most frequent surnames found in documents of the 16th-19th centuries:
Abbina, Abdòn, Abilio, Abucar, Achìm, Agùl, Alatri, Alatrino, Alemanno, Alfandri, Allattini, Almosnino, Amato, Ambròn, Amròn, Anaw, Angelo, Anguillara, Annuba, Anticoli, Arezzo, Ariccia, Ascarelli, Aschenazi, Ascoli, Asdriglio, Astrologo, Astrùc, Astrugo, Auron, Aversa,
Bacùr, Bararafel, Baroccio, Beth-El, Bina, Bises, Bologna, Bonaventura, Bondì, Buscichelli,
Cabibbe, Cad, Caiatte, Caivano, Calabrese, Calò, Camerino, Cammeo, Campagnano, Capuano, Caròb, Castelnovo, Catalano, Caviglia, Cazzàv, Ceprano, Cetoni, Chalfon, Chasson, Chimichi, Cimatore, Cioppetto, Citoni, Cobo, Cohen , Consarello, Corcos, Cordovano, Creti, Croccolo, Cusci,
Da Fondi, Da Sezze, Da Sora, D'Ancona, De Benedetti, De Benedetto, De' Pomis, De Ripa, De' Rossi, Degli Piattelli, Del Borgo, Del Monte, Del Rustico, Del Vecchio, Della Marca, Della Riccia, Della Ripa, Della Rocca, Della Seta, Della Torre, Delle Grotte, Dello Calò, Dello Maestro, Dello Piglio, Dello Strologo, Dello Vecchio, Di Capua, Di Cassino, Di Castro, Di Cave, Di Consiglio, Di Cori, Di Francia, Di Laudadio, Di Nepi, Di Nettuno, Di Nola, Di Palidoro, Di Porto, Di Segni, Di Sessa, Di Veroli, Di Vito,
Efrati, Esdra,
Falcon, Fano, Farchi, Farfara, Fasano, Fargion, Fattucci, Fernandes, Fernando, Fernandos Diaz, Ferro, Fianco, Fiano, Fiesolano, Figo, Finzi, Fiorentino, Fis, Fiumara, Fiz, Flach, Flah, Foà, Formello, Fornari, Fornaro, Fortunato, Franchetti, Franco, Franio, Fresco, Frosinone, Funaro, Frascati, Frias, Frosolone, Frusolone, Funaro,
Gabbai, Galante, Gallichi, Gallico, Gattegna, Gattegno, Gioiello, Gioioso, Gonzaga, Greco,
Hagghèri, Havesipeciat,
Ibn Akush, Jair, Jesi,
Lagnetto, Laniatore, Lanzano, Latis, Lattes, Leridi , Levi, Limentani, Lirici, Lodas, Lunel,
Malach, Malàchi, Manasse, Manoscrivi, Mansanellas, Mantino, Mantova, Marino, Marli, Massud, Melamèd, Menaghèn, Menashe, Mercanti, Mestrina, Miele, Milano, Misano , Modena, Modigliana, Modigliani, Modigliano, Monsanto, Montefalisco, Montegiovanni, Monteporzio, Monterotondo, Montesanto, Montopoli, Moresco, Moro, Moscato, Mursia,
Narni, Natronài, Nieto, Nissim, Norzi,
Olevano,
Pace, Padova, Padua, Palestrina, Paliano, Panzieri, Parnàs, Passapaire, Pavoncello, Perugia, Pesaro, Piazza, Piccio, Pinto, Piperno, Pisa, Pitigliano, Pizzica, Poggetti, Poggetto, Polacco, Poli, Pontecorvo, Portaleone, Provinzial, Pugliese,
Raffael, Ram , Rapa, Recanati, Reggio, Revere, Rieti, Rignano, Roccas, Rofé, Rogat, Romanelli, Romano, Rosato, Rosselli, Rossello, Rubbino, Rustico,
Sabbatello, Sadun, Salerno, Salmonì, Sarfati, Scazzocchio, Scrigno, Sed, Sereni, Sereno, Seriosi, Sermoneta, Servi, Servo, Sestieri, Sestiero, Seth, Sforno, Sicilia, Siciliano, Sonatore, Sonnino, Sorano, Spagnoletto, Spizzichino, Spoleto, Stichi,
Tagliacozzo, Tardiola, Tarmi, Tartaglia, Tedesco, Terni, Terracina, Tivoli, Toàf, Toscano, Trabotto, Trastevere, Treves, Trigo, Trionfo, Tripolese,
Usiglio, Uziel, Uzielli,
Vallabrega, Velletri, Venafro, Veneziano, Viterbo, Volterra,
Zaddìc, Zahalon, Zamatto, Zarfati, Zemat, Zevi, Zorèf

© Isetta Masliouk