Ancient Jewish Communities in Macedonia, Thrace and Upper Epirus

Autor: Asher Ovadiah
Jazyk: Spanish; Castilian
Rok vydání: 2015
Předmět:
Zdroj: Gerión, Vol 33, Iss 0, Pp 211-227 (2015)
Druh dokumentu: article
ISSN: 0213-0181
1988-3080
89721144
DOI: 10.5209/rev_GERI.2015.v33.50980
Popis: Literary, epigraphic and archaeological-architectural evidence attest to the existence of Jewish communities in Macedonia, Thrace and Upper Epirus (nowadays Albania) during the Roman and early Byzantine periods. The Acts of the Apostles mention Jewish communities and their synagogues in Philippi, Thessaloniki and Verroia in Macedonia. The discovery of Greek inscriptions at Bizye (in Thrace), in Thessaloniki, in Dion and in the ancient synagogue at Stobi, suggests that these communities had preserved their religious independence and enjoyed a secure social, economic and cultural status. An ancient Jewish tomb found in Thessaloniki, decorated with a menorah, and the synagogue of Claudius Tiberius Polycharmos at Stobi and that in Saranda (Upper Epirus), add archaeological-architectural evidence to the literary sources. Although the literary sources, the epigraphic evidence and the archaeological- architectural finds are relatively scant, it would seem that other Jewish communities too existed in these regions and in other parts of the Balkan peninsula.
Databáze: Directory of Open Access Journals