About this talk

Although the existence of the Jewish community in Izmir dates back to ancient times, the massive Jewish migration from Spain reached the Ottoman lands in the late 15th century. Settling in the port area of Izmir since the late 16th century, Jews created a strong community and established the Old Jewish Quarter. The Izmir Jewish community, which had a meaningful religious and cultural influence on the Jewish world in the 17th and 18th centuries, played an important role in Izmir's development, creating many tangible and intangible cultural assets. Some of these have survived until the present day and constitute the basis for the Izmir Jewish Cultural Heritage Project.

In this meeting, we shall review the goals and achievements of the Izmir Jewish Cultural Heritage Project which has been institutionally implemented since 2010.

About Nesim

Born and raised in Izmir, Turkey, Nesim Bencoya migrated to Israel where he studied sociology and dealt in informal education. At a certain stage, as a result of his growing interest in cinema, he became the Director of Haifa Cinematheque until his return to his hometown, in 2010.

With his homecoming, he mainly dedicated himself to the preservation of the local Jewish heritage. As the coordinator of the "Izmir Jewish Cultural Heritage Project ", within the framework of his responsibilities, he initiated and led works of restoration, conservation, and preservation of tangible and intangible heritage with the goal of establishing a Jewish Cultural Heritage Quarter.

In 2018, he founded the "Izmir Sephardic Culture Festival", adding another layer to the preservation of the City's Jewish Cultural Heritage and its promotion within the general society.