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FREE EVENT
Jewish Tour of the Balkans
Tuesday, December 17
USA 12:00 pm PT / 3:00 pm ET
UK 8:00 pm / France 9:00 pm / Israel 10:00 pm
The talk will last approximately 90 minutes
Join us for a special event exploring the Jewish history of the Balkans. You'll discover the rich past and revival of the region's Jewish communities. In the second half, Joseph will share details about the Jewish Heritage tours to the Balkans in 2025.
First Part
Join us for a virtual tour through the rich Jewish history and culture of the Balkan peninsula. Learn about the Romaniote and Ashkenazi communities who inhabited the region. We'll place particular emphasis on the Sephardic Jews of the Balkans who became the dominant Jewish community after 1492. We will highlight significant events and individuals from the Jewish history of Salonica, Sarajevo, Belgrade, Sofia, Dubrovnik, Bucharest, Zagreb, and Split. Find out about the Sephardic origins of proto-Zionism, the development of the Neo-Moorish architectural style, and the new Jewish holiday that Ottoman Sephardim invented in 1892.
Second Part
In the second part of our meeting, we will present the annual Jewish
heritage tours of the Balkans organized and led by Dr. Joseph Benatov of
the University of Pennsylvania. Next year's tour schedule includes the
following trips:
Jewish Bosnia, Croatia, Slovenia, and Trieste (Italy) – May 2025
Jewish Romania, Serbia, and Szeged (Hungary) – May 2025
Jewish Montenegro, Albania, and Corfu (Greece) – May/June 2025
Jewish Bulgaria, North Macedonia, and Greece – June 2025
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Bulgaria Gourmet: The Food & Wine Tour – June/July 2025
About Joseph
Joseph Benatov holds a Ph.D. in comparative literature from the University of Pennsylvania, where he teaches Hebrew. He is originally from Bulgaria and a member of Sofia's Jewish community. Joseph has over 15 years of experience leading travelers across the Balkans, including UNESCO representatives, 92ndStreetY visitors, JDC board members, and Anti-Defamation League officials. He lectures regularly on the history of Jewish life in Bulgaria and on Balkan Sephardic culture. Every summer Joseph leads Sephardic trips to the Balkans.