Amsterdam: Jewish Culture - Period 2

Amsterdam developed into the largest Jewish metropolis of Europe in the eighteenth century. The image of Amsterdam as a 'Jewish City' - Mokum - has since become strongly connected to the city's identity. This interdisciplinary course will study when and how this image took root and in how far this reflected the historical development of the city's Jewish communities. The course will focus on (1) the Sephardi 'Portuguese Nation': the Iberian conversos who settled in Amsterdam around 1600, converted to Judaism and constructed a complex identity; (2) the Ashkenazi ?High German Nation?: the quickly developing migrant community of Central and East European Jews; (3) processes of segregation, concentration and integration; (4) construction of Jewish spaces and places in the city; (5) transnational connections through European, trans-Atlantic and colonial networks; (6) the impact of the Holocaust and the reconstruction of postwar Jewish life in the neighbourhoods of Buitenveldert and Amstelveen. Excursions and visits to Jewish heritage institutions are part of the program.

Contact hours listed under a course description may vary due to the combination of lecture-based and independent work required for each course therefore, CEA's recommended credits are based on the ECTS credits assigned by VU Amsterdam. 1 ECTS equals 28 contact hours assigned by VU Amsterdam.