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Ladino is a Romance Language , derived mainly from Old Castilian ( Spanish ), Hebrew , Turkish and some French and Greek. Speakers are currently almost exclusively Sephardic Jew s, for example, in (or from) Thessaloniki , Istanbul and Izmir . Ladino has kept the Postalveolar phonemes and of Old Spanish, which both changed to the Velar in modern Spanish; Ladino also has an phoneme taken over from Hebrew. In some places it has also retained certain characteristic words, such as ''muestro'' for ''nuestro'' (our). Its grammatical structure is close to that of Spanish , with the addition of many terms from the Hebrew , Portuguese , French , Turkish , Greek , and South Slavic languages depending on the geographic origin of the speaker. Ladino is in serious danger of extinction because many native speakers today are elderly as well as elderly olim (immigrants to Israel), who have not transmitted the language to their children or grandchildren. However, it is experiencing a minor revival among Sephardic communities, especially in music. The danger of extinction is also due to the risk of Assimilation by modern Castilian Spanish. NAME OF LANGUAGE The name "Ladino" is a variant of "Latin". The language is also called Judæo-Spanish, '''Judæo-Espagnol''', '''judeoespañol''''' Judeoespañol '' in the Diccionario De La Real Academia Española (DRAE)., '''Sefardi''', '''Djudio''', '''Dzhudezmo''', '''Judezmo''', and '''Spanyol'''; ''' Haquitía ''' (from the Arabic ''haka'' حكى, "tell") refers to the dialect of North Africa, especially Morocco . The dialect of the Oran area of Algeria was called ''' Tetuani ''', after the Moroccan town Tétouan , since many Oranais Jew s came from this city. In Hebrew, the language is called '''Spanyolit'''. According to the Ethnologue , :The name 'Dzhudezmo' is used by Jewish linguists, 'Judeo-Espanyol' or simply 'Djudio' by Turkish Jews; 'Judeo-Spanish' by Romance philologists; 'Ladino' by laymen, especially in Israel; 'Hakitia' by Moroccan Jews; 'Spanyol' by some others. The derivation of the name "Ladino" is complicated. In pre-Expulsion Spain the word simply meant "Castilian": literary Castilian as distinct from dialect, and Castilian Romance Ladino. 2nd sense in the DRAE in general as distinct from Arabic. Following the expulsion, Jews spoke of "the Ladino" to mean the traditional oral translation of the Bible into archaic Spanish. By extension it came to mean that style of Spanish generally, in the same way that (among Kurdish Jews) '', which was based on the traditional oral version. VARIANTS At the time of the expulsion from Spain, the day to day language of Spanish Jews was little if at all different from that of other Spaniards. There was however a special style used for purposes of study or translation, featuring a more archaic dialect of Spanish, a large number of Hebrew and Aramaic loan-words and a tendency to render Hebrew word order literally (''ha-laylah ha-zeh'', meaning "this night", was rendered ''la noche la esta'' instead of the normal Spanish ''esta noche''[http://www.cryptojews.com/clearing_up_ladino.htm "Clearing up Ladino, Judeo-Spanish, Sephardic Music"] Judith Cohen, HaLapid, winter 2001; Sephardic Song Judith Cohen, Midstream July/August 2003). As stated above, some authorities would confine the term "Ladino" to this style. Following the expulsion, the daily language was increasingly influenced both by the language of study and by the local non-Jewish vernaculars such as Greek and Turkish, and came to be known as ''Dzhudezmo'': in this respect the development is parallel to that of Yiddish . However, many speakers, especially among the community leaders, also had command of a more formal style nearer to the Spanish of the expulsion, referred to as ''Castellano''. The Judaeo-Spanish dialect of Northern Morocco, known as '' Haketia '', is the subject of a separate article. ORTHOGRAPHY Today, ''Ladino'' is most commonly written with the (particularly in the Netherlands and the Balkans ) during the Holocaust the greatest proportion of speakers remaining were Turkish Jews. As a result the Turkish variant of the Latin Alphabet is widely used for publications in ''Ladino''. The Israeli Autoridad Nasionala Del Ladino promotes another spelling. There are also those who, with Iacob M Hassán , claim that Ladino should adopt the orthography of the standard Spanish language. Perhaps more conservative and less popular, others along with Pablo Carvajal Valdés suggest that Ladino should adopt the orthography used during the time of the Jewish expulsion of 1492 from Spain. The orthography of that time has standardized and eventually changed by a series of reforms; it was finally changed by an Orthographic Reform in the 18th century. Ladino has retained some of the pronunciation that at the time of reforms had become archaic in standard Spanish. Adopting 15th century orthography for Ladino would bring back into existence the (originally ) - ''c'' (before ''e'' and ''i'') and ''ç''/''z'' ( Cedilla ): such in ''caça'', which was a letter of Spanish origin, the - ''ss'' : such as in ''passo'' and the - ''x'' : like in ''dixo''. The original pronunciation of - ''g'' (before ''e'' or ''i'') and ''j'' : ''mujer'', would be reestablished and the (originally ) - ''z'' : would remain in Ladino words like ''fazer'' and ''dezir''. The - ''s'' : in between vowels like in ''casa'', would regain its pronunciation under this orthography as well. Like in modern Spanish, in Ladino the /z/ - ''s'' is also present before ''m'', ''d'' and others like in ''mesmo'' or ''desde''. The distinctive Ladino - ''s'' : like in ''buscar'', ''cosquillas'', ''mascar'', ''pescar'' or after ''is'' endings like in ''séis'', ''favláis'' or ''sois'' could be reflected through writing ''x''. The difference between ''b'' and ''v'' would be clearer giving some concessions to Latin spelling, as in the case of the reflex of intervocalic ''-B-'': eg Latin ''DEBET'' > post-1800 Spanish ''debe'', will return to its Old Castilian ''deve'' spelling. The use of the digraphs ''ch'', ''ph'' and ''th'' ( today , and in standard Spanish respectively), formally reformed in 1803, would be in used in words like ''orthographía'', ''theología''. Latin ''q'' before words like ''quando'', ''quanto'' and ''qual'' would also be used. Some argue that using Old Castilian Orthography will only distance non-Hispanic characteristics about Ladino and create problems that phonetical systems solve. Nevertheless, Classical and Golden Age Spanish literature would gain renewed interest, better appreciation and understanding should its orthography be used again. PHONOLOGY The phonology of the consonants of Ladino and part of its lexicon are closer to Portuguese than to Spanish, because both retained characteristics of medieval Ibero-Romance which Spanish later lost. Compare for example Ladino ''aninda'' ("still") with Portuguese ''ainda'' and Spanish ''aún'', or the initial consonants in Ladino ''fija'', ''favla'' ("daughter", "speech"), Portuguese ''filha'', ''fala'', Spanish ''hija'', ''habla''. However, the grammar of Ladino is closer to Spanish grammar. See also Judeo-Portuguese . HISTORY During the Middle Ages, Jews were instrumental in the development of Castilian into a prestige language. Erudite Jews translated Arabic and Hebrew works (often translated earlier from Greek) into Castilian and Christians Translated Again Into Latin for transmission to Europe. Until recent times, the language was widely spoken throughout the Balkans, Turkey, the Middle East, and North Africa, having been brought there by Jewish refugees fleeing Spain following the expulsion of the Jews in 1492 . The contact among Jews of different regions and tongues (including Catalan, Leonese and Portuguese) developed a unified dialect, already different in some aspects of the Castilian norm that was forming simultaneously in Spain. The language was known as ''Yahudice'' (Jewish language) in the Ottoman Empire . In late 18th century, Enderunlu Fazıl ( Fazyl Bin Tahir Enderuni ) wrote in his '' Zenanname '': "Spaniards speak the Jewish language but they are not Jews." The common Ladino and Spanish favoured trade among Sephardim (often relatives) ranging from the Ottoman Empire to the Netherlands and the '' Converso s'' of Spain and Portugal. Over time, a corpus of literature, both liturgical and secular, developed. Early Ladino literature was limited to translations from Hebrew. At the end of the 17th century, Hebrew was disappearing as the vehicle for Rabbinic instruction. Thus a literature in the popular tongue (Ladino) appeared in the 18th century, such as Me'am Lo'ez and poetry collections. By the end of the 19th century, Sephardim in the Ottoman Empire studied in schools of the Alliance Israelite Universelle . French became the language for foreign relations (as it did for Maronite s), and ''Ladino'' drew from French for neologisms. New secular genres appeared: more than 300 journals, history, theatre, biographies. Interaction with French also gave way to the creation of a new language named ''judeo-franyol'' Given the relative isolation of many communities, a number of regional dialects of Ladino appeared, many with only limited mutual comprehensibility. This is due largely to the adoption of large numbers of Loanword s from the surrounding populations, including, depending on the location of the community, from Greek , Turkish , Arabic , and, in the Balkans , Slavic Languages , especially Bulgarian and Serbo-Croatian . Ladino was the common language of Salonika during the period of Ottoman rule. The city became part of the modern Greek Republic in 1912 and subsequently renamed to its original historical name Thessaloniki . Despite A Major Fire , economic oppression by Greek authorities, and mass settlement of Christian refugees, the language remained widely spoken in Salonika until the deportation and murder of 50,000 Salonikan Jews in The Holocaust during the Second World War . Ladino was also a language used in Donmeh ("Dönme" in Turkish meaning convert and referring to adepts of Sabbatai Tsevi converted to Moslem religion by the Ottoman empire) rites. An example is the recite ''Sabbatai Tsevi esperamos a ti''. Today, the religious practices and ritual use of Ladino seem to be confined to elderly generations. The Spanish Colonization Of Northern Africa favoured the role of polyglot Sephardim who bridged between Spanish colonizers and Arab and Berber speakers. From the seventeenth to the nineteenth centuries, Ladino was the predominant Jewish language in the Holy Land, though the dialect was different in some respects from that spoken in Greece and Turkey. Some Sephardi families have lived in Jerusalem for centuries, and preserve Ladino for cultural and folklore purposes, though they now use Hebrew in everyday life. In the twentieth century, the number of speakers declined sharply: entire communities were eradicated in The Holocaust , while the remaining speakers, many of whom migrated to Israel , adopted Hebrew . The governments of the new Nation-state s encouraged instruction in the official languages. At the same time, it aroused the interest of philologists since it conserved language and literature which existed prior to the standardisation of Spanish. Ladino is in serious danger of extinction because many native speakers today are elderly Olim (immigrants to Israel), who have not transmitted the language to their children or grandchildren. However, it is experiencing a minor revival among Sephardic communities, especially in music. In addition, Sephardic communities in several Latin American countries still use ''Ladino''. The danger of extinction is also due to the risk of assimilation by modern Castilian Spanish . '' showed an episode with references to Ladino language. Films partially or totally in Ladino include Novia Que Te Vea and Every Time We Say Goodbye . The Jewish community of Belgrade still chants part of the Sabbath Prayers in Ladino. The Sephardic Synagogue Ezra Bessaroth in Seattle, State of Washington (US) was formed by Jews from Turkey and the Island of Rhodes and they use Ladino in some portions of their Shabbat services. The Siddur is called Zehut Yosef and was written by Hazzan Isaac Azose. SONGS Folklorists have been collecting ''romances'' and other folk songs, some dating from before the expulsion. Many religious songs in Ladino are translations of the Hebrew, usually with a different tune. For example, ''Ein k'Eloheynu'' looks like this in Ladino: :Non komo muestro Dio, :Non komo muestro Sinyor, :Non komo muestro Rey, :Non komo muestro Salvador. etc. Anachronistically, Abraham - who in the Bible is the very first Jew and the ancestor of all who followed, hence his appellation "Avinu" (Our Father) - is in the Ladino song born already in the judería, the Jewish quarter. This makes Terach and his wife into Jews, as are the parents of other babies killed by Nimrod. In essence, unlike its Biblical model, the song is about a Jewish community persecuted by a cruel king and witnessing the birth of a miraculous saviour - a subject of obvious interest and attraction to the Jewish people who composed and sang it in Medieval Spain. The song attributes to Abraham elements from the story of Moses 's birth (the cruel king killing innocent babies, with the midwives ordered to kill them) and from the careers of Shadrach , Meshach , and Abednego who emerged unscathed from the fire. Nimrod is thus made to conflate the role and attributes of two archetypal cruel and persecuting kings - Nebuchadnezzar and Pharaoh . For more information, see the Nimrod page, {Link without Title} It is also suggested that the song borrows from the Christian nativity story: for example the miraculous light that signalled the birth, the birth in a manger and the massacre of the innocents. Jennifer Charles and Oren Bloedow from the New York-based band Elysian Fields released a CD in 2001 called La Mar Enfortuna, which featured modern versions of traditional Sephardic songs, many sung by Charles in Ladino. There are a number of groups in Turkey that sing in Ladino, notably ''Janet - Jak Esim Ensemble'', ''Sefarad'', ''Los Pasharos Sefaradis'', and the children's chorus ''Las Estreyikas d'Estambol''. There is Brazilian-born singer of Sepharadic origins called Fortuna that researches and plays Ladino music. Adio querida Tu madre cuando te parió Y te quitó al mundo, Coracon ella no te dió Para amar segundo. Coracon ella no te dió Para amar segundo. Adío, Adío Querida, No quero la vida, Me l'amagrates tu. Adío, Adío Querida, No quero la vida, Me l'amargates tú. Va, búxcate otro amor, Aharva otras puertas, Aspera otro ardor, Que para mi sos muerta. Aspera otro ardor, Que para mi sos muerta. Adío, Adío Querida, No quero la vida, Me l'amagrates tu. Adío, Adío Querida, No quero la vida, Me l'amargates tú. SAMPLE Ladino El djudeo-espanyol, djudio, djudezmo o ladino es la lingua favlada por los sefardim, djudios ekspulsados de la Espanya enel 1492. Es una lingua derivada del espanyol i favlada por 150.000 personas en komunitas en Israel, la Turkia, antika Yugoslavia, la Gresia, el Maruekos, Boriken, Mayorka, entre otros. Spanish El judeo-español o ladino es la lengua hablada por los sefardíes, judíos expulsados de España en 1492. Es una lengua derivada del español y hablada por 150.000 personas en comunidades en Israel, Turquía, la Antigua Yugoslavia, Grecia, Marruecos, Puerto Rico, Mallorca, entre otros. Portuguese O judeu-espanhol ou ladino é a língua falada pelos sefarditas, judeus expulsos de Espanha em 1492. É uma língua derivada do espanhol e falada por 150.000 pessoas em comunidades em Israel, na Turquia, na antiga Iugoslávia, na Grécia, em Marrocos, Porto Rico, Maiorca, entre outros. English Judeo-Spanish or Ladino is a language spoken by the Sephardim, Jews expelled from Spain in 1492. It is a language derived from Spanish and spoken by 150,000 people in communities in Israel, Turkey, the former Yugoslavia, Greece, Morocco, Puerto Rico, and Mallorca, among others. NOTES REFERENCES
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