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Reggio di Calabria

REGGIO DI CALABRIA, city in S. Italy. The first Jewish settlement in Reggio can probably be traced back to the fourth century, but the earliest documents mentioning its presence date from 1127. The Jewish colony's main occupations were dyeing and dealing in wool and silk. On Feb. 17, 1475, the first dated Hebrew printed book (see *Incunabula), Rashi's commentary on the Pentateuch, was issued there by Abraham b. Garton b. *Isaac. In 1492–93 many Jewish refugees from Sicily, Sardinia, and Spain, including the whole Syracuse community, took refuge in Reggio. After Calabria had passed under Spanish rule, the Jews were banished from the town (July 25, 1511), leaving the sale of their property to trustees.

BIBLIOGRAPHY:

Milano, Bibliotheca, index; Spanò-Bolani, in: Archivio storico per le provincie napoletane, 6 (1881), 336–46; Cotroneo, in: Rivista storica calabrese, 11 (1903), 390–418; N. Ferorelli, Ebrei nell' Italia meridionale… (1915), passim.


Sources: Encyclopaedia Judaica. © 2007 The Gale Group. All Rights Reserved.