Posts

TitleDateExcerpt
Why Castellano Matters in a Judeo-Spanish DictionaryJudeo-Spanish, often called Ladino, carries the history of Sephardic communities across the Mediterranean, the Balkans, North Africa, and the Middle East. Its…
The Word “Dulse” and Its Connection to Sephardic DessertsIn Judeo-Spanish, dulse carries the simple pleasure of sweetness. The word can describe a sweet taste, a sugary food, or a dessert, depending on the sentence…
How To Pronounce The Digraph “Ch” In LadinoIn Ladino, the digraph ch usually represents the sound /tʃ/, the consonant heard at the beginning of English chair and Spanish chico. It is a single sound,…
Karo: Expensive, Dear, and Its Latin HeritageThe Judeo-Spanish word karo refers to something expensive, costly, or dear in price. It belongs to a familiar layer of Ladino vocabulary that connects…
Five Ladino false friends for English speakersFive Ladino words that sound like English but mean something else can lead even experienced English speakers in the wrong direction. Ladino, or Judeo-Spanish,…
Reading Tomorrow In Ladino Verb FormsA dictionary can reveal much more than the meaning of individual words. When its entries include examples, translations, spelling variants, and etymological…
Almuerzo in Judeo-Spanish: A Word Between Breakfast and LunchIn Judeo-Spanish, or Ladino, almuerzo carries a history that reaches beyond a simple translation. Depending on the speaker, family tradition, region, and…
How Turkish Calques Shaped Ladino Compound WordsLadino, or Judeo-Spanish, developed through centuries of movement, trade, worship, and family life across the Ottoman world. Sephardic Jews carried varieties…
Kurtijo: A Courtyard and a Community in LadinoIn Judeo-Spanish, or Ladino, kurtijo evokes more than a physical place. At its most concrete, it can refer to a courtyard: an enclosed outdoor space between…
Why Ladino preserves the old Spanish Vuestra MercedLadino, or Judeo-Spanish, carries layers of Iberian history in its vocabulary, pronunciation, and forms of address. Spoken by Sephardic communities after their…