The Cassorlas and related clans of Monastir

Dedication & Overview
Detailed CONTENTS

  CASSORLA FAMILIES
Elias Cassorla
Jeoshua Cassorla
Red Cassorla
Babe Cassorla
Moïse Cassorla

  RELATED FAMILIES
Rahamim Calderón
Menachem Aroesty
Baker Family

  RESOURCES
Family Recipes
Sephardic Resources

  MEMORIAL
Memorial Calendar
Lost in the Shoah

  PLACES
Monastir
Cazorla, the place

Notes, annotations
Languages

Copyright ©1996, 1997ce by Elie Cassorla (Eliyahu ben haRav Moshe v'Leah).

All rights reserved. Permission is granted for individual use and reproduction provided that this document remains intact, with this copyright message clearly visible. Reproduction for commercial use prohibited.

Send comments or suggestions to Elie Cassorla.

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Space for this site graciously provided by The Valdosta Connection. For more information about this On-Ramp to the Information Super-Highway, contact Rabbi Haim Cassorla, fijo de Moshe, nieto de Haham Bohor Haim Cassorla. . . rabbi@www.valuu.net

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Notes and annotations

1. Markers. The lists of descendants are marked with various symbols, enclosed in square braces [ ]. The meanings of those markings are listed below.
   1. [*] Those marked with an asterisk were born in Monastir.
   2. [Rabbi] Many members of these families have achieved the distinction of being rabbis. They are so noted.
   3. [Titles, degrees and ranks] Are included as we learn about them.
   4. [??] Designates an unknown name. If one part of the name is known, it is shown, and the placeholder appears to mark the unknown part.
   5. Indicates an e-mail capable person. If you click on the icon, and your browser allows e-mail, you may communicate with the person.
   6. The traditional "zayin lamed" abbreviation for the Hebrew words "zichronó liv'rachá," meaning "of blessed memory" marks those known to be deceased.
      If you hover your mouse cursor over this icon, it will reveal the año of the person, if known.
2. Names.
   1. Sol is a female name in Ladino. The list is not coded for gender.
   2. The names follow a pattern. It was the tradition to name a first son for the paternal grandfather, the second son for the maternal grandfather. This pattern was followed, in the Sefardi minhag even if the namesake was still alive. This practice is one of the many ways in which Sefaradí custom and tradition differ from the Ashkenazim.
   3. I've tried to show people's names in as many different ways as they were known. For some entries, there is a name in English, a nickname, a Ladino name, a transliterated Hebrew name, and maybe one or more additional names by which they were known in the family--in one or more languages.
3. "It runs in the family."
   1. [T] or Twins seem to "run in the family" for some branches.
   2. [R] Red-headedness also seems to "run in the family" for some branches. Reflecting this attribute, one Cassorla family in Rochester was known as the red Cassorlas, to distinguish them from other Cassorlas in conversation. Information about this genetically transmitted attribute can easily die out, since the hair color changes as we age. If you know more about this, please pass it along. In the meantime, I've begun to code the list with [R] for those known to have this distinctive family characteristic. In some cases, red-heads (called royos in Ladino) married into the family, also.
   3. [FMF] Familial Mediterranean Fever (a hereditary affliction among Sefaradim) has been diagnosed and confirmed in some branches. Occurrences are not shown here, but will be added if family members want to include that information.
4. Dates.
   1. CE and ce mean the Common Era or the Christian Era, to distinguish from Hebrew year dates.
   2. At this point, most dates are omitted. We would like to develop a consensus of what data people feel comfortable publishing on the net. It's probably a good idea to have a record of birth and death dates, so that años can be properly observed. But if you would rather have this information in a restricted access section, that would be OK.

5. Variations and quirky spellings.

   In order to get as many hits as possible from people searching the Web for information, we are using as many different spelling variants for non-English words as possible.

Familial Mediterranean Fever

• Familial Mediterranean Fever (also called periodic peritonitis and familial recurring polyserositis) is an inherited disorder which occurs primarily in Sephardic Jews, Arabs and Armenians. FMF presents with recurrent serositis (inflammation of peritoneal membrane), high fever, abdominal tenderness, and what looks like "surgical abdomen" (rigid, board-like abdomen). Inflammation can also occur in heart and lungs as well.

  One of my colleagues (Professor Eldad Ben-Chetrit) is one of the leading experts in the world on FMF but Eldad, unfortunately, doesn't have Internet access. I know that their group has been investigating antibodies in FMF and that this may eventually lead to faster diagnosis (and prevent unnecessary surgical laparotomies).

  I think the drug of choice for FMF is still colchicine.

The Language(s) of the Monastirlis

The Spanish language of the Sefaradim is known to modern linguists as Ladino, or to non-Sefaradim as Judeo-Spanish. Among us it was always called simply, Spañol, or sometimes judesmo. The Spañol of the Monastirlis has pronunciation, grammatical and syntactic peculiarities which point to a very early, relatively "pure" connection to pre-Expulsion Spanish. It was the vernacular language used amongst the Spañoles of Monastir in trade, in the marketplace, and in all cultural interchange. But Monastir was a vital link in the local trade of the region, and attracted Spanish Jews from all over the region. Many of them sojourned for a time in other countries before settling there. In consequence, the Ladino spoken in Monastir was also rich with borrowed words from Turkish, Greek and Italian. Examples are the almost universal use of Papú and Nonna to address grandparents.